Box Score Photo Gallery
Cahill Honored in Locker Room
Game-Tying Goal in the Third
Ferguson Post-Game Interview
Players Post-Game Interviews
ANCHORAGE – Alaska found itself two goals down in the third period of game two of the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup but the first forward line accounted for three consecutive goals, including the game winner with 2:47 remaining, to rally past Alaska Anchorage for a 5-4 Western Collegiate Hockey Association victory Saturday night at Sullivan Arena.
With the victory, the Nanooks (6-8-2, 3-7-0 WCHA) ended their five-game losing streak and tied the Seawolves (7-7-2, 4-6-2 WCHA) at 1-1 in the Governor's Cup series. It was the first loss at home this season for UAA, as it dropped to 6-1-1 at the Sully.
Senior left wing
Colton Beck (Langley, British Columbia/Business Administration) led all players with two goals and one assist, which included the game-tying goal and a helper on the game-winning tally, while senior center
Cody Kunyk (Sherwood Park, Alberta/Business Administration) had the game-winning score, along with two assists.
Freshman right wing
Marcus Basara (Port Moody, British Columbia/Business Administration) had one goal and one assist while sophomore
Matthew Friese (Wasilla, Alaska/Business Administration) notched his second-career multi-point night with a pair of assists. Alaska's other goal was scored by sophomore right wing
Alec Hajdukovich (Fairbanks, Alaska/Business Administration), who found the net for the first time as a collegian and according to a teammate, it was his first goal in 579 days, dating back to his final season as a junior with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs.
Junior goaltender
Sean Cahill (Calgary, Alberta/Business Administration) was selected as the Era Alaska Nanook of the Game after making sensational saves all night long – 29 in all – to pick up his first win of the season to improve to 1-2-0 between the pipes.
The Nanooks were outshot 33-20 due in large part to being on numerous penalty kills, but the Seawolves were only able to account for two scores on eight man advantages, including 0-for-3 on 5-on-3 opportunities.
Blake Tatchell and
Scott Allen both scored one goal and had an assist in the loss for UAA while
Rob Gunderson made just 15 stops on 20 shots to fall to 5-5-1 on the year.
Beck opened the scoring just over two minutes into the game. Senior defenseman
Michael Quinn (Surrey, British Columbia/Geography) dished the puck off to an open Beck at the edge of the face-off circle and he fired a shot that beat Gunderson five-hole at 2:03 to put the Nanooks up 1-0.
The lead extended to 2-0 at 3:40 with the first collegiate goal by Hajdukovich. In the neutral zone, Hajdukovich forced a turnover into the offensive zone where Friese collected it and gave it right back to the Fairbanks native who crashed the net and knocked it in stick side off the pass.
UAA cut it to 2-1 at 9:42 with a broken play out in front. After Cahill made a save on an
Austin Coldwell shot, a pair of Nanooks tried to clear it but Tatchell was there in the crease to intercept it and tap it in for the score.
The Seawolves tied it at 2-2 at the 7:03 point of the second period. Seconds after the Nanooks successfully killed off a two-man penalty kill,
Chase Van Allen had a shot saved from the slot but
Andrew Pettitt was there to knock in the rebound to make the game anew.
UAA struck twice only 37 seconds apart early in the third to go up 4-2. On the power play, Allen took a wrister that bounced in the low slot past Cahill to give the 'Wolves their first lead of the night at 2:57. They scored at 3:30 to make it a two-goal game when
Blake Leask buried his shot after receiving the puck through two defenders at the crease.
The Nanooks responded 49 seconds later at 4:19 with their first goal in over 40 minutes. Sophomore defenseman
Colton Parayko (St. Albert, Alberta/Business Administration) took the puck in the offensive zone and dished it to a wide-open Basara who beat Gunderson all alone for his seventh tally of the year.
Alaska tied the game at 4-4 at 12:05 with arguably the best-looking goal of the season. Kunyk brought the puck across the blue line and used great deking moves through multiple defenders and dished it off to Beck who fired a one-timer from the left circle for the score to ignite the Nanook faithful who made the trip to Anchorage.
With time winding down, Beck controlled the puck in the offensive zone. He passed it to Basara in the right corner, who dished it out in front with a centering pass to Kunyk and he went top shelf over Gunderson to clinch the game and also earn two big points in the WCHA standings.
The Nanooks will close the 2013 calendar year next weekend, Dec. 13-14, with a road series at league foe Bemidji State. The puck drops at 7:37 p.m. (CST) Friday and 7:07 p.m. (CST) Saturday.
