Friday's Game Notes
Saturday's Game Notes
FAIRBANKS – Winner of four straight games, Alaska begins its final home stand of the regular season this weekend when it hosts league-leading and fourth-ranked Ferris State for a pair of Western Collegiate Hockey Association games, Feb. 28 – March 1.
The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. AST on Friday and Saturday from the Carlson Center (4,595). Both games can be seen on WCHA TV and listened to on ESPN Radio 820 AM KCBF or online at 820sports.com.
On Friday, all military personnel and their families will be admitted free of charge as part of Alaska's military appreciation initiative.
The Nanooks are coming off their second bye in three weeks and completed the road portion of their schedule with a sweep at Michigan Tech a couple weeks back to improve to 14-12-4 overall and 11-11-2 in the WCHA.
The Nanooks sit tied for fifth in the league standings with 24 points while the Bulldogs enter with the best overall and conference mark at 23-7-3 and 18-4-2, as they have 38 points and are guaranteed to finish in no worse than second place.
Earlier this season, FSU used a pair of early leads to sweep Alaska by scores of 5-3 and 4-3 in Big Rapids, Mich. The Bulldogs hold a narrow 31-30-4 lead in the all-time series but the Nanooks control home ice, with a 21-9-1 record in Fairbanks.
Prior to its final bye of the year, Alaska made the most of its final road trip with dominating 7-3 and 7-2 victories at Michigan Tech, Feb. 14-15, in Houghton, Mich. It was the program's first-ever WCHA road sweep as it scored the most goals in a single weekend in 11 seasons and the most on the road in 12 seasons.
Sophomore
Nolan Huysmans (Ponoka, Alberta/Business Administration) and junior
Sean Cahill (Calgary, Alberta/Business Administration) were both honored as WCHA Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week after leading the Nanooks to their second straight series sweep.
Huysmans led the WCHA with seven points on two goals and five assists while Cahill made 41 saves and allowed just five goals to win his fourth straight outing and improve to 6-3-1 on the year. It was the first weekly conference accolade in both of their respective careers.
Senior captain
Colton Beck (Langley, British Columbia/Business Administration) and sophomore
Tyler Morley (Burnaby, British Columbia/Business Administration) both accrued five points with two goals and three assists each while senior assistant captain
Cody Kunyk (Sherwood Park, Alberta/Business Administration) had a pair of goals and assists for four points.
Kunyk sits tied for 14th on the program's all-time scoring list with 125 points on 55 goals and 70 assists. Kunyk is the WCHA's third-leading scorer with 35 points on 17 goals and 18 assists. His goal total ranks second and assist total is fifth.
Beck is fifth in scoring with 31 points as he leads the team with 20 assists, which is third in the WCHA. Beck also has 93 career points. Sophomore
Colton Parayko (St. Albert, Alberta/Business Administration) leads WCHA defensemen with 22 points (4-18--22) while freshman
Marcus Basara (Port Moody, British Columbia/Business Administration) is fourth among rookies with 20 points (11-9--20).
This weekend's series will showcase the league's top-two scoring teams as Alaska is No. 1 with 3.37 goals per game (101) while Ferris is No. 2 with 3.36 per outing (111).The Bulldogs are also tops in scoring defense with 2.15 while the Nanooks are in the middle of the pack. Alaska has the second-best power-play unit with a 20 percent success rate and both Ferris and Alaska are in the top four on the penalty kill.
Scouting Ferris State:
The Bulldogs enter this weekend's series with a 23-7-3 overall record and sit atop the WCHA standings at 18-4-2 with four games left to play. Having already clinched a home playoff series, FSU is coming off a sweep at home against Alaska Anchorage by scores of 4-2 and 5-3.
FSU is led by
Justin Buzzeo, who boasts a team-best 27 points on 11 goals and 16 assists, and
Garrett Thompson, who has 26 points on a team-high 14 goals and 12 helpers.
Jason Binkley has a program-best 18 assists while
Chad McDonald leads the league with four shorthanded points.
Rookie
Kyle Schempp is the WCHA's second-leading freshman scorer with 22 points (7-15--22) while McDonald has 18 points (9-9-18).
C.J. Motte leads the WCHA with a 22-5-3 record between the pipes and is second with a 2.22 goals against average and a .928 save percentage.
Ferris is second to Alaska in scoring with 3.36 goals per game and has the No. 1 scoring defense, allowing just 2.15 goals per outing. The Bulldogs are 10-5-2 on the road but have lost four of the last six away from Big Rapids.
Important Links for this weekend's series:
Live Stats:
alaskananooks.com
Live Audio:
ESPN Radio 820 AM KCBF
Live Video:
America One Sports (WCHA TV)
