FAIRBANKS- Are you ready for some hockey? The Alaska Nanooks hockey team hosts its annual Blue/Gold game Saturday night at 7:07 in the Patty Center Ice Arena. The event is more than just an intra-squad scrimmage, as the evening includes several on-ice skills competitions.
Watch the event hereThe team will be split into a pair of squads that will play two halves under a 25-minute running clock. Head hockey coach
Dallas Ferguson says the scrimmage portion of the event is designed to evaluate where the team is at after the first week of practice.
"Next week we have to get a lineup together so we're certainly evaluating our players and understanding how we need to play," Ferguson said. "It's the first chance for our fans to come out and see our new and returning players, so it's a nice way to kick off our season."
In between halves, players will participate in hardest shot and fastest player competitions, as well as the shootout challenge. Senior defenseman
Nolan Kaiser will look to defend his hardest shot crown, after blasting a 102 MPH clapper to win the title in 2013. Fellow senior
Nolan Youngmun will be on the ice to defend his 2013 fastest skater title. Senior
Sean Cahill and sophomore
Davis Jones each stopped 7 shots in the shootout competition last season.
As per tradition, guest coaches will staff the benches for both squads. Lt. Col Michael R. Braun of Fort Wainwright will join UA Vice President for Academic Affairs Dana Thomas as Gold team coaches. Sgt. 1
st Class Rick Carlson, also of Fort Wainwright, teams with UAF School of Management professor Craig Wisen, Ph.D., CFA on the Team Blue bench.
"It's a way to bring some people from the community closer to the program and have them see what it's like in the trenches." Ferguson said.
The night concludes with a "Skate with the Nanooks" event, where the community is welcomed onto the ice to get autographs and skate with their favorite player in blue and gold.
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