FAIRANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks hockey team will be well represented this summer at four different National Hockey League development camps, as two current and one former Nanook will be participating in their respected camps in early July.
Redshirt-junior-to-be
Justin Woods will open camp with the Winnipeg Jets July 3-7 at the MTS Iceplex, while sophomore-to-be
Nikolas Koberstein will participate with the franchise that drafted him, the Montreal Canadiens from July 3-7 at the Bell Sports Complex. Former Nanook captain
Tyler Morley will be with the Anaheim Ducks development camp from July 1-4 at the Anaheim ICE rink, the organization he signed with as a free agent following the conclusion of the 2015-16 season.
Woods, who returned to the ice for the 2015-16 season after successfully defeating bone cancer, was recently named the Western Collegiate Hockey Association's top moment of the season. The Fairbanks native appeared in 34 games on the blueline, recording five goals and four assists for nine points. Most notably, Woods scored the game-winning goal on Mar. 5 against in-state rival Alaska-Anchorage to send the Nanooks to the WCHA playoffs for the second time in program history since joining the conference in fall of 2013.
Woods was invited to the Winnipeg Jets camp during the summer of 2014 but was unable to attend due to his cancer treatment. The team has since been interested in the defenseman, as he finally makes his way to Manitoba this week. Woods will be one of 11 defenseman at the Jets' development camp, with all practices open to the public.
Koberstein will participate in his third-straight NHL development camp with the Canadiens after being selected in the fifth round of the NHL Entry Draft by Montreal in the summer of 2014. Koberstein concluded his rookie season with the Nanooks last winter, appearing in 23 games and collecting one goal and one assist for two points. The Barrhead, Alberta native is only one of three Alaska rookies to have a multi-point game this past season.
Montreal's development camp will be held in Brossard, Quebec outside of Montreal, with all practices open to the public. Koberstein will be one of 16 defensemen at the camp and one of 23 Montreal's draftees.
T. Morley, one of the Nanooks' most decorated forwards in recent history, will head back to California to participate in the Ducks' development camp after spending the spring season with Anaheim's AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. This past season, T. Morley was named to the All-WCHA First Team for the second season in a row and left Alaska tied for 17
th on the Nanooks' All-Time Leading Scorers list. T. Morley appeared in 29 games, tallying 18 goals and 12 assists for 30 points – leading the WCHA in goals per games played (0.59), shots on goal per games played (3.85) and points per games played (1.04).
The Burnaby, British Columbia native appeared in two games for the Gulls this past spring, recording one goal and one assist for two points. This will be the second-straight summer of T. Morley attending an NHL development camp, as the centerman participated in the Winnipeg Jets development camp last summer. T. Morley is one of 20 forwards attending the Ducks' camp and one of 11 skaters who played in the NCAA last season.
The scheduled training regimen for all three camps includes a variety of on- and off-ice training and testing including: dry-land workouts, on-ice fundamentals work, video sessions, media and nutrition education and team-building activities. Along with daily weight and aerobic training, each player will be tested for strength thresholds, range of movement and aerobic capacity.
The Alaska Nanooks are aware of one more former player who will also be attending a NHL development camp that has not been released yet by the organization. The Nanooks will release the information following the organization's announcement.
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