ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks hockey team will play their final two games of 2017 this weekend, taking on in-state rival Alaska Anchorage in a two-game Western Collegiate Hockey Association series this Friday, Dec. 8 and Saturday, Dec. 9 at the Sullivan Arena. Both games will count toward the coveted Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup and are scheduled to start at 7:07pm AKST.
WHERE TO WATCH & LISTEN
Fans who cannot make this weekend's games in Anchorage can stream the games live on WCHA.tv, as well as every home and away contest for the remainder of the season.
Additionally, longtime Nanook hockey commentator Bruce Cech will broadcasting live from the Sullivan Arena this weekend on ESPN 820 AM Fairbanks or online at 820sports.com.
LAST TIME OUT
The Alaska Nanooks earned a WCHA split on the road last weekend, defeating the Lake Superior State Lakers 5-3 on Friday (Dec. 1) before falling to the home team 4-1 on Saturday (Dec. 2) in Sault Ste. Marie. Both the Nanooks and the Lakers earned three big league points throughout the conference series.
WCHA STANDINGS
The Nanooks are currently tied for seventh place in the WCHA standings with Lake Superior State, each team collecting 11 points throughout the conference regular season. The Nanooks sit with a 3-8-1-1 mark in conference games with their WCHA victories coming against Bemidji State (Nov. 3), Northern Michigan (Nov. 18) and Lake Superior State (Dec 1).
ALL-TIME SERIES
The Alaska Nanooks trail the Seawolves 64-89-12 in the rivals' all-time series records with the first meeting between the two teams coming as a 13-3 loss for the Nanooks on Nov. 16, 1979. In Anchorage, Alaska is 26-49-6. The Nanooks are currently on a five-game winning streak over their Anchorage counterpart, with their last contest coming as a 3-2 victory on Oct. 21 in Fairbanks.
Individually, 24 of Alaska's 27-man roster have played in at least one game against the Seawolves throughout their career. Specifically, seven of Alaska's skaters have played 10-or-more games against UAA, led by redshirt-senior defenseman
Justin Woods, who has appeared in 16 games against UAA. Woods and senior forward
Tayler Munson are tied for a team-best seven points against Alaska Anchorage throughout their career in Fairbanks, with each also tallying two game-winning goals.
#AKGOVCUP
When it comes to the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup, the Nanooks hold the all-time record over the Seawolves 12-8, winning consecutive titles in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 but vacated the 2010, 2011 and 2012 titles due to the NCAA infractions sanctioned prior to the 2014-15 season. The Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup first appeared during the 1993-94 season and has been determined by a shootout on eight different occasions.
After sweeping the Seawolves in a nonconference series earlier this season (6-3, 3-2), the Nanooks hold a 2-0 advantage in the #AKGovCup standings with six points over Alaska Anchorage heading into the weekend.
THE 2018 #AKGOVCUP WILL BE DETERMINED BY THE FOLLOWING:
- The team with the most WCHA points at the end of the best-of-six-game series will be declared the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup Champion.
- Points will be awarded in accordance with the WCHA protocol, where a team that wins in regulation or 5-on-5 overtime receives three (3) points, while the losing team will receive zero (0). A team that wins in 3-on-3 overtime or a shootout receives two points (2), while the losing team receives one (1) point.
- Each game will be played to its conclusion via current NCAA and WCHA rules, to include a 3-on-3 overtime period and a sudden-death shootout if necessary.
- Should the series still be tied in points earned at the conclusion of game six, the game will proceed into the NCAA-approved shootout protocol.
42 SECONDS
Last Friday, Woods, along with sophomore forwards
Colton Leiter and
Troy Van Tetering each tallied a goal against Lake Superior State within the same minute. The trio combined for a three-goal effort in a matter of 42 seconds over the Lakers to give Alaska a 3-0 lead within the first 10 minutes of the first period.
The program record for the quickest three goals is from Oct. 10, 2003 where Alaska scored three goals in 28 seconds to defeat UAA 5-3 in Fairbanks.
HATS OFF
Sophomore forward
Troy Van Tetering netted his first career hat trick in last Friday's 5-3 win at Lake Superior State. Van Tetering's becomes the first Alaska player to register three goals in a single game since
Brandon Morley ('17) in Alaska's 4-3 victory over Bemidji State on Nov. 13, 2015. Van Tetering becomes the sixth player in the WCHA to register a hat trick throughout the 2017-18 season.
NO TIME TO WASTE
Friday marks the fourth time this season that the Nanooks have taken a 3-0 lead over their opponent and the second time they have done so before the conclusion of the first period. The Nanooks are 2-2 when leading by three goals throughout the 2017-18 campaign, following Oct. 13's 6-3 loss at St. Cloud, Oct. 20's 6-2 victory over Alaska Anchorage, Nov. 24's 5-3 loss against Michigan Tech and Friday's 5-3 win at Lake Superior State.
SHARING THE WEALTH
In last Friday's victory, nine of Alaska's 18 skaters who dressed appeared on the scoresheet with three players posting a multi-point night. Throughout the season, of Alaska's 27 players who have appeared in at least one game for the Nanooks, 24 have registered at least one point. Four players (Hope, Leiter, Woods, Jandric and Frye) have tallied double-digit points throughout the season
A NEW HOPE
Sophomore forward
Kylar Hope currently leads all Alaska players in scoring, boasting a team-best 14 points thanks to six goals and eight assists. Hope ranks first among his teammates in points (14), P/GP (0.78), plus (20), shots on goal (62) and shots on goal per games played (3.44) and is tied for first in power play assists with two. Over the past seven games, Hope has tallied four goals and three assists for seven points, including two multi-point efforts.
WOODS LEADS NATION IN DEFENSIVE SCORING
Redshirt-senior defenseman
Justin Woods currently leads all men's ice hockey NCAA Division I defensemen in goals with eight in 18 games played this season. Woods also leads all men's DI blueliners in goals per games played, averaging 0.44. Among conference defensemen, Woods ranks first in goals, G/GP, plus (19) and goals per shots on goal (.170). The Nanooks are currently 3-2-2 when Woods posts a goal and enters the week on a five-game point streak with five points (2G, 3A).
JANDRIC LEADS CONFERENCE ROOKIES
Freshman forward Steven Jandric currently leads all league rookies in assists with 11 on the season. Jandric's 11 assists and one goal rank him third in the WCHA in points with 12 through 18 games. Currently, the Prince George, British Columbia native also leads all conference freshmen in plus (19) and plus/minus (+7).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT- ALASKA ANCHORAGE
Despite only earning one win on the season, the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves have earned a reputation this season by forcing their opponent to play extra hockey. The Seawolves have gone into overtime on six different occasions this season, posting a 0-2-4 record in games that have gone over 60 minutes. Of their four regulation ties, the Seawolves have won in two shootouts and one 3-on-3 overtime and only dropped one shootout loss to North Dakota on Oct. 6. UAA currently sits in 10th place in the conference standings with nine WCHA points.
The Seawolves are led by senior forward Austin Azurdia, who has collected seven goals and five assists for 12 points in 14 games this season. UAA is backstopped by senior netminder Olivier Mantha, who has collected a .917 save percentage in 14 games this season with a 3.03 goals against average.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks hockey team, follow @NanooksHockey on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Hockey team page on Facebook.
