HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The Alaska Nanooks hockey team won their second-straight Western Collegiate Hockey Association contest on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers 5-2 at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. The victory improves Alaska's overall record to 8-16-2 and 8-11-1-1 in WCHA play, while the Chargers drop to 6-21-1 on the season and 6-13-1-1 in conference contests.
Coach's Comments
"It was a very critical game in our race to secure a playoff spot. It was great to see our power play take advantage of their opportunities tonight. I'm proud to see us playing better team hockey down the stretch." – head coach
Erik Largen said on Saturday.
WCHA Standings
After entering the weekend tied for seventh place in the WCHA standings, Alaska walks away from the weekend sweep over UAH with six crucial WCHA points. The Nanooks now hold sole possession of seventh place with 26 conference points through 20 WCHA contests.
Inside the Box Score
- Alaska scored four power play goals on Saturday, eventually going 4-for-9 on the man-advantage.
- A total of 11 different Alaska players registered at least one point against the Chargers on Saturday night.
- Junior forward Tyler Cline, junior forward Colton Leiter, junior defenseman Tristan Thompson and sophomore forward Max Newton all scored on the power play for the Nanooks, while senior forward Chad Staley tallied the lone even-strength Alaska goal on Saturday at the 6:47 mark of the third period.
- The Nanooks were perfect on the penalty kill for the fourth-straight game, going 4-for-4.
- Alaska outshot their opponent 37-21 with UAH's Mark Sinclair making a game-high 32 saves against the Nanooks.
- Junior netminder Anton Martinsson collects his fourth win in five games, making 19 saves against the Chargers.
Alaska Notables
- Thompson posted his second, three-point game of the season on Saturday, earning one goal and two assists. Each of Thompson's three points came on the power play.
- The Canmore, Alberta native now leads all Alaska Nanooks in scoring, garnering five goals and 10 assists for a team-best 15 points.
- Newton now leads all Alaska players in goals with seven and is currently riding a two-game goal streak.
- Sophomore forward Steven Jandric posted an assist on Thompson's goal on Saturday, marking four points (one goal, three assists) in five games for the Prince George, British Columbia native.
- Additionally, of S. Jandric's three assists in the past five games, two were game-winning helpers.
- Leiter has now tallied four points in four games (two goals, two assists) with two of his four points being game-winning points.
- Besides turning shots away in net, Martinsson registered an assist on Leiter's power play goal on Saturday, marking his second assist in four games. Martinsson now has three career points (all assists).
Team Notes
- Alaska has now won four of their last five games.
- This weekend's sweep marks the first WCHA sweep since Nov. 30 – Dec. 1 against Ferris State at home. Furthermore, it marks the first WCHA road sweep for the Nanooks since Feb. 9-10, 2018 at then-No. 20th-ranked Northern Michigan.
- The Nanooks killed each of their 11 penalties against the Chargers this weekend for a perfect mark.
- Alaska hasn't allowed a power play goal against them in four-straight games (since Jan. 18 vs. Bowling Green), killing 21 of their last 21 penalty kill attempts.
Next Time Out
The Alaska Nanooks will return to Fairbanks and enjoy a bye-week next week but will be back in action on Friday, Feb. 8 and Saturday, Feb. 9, as they host in-state rival Alaska Anchorage in the opening series of the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup at the Carlson Center. Puck-drop both nights is scheduled for 7:07pm AKST.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks hockey team, follow @NanooksHockey on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Hockey team page on Facebook.
