ITHACA, N.Y. - The Alaska Nanooks hockey team stays on the road this week and travels to Ithaca, New York for a matchup with No. 12/14-ranked Cornell on Friday and Saturday. Alaska returns to Lynah Rink for the first time since the 2021-22 season. 

Friday, Jan. 9
at #12/14 Cornell | 3 p.m. AKST
Lynah Rink | Ithaca, New York

Saturday, Jan. 10
at #12/14 Cornell | 3 p.m. AKST
Lynah Rink | Ithaca, New York

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Last Time Out
The Nanooks are coming off a split at No. 16-ranked Providence. They fell in game one 5-2 but flipped the script and posted a big 5-1 upset win over the Friars behind a 43-save performance from rookie goalie Calvin Vachon. 

Home Sweet Home
After this weekend at Cornell, the Nanooks will not leave the great state of Alaska until the United Collegiate Hockey Cup (March 5-7) in St. Louis, Mo. The final 12 games of the regular-season will be played in Fairbanks or Anchorage. The Nanooks will be at home in eight of those 12 contests.

So Long New York

• Alaska will face Cornell in a two-game series, wrapping up the Blue and Gold's time in New York this season. Alaska is 2-2-0 in four games in The Empire State.
• The Nanooks traveled to New York for six games last season as well, going 2-2-2.
• This is the first matchup between Alaska and Cornell since the 2021-22 season. Alaska traveled to Ithaca Oct. 29-30, 2021 and fell in a pair of overtime games. 
• The Big Red bench features a familiar face. Chris Brown, former associate head coach (2021-25), is now an assistant coach on Casey Jones' staff. Alaska went 65-56-13 in Brown's four seasons as the associate head coach.

Man-Advantage

• The Nanooks have nine power-play goals this season. Alongside that, they have 27 points on the power play and are led by Michael Citara.
• Citara has seven points on the power play, scoring one PPG and six assists.
• Chase Dafoe leads the way with three power-play goals and two assists for five points. Nathan Rickey also has five points on the advantage, one goal and four assists.
• Dafoe's three power-play goals is 48th in the nation and third among independent skaters. 
• Alaska scored two power-play goals at PC on Jan. 3. This was the second game with 2+ PPG (3, Nov. 1 at Princeton).

Three is the Magic Number

• Rylen Roersma posted a three-point game on Jan. 3 (W, 5-1) at Providence. This was the Nanooks second three-point game this season.
• Michael Citara has the other three-point game, coming on Nov. 1 (L, 3-6) at Princeton. 

Finding His Stride

• Roersma has six points over his last five games. He started the season with three points in his first 10 NCAA games.
• He currently leads all rookies in scoring with nine points on five goals and four assists. His five goals ties him with Chase Dafoe for second on the team. 

1987 Phoenix Mutual tournament

• The Nanooks defeated Yale on Jan. 2, 1987 (6-4) in Hartford, Ct. With the win, they faced Cornell on Jan. 3 but lost. Alaska went 1-1-0 at the tournament. 
• Mike Carr made 25 saves in the championship against Cornell but Alaska fell 2-5. He made 26 in the win over Yale. 

Milano Cortina Bound

• Colton Parayko, D, St. Louis Blues is headed to the 2026 Olympic Winter Games as a part of Team Canada. 
• Parayko (2012-15) played in 104 games for the Nanooks and had 66 points. He was the captain in 2014-15 and earned a pair of AHCA West Second Team All-American honors (2013-14, 2014-15). 
• The 2019 Stanley Cup champion also won the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off representing Canada adding to his silver medal at the 2017 IIHF World Championship (Germany/France). 

Block Party

• Adam Cardona leads the Nanooks in blocked shots with 23. 
• Friday's game at Providence was the first time this season he did not record a block. He blocked two shots on Saturday.
• On two separate occasions, he blocked four shots (10/4 vs. UMD, 10/11 at ASU).

First of Many

• Calvin Vachon picked up his first-career win on Saturday with the upset victory over Providence. 
• He made 43 saves, a new career-high at the NCAA level, and a new season-high for the Nanooks. Lassi Lehti had the last 40-save performance for the Nanooks (10/24 at Wisc., 40 saves).

Leading the Charge

• The Nanooks have two skaters in double-digits through 17 games. Michael Citara leads the Nanooks with 16 points on seven goals and nine assists.
• Peyton Platter broke into double-digits over the weekend at Providence with an assist in game one and goal in game two. He now has 11 points on four goals and seven helpers. 

Constant Battles

• Alaska's victory over No. 16 Providence was its second-ranked win of the season. They defeated No. 8/9 Quinnipiac on Oct. 10 in Tempe, Ariz. (2-1).
• The Nanooks defeated two ranked opponents last season as well, both games on the road (10/19/2024 at #18 ND, 1-0 & 11/9/24 at RV/#20 Union, 6-4).
• They had three wins over ranked opponents in 2023-24, two in 2022-23, and two in 2021-22. 

Let's Meet the Big Red

• Cornell comes into this week ranked in both national polls. They are 9-4-0 and 6-2-0 ECAC. 
• The Big Red are tied for second in the ECAC Hockey Standings with 18 points. They are tied with Dartmouth. Princeton currently leads the standings with 19 points. 
• The Cornell attack is led by Ryan Walsh with a team-leading 14 points on 11 assists. 
• Jonathan Castagna follows with 13 points on a team-high seven goals and six assists. 
• Alexis Cournoyer has been the go-to in net for the Big Red this season. He has 10 appearances and starts with a 7-3-0 record, 1.93 GAA and .925 save percentage.
• Caton Ryan has five points in their last three games. In that span, Cornell is 3-0-0 with wins over St. Lawrence (7-2), and Omaha twice (6-4, 3-2).
• Cornell currently sits at 6-0-0 on home ice. They are 3-3-0 on the road and 0-1-0 at neutral sites. 

What's Coming Up

• Alaska will remain in their home state for the remainder of the 2025-26 season. They return home next weekend for the first of three at home.
• Jan. 16-17 kicks off the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup against Alaska Anchorage. The Nanooks have claimed the last 14 cups and look to extend their dominance in the rivalry. 
• Lindenwood returns to the Carlson Center for the first time since the 2022-23 season. The Lions visited Fairbanks on March 3-4; Alaska won both games (4-1, 8-0). 
• Lindenwood defeated the 'Nooks in St. Louis last year for their first win against Alaska (2/15/25, 2-5). Alaska won the night before in OT (2/14/25, 2-1). 
• Long Island University (LIU) makes their return to Fairbanks as well to end January. LIU has not played in the Carlson since the 2023-24 season. 
• Alaska leads the all-time series 8-6-0 but LIU has taken the last two matchups. 

Players of the Month

• Alaska has taken home three Independent Monthly Honors this season. 
• Lassi Lehti has a pair of Independent Goalie of the Month awards, bringing home the October honor and the Co-Goalie of the Month honor in November. 
• Michael Citara was named the November Independent Player of the Month, his first monthly honor with the Blue and Gold. 

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