FAIRBANKS - The Alaska Nanooks finished their regular season in great fashion on Saturday, Feb. 28. Alaska earned a 5-1 win over Alaska Anchorage to finish the regular season as Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup champions for the 15th-straight time and with a record of 14-15-2.
How it Happened
The Nanooks opened the scoring with a power-play goal 14:53 into the first period from its leading scorer,
Michael Citara. Citara scored off the
Nathan Rickey primary assist and
Tommy Cronin secondary. The 1-0 lead stood until 7:29 into the second period when Ryan Johnson found the equalizer for UAA on their own power-play goal.
It did not take long for the Nanooks to score the game-winner when
Davis Borozinskis stuffed home the winner on the doorstep after a
Chase Dafoe deflection and pass out front.
Caelum Dick was given the secondary 12:26 into the second, as the Nanooks responded just under five minutes later. Nearly six minutes later, they extended their lead to two on
Jhett Larson's first goal of the night.
Tommy Cronin earned his second assist of the night and
Rylen Roersma picked up the secondary. The 3-1 lead lasted until the third period when Larson scored his second goal of the night 4:42 into the final stanza. Cronin, once again, picked up an assist, and Citara earned his second point of the night as the Nanooks' lead grew to 4-1.
The fourth goal of the night was Alaska's second power-play goal of the evening. They'd add one more before the final buzzer sounded, scoring a third power-play goal 11:54 into the third as
Michael Citara made it a three-point night with the final goal. Cronin earned his fourth point of the night, and
Jhett Larson capped off a three-point night as the Nanooks defeated the Seawolves 5-1.
Inside the Numbers
- The Nanooks had three skaters score three or more points tonight. Tommy Cronin finished with four points, all coming on assists. Michael Citara and Jhett Larson both finished with three points, coming on two goals and an assist.
- Davis Borozinskis added the final goal for the Nanooks. Chase Dafoe, Caelum Dick, Nathan Rickey, and Rylen Roersma had the final assists for Alaska in their regular-season finale.
- Alaska posted 36 shots-on-goal tonight while UAA managed 28. Lassi Lehti earned the win tonight with 27 saves. He made a dozen saves in the first period, four in the second, and 11 in the third period.
- Alaska owned the dot, winning 39 of 63 faceoffs. Chase Dafoe went 18-24, losing just six draws. Dean Spak won seven of 13.
- The Nanooks blocked 12 shots tonight, with Noah Barlage eating three and Hugo Marcil blocking three to lead the team.
- The Blue and Gold converted on three power plays tonight, going 3-8, and 2-3 on the penalty kill.
What's Next
The Nanooks finish their season next weekend at the United Collegiate Hockey Cup in St. Louis. They earned the number one seed and will play on Friday against the winner of the 4-5 matchup. The bracket and start times will be announced at a later date.
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