Opportunities abound for UAA this weekend — the Seawolves can rack points in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and deny their in-state rival the same, and they can close the season's first half on a high note.
UAA in a two-game home series against UAF at Sullivan Arena can also make inroads on seizing something that has eluded it the last six hockey seasons — the Governor's Cup.
"It's not hard to get up for these games,'' said UAA coach Matt Thomas. "There's a lot at stake. There always is.''
The Seawolves head into their final series before the holiday break riding high.
They are coming off a two-game road sweep of then-league co-leader Michigan Tech —? UAA won both games 3-2 after trailing 2-1 through two periods. At 8-6-2 overall and 5-4-1 (tied sixth place) in the WCHA, the Seawolves have greatly exceeded expectations — league coaches picked them to finish ninth on the 10-team circuit and league media pegged them for last.
Granted, more than half the Seawolves' 28-game league schedule awaits after the break. But they already have matched their overall win total from last season and already are one point shy of matching their WCHA point total from last season.
Seawolves senior defenseman Chris Williams said his club has succeeded because it does not dwell on occasional disappointments and always forges forward.
"One thing our team has done really well is not get too low,'' Williams said. "When we have a bad weekend, or we lose a game, or get outshot by a lot, we don't get discouraged.
"We put it behind us and start thinking about the next game.''
UAA's last road trip proved a case in point. The Seawolves lost twice at Minnesota State-Mankato, which was the league co-leader at the time, but rebounded to sweep in Houghton and push their WCHA record back above .500.
UAF (4-10-2, 2-8-2 WCHA) has lost four straight games and is winless in its last seven (0-5-2).
Still, the Nanooks have won the Cup six consecutive times on the ice — punishment for NCAA violations forced UAF to vacate three of those Cups (2010-12). UAF has won four of the last six Cups via shootout after the season series was tied.
Even so, Seawolves seniors do not have to be reminded they face their last chance to win the Cup, which is determined in a four-game season series, with all games doubling as WCHA matches. UAA and UAF close the regular season with Games 3 and 4 of the Cup, March 4-5 in Fairbanks.
"(The Cup) is something we take a lot of pride in, not just as a team, but for Anchorage and the university,'' said UAA senior center Blake Tatchell. "There's been some shootouts in there, we've lost some close games. I think it's about time we bring it home.''
Tatchell's sense of history is spot-on. UAA and UAF split four games last season, all of them decided by one goal. And in Thomas' two seasons against the Nanooks, which included a WCHA playoff series in Fairbanks that UAA won in three games in 2014, nine of 11 games between the teams have been decided by one goal.
"I'll tell you one thing about rivalries — stats, trends, you throw them out the window,'' Thomas said. "Any time it's UAA and UAF playing, it's going to be a war.
"Since I've been here, if you were in the lead, you were watching the seconds tick off the clock. And if you were behind, you said, 'Slow down clock, slow down.' ''
Seawolves notes
After dressing 11 forwards and seven defensemen in the last three games — the usual complement is 12 and six — Thomas will likely dress 12 and six Friday. Freshman winger Jeremiah Luedtke is expected to play after missing the last two games with an injury.
Forwards Tanner Dusyk (lower-body injury), Connor Wright (lower-body) and Cam Amantea (upper-body) remain out, though Wright is back practicing.
Tatchell, who leads UAA in scoring (4-11—15 totals in 16 games), is six points shy of becoming the 23rd player in UAA history to reach 100 career points. He owns 27-67—94 totals in 124 career games.
UAF senior center Tyler Morley, who leads the Nanooks in scoring (7-6—13 in 15 games) passed the 100-point mark earlier this season and owns 49-56—105 totals in 115 career games.
The visiting team won all four UAA-UAF games last season. That hasn't happened since the teams played twice to open the 1993-94 season. UAA won 7-6 in overtime in the season-opener in Fairbanks and UAF won the next night, 7-3, in Anchorage.
That was the first season of the Governor's Cup, which UAF won in a shootout (3-1). The Cup has been decided in a shootout eight times and UAF has won seven. The Nanooks have won the Cup the last two seasons, and four of the last five seasons, in a shootout.
Reach Doyle Woody at dwoody@alaskadispatch.com, check out his blog at adn.com/hockeyblog and follow him on Twitter at @JaromirBlagr
UAF
4-10-2, 2-8-2 WCHA
at
UAA
8-6-2, 5-4-1 WCHA
Friday and Saturday, Sullivan Arena, 7:07 p.m.
TV: Live, GCI Cable Channel 1 and 999 (HD)
HOISTING HOCKEY HARDWARE
Alaska's two college hockey teams, UAA and UAF, have played the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup series for the past 22 seasons. But only 19 of those Cups are currently counted because NCAA violations prompted UAF to vacate three titles. UAF thus leads 11-8.
Here's the history of the Cup, which has been played in both four-game and two-game formats, and this season is a four-game series in which all games double as WCHA games:
Season Winner
2014-15 Tied 2-2, UAF won shootout 1-0
2013-14 Tied 2-2, UAF won shootout 2-1
2012-13 UAF 2-0
2011-12* Tied 1-1, UAF won shootout 2-1
2010-11* Tied 1-1, UAF won shootout 2-0
2009-10* UAF 2-0
2008-09 UAA 2-0
2007-08 UAA 3-0-1
2006-07 UAA 3-0-1
2005-06 UAF 3-0-1
2004-05 UAF 2-1-1
2003-04 Tied 1-1, UAF won shootout 3-2
2002-03 UAF 3-1-0
2001-02 UAF 3-1-0
2000-01 UAA 3-0-1
1999-2000 UAA 3-1-0
1998-99 Tied 1-1, UAF won shootout 2-0
1997-98 UAF 1-0-1
1996-97 UAA 2-0
1995-96 UAA 1-0-1
1994-95 Tied 1-1, UAA won shootout 2-1
1993-94 Tied 1-1, UAF won shootout 3-1
* Cups vacated due to UAF's NCAA violations