As an Alaska Aces defense pairing, Peter Metcalf and Matt Shasby split their time between tormenting opponents and giving each other a hard time. They proved exceptional at both.
Their teammate, winger Barrett Heisten, gladly, sacrificially, positioned himself in front of the opposing goaltender on the power play, enduring cross-checks, head-smacks and ankle-whacks from masked men and hostile opposing defensemen.
Together, those three helped the Aces win the ECHL's 2006 Kelly Cup, the first of three earned in franchise history.
And now they will enter the hockey club's Hall of Fame together.
The Aces on Thursday announced six men as their second Hall of Fame class. Also inducted will be former Anchorage Aces winger Paul Williams, broadcaster Jack Michaels and fan Ron Tomblinson, who the Aces credit with the tradition of throwing frozen salmon over the glass and onto the rink to celebrate the Aces' first goal of the game at Sullivan Arena.
The six inductees will be honored between periods of Aces games against the Allen Americans on Feb. 12-13. Honorees are determined by the hockey club, with input from season ticket-holders.
The new inductees join the inaugural six-man Class of 2015 – former Anchorage Aces centers Dean Larson and Keith Street, former Aces winger Mike Scott and former Aces center Kimbi Daniels, public-address announcer Bob Lester and fan Bobby Hill.
Shasby and Metcalf were an elite pairing who played in all situations. In Metcalf's three seasons with the Aces (2005-2008), he was twice first-team All-ECHL, once second-team All-ECHL and the ECHL's 2008 Defenseman of the Year. He racked 33-140-173 totals in 200 games with Alaska.
Shasby, the former UAA and Chugiak High standout, played four full seasons (2005-2009) with the Aces and twice was second-team All-ECHL. He earned 33-148—181 totals in 257 games with Alaska.
The only thing Metcalf and Shasby appeared to savor as much as winning was mocking one another.
Heisten, a former NHLer and first-round draft pick from Anchorage, is one of 15 Alaskans to play in the NHL. In three seasons with the Aces (2005-2008), he delivered 50-88—138 totals in 148 games. He was the team's captain in 2007-08, when he retired because of concussions and Aces players elected Shasby to wear the "C.''
Williams, another native of Anchorage, starred at UAA and played eight seasons (1995-2003) for the Anchorage Aces of the now-defunct West Coast Hockey League. He scored 40 or more goals three times and racked 238-279—517 totals in 468 career games.
Williams and Street, his long-time center, close friend and road roommate, displayed remarkable chemistry, each seemingly always knowing where the other was located on the ice. Williams was particularly adept at stick-handling in close quarters, a skill he once said no doubt was polished by stick-handling tennis balls in the basement of his family home as a youth.
Michaels served as the Alaska Aces' broadcaster for their first eight seasons before skipping the American Hockey League altogether and becoming the radio play-by-play broadcaster for the NHL's Edmonton Oilers in 2010. He still has that gig.
But he was more than a broadcaster – he was the face of the Aces. He sold advertising, handled travel and per diem, represented the team at league meetings, covered a slew of other duties and, as a broadcaster, seamlessly interjected history and anecdotes into his play-by-play, which was overwhelmingly fair and knowledgeable.
Also, Michaels possesses an unwavering memory, and a particularly impressive trivia-nerd skill -- he can recite the teams, score and location of every Super Bowl.
Reach Doyle Woody at dwoody@alaskadispatch.com, check out his blog at adn.com/hockeyblog and follow him on Twitter at @JaromirBlagr