All-state or All-Anch.?

J's World, by Jeremiah Bartz

I was perusing through the sports pages of the Anchorage Daily News on Thursday morning and happened to run across the Daily News/Coaches All-State hockey team. First intrigued about the fact the list didn't run across the Frontiersman fax machine, I began to read the names of those who were named to the list.

By the third time I read through the pages, I wondered if there was a spot on my contacts and I was missing all of the All-state caliber players that do not skate for an Anchorage team. I thought there was a typo in the newspaper, and the words "All-Region IV team" were left out, until I saw a whopping three players, who play for a team outside of the Anchorage bowl, on the team.

Four of the 30 players on the team. Whoa, who! Yay for Fairbanks, the Peninsula and the Valley!

West Valley's Nick Haddad surprisingly earned second team nods in the Daily News/Coaches All-State hockey (as long as you play for an Anchorage school) team. Kenai's Phillip Ischi represented Region III with an honorable mention bid, apparently in order to make things not too suspicious, and Houston standout Wade Williams earned honorable mention recognition, despite skating at the lowly 3A level. West Valley netminder Erik Largen also was an honorable mention.

There is a list of things that befuddle me about the Daily News/Coaches All-State hockey (players in Palmer, Wasilla, Fairbanks, Kenai and Soldotna need not apply) team.

First, how can Williams earn just an honorable mention on the team. Williams racked up 23 points in nine games against 4A competition and scored 74 points overall. One of the best in the state? Ya think?

And even though he played about a dozen games against small school competition, where he is clearly a man among boys, Williams was one of the best on the ice in every game he played against large school foes. There is no doubt Williams would be a top-line forward for any team in this state. That includes you too, Service.

I will pay one compliment to the poll --don't be too surprised--, 3A players were included. But, since the master and commander of the all-state team chose to recognize 3A players, 3A coaches should have been included in the voting. That may have given Willie the votes he needed to earn a much deserved spot on either the first or second team.

"If the coaches are voting on a 3A player, why can't the 3A coaches vote?," Houston head coach Jamie Smith said. "If it is a coaches' poll, everyone should vote."

What is even more ridiculous is the fact, just three non-Anchorage players earned honorable mention in the Daily News/Coaches All-State Hockey (the Region IV and All-State teams are exactly the same) team. I am smart enough to realize, and have covered enough of the sport in my day, to realize that the schools in the Anchortown area have a tremendous amount of talent, Service goaltender Drew O'Connell deserves player of the year honors and players such as Chugiak's Shane Wheeler are first-team no-brainers. I don't even mind Anchorage schools dominating the first teams, they dominated the state tourney. My issue lies with not even recognizing more Region II and III players in the honorable mention category. That is just plain looney.

Palmer's Spencer Galvin tallied 18 goals and 18 assists -- as a freshman. Funny, couldn't find his name anywhere on the list. Palmer did not have a great amount of team success this season, in terms of wins and losses, but that makes Galvin's achievements even more remarkable when it comes time to vote. Also do not forget he did this as a freshman.

Colony's Ryan Pauling registered 14 goals, 14 assists and was a quality player on both ends of the ice for a solid Knight team. He was nowhere to be found as well.

Wasilla's Andrew Tumbleson notched 13 goals and 10 assists for a Warrior team that was one of the best stories in high school hockey this season. After struggling as a team for quite some time, Tumbleson and the Warriors were back in the state tournament. Tumbleson's name was not on the list.

And how about Warrior goaltender Ronnie Walker? He was merely one of, if not the top goaltenders of Region III and stopped 106 shots in two state tournament games.

High school polls, all-state and all-conference teams are not an exact science, it is not even a science that makes sense. The fact is, just as Palmer head coach Brian Fish said, coaches can not see every player in the state and don't have the time or the resources to track each potential all-stater. Fish, or any other coach in Region III, might not even have a grasp of all the players in their league.

There needs to be a progression with the voting. First a coach needs to bring the players he thinks are all-region caliber to the table of the all-region voting and each region should do the same when it comes to the all-state balloting. Obviously West Valley coaches will not have the best grasp on the Kenai and Soldotna talent, and Chugiak, Dimond or Service coaches may not always know who the best guys in the Valley are. If a region representative were available to promote its players, each region may have a greater representation on the list. The all-state hockey team should be the same as all-state football. If a player is all-conference, the player deserves to be at least an honorable mention on the all-state list.

If it is a media/coaches poll, every news outlet that covers prep hockey on a regular basis should have the opportunity to vote. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner votes may sway toward Fairbanks athletes, the Peninsula Clarion's may sway toward Peninsula athletes and the Frontiersman will most likely give the Valley peeps props, but at least players from around the state, in schools other than the Anchorage School district, will receive notice.

After reading this poll some of the folks in the Anchorage hockey community, as well as my Anchorage collegues in the field, may want to tie my thumbs together and give me a pair of cement shoes before tossing me into Wasilla Lake. Hopefully I do not find a salmon wrapped in the Thursday edition of the Anchorage Daily News lying on my desk. But I do feel that a group of players that I covered on a regular basis this year deserved at least a mention.