Avalanche make first trip to Canada

PALMER — The Alaska Avalanche are crossing the border.

The Palmer-based North American Hockey League franchise makes its first trip to Canada this week and opens a three-game series Thursday against the Dawson Creek Rage in Dawson Creek, British Columbia.

Alaska (2-4-0) will meet the NAHL expansion Rage (1-2-1) for the first time on Thursday, but Avalanche coaching staff had a chance to see the Rage play during the NAHL Showcase in Minnesota last week.

“They’re young, they’re big,” Alaska head coach Brian Huebel said of the Rage.

The Rage could sport the biggest team in the NAHL. All but three players stand at least 6 feet and the shortest players on the roster, forwards Nolan Rossiter and Ryan Matthews, are 5-10. The Rage also has seven players weighing in at 200 pounds or heavier.

Huebel said the Av, a team with only eight players 6-foot or taller, will have to play to their strengths.

“I definitely think we have to utilize our speed,” Huebel said.

The Dawson Creek team is made up strictly of Canadian players, and all but one hail from either British Columbia or Alberta.

The Rage offense has sputtered early. Dawson Creek has allowed only 11 goals in its first four games, but scored only five. Dawson Creek does not have a player on the roster with more than one point.

Dawson Creek suffered 3-0 losses to Motor City and St. Louis, and a 4-3 shoot-out loss to Corpus Christi during the four-day Showcase. The Rage scored a 2-1 shootout win over Alexandria.

Alaska is 2-4-0 overall after skating to a 1-3-0 mark at the Showcase. The Avs lost back-to-back one-goal games before dropping a 5-2 decision to Traverse City on the final day of the event.

After the tournament, Huebel said he was excited about things he saw from his team, which opened Showcase play with an 8-5 win over Aberdeen last Wednesday. But his biggest concern was the Avs’ tendency to give opponents opportunities to skate on the power play. Alaska allowed power-play goals during each of the one-goal losses, and opponents combined for 26 total power-play chances in Alaska’s three losses.

But when the Avalanche skated even strength, Huebel said they were a different team.

“When we decide to play, we’re not a 2-4 hockey team,” Huebel said.

Alaska has three players with a team-high six points. Jake Barber leads the squad with four goals and has chipped in two assists. Zach Smith (2-4-6) and Andy Pearson (2-4-6) also have six points. Smith, Pearson and Derek Whitehill each have a team-high four assists.

Alaska will play three times in Dawson Creek before returning home to host another NAHL expansion team, the Fresno Monsters, on Oct. 1

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.