Avs eager to silence surging Dogs

WASILLA — The Alaska Avalanche have spent virtually all of the first-half of the 2009-10 North American Hockey League season cemented in second place of the West Division standings.

But for the first time in weeks, maybe even months, Alaska’s second place standing could be in jeopardy thanks to the surging Fairbanks Ice Dogs.

The third-place Ice Dogs, who now sit only four points behind the Avs in the West standings, will host the Avalanche in a key three-game series that starts Thursday at the Big Dipper Ice Arena in Fairbanks.

“This is a pretty crucial stretch for a lot of reasons,” Alaska head coach Dave Boitz said late last week.

The three-game set in the Interior is part of a six-game road trip. The Avs started the stretch with a pair of losses to the Wenatchee Wild in Wenatchee, Wash., over the weekend, and will cap the six-game span with a game at Kenai River on Dec. 8.

The Avs had been consistently padding their point total for much of the last two months. Prior to their 3-1 loss to Wenatchee on Friday, the Avs had gained at least a point in the standings in 12 straight games.

Alaska was 9-0-3 during that stretch.

But Wenatchee swept both games, giving Alaska it’s first losing streak since Oct. 23.

Meanwhile, Fairbanks is the hottest team in the NAHL with six straight wins.

The Ice Dogs capped a a three-game sweep of Kenai River with a 3-2 shootout win on Sunday. Five of the last six Fairbanks wins have come against the fourth-place Brown Bears.

“They’re looking to take care of business,” Boitz said.

Fairbanks boasts the league’s top two scorers. Forward Michael Juola leads the league with 41 points (11-30-41). His 30 assists are also a league best.

Forward Mark Pustin has 36 points (14-22-36).

Fairbanks also is the top team on the power play in the league, with units clicking at nearly 22 percent.

Alaska has had the advantage in the season series so far this season, posting a 3-0-1 record against the Dogs.

Forward Jacob Barber leads the team with five goals against the Ice Dogs this season. Forward Logan Rounds has a goal and six assists against Fairbanks this year.

Forward Nardo Nagtzaam continues to lead the team with 27 points (12-15-27). Nagtzaam, who bagged a pair of assists during the losses to Wenatchee, is fifth in the league in scoring.

Forward Zach Smith (14-10-24) and defenseman Jake Parenteau (8-13-21) have also eclipsed the 20-mark point for Alaska.

Goalies Kale Robertson (.931) and Landon Peterson (.926) are in the top-six in the league in saves percentage.

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