Avs on display in Anchorage

WASILLA — What was initially a problem, could now be a blessing in disguise.

A scheduling conflict with the Wasilla Multi-Use Sports Complex forced the Alaska Avalanche to amend their schedule. Rather than starting a two-game weekend set against the Kenai River Brown Bears at the Curtis C. Menard II Memorial Ice Arena, the Avs’ home rink that sits inside the Wasilla Multi-Use Sports Complex, the Avalanche will open the series against their intrastate rival tonight at the Subway Sports Center in South Anchorage.

“Obviously, we’d rather play here,” Alaska head coach and general manager Jamie Smith said Wednesday. “But we’ve got all of these Anchorage kids. We might as well promote what we’ve got.”

Houston High School had already reserved tonight’s coveted 7 p.m. slot for a nonconfernece game against Colony before the Avs finalized their home schedule, Smith said. Initially, the Avalanche had pondered making it a Saturday-Sunday series. But then the organization decided to play the game in Anchorage, Smith said, to showcase the team’s homegrown talent.

It should be a win financially for the Avalanche, the head coach and G.M. said. Thanks in part to aggressive advertising from the game’s primary sponsor, GCI, Smith said the attendance could hit

1,500.

Looking at the big picture, Smith hopes to attract new fans with the rare Anchorage game.

“We can display what we have going on, and hopefully we can drive some fans in this direction,” Smith said.

The Mat-Su Valley squad has a distinct Southcentral Alaska flavor. Eleven of the of the 26 players on the 2007-08 roster hail from the area. Seven skaters are from Anchorage, and four others are from Eagle River and the Mat-Su Valley.

The Alaska players are proving to do more than just occupy spots in the lineup. Through the Avs’ first 21 games, 10 Alaska skaters have combined for 32 goals and 39 assists. The 71 points accounts for 51.5 percent of Alaska’s scoring this season, and the 32 goals represent 53 percent of the team’s scores.

Even before he officially accepted the positions of head coach and general manager of the Avs, Smith has never been afraid to say he believes the Mat-Su squad can be successful with Alaska talent, despite the fact that many disagreed.

“I always knew they could compete,” Smith said of the players from the 49th state. “The just needed an opportunity to do it. We’re just tipping the ice berg with the kids we have on this team.”

As of today, seven of the Avs’ top 10 scorers are from Alaska and four of the top seven are from Anchorage.

Former Wasilla standout Jeremiah Dargis is second on the squad with six goals and nine assists (6-9-15), while Anchorage’s Tyler Currier (8-5-13) is third in scoring.

Kyle Pichler (7-4-11) is fourth on the team, and is currently enjoying a three-game goal scoring streak. Pichler is one of three players Smith snagged from South Anchorage High School, the three-time defending champs of the ASAA 4A State Hockey Championships.

Joining Pichler are Dylan Jones (1-5-6) and goaltender Nathan Corey, who is rapidly improving in net for the Avs.

Smith has watched the saves percentage of his young goaltender rise and the goals against average drop. Corey is now 3-6-0 with a 3.50 goals against average and .905 saves percentage. Corey had been above 4.00 and hovering around the 86 percent marks during the first month of the season.

Streakin’

A handful of Alaska players are currently riding significant scoring streaks.

Dargis has a seven-game point scoring streak. During that stretch the former WHS standout has three goals and four assists. He has points in 14 of his 16 games this season.

Defenseman Kent Detlefsen has been just about as consistent as Dargis this season, scoring in 11 of his 13 games played.

Three forwards are now on three-game point scoring streaks. Currier has three goals and an assist in the last three, while the recently acquired Dustin Skinner has three goals and two assists in five games.

Pichler has goals in three straight.

Instant impact

Smith has spent part of the first two months of the season making adjustments to the Alaska lineup. The head coach and general manager has brought in a handful of new players, and most have made an immediate impact.

Detlefsen and Skinner are averaging more than a point per game since their arrival. Forward Joe Harren (3-2-5) has five points in six games and defenseman Scott Barrera (4-2-6) has six points in 11 games.

Smith said an explanation of the success of the recently acquired athletes is as simple as opportunity.

“We’re giving them a role and they’re taking that role and running with it,” Smith said.

The Kenai series

Alaska’s two-game series against Kenai is part of a seven-game stretch against the Bears. The Avs took a pair from Kenai last weekend at the Soldotna Sports Center.

Following the game tonight at the Subway Sports Center and another Saturday at the Menard Memorial Arena in Wasilla, the Avs will take a trip back to the Kenai Peninsula for three more against their intrastate rival over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Alaska is currently 3-1 against the NAHL expansion franchise.

Alaska edged Kenai 6-5 on Nov. 9 and won 4-3 in a shootout on Nov. 10. The Avs enjoyed big third period in both wins.

The Avs scored a combined five third-period goals in the two wins.

“We’re finding ways to win games,” Smith said.

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