Avs score first win

BLAINE, Minn. — It may not be ideal to leave the North American Hockey League Showcase with a 1-2-1 mark, but after watching their young Alaska Avalanche team during the first four games of the season, the Avs coaches like what they see.

“We’d like to get more W’s, but we can take a lot of positives out of it,” Alaska assistant Josh Petrich said by cellphone from the Showcase in Blaine, Minn., Saturday afternoon. “For a lot of these kids, it’s their first four games in the league.”

Alaska capped Showcase play with a 4-3 loss to St. Louis, an NAHL power, Saturday morning. On Friday, the Avs scored their first win of the year, a 2-0 shutout of Jamestown.

Of the Avs three losses in the event, two were one-goal games, with one decided in overtime. In the third loss, Amarillo held a one-goal lead late against the Avs before adding an empty-netter.

On Saturday, Alaska led 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 in the game, but St. Louis used a pair of goals in the final nine minutes to edge the Avs.

“They capitalized on a couple of our mistakes, but that’s what veteran teams do,” Petrich said.

First-year forward Evan Janssen, who erupted for five goals and two assists during the four-game Showcase, gave the Avs a 3-2 lead 11 minutes and 21 seconds into the third period.

But only 28 seconds later, Ryan Cotton scored for St. Louis to tie the game. Cody Gancher provided the game-winner, a power-play goal, at the 15:09 mark.

“That’s a very special team that (St. Louis head coach) Jeff Brown has,” Petrich said.

Petrich said a team that makes less than a handful of mistakes in the game is typically going to win. He felt Alaska made less than a handful of mistakes, but St. Louis was able to prevail.

Petrich also said the veterans on the Bandits roster proved to make a difference. St. Louis has nine players in its final year of juniors. Alaska has 11 skaters in their first year of junior hockey.

“The teams that were older played well all week,” Petrich said.

Alaska was also without a pair of key veterans, forwards Evan Hesse and Brandon Brossoit.

Petrich said Alaska’s young talent did impress. Janssen led the team with seven points during the event, and the Wisconsin product and his linemates, Ryan Dau and Cobi Smith-Mass, stood out throughout.

“That line cycles the puck really well,” Petrich said. “They wore down defenses.”

Janssen bagged a goal and an assist during the 2-0 win over Jamestown on Friday.

Janssen put the Avs on the scoreboard late in the second and helped set up Patrick Kinkopf’s goal in the third period.

Nick Kulmanovsky stopped all 28 shots he saw to record his second career NAHL shutout.

Alaska carried three goalies on the roster — Kulmanovsky, Blake Mendenhall and Bodie Engum — during the Showcase, and each made one start.

“I thought all three goalies played well enough to get a win,” Petrich said. “The problem is we can’t have three goalies. I don’t know what we’re going to do.”

Engum, a Burnsville, Minn., product made 38 saves during his first career start, the 4-3 loss to St. Louis.

Alaska is now halfway through its season-opening eight-game road trip. The Avs head to Washington this week to face the Wenatchee Wild Friday and Saturday. The Avs return to the 49th state to meet the Kenai River Brown Bears Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 in Soldotna.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com and follow him at twitter.com/matsu_sports.

St. Louis 4, Alaska 3

NAHL Showcase

Saturday, Blaine, Minn.

First period — 1. Alaska- Janssen (Nelson) pp 12:30; 2. St. Louis- Bopp (unassisted) 16:53.

Second period —3. Alaska- Buchanan (Kontny, Pavek) 1:53; 4. St. Louis- Birmingham (Cotton) pp 15:58.

Third period — 5. Alaska- Janssen (Christianson, Nelson) 11:21; 6. St. Louis- Cotton (Kalisz, Bopp) 11:49; 7. St. Louis- Gancher (Cotton, Peterson) pp 15:09.

Shots on goal: Alaska 12-17-5—34, St. Louis- 13-19-10—42; Saves: Alaska- Engum 12-18-8—38, St. Louis- Viele 11-16-4—34; Power plays: Alaska 1 for 6, St. Louis 2 for 6; Penalties: Alaska 6 for 12, St. Louis 6 for 12.

Alaska 2, Jamestown 0

NAHL Showcase

Friday, Blaine, Minn.

First period — no scoring.

Second period — 1. Alaska- Janssen (Dau, Mertes) 18:34.

Third period — 3. Alaska- Kinkopf (Janssen, Dau) 4:17.

Shots on goal: Jamestown 8-13-7—28, Alaska 9-12-9—30; Saves: Jamestown Ballmer 9-11-8—28, Alaska- Kulmanovsky 8-13-7—28; Power plays: Jamestown 0 for 5, Alaska 0 for 8; Penalties: Jamestown 11 for 30, Alaska 7 for 14.