Blue collar effort

WASILLA — Last Friday, Sean Ranum did something he hadn’t done in 45 career games at the Junior A level.

Ranum scored a goal.

With a quick smack at a loose puck late in the third period against the Topeka RoadRunners, Ranum permanently erased the zero from his personal goal scoring total.

Although Ranum said he never really worried about being held scoreless in almost two years of hockey at the Junior A level, the thought did tend to stick in the back of his mind.

“It was a load of my shoulders,” Ranum said after the game.

But while it might have been a thought, it has never been a focus for the 2006 Houston High School graduate.

“Not everybody’s a goal-scorer,” Ranum said.

And it’s never been an issue for the Alaska Avalanche either.

As an anchor on the fourth line, Ranum is the workhorse. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound forward hits the ice every day with the same mission.

And the priority?

“Not getting scored on,” Ranum said.

Ranum concentrates on the little things such as forechecking, moving the puck up the ice and keeping the puck off the stick of opposing skaters.

“He does everything you want him to do,” Alaska head coach and general manager Jamie Smith said. “He’s just one of those role guys.”

Judging by what Ranum is sent on the ice to do, Smith feels the Willow native has been one of the most consistent players for the Avs this season.

“He’s been fantastic for us. I couldn’t ask for anything else,” Smith said. “If I had four or five more guys like that, we’d be pretty damn competitive.”

Last season, Ranum started the season at the Junior B level, skating for the Twin Cities Northern Lights of the Minnesota Junior Hockey League. He posted six goals and four assists in 30 MJHL games. But late in the 2006-07 season, when the Avs had some holes to fill, Smith urged then-interim coach Keith Morris to bring Ranum back to the Valley.

“I had him in high school, so I know what kind of a guy he is,” said Smith, who coached Ranum when he was a member of the Hawks.

Ranum skated in nine games for the Avs last season. Prior to the beginning of the 2007-08 campaign, Smith urged Ranum to be the smart, savvy and physical presence on the ice he knew the Houston High product could be.

“We both new that’s what I have to do,” Ranum said.

Smith said Ranum sets the right example for other players. He may not be the most talented guy on the ice, Smith said, but intelligence and desire make Ranum a valuable player.

“He’s got more heart than anyone else,” Smith said.

While the focus may be on defense, Ranum has contributed on the offensive side. He moves the puck well, and has six assists to his credit this season.

But overall, Ranum and fellow forwards such as Grant Highley, Michael McCurtain, Tommy Engseth and Ryan Schmidt have served on a fourth line that Smith calls one of the most effective units on the team.

“They run the system. They know what to do,” Smith said.

Ranum, in his final season of junior hockey eligibility, is unsure of what he is going to do next year, but is hoping his plans include the chance to play college hockey.

“I want to play somewhere, I just don’t know where yet,” Ranum said.

Smith said Ranum would be an ideal fit for the NCAA Division III level. Nine former members of the Valley junior hockey franchise earned chances to play at the Division III level during their stay in Wasilla.

Alaska hosts

Wichita Falls

The Alaska Avalanche will host the Wichita Falls Wildcats this week. The Avs host the Wildcats on Thursday and Friday at the Curtis C. Menard II Memorial Ice Arena.

Thursday night’s game, slated to start at 7 p.m., starts a stretch in which the Avs will play on four consecutive days.

Alaska hosts Texas on Saturday and Sunday.

Alaska (15-31-2) is currently in fifth place of the North American Hockey League South Division with 32 points. The Avs sit six games behind fourth-place Texas (17-30-4) and are still battling for the fourth and final playoff spot.

Wichita Falls (34-12-2) currently leads the division with 70 points and is one of three South Division teams to already clinch a playoff berth. Second-place Topeka (30-10-7) and third-place Fairbanks (29-12-3) have already earned their spots in the playoffs.

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