Chasing hockey dreams

JEREMIAH BARTZ/ Sports Editor

Chase Allington does not just play hockey. Allington eats, sleeps and breathes hockey.

The average hockey playing teen-ager in the Mat-Su area may play for his high school team, or even with one of the local youth organizations. Some may skate at a local pond, or just pop the puck into a portable net at the end of their driveway.

Allington does all that has to do with the sport he loves, the sport of hockey. His hockey life stretches long past just the winter season and is now a 12-month activity. Hockey now extends far past the borders of the Mat-Su Valley for the Colony High School junior. In the last year hockey has taken Allington across the Lower 48 and to Europe.

Allington said he started skating at about the age of four, following the path of his older brother Brooke.

"He totally got me into the game," Allington said. "He's the number one guy, seeing him doing that was huge for me."

Allington played in the Matanuska Amateur Hockey Association early in his pucks career, and he later played in the Eagle River association before moving on to become a member of the Alaska North Stars Tier I AAA squad. Allington said once he started skating for the North Stars team, he realized hockey was more than just a hobby and he wanted the sport to become a significant part of his future.

With hockey a big part of his own life, the sport was also a big part of the daily routine of the Allington family. The path started by Brooke was now traveled by Chase, but right along side was their father Gordon.

Allington joked that his father has been sort of a personal manager.

"He's done so much," Allington said. "I probably wouldn't be where I am at, if it wasn't for him."

Allington recognizes his father plays a role in the foundation of his hockey future, that many parents do not. Gordon keeps in touch will scouts, regularly gives updates to scouting services and even travels with his son to tryouts.

Allington believes, with his father's help, he has had the opportunity to get noticed, and that has been the most important part in the building of the foundation for a promising hockey career.

"High school hockey is a big thing, but not where you get your exposure," Allington said. "You have to get your name known."

And scouts from all over the country are beginning to remember the name Allington from Alaska.

Last summer Allington began his own personal hockey tour by traveling with an Alaska select team to Washington. Once in Washington, Allington was selected out of a group of players within his age group and was awarded the opportunity to compete at a camp in Rochester, N.Y. At the Rochester camp, Allington was selected for a national select team in his age group.

Allington also had the opportunity to compete at a selects camp in Denver, Colo., for an opportunity to make a squad that went to Switzerland for an international hockey tournament. The Denver selects camp included coaches from the Junior A and Division III levels and the head coach of the select team that traveled to Switzerland was former minor league head coach John Paris.

Allington was not only named to the team, but named captain of the team by Paris. Allington said on the plane trip to Europe, Paris told him he would be captain of the team.

"It makes you feel really good," Allington said. "I really haven't been a captain, but if a pro coach sees you as captain material, that's a huge deal."

In addition to the camps as part of the select squads, Allington also participated in a pair of Junior A tryouts. Allington traveled to Chicago to try out with the Junior A Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League. The USHL is recognized as one of the top Junior A leagues in North America, and arguably the premiere Junior A league in the United States.

Allington also attended a try out at the Fairbanks Ice Dogs camp. The Ice Dogs are a Junior A league competing the National American Hockey League. The Ice Dogs are also the squad of another Colony High standout - former Knight Seth Reda.

Allington said he was able to get good exposure at each camp.

"It's all about exposure, you have to get exposure," Allington said.

Allington said he has an invitation to join the Ice Dogs next year and also plans to try out once again with the Steel.

If attending select camps, and Junior A tryouts was not enough, Allington also had the opportunity to skate with the Los Angeles Junior Kings, a U-18 AAA hockey squad. Allington skated in a few games for the Kings in October and was tempted to stay, but he decided to return to Alaska for the prep season. Allington said the Kings, sponsored by the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings, used an NHL-style hockey rink and had the use of an NHL-style locker room.

With the opportunity to play Division I hockey zeroed in his sights, Allington said he will aim for a chance to play at the Junior A level next season and see where his career takes him.