Crash injures two Avs players

Dec. 19, 2006

By MATT TUNSETH

Frontiersman

WASILLA - A goodwill trip to read to elementary school students turned into a visit to the hospital for two Alaska Avalanche players Monday morning.

Avalanche defenseman Brandon Graffunder and forward Chris Nicolaou were transported to Mat-Su Regional Medical Center following the accident, which occurred just before 10 a.m. on Vine Road in the Knik-Goose Bay area.

&#8220They're a little banged-up, but they're OK,” Avalanche head coach and general manager Keith Morris said via cell phone Monday.

Morris declined to go into specifics of any injuries sustained by his players pending notification of their families.

According to Alaska State Troopers, three Avs players were southbound in a white Ford Expedition driven by Nicolaou, 20, of Dallas. Nicolaou apparently lost control of the vehicle on the icy roadway and slid across the center line, striking a blue 1990 Toyota Tacoma driven by Ronald Keller, 36, of Wasilla.

&#8220It looks like the white Expedition slid across the road and collided with the blue truck,” Casey said at the scene.

Graffunder, 18, of Brooklyn Park, Minn., Nicolaou and Keller were transported to the hospital. No information was released about Keller's injuries, although Troopers said his injuries were not life-threatening. A third Avalanche player riding in the back seat of the Expedition declined treatment at the scene.

Trooper spokesperson Greg Wilkinson said it appeared none of the people involved in the accident were wearing seatbelts, a factor that likely contributed to the injuries.

&#8220The statement from (Trooper Casey) was their injuries would be a lot less severe if they'd been buckled in,” Wilkinson said.

Two other vehicles also containing Avs players drove into the ditch to avoid the collision.

No citations had been issued by Monday afternoon, and Wilkinson said the accident was still under investigation.

Coach Morris got the news of the crash as the rest of his team was preparing to read books and hand out free game tickets to students at Goose Bay Elementary. Morris immediately left the school to be with his injured players, while the rest of the team dutifully headed off to read to students.

Avalanche players have been traveling to various schools around the Mat-Su recently to promote reading and get kids excited about hockey. On Monday, the team donated more than 600 tickets to students at the school, which is the largest elementary school in the district.

While their teammates read to elementary schoolers, another half-dozen Avalanche players who didn't make it to the event milled around in the snow alongside Vine Road and watched as an Alaska State Trooper helped one player push a Ford Bronco out of the ditch.

Discussion centered around concern for their injured teammates as well as what the loss of two key players will mean to the team's immediate future.

The impact on the already banged-up team likely will be felt deeply, as Graffunder was the team's leading scorer among active defenseman, and Nicolaou has been used heavily on the penalty kill.

The Avalanche are coming off a 10-day break and face division-leading Santa Fe tonight at the Multi-Use Sports Center in Wasilla.

Game time is 7:30 p.m.

Contact Matt Tunseth at

352-2265 or matt.tunseth@

frontiersman.com