Growing program

PALMER — For the last several years, the Palmer High School hockey team has faced one very apparent obstacle — an overwhelming lack of depth.

For more than a decade, the Moose were routinely the team with a short bench. And at its thinnest, the Palmer hockey team struggled to put together a pair of formidable lines.

But times have changed.

Since the addition of the Palmer Ice Arena to the west side of the Valley and the birth of the Palmer Amateur Hockey Association, the number of athletes within the PHS hockey program has grown. And that rise in numbers has led to a new found sense of optimism that the Moose can finally be competitive within the North Star Hockey Conference.

“The most obvious weakness last year was depth,” Palmer second-year head coach Brad Hanson said following his team’s practice on Friday. “We’re better off this year. We have more kids, and they’ve worked hard.”

The Moose, who finished 7-3-0 in North Star play last season, return a host of talent from the 2007-08 squad

“We’ve got a lot of guys who return, but we have a long way to go,” Hanson said. “We’re still kind of at the bottom, looking up.”

Leading the group of veterans is a trio of seniors who have spent their entire high school career on the varsity roster.

Up front are seniors Zack Richards and Michael Hanson, a pair that makes up two-thirds of Palmer’s top line. On the blue line is senior Andrew Ferguson.

Ferguson is one of three returning defenseman who saw a significant amount of ice time last season. Junior Dylan Danielowski and sophomore Nick Reeves are also back.

The Moose also have senior Derek Monarch and sophomore Thomas Hunt on the blue line.

Joining Richards and Hanson on the top line is freshman Ivan Good, a 6-foot-1 freshman. Brad Hanson said the Moose will mix up the lines a bit, but Good has earned a spot on the first line at this point.

“He’s a big strong kid,” the head coach said. “He skates real well, has good hands.”

Hanson is also excited about his second line — sophomore Jared Hanson, junior Kyle Blakeman and junior Tyler Isaacs — a unit that played well together last season.

“I think it’s going to be a good solid line,” Brad Hanson said.

Hanson also noted sophomore Stephen Acher, who worked hard in the offseason.

Palmer is also deeper in net this year with junior Jonas Naegele, junior Will Rauchenstein and Tessa Muilenburg.

Naegele spit time with graduated senior Sam McQuillin last season. Rauchenstein — who helped the Houston Hawks win a 3A state championship as a freshman — and Muilenburg are both new to the team.

“(The depth) helps,” Hanson said. “It helps the kids be sharp and fresh and focused.”

Palmer will make its 2008-09 debut against the Eagle River Wolves at the Palmer Ice Arena on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The nonconference game is the start of a tough early-season schedule for PHS.

Later this month, Palmer hosts East Anchorage and will play Service in the opening round of the annual Curtis C. Menard II Memorial Hockey Tournament. Palmer also plays Dimond and Colony in November.

Hanson said Palmer made an effort to schedule tougher opponents this season, something similar to what rival Wasilla, the defending North Star champs did last year.

“(Wasilla) played a lot of tough teams from Anchorage and they benefited,” Hanson said. “We play South and Dimond this year, teams that are in the state tournament year in and year out.”

But right now, the Moose are just eager to take the ice against the Wolves.

“Overall, the kids have worked very hard in the offseason to prepare themselves,” Hanson said. “We’re anxious to get started and anxious to see where we stand up.”

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