Junior hockey squad looks to snap losing skid on the road

Oct. 20, 2006

By Jeremiah Bartz/ Frontiersman

The Alaska Avalanche will take the ice for the first time in two weeks tonight, facing the Santa Fe Roadrunners at the Genoveva Ice Arena in Sante Fe, N.M.

The Wasilla-based squad is looking to snap a three-game losing skid. But to do so, the Junior A hockey team must defeat the top team in the North American Hockey League on its home ice. The Roadruners are 9-2-2, with an NAHL-best 20 points. Santa Fe is 6-1-1 at the Genoveva Arena.

Much of Santa Fe's early season success can be attributed to the play of its special teams. The Roadrunners have the second-most potent power play unit in the 17-team league, converting 19 percent of their chances with the advantage. Santa Fe has also killed 93 percent of its opponents power play, good enough for third in the league.

Sante Fe has 23 power-play goals, and a league-high four shorthanded tallies.

Alaska (3-7-1) has been able to put shots on net, but have struggled to put the puck in the net. Following Alaska's 4-3 loss to Fairbanks earlier this season, Alaska head coach Dean Larson indicated his team needed to look at the types of shots the Avalanche are putting on goal.

&#8220We've been telling these guys all year, we're not scoring from the perimeter,” Larson said. &#8220All of our goals have been off rebounds, and around the net. Until we start doing that consistently, we're not going to score a lot of goals.”

In Alaska's last seven games, the Avalanche have 245 shots and 17 goals.

The Avalanche have showed the potential to light the lamp. Newcomer Brad McCabe has posted a team-high seven goals and 12 points in 10 games. Jesse Bryant, in his second season with the organization, has five goals and six assists. Another first-year Junior A player, Travis Stevens, has five goals and five assists.

Alaska has a 10-game tour of the southwest before returning to the 49th state. Following their two-game series at Santa Fe, the Avalanche travel to Wichita Falls to face the Wildcats in a three-game set that starts Thursday.

In early November, Alaska has a two-game series against Texas, and finishes the trip with a three-game set at Santa Fe.

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