Knights open 4A hockey tourney against defending champs

PALMER — After a pair of convincing wins during the region tournament last week, Colony skates into the state tournament riding momentum.

Now this week, the Knights hope to use the energy and excitement earned from winning its second straight North Star Conference title when Colony opens state tournament play against defending state champion West Anchorage.

Colony meets West Thursday at 5 p.m. at the Menard Center in Wasilla during the first day of the ASAA/First National Bank 4A State Hockey Championships. The Knights and Eagles share the bottom side of the bracket with Cook Inlet Conference runner-up Dimond and Mid-Alaska Conference runner-up Juneau-Douglas, which earned a state tourney berth for the first time in school history.

“I think those are all winnable games,” Colony head coach Jamie Smith said after Colony won its North Star championship.

Smith said he knows West Anchorage, which finished third in the CIC is tough, but has said throughout the last two weeks of the season that the Knights are peaking at the right time.

“They have a lot of skill guys. I think we’ve got to get pretty physical with them,” Smith said. “And we’ve got to solve the puzzle of Isaiah Saville. He’s an unbelievable goaltender.”

Colony qualified for state for the second consecutive year with a 5-1 win over rival Wasilla in the North Star semifinals. The Knights netted their second straight region title with a 3-0 victory over Soldotna.

Colony was the lone Valley team to qualify for the state tourney.

With a win Thursday, Colony would move ahead to face either Dimond or Juneau Friday at 7:30 p.m. in the semifinals. With a loss, Colony would be pushed back to the consolation semifinals to face either the Lynx or the Crimson Bears Friday at 2:30 p.m.

Dimond meets Juneau at noon Thursday.

The top side of the bracket includes West Valley, which finished as the 4A runner-up last year. The Wolfpack open the tourney against the fourth seed from the CIC, Eagle River, Thursday at 2:30 p.m. In the late game, CIC champion Chugiak plays NSC runner-up Soldotna Thursday at 7:30 p.m.