Loss ends Wasilla's season

JEREMIAH BARTZ/ Frontiersman sports editor

FAIRBANKS - After forcing a deciding fifth game in its best-of-five North American Hockey League series with the rival Fairbanks Ice Dogs, the Wasilla Spirit junior hockey squad is being forced to call its season done.

A 4-1 loss to the Ice Dogs at the Big Dipper Ice Arena in Fairbanks on Sunday officially is the end of the franchise's first season in the Mat-Su Valley. The Spirit were just three periods away from moving on to the NAHL division finals. Now Fairbanks has the right to face Bozeman this week in a best-of-seven series.

Kyle Schmidt, Shane Wheeler and Nick Haddad scored for Fairbanks, as the Ice Dogs built a 3-0 lead. Chris Johnson added a third-period tally for Fairbanks.

Anchorage native Jesse Bryant scored Wasilla's lone goal.

When Schmidt scored nine minutes into the first period, it marked the first time in the series Fairbanks held a lead during regulation. Wasilla earned a 2-1 overtime win in the first game of the series. The following night, Fairbanks needed an overtime tally to beat the Spirit 2-1. In game three, the Ice Dogs didn't see a lead until recording an extra-period goal in a 3-2 win. And on Saturday, Wasilla held Fairbanks scoreless in a 4-0 shutout.

The series paralleled the regular season battles between the teams. Fairbanks won eight of 14 meetings with Wasilla during the regular season. But in those 14 games, only twice was there a margin of victory more of than two goals. Wasilla earned a 4-1 win over the Dogs early in the season, and Fairbanks notched a 3-0 win late in the year.

On Saturday at the Subway Sports Center in Anchorage, Wasilla used a 4-0 win to send the series to a fifth game.

Reed Lally, Mike Glaesmer, Trevor Tolibas and Rob Thomas scored in the Spirit win. Wasilla goaltender Andrew Volkening stopped 35 Fairbanks shots to earn the shutout.

With four minutes remaining in the second period, Lally chucked the puck past a diving Bryce Christianson to give the Spirit a 1-0 lead. Christianson, the Fairbanks netminder, dropped to the ice to try to make the save. But Lally maneuvered him, and slipped the puck into the net.

Less than two minutes later, Glaesmer knocked in a rebound to give Wasilla the two-goal advantage. The play capped a flurry of activity in front of the Spirit net. Glaesmer's shot was Wasilla's third opportunity in mere seconds.

In the third period Tolibas' tally signaled the end of Christianson's day. Fairbanks inserted reserve netminder Shane Malodora between the pipes after Tolibas re-directed a Steve Murphy wrap around attempt into the net.

Thomas added a late empty-netter for Wasilla.

The Spirit were able to notch a postseason berth in just their first season in Wasilla. During the offseason, the Junior A hockey franchise relocated from Springfield, Mo., to Wasilla. Since arriving in the Mat-Su Valley, the Spirit went through a makeover that included a new head coach, general manager and a roster that was almost entirely new.

Wasilla's offseason has now started. Priorities include preparing for the NAHL draft, which is slated for

May 23.