Moose score big win over crosstown rival to open tournament

PALMER — The 2012-13 campaign has been a season of learning and a year of growth for the Palmer Moose.

Regularly playing with as many as seven freshman and a dozen underclassmen in the lineup, the Moose secured only one regular-season win in North Star Conference play.

But the Moose learned. Palmer continued to grow.

Thursday, Palmer equaled its regular season NSC total with a 4-2 victory over Colony during the first round of the North Star Conference Championships at the Menard Arena in Wasilla.

“You don’t measure your success as a team in wins and losses,” Palmer head coach Brad Hanson said after the win. “We’ve gotten better all year long, maintained a decent attitude, kept working, kept getting better.”

And Palmer showed that growth Thursday.

Freshmen Hayden Moistner and Darren Fish, and juniors Travis Dreyer and Jacob Inukai each scored goals to help push sixth-seeded Palmer into a semifinal match with No. 2 Soldotna, which is slated for tonight at 7:15 at the Menard.

“Easily with a team like this you could fade at the end rather than peak at the end,” Hanson said.

Dreyer and Moistner sparked the Moose with first-period goals. Dreyer blasted a shot from the point just more than five minutes into regulation to give the Moose the early 1-0 lead. With less than a minute remaining in the first period and the Moose skating on the power play, Moistner snapped a wrister between the circles to push Palmer’s advantage to a pair of goals.

After Colony scored a pair of goals to tie the game at 2, Fish supplied the game-winner with less than four minutes left in the third.

As the clock passed the four-minute mark, freshman Christopher Dojka picked up a loose puck in transition and broke away from the defense. Dojka put a shot on goal, and Colony netminder Colton Beebe made the save. But before the play was blown dead, Fish, who trailed the play, crashed the net and was able to poke the puck by Beebe.

Inukai iced the game with a late empty-netter.

Jonathon Boyer supplied both of Colony goals, continuing his goal-scoring streak against the Moose. Of the 10 goals Colony scored against Palmer this year, Boyer accounted for nine of them.

Boyer cut Palmer’s advantage in half early in the second period, and scored shorthanded early in the third to tie the game.

Palmer junior Ashton Good made 26 saves in the win. Hanson said Good was particularly key during a second period in which Colony put 16 pucks on net.

“That second period was huge. I thought he made some great saves in the second,” Hanson said.

Hanson also praised the work of his third line — juniors Jarrett Johns and Cody Rissew and senior Zane Jerman.

“The third line, that was key. You say third line, but those guys went in there and brought different elements,” Hanson said. “I thought they had nice opportunities, did a nice job of getting after them on the forecheck. I really thought they were our best line in the defensive zone.”

Overall, Hanson was pleased with everyone wearing blue.

“A lot of people contributed tonight,” Hanson said. “We’re excited.”

In other first-round action, Tommy Bowe notched the hat trick and Alex Sanarov pitched the shutout to lead the Homer Mariners to a 5-0 win over Kenai.

Bowe scored on the power play to give his team a 1-0 lead early in the second period and added a pair of goals during the final 5:31 of regulation. Kiril Sanarov and Anton Kuzmin also scored for Homer.

Alex Sanarov made 26 saves in the Homer net. Justin Alvey stopped 34 shots for Kenai, which was eliminated with the loss.

Homer, the No. 4 seed, meets top-seeded Wasilla today at 5 p.m. in the semifinals.

Palmer 4, Colony 2

NSC Championships

Thursday, Menard Arena

First period — 1. Palmer- Dreyer (Moistner) 9:52; 2. Palmer- Moistner (Rissew) pp :58.

Second period — 3. Colony- Boyer (Symbol) 11:24.

Third period — 4. Colony- Boyer (unassisted) sh 13:34; 5. Palmer- Fish (Dojka) 3:39; 6. Palmer- Inukai (unassisted) en 0:01.9.

Shots on goal: Palmer 8-6-4—18, Colony 4-16-8—28; Saves: Palmer- Good 4-15-7—26, Colony- Beebe 6-6-5—22.

Homer 5, Kenai 0

NSC Championships

Thursday, Menard Arena

First period — no scoring.

Second period — 1. Homer- Bowe (K. Reutov, Roberts) pp 12:59; 2. Homer- K. Sanarov (K. Reutov) 11:00.

Third period — 3. Homer- A. Kuzmin (K. Reutov, N. Matveev) 8:20; 4. Homer- Bowe (de Creeft) 5:31; 5. Homer- Bowe (unassisted) :06.9.

Shots on goal: Homer 15-9-15—39, Kenai 9-8-9—26; Saves: Homer- A. Saranov 9-8-9—26, Kenai- Alvey 15-7-12—34.