North Pole gets past Houston to win first state hockey title in school history

The North Pole Patriots and Houston Hawks split a pair of games during the 2025-26 regular season. The Alaska small schools rivals met again on Saturday in the rubber match, with everything on the line. But the Hawks could not get the puck to bounce their way.

North Pole held on to grab a 3-1 victory during the ASAA Division II state championship game Saturday evening at the MTA Events Center in Palmer.

North Pole junior goalie Kieran Olson used a 34-save night to lead the Patriots to their first state hockey title in school history and prevent the Hawks from earning their third championship in the last five years.

Olson’s efforts included helping North Pole kill a pair of late penalties, both for too many men on the ice. The second came with 1:42 left in regulation.

Houston also pulled its goalie for the 6-on-4 advantage with 1:17 left to play.

Houston trailed 2-0 entering the final period. Hawks sophomore Andrey Efimov fired a shot from the left wing circle, set up by a Zasim Konev pass, to cut the deficit in half.

North Pole scored both of its goals during the second period. Carter Borkovec flipped a puck from the right wing into the far side of the net with just more than a dozen left in the period to give the Patriots a 1-0 lead. About eight minutes later, Caven Malone knocked in a rebound on a North Pole power play to stretch the lead to a pair.

Cody Bristor added a shorthanded empty netter in the final seconds.

North Pole and Houston played twice during the regular season, splitting the games. The Pats beat the Hawks 3-1 in December, and Houston earned a 2-1 win in January.

North Pole finished the season 22-2-1. The only other loss came against Palmer.

The Palmer Moose, the 2025 Division II state champs, finished third in the tourney with a 3-1 win over Soldotna.

Houston skated past the Moose 7-1 in the semis. Owen Hunter led the Hawks with a hat trick. Trenton Huber added a pair of goals.

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