The great outdoors

PALMER — Katy Applin is no stranger to playing hockey outdoors.

Growing up in the Mat-Su Valley, Applin would occasionally lace up the skates for a bit of pond hockey or to just skate the ice of a local lake.

But when Applin returns to the outdoor ice on Friday, it will be on a much bigger stage.

Applin, a 2006 graduate of Palmer High School, will help make hockey history Friday as part of the first collegiate outdoor women’s hockey game.

Applin and the Northeastern Huskies will face the New Hampshire Wildcats Friday at noon AST as part of a college hockey doubleheader at Fenway Park in Boston, Mass.

“I’m excited,” Applin, the Huskies senior captain, said by cell phone Monday. “For women’s hockey, it’s especially great.”

Fenway, the historic home park of the Boston Red Sox, was the site of the National Hockey League’s Winter Classic on Jan. 1. The game, which featured the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers, has rapidly become an annual league tradition.

And on Friday, Fenway will be home to two more hockey games. The Boston College and Boston University men’s teams will follow at 3:35 p.m. AST.

Applin, who has visited Fenway as a baseball fan during the summer, said she’s excited to get the chance to get to skate on a sheet of ice that sits where the park’s infield would typically be.

“It’s still weird to even think they would be a hockey rink there,” Applin said. “It’s really neat to even see where they put it.”

Applin and her teammates will have the first chance to hit the ice during a practice session on Thursday.

“It’s just going to be a lot of fun,” Applin said.

Not only the Huskies have the chance to play in the historic park, they have the potential to do so in front of a sold-out crowd.

Tickets for the doubleheader sold out in a week, according a press release issued by Northeastern athletics, and the games will be televised on the New England Sports Network.

“It’ll be a whole new atmosphere,” Applin said. “We hardly draw a crowd at our games.”

Applin is one of two Alaskans on the Northeastern roster, joining Skyview graduate and senior defenseman Ginny Berg. Applin said her teammates have asked about what it’s like to play on an outdoor rink.

“People are just curious about what it’s going to be like,” Applin said. “We’ve got three girls from Southern California. They certainly didn’t grow up playing outside.”

Applin has been a regular on the Northeastern blue line during her four-year stay with the Division I Huskies. A captain since the beginning of her junior season, Applin has appeared in 116 career games. She has six goals and 26 assists during her career. This season Applin has three assists and a +8 rating for the 11-4-2 Huskies.

Applin said her time at the Boston area university has exceeded her expectations for a Division I hockey career.

“Personally, it’s been great,” Applin said. “I’ve been able to play all four years.”

Applin said the Huskies struggled during her first two seasons with the program, but after the hire of head coach Dave Flint, Applin said the program has turned around.

Northeastern is 6-3-2 in the Hockey East conference and is currently ranked ninth in the country.

Before signing with Northeastern, Applin played two seasons for the North American Hockey Academy. Applin skated for the Palmer High School boys team as a freshman and a sophomore.

As a senior playing for the NAHA, Applin posted 16 goals and 34 assists, and was named first-team All-Midwest Elite Hockey League.

While at Palmer High, Applin was also a standout on defense for the Moose girls’ hockey team.

Applin said this season could be her last at a major level of competitive hockey. Although she said the sport will always be in her life in some capacity, she’s planning on hanging up the skates and head to medical school.

“I’m definitely looking forward to experience some other aspect of life,” Applin said. “It’s such a major part of my life right now. I’m looking forward to doing other things I like.”

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