West needs 2OT to slip by Wasilla in opening round of tourney

WASILLA — The best was saved for last Thursday night.

After three less than dramatic first-round games, Wasilla and West Valley provided plenty of drama, and maybe the best thing the game of hockey can offer — sudden-death overtime playoff hockey.

In a game that took nearly five full periods to decide, West Anchorage scored with 59 seconds remaining in the second overtime to slip past the Warriors 1-0 in the final quarterfinal of the first day of the ASAA/First National Cup 4A state championships at the Menard Arena in Wasilla.

Wasilla goalie Lauren Massie and West netminder Joe Chekan ruled virtually all of the game, each pitching shutouts until the final minute of the second overtime. West forward Alex Bardsley was the lone player to slip a puck into either net. With less than a minute left in the second overtime frame, West’s Max Osgood won the draw, Bardsley collected the puck in the right wing circle and snapped a shot upper shelf into the far side of the net.

Massie, tremendous in net, finished with 29 saves. Chekan stopped 25 shots to earn the shutout.

West snapped Wasilla’s 14-game winning streak with the victory. The Warriors ended the regular season winning 12 straight, and beat Homer and Soldotna en route to their second North Star Conference title in four years. This year marks Wasilla’s fourth straight trip to the state tournament, but the Warriors are now 0-4 in the first round during that stretch.

West’s last two wins have come in double overtime. The Eagles needed a double-overtime win over rival East Anchorage in the Cook Inlet Conference Championships to punch its state tournament ticket.

Consecutive losses to South Anchorage and Dimond in the CIC tourney left West in fourth place.

The West win also insures an all-Anchorage semifinal round. West moves into the semifinals to play South today at 8 p.m. at the Menard. Defending state champion Dimond will face Service in the other semifinal.

Wasilla is pushed back with the loss and will face Lathrop today at 10:15 a.m. in the consolation semifinals. Lathrop, the No. 2 seed from the Mid-Alaska Conference, suffered a 3-0 loss in the first round.

In other action, Dimond opened tourney play with a 7-1 win over West Valley. Service skated past Soldotna 3-2. The Wolfpack and the Stars start Day 2 action, meeting in the consolation semifinals at 8 a.m.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

West Anchorage 1,

Wasilla 0

ASAA/First National Cup

Thursday, Menard Arena

First period — no scoring.

Second period — no scoring.

Third period — no scoring.

First overtime — no scoring.

Second overtime — 1. West- Bardsley (M. Osgood) 0:59.

Shots on goal: West 30, Wasilla 25; Saves: West- Checken- 25, Wasilla- Massie 29.