Will Wasilla be the home of Junior A hockey?

WASILLA -- The rumors are swirling.

Frequent questions in the local hockey community often surround one topic -- junior A hockey in the Valley.

Will the Mat-Su Valley be home to a junior A hockey club? What franchise will call the Valley home? How will the Valley embrace junior hockey? Can the Valley support a junior hockey club?

For months those hearing the rumors have asked those questions, and those interested in bringing junior A hockey to the Valley are trying to answer the questions. Although multiple groups are rumored to have interest in bringing junior hockey to Mat-Su, no one has finalized a deal to bring a club to the Valley.

One group, working under the name of the defunct Junior B franchise -- the Alaska Arctic Ice -- is adamant about its desire to bring a club to the Valley. According to Brian Leigh, a former local prep player who skated for both Palmer and Colony in the early 1990s and the acting general manager of the Arctic Ice, the organization hopes to play in the recently opened Curtis C. Menard II Ice Arena as early as next fall. Leigh and his colleagues realize there are many steps and a major financial commitment needed before a team can hit the ice.

"We're at the point, if we're going to do this, do it," Leigh said.

Leigh played for the Arctic Ice, a team that was based in Anchorage, before the team went belly-up in 2000. The Arctic Ice played in the Northern Pacific Division of the Western States Hockey League with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs, Peninsula Hellfighters, Whitehorse Claim Jumpers and the Mat-Su Sinbad Sailors. Fairbanks was the only team to survive, moving into the America West Hockey League at the junior B level, before making the move to junior A and the North American Hockey League. Poor attendance, poor support and a revolt from the teams in the WSHL southern division led to the demise of the other clubs. The Arctic Ice received no love from the Anchorage hockey community, in a town already saturated with pucks. Anchorage already supported myriad youth teams, prep squads, the Division I Alaska Anchorage Seawolves and Anchorage Aces -- a professional club. Mat-Su folded, leaving many Mat-Su residents and businesses sour on the idea of having a junior hockey club in the Valley.

Leigh said problems in the Mat-Su ownership led to the end of the club.

"My understanding is there were good intentions. The owner put a bunch of money down and they were building the team for money, rather than winning," Leigh said. "Financially they were not well set up. They left sponsors with a lot of cash left. People were left with a bad taste."

Soon after the Arctic Ice had to call it quits, the organization wanted the opportunity to jump back onto the ice -- preferably at the junior A level. With little marketing success and hope for support in Anchorage, the Arctic Ice looked elsewhere. When plans arose to build a new ice rink in Wasilla, the group set its sights on the Mat-Su Valley.

Although the new team will look to play in Wasilla's new facility Bruce Urban, manager of recreation servives of the Mat-Su Borough and the Wasilla Multi-Use Sports Complex and the Menard Ice Arena said no team has officially made a request for the Menard Ice Arena to be its home rink.

"I can not say that no organization has approached us," Urban said. "There have been some inquiries."

Urban said if a junior team seeks to play its home schedule in the Menard Arena, the organization would have to put in a formal request with the Wasilla Multi-Use Sports Complex after gaining sufficient financial support and endorsements as well as approval and endorsement from USA Hockey and the NAHL.

Before an organization, such as the Arctic Ice, request the right to play in the Menard Ice Arena, they must find a franchise. According to Leigh the easiest route to bringing a team to Wasilla would be to find a now-defunct NAHL franchise. Leigh said three were available as of last week. Regardless of whether an NAHL franchise is purchased, or a team is relocated to the Valley, the Arctic Ice are looking at a minimum of a $500,000 commitment according to Leigh. The Arctic Ice are also a non-profit organization.

"Because we are non-profit, we are not looking to make money," Leigh said. "As long as we can make enough money to make the program better."

Leigh is meeting with NAHL officials this week and will inquire about the availability of the defunct franchises.

Steve MacSwain, a former University of Minnesota and Anchorage Aces great and veteran of several professional hockey leagues, is also working with the Arctic Ice. The club has tentatively named MacSwain the head coach, and the former pro hockey player has been flooded with inquiries about the possibility of a junior team in Wasilla.

MacSwain said since rumors began to fly, athletes from not only Alaska, but across North America have continued to call him about the possibility of playing in the Valley. MacSwain said he isn't extremely confident about the prospects of a new team dropping the puck for the 2004-05 season, but believes it is a great idea and is eager to see it through.

"Junior hockey in Wasilla, it's a no-brainer. There is too much competition in Anchorage, Wasilla is the perfect town," MacSwain said. "I want it bad for these kids."

MacSwain is currently meeting with possible investors, seeking financial support for a possible franchise.

"It would be great for someone to step up to the plate," MacSwain said.

MacSwain and Leigh both said a primary reason for bringing junior hockey to Alaska is to support the hockey community in the state and its athletes.

"Parents make a huge sacrifice sending their kids to play," MacSwain said.

"Playing junior hockey outside is too expensive," Leigh added.

Normally hockey players with the prospects of playing Division I college hockey move to the junior level, often before the end of their high school career. Leigh hopes by putting a team in Wasilla, some of the talented prep players will stay in Alaska -- though the team will most likely not contain primarily Alaskan talent.

"No doubt we can put a quality, top of the league team together in the first year," Leigh said. "I have all the faith in Steve."

The Arctic Ice group would also like to see another Junior A hockey team in Alaska, to help reduce the travel costs of the Fairbanks Ice Dogs. With two teams in the state, the organazations could share travel costs. Leigh said opposing teams also would like to play more games when coming to the state. Right now a road trip to Alaska consists of just a two-game series.

If the organization does in fact pass through the many hoops it will take to land a franchise in Wasilla, the organization needs the community to buy into the prospect of junior A hockey in the Valley.

Houston head hockey coach Jamie Smith said marketing will be key for the new club.

"They're going to have to be pretty clever," Smith said. "When it comes to marketing the team, the city has to buy into it."

As of today many questions still surround the prospect of bringing a junior hockey team to the Mat-Su Valley, but the Arctic Ice group still is very hopefull.

"It should happen next year, but it is not too late for this year," MacSwain said. "We'll need a lot of luck."

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