Hockey completes Governor's Cup three-peat
February 28, 2012
www.alaskananooks.com
2/25/2012
The Alaska Nanooks honored their seven seniors in winning fashion, scoring three unanswered goals to beat the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves 3-1 and tie the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup Series 1-1. They put the icing on the cake by besting their guests 3-2 in the deciding shootout to lift the Governor's Cup for the third straight year and the 11th time in its 19-year history.
Alaska got goals from sophomore Cody Kunyk, junior Andy Taranto and junior Adam Henderson scored regulation goals and sophomore Colton Beck, Taranto and junior Nik Yaremchuk scored in the shootout to give the Nanooks their three-peat as Governor's Cup Champions.
UAA's Daniel Naslund opened the scoring at 3:56 of the second period, with assistance from Jade Portwood and Corbin Karl.
Alaska answered to tie the game 1-1 at 12:33, when Kunyk beat Seawolf goalie Chris Kamal over his left shoulder from the right face-off circle. Taranto evaded UAA defenders in the slot and slipped the puck out to Gens, who sent a neat pass backdoor to Kunyk for his team-high 15th goal of the season.
Taranto notched his second point of the game with his 11th goal of the year at 18:34. Quinn sent a clearing pass to the neutral zone, where Gens won a foot race to collect it and sent it cross ice to a streaking Tranto near the top of the right circle. The assistant captain fired a wrist shot in the right corner, just over Kamal's shoulder and under the crossbar to make it 2-1.
Heading into the third period the momentum carried as the home team got their third straight goal off Henderson's stick, his fifth of the year and second in as many games, at 5:06 of the final frame. Junior Chad Gehon and senior captain Ron Meyers picked up helpers on the play that made it 3-1 for the Nanooks.
In the deciding shootout, UAA's Curtis Leinweber got the first attempt and he made good on it, beating Greenham high on his gloveside. Beck followed and answered back for the Nanooks, shoveling a back-hander past Kamal's glove.
The second round saw Kwas and Henderson miss on their chances, while Matt Bailey and Taranto matched efforts in the third. Seawolf forward Sam Mellor was denied by Greenham in the fourth round, before Yaremchuk tickled the twine with the shootout winner and sent the Nanooks and their sellout crowd of 4,595 fans into a celebration frenzy.
It was Alaska's first sellout crowd under head coach Dallas Ferguson and the first for the program since Oct. 21, 2006 (also against UAA).
While he wasn't tested very often, Greenham was solid between the pipes for the Nanooks and turned aside 14 of UAA's 15 shots in his final appearnce between the pipes at the Carlson Center.
His counterpart, Kamal, made 28 stops at the other end. Both teams were scoreless with the man advantage as Alaska was 0-for-7 and UAA was 0-for-2.
Alaska's Class of 2012, which includes defensemen Scott Enders, Cody Butcher and Gens, forwards Justin Filzen, Carlo Finucci and Meyers, and Greenham, won Governor's Cup titles in three of their four seasons for the Blue and Gold.
With the regular season behind them, the Nanooks look ahead to next weekend and the Central Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs. Alaska finished 10th in the league standings and has drawn seventh-ranked Lake Superior State in the first round. The Blue and Gold will travel to Sault Saint Marie, Mich. next week and take on the Lakers in a best-of-three series.
ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Jamie Foland, 907-474-6807, jmfoland@alaska.edu, website: www.alaskananooks.com