Hockey upsets North Dakota, wins Brice Alaska Goal Rush
October 22, 2012
Jamie Foland
474-6807
Senior Steve Thompson stopped 25 of 26 shots and the Alaska defense blocked 31 shots en route to a 2-1 upset victory against second-ranked North Dakota to win the 2012 Brice Alaska Goal Rush on Saturday night at the Carlson Center.
Thompson made 52 saves in the weekend sweep and was unanimously named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. This championship win marked the third time in five years the host Nanooks walked away with the title.
The Nanooks improved to 2-1-1 on the year while UND dropped to 1-1-0. Earlier Saturday, Alaska Anchorage (2-1-1) downed Merrimack (1-3-0) 6-3 to take third place.
Alaska saw goals from freshman Josh Atkinson and senior Chad Gehon while freshmen Tyler Morley, Colton Parayko, Nolan Huysmans and sophomore Trevor Campbell notched assists.
North Dakota's lone goal, which opened the scoring, came from Colten St. Clair, with assists credited to Rocco Grimaldi and Mark MacMillan. In goal, Clarke Saunders finished with a game-high 28 saves for UND.
Alaska thought it took a 1-0 lead 10:49 into the first period on a shot in the slot by Cody Kunyk but after a lengthy review by officials, it was ruled no goal due to technical video difficulties and the game remained scoreless.
Late in the opening stanza, North Dakota got on the scoreboard with 2:11 to go. After a pair of blocked shots, St. Clair corralled the puck on the right side of the net and beat Thompson on the far stick side after it deflected off Parayko's stick for the 1-0 lead.
The Nanooks wasted little time to tie it up as they opened the second period with a power play goal 54 seconds in. Morley fed Atkinson the puck from the left corner to the top of the right circle and Atkinson fired a wrist shot that went five-hole through Saunders.
Alaska went ahead for the first time and for good at 3:02 into the third period. After an initial shot by Parayko was saved, Gehon received the puck and got the shot to go past the stick side of Saunders for the 2-1 lead.
With under nine to play, UND nearly tied the game when Carter Rowney found himself out in front with the puck and a lot of space, but Thompson bounced on the puck before it could cross the line, making a game-saving stop.
With 2:39 to go, Colton Beck found Kunyk out in front with a great opportunity, but Kunyk's shot went into the body of Saunders to keep the score idle. After a UND timeout with 1:37 to go, the visitors pulled its goalie and got more help with 57.9 to when Alaska was hit with a cross checking penalty.
Despite the constant UND pressure for much of the final 60 seconds, Michael Quinn was able to possess the puck in the closing seconds and clear it from the defensive zone to preserve the upset victory.
Aside from Thompson's MVP status, joining the senior netminder on the All-Tournament Team were his teammates Morley and Atkinson. North Dakota was represented by MacMillan, Saunders and Jordan Schmaltz while Anchorage had Scott Allen tabbed to the All-Tournament squad.
The Nanooks open CCHA play next weekend in Big Rapids, Mich., with a two-game set at Ferris State on Friday and Saturday. The puck is set to drop at 3:05 AKDT both days. The games can be seen live on Friday on KFXF 7 in Fairbanks and tape delayed on Saturday at 8 p.m. It can also be heard live on KCBF 820 AM.
Brice Alaska Goal Rush All-Tournament Team:
Tyler Morley, Alaska
Scott Allen, Alaska Anchorage
Mark MacMillan, North Dakota
Josh Atkinson, Alaska
Jordan Schmaltz, North Dakota
Clarke Saunders, North Dakota
MVP: Steve Thompson, Alaska
Tournament Champion: Alaska
Tournament Runner-up: North Dakota
Third Place: Alaska Anchorage
Fourth Place: Merrimack