Sean Wiles arrived at UAA in the fall of 2007 as a work in progress, a tall, lanky winger who needed more strength to withstand the rigors of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

He had come out of the U.S. Hockey League carrying modest numbers -- 12 goals and 19 points in 55 games for the Tri-City Storm. Yet Seawolves coach Dave Shyiak and his staff glimpsed potential that could furnish future dividends.

"When he kept his feet moving, he was an effective player,'' Shyiak recalled. "We thought if we could have a couple of years with him, he'd develop into a hard guy to play against.''

Now, the future seems to have arrived for Wiles, a junior who has scored five goals and seven points in his last six games, and leads the Seawolves in plus-minus at plus 6.

The 6-foot-4 Wiles said he arrived at UAA weighing about 190 pounds. He was a late signing in the summer of 2007, and he was preparing for a third and final year of juniors before the Seawolves made him an offer that surprised him. Growing up in Beloit, Wis., Wiles watched the Wisconsin Badgers and knew he wanted to play in the WCHA, so he snapped up UAA's offer. One of his career highlights is scoring a goal at Wisconsin last season.

"It really is a dream to go back there and play at the Kohl Center,'' said Wiles, 22, who is majoring in business management.

Wiles is now in the 210-pound range, and his improved strength in his legs and core allows him to put more power in his role as a power forward.

"I feel like I'm faster, quicker, like I can shield the puck from guys and use my size on the wall and down low,'' Wiles said.

After playing in 15 games and providing four assists as a freshman -- "I got to watch a lot of games,'' Wiles said with a wry smile -- he played 30 games as a sophomore and earned 3-7--10 totals. His role expanded, and these days he's a regular in the lineup and a penalty killer.

"Last year, he was stronger and got more confident, and played within himself, and started to earn more minutes,'' Shyiak said. "He's got to play a simple north-south game, power guys to the outside, chip the puck to himself and get into areas to use his shooting ability.''

The two best games of Wiles' Seawolves career came in the last month. He bagged the first two-goal game of his career in a 7-3 win over No. 2-ranked Denver on Nov. 7, then produced two goals and an assist in a 3-2 overtime win at No. 5 Colorado College on Saturday.

Wiles has spent the last three games playing on a line with freshman center Daniel Naslund and freshman left winger Mickey Spencer. They helped account for all three UAA goals in the upset of Colorado College, with Wiles scoring the first two and assisting on Naslund's overtime strike.

"It's that chemistry thing -- I can't explain it,'' Wiles said. "I don't know why I know where they are or they know where I am. We just do, and we did right from the first time we were put together.''