Aces sign rookie goalie, blueliner

The Aces have signed rookie goalie Alex Petizian, 23, who is fresh off a four-season career at St. Lawrence University of the Eastern College Athletic Conference. Principally the Saints' go-to goalie as a junior and freshman, Petizian racked a career record of 45-29-10 with a 2.53 goals-against average, .913 save percentage and four shutouts.

Alaska coach Brent Thompson said he envisions Petizian as a guy who can compete against whichever goalie the club receives from its affiliates. The NHL's St. Louis Blues and AHL's Peoria Rivermen help supply the Aces' roster.

"Obviously, goaltending was an issue for us last season, and we wanted to nip it in the bud right away,'' Thompson said. "He's been a legitimate No. 1 goalie for a good NCAA program for much of his college career.

"He would push your No. 1 guy, be a No. 1A guy.''

With the exception of Frank Doyle's 16-game gig with the Aces last season before he was promoted to the AHL for good, the Aces were riddled by inconsistency in the net. Veteran Scott Reid and youngster Sebastian Dahm flashed occasional promise, but did not routinely give their club chances to win. Reid and rookie Billy Sauer struggled in the playoffs, hastening the Aces' first-round departure after six straight ECHL seasons in which they reached, at minimum, the second round of the Kelly Cup playoffs.

That uneven play proved troublesome too, for fans accustomed to excellence. Two seasons ago, rookie Jean-Philippe Lamoureux won the ECHL's Goaltender of the Year award and the club has enjoyed stellar work in the past from Derek Gustafson, Chris Beckford-Tseu, Matt Underhill and Peter Aubrey.

Still, the Aces weren't awful last season -- at 36-28-8 in the regular season, they finished eight games above .500 and third in the eight-team National Conference with 80 points. Yet the club's previous six ECHL seasons were filled with excellence -- the 2006 Kelly Cup, the 2009 Kelly Cup Finals, an average of 24 games above .500 and an average of 96 points.

Though the Aces have announced only eight signings -- less than half the number they are likely to release entering training camp -- those are heavily weighted toward youth and new faces. Six of the announced signings are rookies, and seven of signed players will be first-year Aces.

New to the crew like Petizian is rookie scoring defenseman Alan Mazur -- the Aces also announced his signing Tuesday.

Mazur, 24, last season as a senior helped Rochester Institute of Technology become the feel-good story of the NCAA season -- the Tigers advanced to the Frozen Four before Wisconsin sent them packing in the semifinals.

Mazur's rink resume is filled with points. He earned 8-15--23 totals in 39 games last season, and in 137 career games at RIT racked 27-71--98 totals. In three seasons before that in the British Columbia Hockey League, he earned 34-117--151 totals in 166 games.

There's a hint of power-play specialist in Mazur's game -- 22 of his 27 career goals at RIT came with the man advantage.

"I know he has good offensive vision, has a good shot and has a knack for getting the puck to the net,'' Thompson said.

Shuffling the deck

More familiar faces to Aces fans have signed elsewhere.

Former sniper John Lammers is off to HC Pizen in the Czech Extraliaga. Scoring defenseman T.J. Fast was traded to Florida by the Blues on Tuesday, so scratch a return to Anchorage for him. And defenseman Nils Backstrom of Sweden, who joined the Aces after finishing his UAA career last spring, has signed with Ilves, a club in Finland.

At least half of the eight players the Aces granted qualifying offers -- Lammers, Backstrom, Doyle and defenseman Tyson Marsh -- are headed elsewhere. Doyle has signed to play in Italy -- ditto for Marsh.

The Aces also made qualifying offers to center Alexandre Imbeault, though he bolted the club for the Czech league last season; forward Curtis Fraser, who played for the Aces last season; two-season Aces defenseman Nick Tuzzolino; and forward Judd Blackwater.

Find Doyle Woody's blog at adn.com/hockeyblog or call him at 257-4335.