UAA's Kwas hopes training pays dividends

"I'd drop off late in Friday games, and for Saturday games, I'd still be tired from Friday,'' the center recalled.

UAA coach Dave Shyiak noticed too -- "The difference between him on Fridays and Saturdays was night and day'' -- and that's why he encouraged Kwas to spend the offseason working on the conditioning he lacked.

"I don't think he's ever been totally committed off the ice,'' Shyiak said. "I told him, 'After your good season, seeing your skill and your brain, the only thing stopping you is conditioning.' ''

So it was that Kwas, 21, spent the summer training like never before, hoping to improve on a freshman season in which he scored four goals, 20 assists and 24 points in 36 games.

The native of Cochrane, Alberta, spent the first couple months of the summer working at a remote oil company camp in the province, eating well and working out while off-shift, and benefitting from a beer-free environment. He spent the last couple months of summer working out with a trainer, often joined by Jay Beagle, the former Seawolves center, and defenseman Karl Alzner, who both play for the NHL's Washington Capitals.

"You see how much success they've had,'' Kwas said. "This summer was about realizing I can make a career out of hockey if I keep at it.''

Also steeling Kwas' resolve was a freshman season spent watching senior winger Tommy Grant, the only Seawolves skater with more points than Kwas. Grant came to UAA pencil-thin and eventually dedicated himself to training, which translated into 15 goals as a junior and 16 as a senior, all of which generated a contract from the New York Rangers. Grant plays in the American Hockey League, one step below the NHL.

"After seeing all the things he did -- and he committed out of juniors at 20 or 21, like me -- and him having success, it made me focus more,'' Kwas said. "Before, I was kind of content with making it to college.

"Then I set some goals, and seeing someone do what he did, I felt they were more attainable. I worked out three or four times a week with a trainer, I started eating healthier and I slowed down the partying, which helped.''

Kwas said he reported to training camp at 184 pounds this season, down about six pounds from his freshman season, and with body fat reduced about three percent. He is noticeably leaner in the face and the small gut he sported last season has vanished.

All those changes generated dividends last weekend, when UAA opened the season with a 4-4 tie against Clarkson and a 4-3 overtime win against St. Cloud State that earned UAA the championship of its Kendall Hockey Classic. Kwas furnished an assist against Clarkson, then triggered UAA's comeback against St. Cloud State by scoring the Seawolves' first goal and assisting on Mickey Spencer's overtime winner.

"I feel way more confident and I've gotten faster,'' Kwas said. "The first couple steps are quicker, and that's huge.''

Shyiak noticed.

"He was committed over the summer and it shows,'' the coach said. "There wasn't that drop-off between Friday and Saturday.''

Shyiak said Kwas' improved conditioning and eating habits can only elevate his game, which is built on deft passing and a knack for anticipating the play.

"You can't just get by on talent alone,'' Shyiak said. "You have to have conditioning and strength, and commitment.''

And now that Kwas seems to have turned the corner on those latter elements, he has a new concern.

"Last year, I was more worried about keeping weight off,'' Kwas said. "This year I'm focused on keeping muscle on, so that's a nice change.''

Seawolves notes

Kwas' goal against St. Cloud State, in which he batted a Brett Cameron rebound out of mid-air, was the first even-strength goal of his college career. All four of Kwas' goals last season came on the power play.

"After all the good chances we had and couldn't score (on Huskies goaltender Mike Lee), Brett threw a muffin on net, on his backhand, and I was lucky to get a stick on it,'' Kwas said.

Junior left wing Mickey Spencer, Kwas' left wing, leads the Seawolves in scoring after his four-goal, six-point weekend -- he's tied with Minnesota's Jake Hansen for most points in the nation -- and is one of six Seawolves who began the season with a multiple-point weekend.

Junior center Daniel Naslund and Kwas each earned 1-2--3 totals, Cameron generated three assists, sophomore center Matt Bailey went 1-1--2 and junior wing Mitch Bruijsten had two assists. Cameron leads the team with a plus-3 rating.

At this weekend's Brice Alaska Goal Rush -- UAF is the host in Fairbanks -- the Seawolves will try to duplicate UAF's feat in 2009, when it won both the Kendall and the Brice.

From the Interesting Scheduling File: UAA and UAF annually play in both UAA's Kendall and UAF's Brice the first two weeks of the season. The other two teams in the Brice, Nebraska-Omaha (1-1-0) and Mercyhurst (0-2-0), both played last week in Nebraska-Omaha's Mutual of Omaha Stampede, which was won by Colgate.

After this weekend, the Seawolves travel to Omaha to play their WCHA season-opening series against Nebraska-Omaha.

If three out of four consecutive games against the same opponent seems odd, UAA has topped that. Five times in 32 previous seasons, the Seawolves have played four straight games against the same opponent.

The Seawolves in 2008-09 played four straight against Wisconsin -- two before the holiday break and two after. In 2006, UAA finished the regular season at Minnesota and also played the first round of the WCHA playoffs there. And UAA three times -- 1989, 1987 and 1980 -- played four straight games against UAF.

---

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