UAA opened the second half of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association season with a couple of glaring absences in its lineup in Houghton -- namely, no sign of sophomore center Jordan Kwas, the club's leading scorer, or goaltender Rob Gunderson, who has split time all season with fellow sophomore Chris Kamal.
Already gone was UAA's leading goal scorer, junior winger Mickey Spencer, who left the team during the holiday break.
UAA athletic director Steve Cobb said both Kwas and Gunderson are academically ineligible -- for the moment.
"They're home managing their academics,'' Cobb said Friday afternoon. "They both have academic issues. It's not dead-solid they will be ineligible for the season, but as of this day, this minute, they are ineligible.''
With Gunderson out, Kamal, who spearheaded the Seawolves to the WCHA Final Five last season, will presumably become the full-time No. 1 starter. But that tenure got off to a stumbling start -- Kamal was yanked less than two minutes into the second period after giving up four goals on 14 shots.
In came junior Dusan Sidor, who until Friday night had played all of 40 minutes for the Seawolves in two and a half seasons, and those came two seasons ago. He stopped 13 of 15 shots in relief.
The Seawolves (6-11-2, 3-11-1 WCHA) hoped to use their trip to the Michigan's Upper Peninsula to initiate a second-half surge like last season's. And they struck right off the hop -- freshman defenseman Derek Docken scored his first college goal, just 2:24 into the game, off an assist from Andrew Pettitt, who notched his first career point.
But the Huskies (10-11-1, 7-7-1 WCHA) answered just 98 seconds later on Tanner Kero's goal. Chad Pietila's goal furnished a 2-1 lead after one period.
Michigan Tech goals by Ryan Furne and Alex MacLeod in the opening 98 seconds of the second period chased Kamal. The Huskies boosted their lead to 5-1 on David Johnstone's goal late in the period, though the Seawovles were able to trim the gap to 5-2 when Tyler Currier struck just before intermission.
Michigan Tech, buoyed by 25 saves from Josh Robinson, tacked on a goal by Brock Pietila in the third period.
The Seawolves play their first four games of the second half on the road. They play at Michigan Tech again Saturday night, then will train about 100 miles away at Northern Michigan University before heading to Madison, Wis., for a series against Wisconsin.
Northern Michigan is Shyiak's alma mater -- he won a national title as a player in 1991 -- and where he coached before coming to UAA.
Seawolves notes
Curtis Leinweber's assist on Currier's goal gives him 5-5--10 totals in the last seven games and ties him with Kwas, Spencer and sophomore winger Brett Cameron for the team lead in points (10). Leinweber's streak comes after he did not score a point in his first 11 games, which were sandwiched around a three-game stretch he missed with a groin injury
Cameron owns 4-6--10 totals in 15 games.
The Seawolves regained the services of five players who were injured at the end of the first half of the season - forwards Jade Portwood, Alex Gellert and Matt Bailey, and defensemen Docken and Brad Gorham.
UAA 1 1 0 -- 2
MTU 2 3 1 -- 6
First Period -- 1, UAA, Docken 1 (Pettitt), 2:24; 2, MTU, Kero 7 (Gordic), 3:52; 3, MTU, C. Pietila 1 (Rix, Robinson), 12:03. Penalties -- UAA bench minor, served by Pettitt (too many men), 8:35.
Second Period -- 4, MTU, Furne 7 (Olson, B. Pietila), :44; 5, MTU, McLeod 4 (J. Johnstone, Fillion), 1:38; 6, MTU, D. Johnstone 4 (Gordic, Furne), 17:33; 7, UAA, Currier 2 (Cameron, Leinweber), 19:07. Penalties -- Rix, MTU (slashing), 8:33; Roy, UAA (hooking), 10:56; D. Johnstone, MTU (hooking), 14:24; Gorham, UAA (boarding), 19:59.
Third Period -- 8, MTU, B. Pietila 7 (Furne, Nielsen), 15:13. Penalties -- Kero, MTU (interference), 5:45; Bailey, UAA (slashinig), 9:43; Baker, MTU (hooking), 11:53; C. Pietila, MTU (checking from behind), 15:23.
Shots on goal -- UAA 6-11-10--27. MTU 11-9-9--29.
Power-play Opportunities -- UAA 0 of 5.MTU 0 of 4.
Goalies -- UAA, Kamal, 3-6-0 (14 shots-10 saves); Sidor, enter 1:38 2nd period (15-13). MTU, Robinson, 9-9-1 (27-25).
A -- 2,229 (4,128). T -- 2:20.
Referees -- Scott Bokol, Craig Welker. Assistant referees -- Dan Juopperi, Ed Moberg.
UAF wins shootout
Adam Henderson's game-tying power-play strike midway through the third period forced overtime and he scored the only goal of the shootout Friday night to seize the extra point in the standings in a 4-4 tie with nationally-ranked Ferris State in Big Rapids, Mich.
The Nanooks (7-10-4) received one goal and two assists from Jarret Granberg, one goal and one helper from Nik Yaremchuk, and a goal from Nolan Youngmun of Anchorage.
The game goes down as a tie in the NCAA stats, but the Nanooks earned two points in the standings for the shootout win. Ferris State is ranked No. 12 in one national poll and No. 13 in another.
Find Doyle Woody's blog at adn.com/hockeyblog or call him at 257-4335.
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