ALASKA'S NEWSPAPER

| Updated: 3:34 PM

Alaska Aces

PRO HOCKEY

Swanson, Anderson boost Alaska to win in Idaho

Brian Swanson tipped in a shot by teammate Chad Anderson with 94 seconds left in the game to lift the Aces to a 3-2 ECHL hockey victory over the Idaho Steelheads at the CenturyLink Arena in Boise.

Idaho upends Alaska Aces 3-2

Despite a pair of power-play goals from Nick Mazzolini, the Alaska Aces road woes continued Wednesday when they opened a three-game hockey series against the Idaho Steelheads with a 3-2 ECHL loss at the CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho.

Wranglers overcome Aces in tight series final, 4-2

What little separates the ECHL-leading Alaska Aces and the second-place overall Las Vegas Wranglers is thinner than a skate blade, as illustrated by the three-game series that wrapped with the Wranglers' 4-2 win Saturday night in Nevada.

PRO HOCKEY

Wranglers drop Aces 2-1

The special teams that have generally served the Alaska Aces so well this season proved their downfall Friday night in a 2-1 ECHL road loss to the Las Vegas Wranglers.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces snap skid with 4-2 win

The ECHL-leading Alaska Aces, saddled with their longest winless streak this season, found a way to stack the slump-busting odds heavily in their favor Thursday night in Las Vegas.

Aces lose another one in 4-3 shootout against Ontario

Opportunities rarely come more splendid than the ones the Alaska Aces were afforded in overtime Tuesday night on the road against the Ontario Reign. Mark them down as opportunities squandered by the ECHL leaders.

Stockton completes 3-game sweep of Alaska Aces

In a goaltending duel between guys under contract to NHL teams, Stockton's Alex Stalock was just the tiniest bit better than Alaska's Adam Courchaine, and he backstopped the Thunder to a 2-1 ECHL victory Sunday that earned them a three-game sweep of the visiting Aces.

Aces net unusual defeat

The Alaska Aces on Saturday night suffered a slight they have not endured in three months -- a second consecutive loss in regulation.

PRO HOCKEY

Stockton Thunder snap Aces' streak of points on the road

Aces winger Tyler Ruegsegger bounces the puck off Stockton's Chris D'Alvise as Thunder goalie Alex Stalock keeps his eye on the puck during Friday's (January 28, 2012) series opener in Stockton, Calif. Stalock had 24 saves in the 6-3 Stockton win.

Alaska surrendered a season-high three power-play goals and fell 6-3 to the Stockton Thunder in California.

Aces defeat Bakersfield despite giving up six goals

Any 72-game regular season is bound to include a few head-scratchers and jaw-droppers, and the Alaska Aces' road-trip opener delivered the incredulity Wednesday night in California.

Long road trip for Aces starts in Bakersfield

By the time the Alaska Aces return from this never-ending road trip, captain Brian Swanson's oldest child, fifth-grader Addison, will have her driver's license. Defenseman Chad Anderson's infant son, Ethan, will be gearing up for mite hockey.

Aces make up for loss, beat Idaho 6-3

Coming off their first loss in regulation in more than a month, the Alaska Aces unlimbered their big guns Saturday night at Sullivan Arena, where they strafed the Idaho Steelheads, 6-3.

PRO HOCKEY

Steelheads snap Aces' streak

Alaska's Zach Harrison tries to get a shot off in front of Idaho goalie Jerry Kuhn. Idaho's Andrei Plekhanov is at left. The Alaska Aces played the Idaho Steelheads in Anchorage on Friday, January 20, 2012.

The Idaho Steelheads ranked No. 1 on the list of likely suspects to halt the Alaska Aces' series of streaks, and Friday night the visitors lived up to their billing.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces winger has catapulted up the ECHL goal-scoring leaders list

Alaska Right winger Wes Goldie Goldie has scored points in 19 of the last 24 games and generated 17-15--32 totals in that span. He leads the Aces in goals (20) and points (40), and ranks tied for second in the league in goals.

When Alaska Aces winger Wes Goldie got off to a slow start this ECHL hockey season -- and three goals in his first 13 games was syrup-slow by his sniper standards -- the club's fan base got a little rattled.

Familiar face to aid shorthanded Aces

Rolling on a long streak of success -- nine straight wins and 13 straight hockey games without a loss in regulation -- the ECHL-leading Alaska Aces are doing it with a short lineup lately because of injuries and players promoted to the American Hockey League.

Aces have the numbers to back up success

Adam Courchaine, the ECHL Goaltender of the Week, has not lost in regulation in 15 starts (12-0-3) and has won his last seven starts.

The Alaska Aces have straight-up lost just one ECHL hockey game in that two months-plus, which is why they currently own several streaks that add up to their league-leading success.

Aces win ninth straight, beating Stockton 4-2

The wonders of Wes Goldie rarely cease, which is why his Alaska Aces teammates often shrug their shoulders and use a stock explanation when the veteran sniper does something special: "That's Wes.''

PRO HOCKEY

Aces get unexpected help

Lured out of retirement to aid his injury-depleted former team, Matt Shasby celebrates after scoring the first goal of the game for the Alaska Aces during first-period action against the Stockton Thunder Friday evening January 13, 2012 at Sullivan Arena. Shasby had last scored a goal April 24, 2009, and had last played a game June 5, 2009, the seventh game of the Kelly Cup finals.

Matt Shasby, the former elite Alaska Aces defenseman turned middle-school teacher -- his classes include world geography, U.S. history and language arts -- came out of retirement Friday night to play pro hockey for the first time in two and a half years.

PRO HOCKEY

Swanson injured as Aces beat Thunder

Short-handed on bodies to start Thursday night, and more so when captain Brian Swanson was injured in the opening minutes, the Alaska Aces nonetheless used 29 saves from goaltender Adam Courchaine to earn a 3-0 ECHL victory over the Stockton Thunder.

Aces' Ruegsegger is always in motion

Alaska winger Tyler Ruegsegger in 31 games this season owns 10-7-17 scoring totals that tie him for fourth in goals on the ECHL's top team.

Not more than five minutes after most Alaska Aces home games, Tyler Ruegsegger emerges briskly from the team's dressing room at Sullivan Arena, still sweating from his night's labor, but still not done.

Aces are piling up points at record pace

All day Saturday, things just didn't seem quite normal to Gerald Coleman -- the Alaska Aces goaltender couldn't put his finger on what was different, just that it was.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces top Grizzlies 3-1 in Coleman's return to ice

Friday night, the Alaska Aces in their 3-1 victory over the Utah Grizzlies at Sullivan Arena provided more evidence their quality depth is one of their signature attributes.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces best Grizzlies 4-1

Alaska's Zach Harrison turns up ice. The Alaska Aces hosted the Utah Grizzlies in Anchorage on Thursday, January 5, 2011.

Ugly though they undeniably were -- rhythm was absent, errant passes were plentiful and two of their players required stitches to stop the bleeding -- the Alaska Aces on Thursday night just kept doing what they've been doing the last two months: Picking up precious points in the standings.

In ECHL, there's no place like home for Aces

In the midst of an 11-game homestand, their longest this hockey season, the Alaska Aces aim to become hoarders -- just not in that messy, compulsive, kinda-creepy, cable-TV way. What the Aces hope to keep collecting is points in the ECHL standings.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces rally from 3-0 deficit, beat Colorado in shootout

Less than 12 minutes of hockey had been played at Sullivan Arena on New Year's Eve and the Alaska Aces found themselves down by three goals.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces stall Eagles' attack

Ethan Cox and Tyler Ruegsegger, of the Alaska Aces, Vs. Colorado Eagles in first period hockey action on Friday, December 30, 2011 at the Sullivan Arena.

Adam Courchaine didn't so much repel the puck Friday night as swallow it with his body or smother it with his catching glove, and that made for a winning formula -- no rebounds equals no risks, only rewards.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces' first line pounces on Eagles in battle of top teams

The Alaska Aces' first line has proved first rate of late, and Wednesday night it delivered three goals and eight points in a 4-1 ECHL victory over the depleted Colorado Eagles at Sullivan Arena.

PRO HOCKEY

Top ECHL teams square off at Sullivan

After their holiday "break'' -- though three days really doesn't rate as extended leisure -- the Alaska Aces aren't exactly easing back into their ECHL schedule tonight.

PRO HOCKEY

Steelheads sweep Aces with another shootout victory

Idaho beat Alaska in extra time for the third straight night Friday, earning a 4-3 shootout win at CenturyLink Arena in Boise after rallying from a two-goal, third-period deficit, killing a penalty in overtime and winning the skills contest.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces can't solve Idaho's Kuhn

On the upside of Thursday night's 3-2 overtime loss to the Idaho Steelheads, the Alaska Aces tied a franchise record by bagging at least one point in the ECHL standings for a 10th consecutive road game -- they are 6-0-4 in that stretch.

Idaho Steelheads drop Aces 4-3 in shootout

Any point secured in a hockey game on the road is generally encouraging, and while the Alaska Aces pocketed a point Wednesday night, they also suffered the rare experience of squandering a third-period lead.

Goldie's in goal-scoring groove right now

When Alaska Aces sniper Wes Goldie got off to a plodding, pop-gun start this hockey season -- just three goals in his first 13 games -- it was worth remembering the book on the veteran is he has always been a streaky scorer.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces return to winning ways, beating Ontario Reign 6-3

One night after the Alaska Aces saw their streak of 13 consecutive games with a point snuffed by the Ontario Reign, second-year winger Garry Nunn and rookie defenseman Kane Lafranchise helped kick-start the league leaders in a game that featured a combined 106 penalty minutes.

Reign ends Aces' 13-game streak with a 4-1 win

The Alaska Aces' five-week streak of prosperity Saturday succumbed to the Ontario Reign, the last team to beat the ECHL leaders before the Aces went on a 13-game run in which they did not lose in regulation.

PRO HOCKEY

Aces goalie trumps Reign

Alaska Aces goalie Gerald Coleman smothers the puck in front of the net as Zach Harrison of the Aces and Francois Brisebois of the Ontario Reign fill the net behind him in hockey action on Friday, December 16, 2011 at the Sullivan Arena.

Even a hockey team like this Alaska Aces club that is riding the ECHL's longest current streak of consecutive games without a regulation loss is going to throw a clunker into the mix now and then.

PRO HOCKEY

Best in ECHL when it comes to plus-minus

Alaska Aces defenseman Steve Ward tries to control the puck despite Kalamazoo's Jon Landry trying to dive in the way during the closing minutes of Wednesday night's ECHL Kelly Cup Game 3 ,May 18, 2011, in Kalamazoo.  Alaska fell to the K-Wings, 4-1, for their first loss of the 2011 Playoffs.

As hockey defensemen go, Steve Ward is not a big man -- 6-foot, 195 pounds -- and he's not a big hitter, but rarely does he get bowled over. Nothing about Ward's game is likely to make the average fan absolutely swoon, but the Alaska Aces blueliner makes plenty of smart, small plays and rarely authors a blunder.

Another Ace goes up to AHL

With two ECHL Kelly Cups since 2006, a reputation for treating players well and a passionate fan base, the league-leading Alaska Aces like to think of Anchorage as a destination for hockey players.

PRO HOCKEY

Red-hot Aces romp Grizzlies

All the Aces have done in the wake of Saturday night's 6-1 dismissal of the Utah Grizzlies is fashion the ECHL's best record (18-4-2), generate a streak in which they have gone unbeaten in regulation for 12 consecutive hockey games (10-0-2) and post a three-game sweep of a Mountain Division rival.

Aces down Utah 4-0

Kremyr

The Alaska Aces used Jordan Kremyr's hat trick and Gerald Coleman's 26 saves Friday to beat the Utah Grizzlies 4-0 and run their hot streak to 11 games.

ACES HOCKEY

Alaska extends unbeaten streak

Grizzlies goaltender Shane Owen battles for the puck with Aces forward Ethan Cox during the second period at Sullivan Arena on Wednesday.

The league-leading Alaska Aces stretched their unbeaten streak to 10 games with a 3-1 win Wednesday over Utah at Sullivan Arena, which ties the franchise's fifth-longest streak in its nine seasons in the ECHL.

Aces getting it done again with defense

The defense-first philosophy that served the Alaska Aces so splendidly last hockey season is working again this season for the ECHL's defending Kelly Cup champions.

Aces v. Idaho

Alaska's Zach Harrison races Idaho's Jace Coyle into the corner in the first period. The Alaska Aces played the Idaho Steelheads in Anchorage on Friday, January 20, 2012.

The Alaska Aces played the Idaho Steelheads in Anchorage on Friday, January 20, 2012.

Aces 3 Stockton 1

Lured out of retirement to aid his injury-depleted former team, Matt Shasby celebrates after scoring the first goal of the game for the Alaska Aces during first-period action against the Stockton Thunder Friday evening January 13, 2012 at Sullivan Arena. Shasby had last scored a goal April 24, 2009, and had last played a game June 5, 2009, the seventh game of the Kelly Cup finals.

Matt Shasby scores a goal and Jim Dahl earns an assist in a 3-1 Alaska Aces win over Stockton January 13, 2012 at Sullivan Arena.

Aces v. Utah

Alaska's Jordan Kremyr scores on Utah goalie Andrew Engelage in the first period. Utah's Erik Felde defends at center. The Alaska Aces hosted the Utah Grizzlies in Anchorage on Thursday, January 5, 2011.

The Alaska Aces hosted the Utah Grizzlies in Anchorage on Thursday, January 5, 2011.

Aces Vs. Colorado Hockey

Ethan Cox and Tyler Ruegsegger, of the Alaska Aces, Vs. Colorado Eagles in first period hockey action on Friday, December 30, 2011 at the Sullivan Arena.

Alaska Aces Vs, Colorado Eagles Hockey on Friday, December 30, 2011.

READER PICS

My Aces

Calling all Cowbell Crew. Post photos from your Aces games and player encounters and check out how others show off their love of Alaska's most popular professional team.

BLOG

Woody on Hockey

Join the conversation about the Aces and Alaska hockey with Doyle Woody, who has covered the game for 28 years.

WEB SITE

Alaska Aces

Get information, visit the team store and surf through the rest of the Alaska Aces' official web site.



Find 'n' Save Daily DealGet the Deal!

Local Deals



Pets

Find puppies, kittens, and all pet supplies and services here. More...

other transportation

Other Transportation

Find great deals on bicycles, snowmachines, ATV's, watrcraft and airplanes. More...

Merchandise, Miscellaneous

Antiques, apparel, even the kitchen sink. Find deals on general merchandise here. More...

More great deals »