The Olympic-sized rink at Sullivan Arena long served as hockey heaven for the Alaska Aces — for more than a decade they dominated on the ECHL's only big sheet, which is 15 feet wider than standard NHL-sized ice.
That trend tumbled last season, when the Aces went 17-17-2 at Sullivan, marking the first time in their 13 ECHL seasons they won fewer than 20 of 36 home games in the regular season. The 36 points the Aces earned at Sullivan last season marked the fewest in franchise history. In 12 previous seasons, the Aces averaged nearly 54 points per season there, and only once delivered as few as 44 home-ice points.
Last season's mediocrity at Sullivan was a principal reason the Aces failed to make the playoffs for a second straight season after qualifying for the postseason 12 consecutive seasons and winning three Kelly Cups.
Friday night furnishes the 2016-17 edition of the Aces their first crack at once again savoring Sullivan. Alaska (1-1-0) opens its home schedule with a three-game series against the visiting Rapid City Rush (0-5-0).
"We need to win every home series," said Aces coach Rob Murray. "You do that and you have a really good chance of making the playoffs."
After opening the season at Colorado — a 2-0 Aces loss, followed by a 5-2 win — the Aces open at home bolstered on the blue line. Murray said Steven Tarasuk, acquired in a trade last week with Norfolk, and Nolan Descoteaux, claimed off waivers from two-time defending Kelly Cup champion Allen, will make their debuts in the Rapid City series.
The Aces played their opening series with just five defensemen, one short of the usual complement. But Marc-Andre Levesque, Ryan Trenz, Dax Lauwers, Matt Geurts and Mackenze Stewart acquitted themselves well.
"I give them a lot of credit for how they persevered and played hard, and got through three exhibition games and two regular-season games, and did well," Murray said.
The Aces remain without captain William Wrenn, a second-team All-ECHL defenseman last season. He's with the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League, though he has yet to play in any of Toronto's six games this season.
Alaska won't have former UAF star center Cody Kunyk, who had two assists in Colorado. He was recalled to AHL Utica, the Aces' affiliate. In Kunyk's place at left wing on the first line with center Stephen Perfetto and right wing Peter Sivak will be Vladimir Nikiforov. That allows Murray to keep in tact his second line of Tim Coffman centering Justin Breton and Tim Wallace.
Rapid City is packing four road games into five days. The Rush fell 7-5 in Colorado on Wednesday before traveling to Anchorage on Friday. The series here includes games Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
The Rush, obviously, will be desperate to crack the win column — at 0-5-0, they are off to the worst start on the 28-team circuit.
"That falls on us to not allow that to happen," Murray said. "The challenge for us is to be prepared for a team that's going to be hungry."
Shuffling the deck
Rapid City includes three Anchorage connections in forwards Ryan Walters (No. 88) and Hunter Fejes (No. 81) and defenseman Garrett Haar (No. 4).
Walters, a former Ace, owns 0-5–5 totals in five games. Fejes, an Anchorage native who played at Colorado College, is 3-1–4 in five games as a rookie. And Haar, who played for the Aces last season, owns 0-3–3 totals in five games.
Lindsay Sparks leads the Rush in scoring with 4-3–7 totals in five games. He has a goal in four straight games.