Nanook Hockey Players Sporting Moustaches, Supporting "Movember"

Several of the Alaska Nanook hockey players have joined together to participate in "Movember" to help raise awareness and funds for the Prostate Cancer Foundation and LIVESTRONG.

The Mo, slang for moustache, and November come together each year for Movember.

Movember challenges men to change their appearance and the face of men’s health by growing a moustache. The rules are simple, start Movember 1st clean-shaven and then grow a moustache for the entire month. The moustache becomes the ribbon for men’s health, the means by which awareness and funds are raised for cancers that affect men. Much like the commitment to run or walk for charity, the men of Movember commit to growing a moustache for 30 days.

The funds raised through Movember’s US campaign benefit the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) and LIVESTRONG, the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

The PCF uses the money raised by Movember to fund research that is accelerating the discovery of better treatments and ultimately finding a cure for prostate cancer. One such program is the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center’s research, which has recently made a significant breakthrough. They identified 24 different kinds of prostate cancer and how aggressive each is. This should enable scientists to soon be able to answer the agonizing question facing men with prostate cancer: does their cancer need immediate treatment, and if so what is the best treatment, or can it be left alone?

LIVESTRONG uses the money raised by Movember to fund important programs to support young adults and their families battling and surviving cancer. These programs include:

• Fertile Hope, an initiative dedicated to providing reproductive information, support and hope to cancer patients and survivors whose medical treatments present the risk of infertility.

• My Planet, an online community of peer support that allows young adults to find and communicate with other young adults whose lives have been affected by cancer.

• Continuing Nursing Education program on Young Adult Cancer Survivorship. LIVESTRONG encourage nurses to know the warning signs of cancer, understand what types of cancer for which young adults may be at risk, and learn about cancer screening.

The Nanooks' Movember team includes:

Volunteer Assistant Coach Ryan Reinheller
Forwards: Ron Meyers, Jarrett Granberg, and Justin Filzen
Defensemen: Bryant Molle and Scott Enders
Goalie: Steve Thompson

Check out their team page at: http://us.movember.com/mospace/1174546/index/tp/2

Nanooks Open CCHA With Tie, Shootout Win at MSU

The ninth-ranked Alaska Nanooks got a regulation goal from rookie Cody Kunyk and shootout goals from Colton Beck and Ryan Hohl to secure a 1-1 overtime tie and 2-1 shootout win against the 16th-ranked Michigan State Spartans tonight in East Lansing. Both teams square off again tomorrow at 1 p.m. AKT.

The Blue and Gold are unbeaten against the Spartans in their last four games 2-0-2.

Live game coverage for Saturday's match-up can be heard on KCBF 820 AM or 820sports.com with Bruce Cech on the call. GO NOOKS!

1st Day of Hockey Practice

See the rest on our facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=211706&id=100602557977

HALL OF FAME INDUCTION THIS WEEKEND!

This weekend is Alumni Reunion Weekend at Alaska, and the athletics department will hold its third annual Nanook Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Come out and be a part of the festivities!

The 2010 Nanook Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place this Saturday, Sept. 25 at the Carol Brown Ballroom at the Wood Center. Tickets are $25 per person and may be purchased by calling 907-474-7081 or 1-800-770-2586 until Sept. 21, and at 907-474-5977 after the 21st.

All inductees will then attend the Blue vs. Gold hockey game at 5 p.m. at the Patty Center and the volleyball match vs. Simon Fraser 7 p.m. Come out and meet some of the brightest stars to compete at Alaska!

This year's inductees are former athletic director John C. Gilmore, former Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Harris Shelton, and former student-athletes Sigrid Aas (women's skiing and cross country), Mallory Larranaga (volleyball), Melissa Mulloy-Mecozzi (rifle), and Stuart Watkins (rifle).

Live Blog From VB Match against Drury

Join Media Relations Intern Nick Steyn for a live blog from today's volleyball game against Drury at 1 p.m.

Shots from today's VB practice in Anchorage

Alaska Volleyball Holds First Practice of '10

The volleyball team held fitness and on-court skills evaluations today. The team, after losing five starters last season, will have a fresh look this season. There are eight new faces, including five freshmen and three transfers.

Alaska Volleyball Earns AVCA Team Academic Award

The Alaska Nanooks volleyball squad has been named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s list of Team Academic Award winners for 2009-10, according to an AVCA announcement Wednesday.

Read the complete release here.

Jason Nichols Named Women's Basketball Assistant Coach

Head coach Cody Burgess and the Alaska Nanooks women’s basketball program announced Jason Nichols as the team's assistant coach for 2010-11 Wednesday.

Read the complete release here.

Women's Hoops Adds NWAACC Transfers

The Alaska Nanooks women’s basketball team announced the signings of junior transfers Autumn Greene and Lindsay Sommers Monday. Both players come from the competitive Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges.

Read the complete release here.

Nanook Hall of Fame Class of 2010

Three women and three men have been named the inductees for the Nanook Hall of Fame’s Class of 2010, as announced Saturday by University of Alaska Fairbanks athletic director Forrest Karr.

This year’s inductees are former athletic director John C. Gilmore, former Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Harris Shelton, and former student-athletes Sigrid Aas, Mallory (Bergstrom) Larranaga, Melissa Mulloy-Mecozzi, and Stuart Watkins.

The complete release can be read at alaskananooks.com.

Congratulations to the Class of 2010!

Red Wings' Development Camp Journal

Alaska Nanooks senior forward Ryan Hohl spent a week training and practicing in the Detroit Red Wings development camp, July 8-13. Here in his own words is a summary of the experience.

"Overall, I felt it was an extremely beneficial experience for skill development
and some new conditioning and strength ideas. They preached their systems and the importance of them a lot throughout the week. I felt that their overall philosophy was very similar to the one we have at Alaska. Also, the drills we did throughout the week are similar to those we do in our practices. We focused a lot on D-zone and offensive entry: again same exact philosophy we portray. My plan is to continue with my training and include some of the new things I learned throughout the week for the next month and a half. At this point I’m just going to keep focusing on skating, and training for the rest of the summer. I hope all is well. I can’t wait for the season."

-Ryan Hohl

The 2010-11 men's and women's basketball schedules were announced. The men's team will play a full schedule at 26 games, while the women have 25.

Read the full schedule release here.

Brad Oleson Helps Team To Championship, Makes Spanish National Team Pre-Roster

Former Alaska Nanooks men’s basketball NCAA All-American and all-time leading scorer Brad Oleson, added a championship title to his basketball career list of accomplishments as the North Pole native helped Caja Laboral Vitoria down Regal FC Barcelona 79-78 in overtime in Spain’s ACB League Championship game.

Full story

Cody Burgess Named WBB Head Coach

University of Alaska Fairbanks Director of Athletics Forrest Karr announced Thursday that Cody Burgess has been named the next head coach for the Alaska Nanooks women’s basketball program. Burgess will take over as the eleventh head coach in program history.

"Cody has the plan, passion and broad support necessary to provide the foundation that Nanook women's basketball has been missing,” said Karr. “She is an emerging leader that brings integrity, trust, stability and coaching ability to the job, and I cannot imagine a better candidate for this position."

Congratulations Jordan Hendry!

Congratulations to Alaska Hockey alumnus Jordan Hendry, who lifted his first Stanley Cup tonight with the Chicago Blackhawks. He is just the second alumni to ever win the Stanley Cup, following former Nanook Shawn Chambers. Chambers won twice in his career with the New Jersey Devils (1995) and the Dallas Stars (1999).


Stars coach Ken Hitchcock hugs Shawn Chambers after Dallas' title-clinching victory in Game 6.

2 Finalists Left for Women's Basketball Head Coaching Position

Cody Burgess

A UAF alumnae, Burgess was a power forward for the Nanooks from 2002-2005. She brings nine years of combined playing and coaching experience at a diverse range of college levels.

This season she was an assistant coach at Moberly Area Community College (Moberly, MO) of the National Junior College Athletic Association (Division I). She helped guide the Lady Greyhounds to a 17-14 record that included a win over 10th ranked State Fair CC. While Burgess’ main role with MACC was as the recruiting coordinator, her other responsibilities included developing practices, coordinating the competition schedule, website maintenance and media relations, fundraising and monitoring the student-athletes’ academic progress.

Prior to MACC, Burgess spent two seasons as an assistant coach at William Woods University of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (Division I) and the American Midwest Conference. In 2008-09 Burgess helped lead the Owls to a 21-10 record, a NAIA Tournament Bid and a conference championship title. The season was a huge turnaround success on the laurels of a dismal 4-23 campaign in 2007-08.

After closing out her collegiate career Burgess spent one season as the girl’s basketball assistant coach for North Pole High School, helping to guide the Patriots to a second place finish at the Alaska state championships in the 4A division.

During her time at Alaska, she was selected Daktronics First Team All-West Region in 2005 and Second Team All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference in 2003 and 2005. She led the GNAC in scoring during the 2003 and 2005 seasons and was a team captain for the Blue and Gold as a senior (2004-2005). She holds career records in the GNAC for her scoring average in all games (19.3) and in league games (20.0) as well as the all-time records for free throws made (188) and attempted (225), which were set during the 2004-05 campaign.

Before playing at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Burgess played two seasons at Wenatchee Valley College, where she was named First Team All-Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges in 2002, as well as team MVP.

Burgess received her Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management, Forestry option from UAF and a Master's in Education in Athletic Administration at William Woods University.

Nichole Schutte

Nichole Schutte completed her second season as an assistant coach with the Western Oregon University women's basketball program in 2009-10. With the Wolves, she was responsible for post-player development, coordination of the strength and conditioning program, and implementation of individual defensive fundamentals and recruiting.

Schutte, who recently completed her master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counselor Education from WOU, earned her undergraduate degree in Applied Studies from Northwest Nazarene University (2008), where she was also a two-sport star for the Crusaders (women’s basketball and track).

She was named to the All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference second team in basketball as she averaged 11.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per contest and ran the sprints (100m and 200m) and the relays (4x100m and 4x400m) for the track team.

Heidi O'Connor-Brook Joins Ski Team

Alaska Nanooks women’s skiing coach Scott Jerome announced the signing of Heidi O’Connor Brook of Whitehorse, Yukon, to a National Letter of Intent. She will enter the University of Alaska Fairbanks as a freshman in the fall with four years of NCAA eligibility remaining.

"I am very pleased that we have another Yukon skier joining our program,” said Jerome. “Heidi has been a solid junior skier in Canada for several seasons. She is a hard worker and will make her mark both in the classroom as well on the ski trails."

Jarrett Miller Returns to Alaska to Play for Nanooks

“Jarrett's previous collegiate experience will provide additional leadership for the UAF basketball program,” said Johnson. “He is returning to Fairbanks after playing two years of competitive basketball on the junior college level. The California junior college conferences provide numerous Division I players; therefore, the ability to compete and have any level of success is commendable.”

Miller attended Ben Eielson High School from 2004-08 and was a member of the Ravens’ men’s basketball team. As a senior, Miller came back from an ACL injury during his junior year to garner Second Team All-State honors and Aurora Conference MVP. His other prep highlights include earning all-conference and all-region team honors in 2005 and 2006. He was also a member of the 2007 ACS Pepsi Invitational All-Tournament team.

“Jarrett is also a scorer and an adequate defender at his position. He feels comfortable in making the adjustments needed to be successful on the DII level. As a coach I am seeking the foot speed he displayed in high school and the toughness with scoring he developed at West Hills Community College. The current players and coaching staff are excited to have Jarrett join us.

At-Large Academic Team Honors

The College Sports Information Directors of America picked men’s hockey senior Dion Knelsen for the University Division District 8 First Team, while women’s skiing senior Julia Pierson was chosen to the College Division District 8 Second Team. Men’s skiing transfer Lex Treinen was also listed on the College Division District 8 First Team.

Skiing Adds UAA Transfer Lex Treinen

Alaska Nanooks skiing head coach Scott Jerome announced that two-time All-American Lex Treinen of Anchorage, Alaska and the University of Alaska Anchorage will transfer to the University of Alaska Fairbanks in the fall and ski for the Blue and Gold next season. He will enter UAF as a junior and has two seasons of NCAA eligibility remaining.

Treinen, who missed half of his sophomore season due to an iron deficiency, came back strong and closed out the year at UAA, earning his second career All-America honor by placing ninth in the men's 20K freestyle event in 49:41.6 at the 2010 NCAA Skiing Championships. His effort helped UAA to a seventh place finish at the event. Other accomplishments during the 2009-10 campaign include making the 2010 National Ski Coaches Association All-Academic team.

Nanooks gain German Skier Marion Ruf

Ruf, who has been training and racing for several years in attempts to make the German national team, has competed internationally for her country at the World Junior Championships and Under-23 World Championships. Despite falling short of her bid for a spot on the national team, Ruf has seen much success at high levels of international skiing including four top-ten finishes at German national championships over her career. She has the ability to make a big impact on the Nanooks’ program, which in turn will give her the opportunity to extend her skiing career.

Volleyball lands Tereza Bendlova and Ilicia Weissenbuehler

Alaska Nanooks head women’s volleyball coach Phil Shoemaker announced the signing of Tereza Bendlová, a 5-9 outside hitter from Prague, Czech Republic, and Ilicia Weissenbuehler, a 5-5 setter from Emmett, Idaho, to National Letters of Intent. Bendlová will enter the University of Alaska Fairbanks as a graduate student with one year of NCAA eligibility remaining, while Weissenbuehler will be a freshman with four seasons to play.

Rifle Signs Ryan Dunham-Bender

A senior at Delta High School in Delta Junction, Dunham-Bender has shot competitively for five years with the Delta Rifles club team. The Rifles have garnered the National Scholastic Team Championship title at the National Rifle Association’s National Championship four times since 2007.

Dion Knelsen Signs with Norway

The Norwegian Elite League, or Get Ligaen, is the highest tier of professional hockey in Norway and it is there that Knelsen will develop his professional hockey game throughout the 2010-11 season.

"I am thrilled to be playing with Sparta for the upcoming season,” said Knelsen. “I know they are an excellent organization, playing out of a passionate hockey-town in a competitive league. They are giving me a great opportunity early in my pro career, and I will do everything I can to help them win a championship. I am looking forward to learning the European game and having a very successful season with the Warriors."

Lemley Signs 3 Alaskan Swimmers

Brooke Underwood
A four-year swimmer for the West Valley Wolfpack, Underwood was twice a member of the Girl’s Region VI championship teams in 2008 and 2009. She was named the Wolfpack’s Most Inspirational Swimmer this season, as voted by her teammates.

Madison Franz
Another Wolfpack standout, Franz will follow her teammate (Underwood) as they hit the water sporting Alaska Nanooks’ swim caps beginning this fall. Franz also swam four seasons for West Valley specializing in long distances in the pool.

Kyle Perkins
Perkins comes to the Nanooks after swimming four seasons for the North Pole High School Patriots, where her specialty stokes included the backstroke and freestyle. She was a member of the Patriots swim team that captured the Region Championships in 2007. She was also an individual champion at the Region VI meet as a junior, making her an automatic state qualifier in 2008.

26th Annual IBEW Nanook Fund Golf Scramble

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Department of Athletics will host the 26th Annual IBEW Nanook Fund Golf Scramble on June 11 at the North Star Golf Club.

IBEW is in its seventh year as the title sponsor for the tournament, which is the major fund-raising event for student-athlete scholarships. Proceeds from the tournament will directly benefit the Alaska Nanooks.

2009-10 Athletes of the Year

Sartz was the national runner up in smallbore at the 2010 Rifle Championships, where the Nanooks finished second overall to Texas Christian University. With two first-team All-American nods at this year's championships, Sartz finished his career at Alaska as an eight-time NRA All-American - a feat only two previous shooters had accomplished.

Thigpen led the Nanooks in kills and points, and was second in digs and service aces as a senior and was the team's MVP for the third time in her four-year career. She garnered Great Northwest Athletic Conference First Team or Honorable Mention accolades all four years.

Forward Javed Williams set to play for Nanooks

A 2009 graduate of Sandy Point High School, Williams played basketball and football during his prep career. Williams and the Tuff Knots won their first St. Kitts Amateur Basketball Championships in 2007, topping the 18-time champion Rams Hitters. He was named Most Valuable Player at the Reach One Teach One basketball camp, hosted by the National Junior College Athletic Association Hall of Fame Coach John Spezia.

Spikers Add Keri Knight

Knight, who will graduate from Ralston Valley High School next month, played outside hitter for the Mustangs for four seasons. As a junior she was named the best offensive player and garnered Jefferson County All-Conference honors. Her season was highlighted by a career-best performance of 17 kills in 18 attempts against Arvada West High School.

Skiing Adds David Norris and Eric Ryan

"David is quite possibly the strongest skier that we have recruited to Alaska,” said Jerome. “He is one of the top skiers in the US in his age group. I am very pleased that David decided to ski and run for the Nanooks. Clearly he has the work ethic and training background necessary to be competitive at the national level."

"Eric is one of the top junior racers in Alaska and we are excited that he has chosen to attend UAF and compete for the Nanooks,” Jerome said. “He had three top-five finishes at this year's junior national championships. This is the type of skier we aim to recruit to our program.”

Chad Johnson Named to Team Canada

“I am truly honored and excited to have received the invite to represent Canada at the World Championships,” said Johnson. “It has always been a dream of mine to represent Canada and have the honor of wear the Canadian jersey.”

Congratulations to the Alaska Volleyball team and coach staff on signing their first recruit of the late signing period. Welcome to the newest Nanook - Karlee Skalla, a 5-foot-11 right-side hitter out of Las Vegas, Nevada and transfer from the 2009 Orange Coast College state champion team!! GO NOOKS!

Read the complete release here.

Congrats to Dion Knelsen on being named to the 2010 Lowe's All-Senior All-America First Team!

Read the complete release at alaskananooks.com

2010 NCAA Northeast Regional: Alaska vs. BC

Captains Blog: Derek Klassen

Nanooks captain Derek Klassen sat down and was able to write down some thoughts about the first few days of the trip from Fairbanks to Boston for the 2010 NCAA Regional in Massachusetts:



Well to start off the team is currently in Worcester Massachusetts. In order to get where we are today, we had to fly approximately 4500 miles from Fairbanks to Boston.


Our trip started earlier yesterday which was Tuesday afternoon. After skating at 9:30 at the patty center followed by workouts the team then went home to pack for the trip. The team then met back at the patty center at 2:15 to load team gear and personal bags and headed to the airport for a 4:40 p.m. flight to Seattle.


After a 3 hour flight the team deplaned and had to collect our gear and check in on jet Blue Airlines. The team was excited to fly on a new airline, especially one that has more leg room than we are use to, plus there are televisions in the back of every seat. (Something that everyone enjoyed) This flight was direct from Seattle to Boston which lasted approximately 5 hours. It was a red eye flight so Im sure everyone got at least a couple hours of needed rest


We arrived in Boston are 7:30 a.m. or 3:30 a.m. Fairbanks time. The team felling somewhat tired and hungry was happy to be safely on the ground on the other side of the content. Ironically it is the furthest the team has travelled all year but was by far the teams shortest travel day.

After collecting hockey gear and personal items that team headed to a local diner where we devoured a much needed breakfast. From there we travelled about an hour bus ride to Worcester and checked into the hotel. With some downtime before practice most of the players and staff I’m sure took a pre practice nap.


Practiced started at 3:30 p.m. and the team is always a little tentative to get on the ice with the time change and the all night flight but today the team was ready to go. There is only 16 teams in the country left playing and we are excited to be one of them. After a good hour skate the team felt better than it did before stepping on the ice.


After practice we headed out for supper at a restaurant called 99. Pumped to get a big meal in us we again devoured yet another meal. I nice treat to the supper was Alumni and former CCHA player of the Year Chad Johnson was able to join us and share some stories from his year spent in Hartford and in New York with the Rangers organization.


Now I am here in my hotel room writing this blog. Tomorrow we will continue to get ready for Boston College and a chance at a National Championship. Thanks for reading and thanks for your support.

2010 NCAA MEN’S ICE HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP

NORTHEAST REGIONAL · DCU CENTER · WORCESTER, MASS.

ALASKA PRE-TOURNAMENT PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES

MARCH 26, 2010

Head Coach Dallas Ferguson, Junior Forward Derek Klassen,

Senior Forward Dion Knelsen, Senior Forward Kevin Petovello

Opening Statement:

Ferguson: “We’re excited to be here and for the opportunity to compete in the tournament. From a team standpoint a quick turnaround was really important. We found out Sunday and got down here as quickly as possible to get acclimated. Our staff did a great job with the transition. Travel is something we need to do every second weekend in our league. We are pretty accustomed to getting where we need to be efficiently and preparing accordingly. Tomorrow night will be a big challenge with Boston College, but our focus is on our game and the things that we can control. We plan on going out to compete hard and to work together as a group. We look forward to the challenge and are definitely excited to be a part of it.”

On the commute from Alaska:

Klassen: “It was actually the shortest travel day of the year.”

On the jet lag:

Klassen: “Everyone feels good getting here. (Leaving on) Wednesday morning definitely helps.”

On being the first Alaska Nanook hockey team in the NCAA tournament:

Knelsen: “It’s such an honor and so proud to be a Nanook to be here part of the first team. It’s really exciting”

On the campus and community:

Petovello: “Everybody’s excited. We’ve got tons of support from the community and student life up there. So, yeah that definitely is an exciting time for them.”

On being a defensive team:

Ferguson: “It’s something we take a lot of pride in, playing without the puck. Our philosophy is not to sit back and play defense, it’s to play sound without the puck so you get the puck back quicker. Our guys do a tremendous job of working together. When you get into situations like this, defense is really important. I think we create scoring opportunities off a good defense. We are definitely aware of Boston College’s talents and speed up front, but ninety percent of our preparation is focused on trying to control the things we can control. This program has a tradition of success and we are really looking forward to the opportunities and the challenges tomorrow.”

On the team’s inexperience:

Ferguson: “Our group seems pretty loose. They get excited to play. They just love to play hockey and to come to the rink. You could see that they tightened things up at practice today. There are nerves playing on a new rink and as it gets closer to game time. Our leadership is strong in the locker room. One thing that we talk about is keeping our emotions in check. Good things happen and you need to be able to respond the right way, just as bad things happen and you need to respond the right way as well. It’s a really exciting time. On Sunday when we found out, Fairbanks went crazy, the school went crazy, and our players were very excited. But when Monday rolled around we realized that we need to be ready to go down there and play a hockey game. I’m excited to see how our guys respond to being on this stage. Our guys are ready to play.”

What it means to him personally to have made it to the NCAA tournament:

Ferguson: “It’s great. I’m happier for my players, our community, and our alumni, who have all put so much into the program. Nanook hockey is a very prideful group. I’m an alumnus and now I’m the coach and I’m just happy that we have this opportunity.”

On being hockey’s best kept secret:

Ferguson: “We are better with the puck than most people know. We are a developing team. Work ethic and commitment are very important to our program and we take a lot of pride in that. Our guys know that they not only need to be committed to themselves, but also to their teammates and the program. I am so fortunate to work with this group of young men.”

On recruiting to Fairbanks:

Ferguson: “I don’t open up with ‘It’s cold and dark, come on up it’s fun.’ We sell our strengths. We develop hockey players and will give you the opportunity to be successful. Over the past seven years, we’ve had three or four guys who have had an opportunity to play in the NHL. We also sell the development of a person. When they leave we make sure that their education is completed. We try to recruit the kids and families that value the same things that we value.”

On a difficult travel schedule:

Ferguson: “We don’t really talk about it. It is what it is. We are very mindful of their academics when they are on the road and making sure they are prepared physically for the game. Discipline is really important – when we get back from a trip, they need to be ready for class on Monday. The hardest thing to deal with is the time change. As soon as we land, we try to get on a sheet of ice. The most important thing is to not concede to it. We don’t use it as an excuse for our performance.”

Nanooks Prepare for BC

The Alaska Nanooks came off a long trip from Fairbanks to Massachusetts for the first day of practice before they take on Boston College on Saturday afternoon in the first round game of the NCAA Regional.

Here are some of the sights from practice:

Coach Meisner on the ice leading the drills for the Nanooks

The group taking instruction from head coach Dallas Ferguson

Former Nanook Chad Johnson, now of the New York Rangers, stopped by practice to watch his former team

Johnson talking to some of his former teammates

The Alaska Nanooks are on their way to 2010 NCAA Northeast Regional. They loaded up the bus this afternoon before heading to the airport to catch their flight to Seattle and begin their trek to Worcester, Mass.



They face the Boston College Eagles on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time (9:30 a.m. Alaska Time).

Don't miss the "Party at the Patty" on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. ADT if you are in the Fairbanks area. Bring a blanket to sit in the bleachers or spread out on the gym floor and watch the live game feed, which will be projected onto a bare wall (approximately 28-feet wide) and synchronized to the house stereo system.

Refreshments will be available for sale in the Patty Center Lobby and should the Nanooks earn the right to play in Sunday's Championship game, the same set-up will be available to the public free of charge on Sunday afternoon, beginning at 1:00 p.m. ADT. The Northeast Regional Championship Game is slated to begin on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. EDT (1:30 p.m. ADT).

Fans not in the Fairbanks area, or who are unable to make it over to the Patty Center, can follow the Alaska Nanooks at the NCAA Northeast Regional Tournament by clicking this hyperlink.

Nanooks To Play BC in NCAA Regional

ATTENTION ALASKA HOCKEY FANS: The 16-team field for the 2010 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament is set and the Alaska Nanooks are the fourth seed in the Northeast Regional (being played in Worcester, MA at the DCU Center). They will face off against the No. 1 seed Boston College at 9:30 a.m. AKT on Saturday, March 27. More details (tickets, hotels, media coverage, etc.) to be posted later today on alaskananooks.com.

Go Nooks!

Trio of Nanooks Collect Silverware
at 2010 CCHA Awards Banquet

Freshman right wing Andy Taranto named CCM Rookie of the Year

Taranto pictured with CCHA All-Rookie Team: (Left to right) Joe Hartman (MIA), Terry Broadhurst (UNO),
Andy Taranto (UA), Steve Rymsha (CCM), Torey Krug (MSU), Chris Brown (UM), Mike Johnson (ND)

Senior center Dion Knelsen named CCHA Scholar Athlete of the Year

- AND -

Mike and Mariam Ilitch Humanitarian of the Year

Dion Knelsen pictured with Dana Ward (President of Olympia Entertainment)

Scott Greenham Named Alaska's Perani Cup point champion

Greenham pictured with CCHA Team's Perani Cup Winners: (From left to right) Blair Riley (FSU), Cody Reichard (MIA),
Brian Stewart (NMU), Scott Greenham (UA), Louie Caporusso (UM), Drew Palmisano (MSU), Mike Sander (Perani's),
Alex Hudson (UNO), Tomas Petruska (BGSU), Zac Dalpe (OSU), Rick Schofield (LSSU), Mike Johnson (ND)

Read the full release on alaskananooks.com