Raythan Robbins
It’s likely common for most incoming college freshmen leaving their roots for a new adventure elsewhere to play out the scenario weeks in advance, if not months.
What will those final moments feel like before the plane takes off and is no longer touching Alaska soil? You’re going to miss seeing the faces of loved ones, friends and maybe the family pet on a regular basis, plus so much more. After building up all that time, the trepidation and sense of the unknown must be tense.
Now imagine being Anchorage goaltender Raythan Robbins. His collegiate journey took a delightful detour recently. It left him only days and hours to prepare for departure to the University of Nebraska Omaha and NCAA Division I hockey.
“Nothing but excitement,” Robbins said of his hometown exit early Monday morning.
Robbins isn’t one for nerves as evidenced by his performance last season with the Anchorage Wolverines. He used social media to announce his commitment to play for the Mavericks this fall, compete in the revered National Collegiate Hockey Conference and begin studying kinesiology.
Minutes before posting, Robbins talked with the Alaska Sports Report about the whirlwind of events that led to a colossal change in plans.
“If you’d told me this time last week that I’d be playing college hockey this year, I would’ve told you you’re crazy,” said Robbins, 20. “It wasn’t supposed to be happening. I was content and perfectly ready to go to the (United States Hockey League in Muskegon, Mich.), and this opportunity popped up and was too great to pass up.”
Anchorage’s Raythan Robbins. Photo by Bryan Boyett/Alaska Sports Report
Robbins backstopped the first-year Wolverines to more than North American Hockey League (Junior A Tier II) respectability. He and the team finished an amazing run and finished second in the 48-year-old, 29-team league’s postseason. Combining the regular season and playoffs, Robbins finished with a 29-8-7 record and his .922 regular-season save percentage ranked fifth in the circuit. The performance opened the right kinds of eyes. Players in the NAHL are generally preparing themselves for NCAA play. But many take that additional seasoning step by advancing to the Tier I USHL.
The Muskegon Lumberjacks drafted Robbins last spring and he was ready to roll along the shores of Lake Michigan. Another year of juniors wouldn’t hurt. Then Omaha coach Mike Gabinet and his staff came calling last week.
“I get off the (practice) ice (in Anchorage), and I get a text from Omaha,” Robbins said. “They asked about getting on a Zoom meeting. They talked about what they had going on and their plans. We got to talking about the future, and if I’d like to go there.”
The hockey world is full of “you never know what will happen.” Robbins’ spot with the Mavericks was previously taken by a would-be transfer from another school. But the move failed to materialize, and a click on Omaha’s roster Monday shows Robbins – another Anchorage kid – set to sport No. 31 in white, red and black.
“I’m going to be a freshman, school starts (Monday),” said Robbins, a 2020 Dimond High graduate. “I’ll have to put the thinking cap on, haven’t been in school in a while.”
Robbins is one of three goalies currently listed with another freshman and senior Jacob Zab. Robbins expects to compete right away for meaningful time between the pipes.
Isaiah Saville
Does Omaha with an Alaska product in net wearing No. 31 sound familiar? Isaiah Saville just concluded his collegiate career with the Mavericks last spring and signed professionally with the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights organization. Throw in Anchorage’s Jeremy Swayman and his amazing success with the Boston Bruins and it’s quite the time for Last Frontier netminders.
Robbins spoke with Saville and listened intently before signing with Omaha.
“Isaiah is two years older than me, and I’ve always looked up to him,” Robbins said. “He’s big reason why I’m going to Omaha. I called him and wanted to get his feel and what he thought.
“I guess I’m sort of filling his shoes. He had nothing but great things to say and didn’t persuade or try to tell me to go one way or the other. He told me I’d wake up one day and know what I wanted. Him telling me that had a great impact, and sure enough that next day, I had to go to Omaha.”
Robbins will also have another Anchorage connection at Omaha in play-by-play broadcaster Casey Roehl. The 2016 Dimond grad will soon start his second season calling play-by-play for Mavericks games.
In the lineage of Alaska hockey players who played on some of the game’s largest stages, Robbins is a bit of a rarity. He left during high school to play AAA midget in the Detroit area and never skated in the Cook Inlet Conference like Saville and Swayman. But the birth of the local NAHL franchise – which just happened to open 2022-23 training camp Monday – gave Robbins the chance to return home.
Photo by Bryan Boyett/Alaska Sports Report
What he and the Wolverines accomplished was nothing short of stupefying. The team meshed with its fans in the unique Ben Boeke Arena setting. Whether or not the Wolverines filled a void left by the departure of the professional Alaska Aces or University of Alaska Anchorage sabbatical from NCAA DI, they helped jolt the community into supporting something that belonged to it after years of confounding apathy.
Whatever happens next for Robbins, he can be proud of that fact. He’ll also continue backing the Wolverines and the return of UAA in a few months. The Mavericks and Seawolves aren’t scheduled to play one another this season.
“Anchorage is hockey,” he said. “Between the Wolverines and UAA bringing back that unique college atmosphere, younger kids will get to watch it all and kind of have that plan to action.
“You can stay here, you don’t have to leave. Obviously, my path worked for me, but that’s not the case for everyone. I got a taste of both worlds, and I wouldn’t trade this last year in my hometown for anything.”