A pair of Wolverines mix it up along the boards. Photo by Stephanie Burgoon/Alaska Sports Report
The Anchorage Wolverines are putting on a master class in how to deliver a push to the playoffs.
The Wolverines last weekend swept a home-and-home series with the Kenai River Brown Bears to extend their franchise-record winning streak to eight games and move into a tie for second place in the North American Hockey League’s Midwest Division.
Prior to this winning streak, the Wolverines lost consecutive games, but before that they reeled off a then-franchise-record, six-game winning streak. So, they’ve won 14 of their last 16 games – that’ll work.
Anchorage (30-13-4) is tied with the Janesville Jets (30-14-4) for second place in the Midwest, but it owns a superior winning percentage – .681 to .667. The Wolverines’ winning percentage ranks eighth among the league’s 32 clubs.
The Wolverines won 3-2 in a shootout in Anchorage on Friday, then headed south and won 4-2 on Saturday in Soldotna.
Cole Frawner of Anchorage furnished a principal assist in Friday’s win and has scored five points in the last six games after five points in his first 35 games. Arvega Hovsepyan scored a goal and delivered the winning shootout strike Friday.
Saturday, Wolverines goaltender Vaughn Makar of Anchorage made a career-high 42 saves. Bryce Monrean of Anchorage chipped in three assists, defenseman Camden Shasby of Anchorage added one goal and one helper, and Taisetsu Ushio racked two goals to join the 20-goal club.
Anchorage’s own Bryce Monrean tries to win over a fan. Photo by Stephanie Burgoon/Alaska Sports Report
Anchorage has all but locked a playoff spot – the division’s top four finishers qualify for the Robertson Cup playoffs. Anchorage owns a 13-point bulge on fifth-place Chippewa, and the Wolverines have four games in hand on the Steel. Only catastrophe will keep the Wolverines out of the postseason.
The Wolverines have also all but locked up a second straight Alaska Airlines Club 49 title – that’s the intrastate competition among Alaska’s three NAHL clubs. Anchorage owns 31 points to Kenai River’s 11 and the Fairbanks Ice Dogs’ 10.
The Brown Bears, with just six games left in the Club 49 Cup, cannot win the Cup. The Ice Dogs have 12 Cup games remaining – six against Kenai River, six against Anchorage – and remain alive – well, mathematically. Let’s be honest – it’s basically the Wolverines’ Cup again, so might as well get a jump on the engraving.
Elsewhere in the NAHL in Alaska, the Ice Dogs fell twice to Springfield, 5-4 in a shootout Friday and 2-1 Saturday.
Also in the NAHL over the weekend:
- Rochester Jr. Americans goalie Florian Wade of Anchorage earned his first league shutout Friday, stopping 20 shots in a 7-0 win at Danbury. Wade is 18-6-3, with a 2.67 goals-against average and .918 save percentage.
- New Jersey Titans goalie Zakari Brice of Fairbanks earned two wins. He stopped 30 shots in a 4-2 win Friday over Maryland and followed with 41 saves in Saturday’s 8-4 win over the Black Bears. He’s 14-11-1, 3.26, .895.
And in the United States Hockey League:
- The league-leading Fargo Force (39-7-2) made it 80 percent through their schedule before losing consecutive games – and both losses came on home ice. They fell 5-2 to Sioux Falls on Friday and 6-3 Saturday. Still, Force forward Mac Swanson of Anchorage scored a goal in each game to give him 21-35—56 totals and a plus-30 rating in 42 games. His 56 points surpass his total as a rookie last season, when he went 12-43—55 in 57 games.
Swanson has scored a goal in three straight games and is tied for third on the circuit in points.