Carson Lake first laid eyes on the social media post announcing the start of the South High hockey team’s tryouts and practice schedule and needed a second or two to reassess.
“Looking on Instagram, I thought it was a typo,” said Lake, a Wolverines senior forward. “It wasn’t.”
He saw it on the screen and later had it confirmed. South’s second on-ice session of the Cook Inlet Conference season and every other one listed from October through the end of January was scheduled to begin at 5:45 a.m.
The Wolverines aren’t alone in the need for pre-dawn wake-up calls.
“Alarm sets at 4:30 a.m. (those days),” Lake said.
As the CIC prepares for its 64th regular season, the majority of the seven teams are rotating between 5:45 a.m. and 4 p.m. practices at four different sites (Ben Boeke Arena, Dempsey-Anderson Arena, Kelly Connect Ice Center and McDonald Center). This all is a byproduct of the Anchorage School District’s change to school start times announced last year and implemented a few months ago. On most days, the district’s high schools begin classes at 8:45 a.m. and the final bell rings at 3:15 p.m. – an 85-minute shift from the past several decades.
CIC Hockey
This Week’s Games
Thursday
7 p.m. Dimond vs. North Pole, Polar Ice Center
Friday
7:30 p.m. Service vs. West, Ben Boeke Arena
7:30 p.m. Chugiak vs. Eagle River, McDonald Center
Saturday
4:00 p.m. Wasilla vs. South, Ben Boeke
Part of the reported philosophy behind the move was to allow ASD’s older students the chance at more regular sleep patterns and to be better rested. In fact, chatter last year specifically spelled out before school/morning practices wouldn’t happen. Yet here we are for both hockey and swimming/diving, likely out of necessity when measuring the costs and facility needs of other entities.
“It’s a shock to the system at first,” said John DeCaro, 41, the former UAA goaltender who was recently named Eagle River’s new coach. “But part of the positive is you can get that hour or so of work in and then you go on with your day.”
It’s not only the shifting practice times. The new school schedule means most weekday games at Ben Boeke, historically with 6:30 p.m. puck drops, are now set to start at 7:30 p.m.
Lake said he and his teammates are getting used to the changes. You know, going through morning skating drills while so many others are still under the covers, dreaming away.
“It’s been a little bit both good and bad,” Lake said. “The main thing is I’ve been feeling more productive throughout the day.”
EAGLE RIVER IS HOME FOR DECARO
DeCaro appeared in 36 games for UAA (2004-06) and guarded the net for the Alaska Aces in four games during the franchise’s run to the 2006 ECHL Kelly Cup. Hailing from Marysville, Wash., he played eight professional seasons in North America and Europe, including five games in the AAA-level American Hockey League, before retiring in 2013.
Like so many former Seawolves and Aces before him, DeCaro returned to Alaska to build a post-playing days life.
“There was this allure when I first transferred up here,” he said. “I had no idea what to expect. But as time passed, we met more and more people and realized how Anchorage and Alaska is such a hockey community.
“We’re in a place we can call home.”
Married with three kids, DeCaro works in the medical sales field. He’s president of the Mustang Hockey Association youth program and is now set to take over an Eagle River squad that went 0-17-0 overall last season.
Happy birthday to goalie John DeCaro @UAA (2004-06) and @Alaska Aces (2006) https://t.co/eEskzdeS9S
— Akhockey.com (@Akhockey01) November 9, 2020
“We’re hoping to add some stability to the program,” DeCaro said. “We want one, good students, and two, good stewards in the community. Part three, we’ll work on winning some games. Nothing is going to be easy, but you can’t cheat hard work. I think the kids are starting to get that.”
DeCaro said Eagle River will feature one varsity team with 22 skaters. In a sign of the times with some comp program coaches forbidding its players from participating in high school, total CIC numbers may be down. Only Bartlett (East co-op), Dimond, South and West are expected to have junior varsity teams.
Eagle River’s coaching staff includes Powell Gallagher, who starred for the Chugiak team that won the 2000 Division I First National Cup state championship. Gallagher scored twice in the Mustangs’ 5-3 win over West Valley in that title tilt.
“We’ve immersed ourselves in the community and want to bring enthusiasm for our parents, fans and players,” DeCaro said. “We’ll do whatever we can to give back.”
ELSEWHERE AROUND THE CIC
- Bartlett: The Golden Bears and skaters from East have once again combined forces. Mike Vandenbos is once again the head coach. Bartlett went 4-15-0 in 2023-24, including a win in the 55th CIC tournament’s quarterfinals, which was believed to be the first since 2000.
- Chugiak: The Mustangs lost the conference championship game to South before falling to Colony in the DI First National Cup fifth-place game. Chugiak ended coach Rod Wild’s 25th season in charge with a 11-9-1 overall mark.
- Dimond: Legendary Lynx coach Dennis Sorenson enters his 34th season at the helm with 628 victories. But things are going to look a little on the Dimond bench. Chris Higgins recently resigned as an assistant coach after 20 seasons with the program, including 15 as the varsity assistant. The Lynx finished with a 12-7-1 record last season and finished second at state.
- Service: The Cougars and coach Mike Corey will have some rebounding to do after coming off last season’s 6-16-0. They dropped their final six in a row and 11 of 12.
- South: The Wolverines captured the program’s eight conference tournament title with a 2-0 win over Chugiak and then proceeded to lose the third-place game at state and finished with a 12-7-1 record. “We’ve got a pretty good vibe coming in the season,” Lake said. “We may be better than expected. A lot more skilled.”
- West: The Eagles sunk their claws into the school’s fifth First National Cup state title with a 3-2 win over rival Dimond on Feb. 10 out in Wasilla. That team finished 19-3-1 and featured 11 seniors. West likely has enough returners to be contenders once again.