Friday’s game between UAA and UAF fell on the eve of the team’s first meeting 45 years ago. This one ended with an on-ice overtime rarity, a brief OT because of it and a Nanooks victory.

UAF sophomore defenseman Broten Sabo ended the 183rd showdown between the schools with a power-play goal 1 minute, 2 seconds into extra time. The Nanooks won the first game of the 2024-25 six-game Alaska Airlines Governor’s Cup series 3-2 at the Avis Alaska Sports Complex.

“Fortunate for us, we got the power play in overtime and the final shot,” said UAF coach Erik Largen, in his seventh season. “Give credit to UAA. They got down 2-0 and then took over the game for a long time, but we finally got our legs back for a little more back and forth.”

With the win, UAF improved to 4-5-2 and extended its unbeaten streak to six games (4-0-2). In its best home-ice effort of the season and after a 20-day layoff, UAA fell to 1-8-0 and 1-11-1 against its in-state rival since resurfacing from extinction two-plus seasons ago.

The teams continue the Governor’s Cup series Saturday in Anchorage with a 5:07 p.m. puck drop. They met for the first time back on Nov. 16, 1979, when the Seawolves scored a 13-3 victory.

The Nanooks scored twice in the first period. The Seawolves knocked in two in the second. The goalies – UAF’s Nicholas Grabko (21 saves) and UAA’s Greg Orosz (20 saves) – directed the game to OT with strong third-period efforts.

Then it happened. As the team’s lined up for the 5-minute session of 3-on-3 play, UAA grad student Tanner Edwards was whistled for a face-off violation penalty on the draw. The Anchorage product clearly dropped his stick and hands low to the ice and made a swatting motion towards a teammate. Uh, that’s a no-no.

“Oh, it was a penalty,” said UAA coach Matt Shasby, in his third season. “Our centerman made a poor choice, the referees made the right call, and Fairbanks made us pay for it.”

One of the first things noticed early on, besides UAF going with the safety-vest fluorescent, high-visibility yellow matched with royal blue and white on its uniforms, was the time and space enjoyed by the players. Clearly, neither top-ranked Denver nor Colorado College, UAA’s previous home-ice adversaries, were on the ice.

Skaters had time to think and move with the puck.

Brendan Ross and former Fairbanks Ice Dog Matt Koethe spotted the Nanooks the early lead. Koethe scored his third goal of the season 14 minutes, 36 seconds when an errant puck came off the right-wing boards. The native of Minnetonka, Minn., wasted no time clapping the puck past Orosz.

UAA returned the favor in the second. The Seawolves found sustained success on the attack and climbed within 2-1 when junior Conor Cole scored his first goal at 1:06 off a perfect power-play feed from defenseman Dylan Finley. Cole’s second collegiate goal in his 48th game snapped an 82:51 goal-less streak for UAA going to Oct. 25’s 2-1 loss to CC.

Freshman Dylan Contreras tied the game 2-2 with his first collegiate goal at 6:16 of the second. The former Kenai River Brown Bears star from Yorba Linda, Calif., corralled a loose puck in the high slot and whipped a shot past Grabko.

“Dylan really committed himself during these two weeks off and I was really happy with what I saw to give him the opportunity,” Shasby said. “It was something he earned and I’m glad he got his first college goal.”

Each team finished with 23 shots on goal, and both tallied one power-play goal.

ONE-TIMERS

• The most involved and vocal contingent in the house Friday was the UAF volleyball team. Those Nanooks were positioned behind the goal at the rink’s west end and never missed a chance to chant “What’s a Seawolf?” UAF and UAA go another round in their volleyball rivalry Saturday at the Alaska Airlines Center.
• Friday’s game was the 101st in the college career of UAA senior Porter Schachle (Wasilla). His night didn’t get off to the greatest of starts when he took an embarrassing spill during pre-game introductions. He laughed off the fall with teammates Max Helgeson (Anchorage) soon after, although the Nanooks certainly enjoyed chirping him from the opposing blue line.
• Don’t think we forgot all you attendance nerds out there. About 1,000 spectators crammed into the AASC for the college tilt. Meanwhile, 1,664 watched the Anchorage Wolverines down the Springfield (Ill.) Jr. Blues 3-1 in North American Hockey League junior action at Sullivan Arena. Plus, Bartlett scored its first Cook Inlet Conference win of the new season, a 5-1 decision over Service in front of some folks at Ben Boeke Arena. The conclusion? Hockey has a way to still bring them out in old Anchortown, despite the Wolverines drawing a season-low crowd in their ninth home game.