The Fargo Force, which features three Alaskans, got swept in the USHL’s Clark Cup Finals on Friday night, and that result nearly brings the hockey season to a close for Alaskans at higher levels. After roughly eight months of pucks, the only Alaskan we’re aware of who...
After racking 21 regular-season goals for the ECHL’s Reading Royals to mark back-to-back seasons of 20-plus goals, Anchorage’s Alec Butcher endured a nine-game goal drought to start the Kelly Cup playoffs. He slaked his thirst Thursday. The 29-year-old former UAA...
Mac Swanson is a playmaker more than a goal scorer. The rookie winger from Anchorage led USHL rookies in assists in the regular season – 43 helpers in 57 games – and furnished the Fargo Force six instances of assist streaks. He reeled off a six-game assist streak,...
Man, the 1982-83 edition of the United States Hockey League’s Dubuque Fighting Saints, who seized the Clark Cup, was loaded with Alaska firepower. Anchorage’s Steve MacSwain led the league in scoring with 60-62—122 totals in just 48 games. Yeah, the early 80s were...
As one of the youngest players in the U.S. Hockey League, the country’s top junior circuit, Anchorage’s Mac Swanson faced a formidable challenge in his rookie season with the Fargo Force. He’s passed the test, in a big way. The 17-year-old – he was 16 at season’s...
Just 24, Jeremy Swayman’s hockey journey already has delivered the Anchorage native no small amount of pucks prosperity. He parlayed one strong season on a bad team in the U.S. Hockey League into an ample reason the Boston Bruins made him a fourth-round draft pick in...
Anchorage’s Alec Butcher and the Reading Royals have completed their first-round work to advance in the ECHL’s Kelly Cup playoffs. And if Anchorage’s Nolan Walker and the Newfoundland Growlers do the same Sunday, or beyond, we’ll have a North Division Finals battle of...
Playoff overtime in an elimination game simultaneously delivers hockey heaven and hockey hell. The winners jump the boards in jubilation and savor the celebration. The losers hang their heads and lament what might have been. The Kenai River Brown Bears ended up on the...
Hunter Fejes crushed his comeback from cancer. And Brian Cooper, a year after becoming a U.S. Olympian, continued to burnish his rink resume. The two skaters from Anchorage capped their European seasons with championships in their respective leagues after helping...
A couple of Anchorage boys, wingers and linemates Bret Link and Mac Swanson, proved pivotal players in helping the Fargo Force secure the regular-season title in the U.S. Hockey League, the country’s top junior circuit, and a first-round bye in the Clark Cup playoffs....
Nate Thompson is 38. He’s been a pro for 18 seasons. He’s played 1,244 regular-season and pro playoff games, 930 of them in the NHL, the world’s best league. He’s a checking-line center and penalty killer with a physical edge. The veteran from Anchorage has ample...