Denver is the runaway favorite to win the WCHA this season according to both the league’s coaches and media. The Pioneers took eight of the 10 first-place votes in the Grand Forks Herald coaches poll, while 23 of the 25 voters in the madison.com media poll put Denver first. North Dakota, Wisconsin, Minnesota and St. … Read more
Once again, the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves were a team that no one wanted to play and yet everyone wanted to play. Odds were you’d get a win if you played the Seawolves, but you’d also get a tough, hard-fought game that would typically be a lot closer than the score indicated. Just ask Scott Owens … Read more
University of Alaska Anchorage head hockey coach Dave Shyiak has received a four-year contract extension through the 2012-13 season, UAA Athletic Director Dr. Steve Cobb announced Tuesday. “We couldn’t be more pleased that Coach Shyiak is going to remain as UAA’s head coach,” Dr. Cobb said. “In his three years, he has improved every aspect … Read more
The Seawolves are one of those teams that you can feel getting better, but haven’t yet found those final few pieces. And, until they do, the team will continue to be picked to reside in the league’s basement. However, coach Dave Shyiak’s squad does have some bright spots to look forward to this year, considering … Read more
Second-year head coach Dave Shyiak knows where the Seawolves have to improve to move up in the WCHA ranks; it’s just a matter of getting them there. Alaska-Anchorage has a capable goaltender in Nathan Lawson, but got absolutely no help last year as his teammates were last in the league in scoring and second-to-last in … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage head coach Dave Shyiak announced today that Damon Whitten has been hired as an assistant coach. A native of Brighton, Mich., Whitten comes to UAA after a two-year assistant stint at Wayne State, and one year at his alma mater, Michigan State. At both schools he assisted with all facets of practices and games, … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage assistant coaches Jack Kowal and Keith Morris resigned this week after UAA head coach Dave Shyiak called them into his office this past week and told them that their contracts were not going to be renewed per a report in the Anchorage Daily News. Shyiak just completed his first season as the head coach … Read more
Four years ago, Dave Shyiak and John Hill were the finalists for the open head coaching position at Alaska-Anchorage. Hill got the job then, with his tight connections to the city and the school — his alma mater — the big reasons why. The Hill era was tumultuous, with off-ice issues and a one-win season … Read more
Dave Shyiak has been hired as the fourth head coach of Alaska-Anchorage in the 26-year history of the program. Shyiak replaces John Hill, who resigned last week to take the assistant coaching position at Minnesota. “My family and I are extremely excited to have this opportunity. We can’t wait to get to Anchorage to begin … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage head coach John Hill has resigned his position to become an assistant coach at Minnesota, ending a tenure that saw a modest turnaround after the Seawolves hit rock bottom with a one-win season in 2002-03. On Friday it was announced that Hill, 44, has accepted the Gopher assistant’s position which opened up when Bob … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage sophomore forward Brett Arcand-Kootenay, a lightning rod for controversy the last two years, has been dismissed from the team by coach John Hill. Arcand-Kootenay made news just before the season when he suffered a broken jaw during training camp after being on the receiving end of a punch by teammate Lee Green. Green is … Read more
Minnesota-Duluth is the coaches’ preseason pick to win the WCHA, while Wisconsin goaltender Bernd Brückler topped voting for preseason player of the year honors. The coaches poll, conducted by the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald, put the Bulldogs atop the rankings for the first time. UMD, which returns 73.5 percent of its scoring from last year’s … Read more
John Hill is no stranger to adversity with his Alaska-Anchorage team. Two years ago, an NCAA violation in the usage of textbook scholarship money leading to the suspension of a number of players was only one rough patch in a 1-28-7 season. But the Anchorage native and former Seawolves captain is also familiar with what … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage defenseman Lee Green has been stripped of his captaincy and will miss an exhibition game and three regular-season games as a result of his involvement in a locker-room fight with teammate Brett Arcand-Kootenay. The punishment, released by the school on Monday at the completion of an internal investigation, means Green will miss the Oct. … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage captain Lee Green has been suspended indefinitely by the team after being arrested on a second-degree assault charge Sunday for allegedy punching teammate Brett Arcand-Kootenay in the team’s locker room. Arcand-Kootenay had surgery Monday to repair a broken jaw after the incident, which, according to police reports cited by the Anchorage Daily News was … Read more
Chris Fournier, who would have been Alaska-Anchorage’s leading returning scorer, has had his scholarship revoked and will not be back with the Seawolves this fall, according to the Anchorage Daily News. Fournier lost his academic eligibility last spring, but could’ve made it up had he taken summer classes. Fournier decided not to take the courses, … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage sophomore Curtis Glencross has left the team to sign a free agent deal with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. The deal is for three years, terms were not disclosed. Glencross, 21, finished the 2003-2004 regular season ranked first in goals and points for the Seawolves, earning 21-13=34 points with 79 penalty minutes in 37 … Read more
The lights are shining bright for these underdog Seawolves.
Alaska-Anchorage assistant captain John Hopson has quit the team and returned home, and sophomore defenseman Matt Hanson was ruled academically ineligible, according to the Anchorage Daily News. Hopson told the coaches he was leaving after everyone returned from the holiday break. “He basically said he wasn’t happy with his ice time and was leaving the … Read more
Amid the ruin that was the 2002-03 season for Alaska-Anchorage, John Hill offered a bit of perspective. The second-year coach mentioned last year that he thinks the 2004-05 season is when the Seawolves finally will be able to pull it all together. It might have been hard to see that through the destruction of a … Read more