Photo by Jessica Blunt
Junior Steve Vanoosten (22) assists sophomore Dustin Molle battle for the puck against Notre Dame’s Dan Kissel, in Friday’s game.

The Nanooks faced the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame this weekend at the Carlson Center, ending their regular-season home games with a 2-1 loss and a 1-1 tie after overtime.

“This time of the season there is no such thing as a moral victory,” coach Doc DelCastillo said after Friday’s loss, “I’m proud of the guys, I think they did everything they could, but unfortunately, a difference-maker like Thang, at the end of the game, if you get him a puck out in front of the net, he’s going to put it in the net.”

Notre Dame’s Ryan Thang scored with just over five minutes left in the game. The Irish cycled the puck low in the Nanooks’ zone, and Kevin Deeth fed it to Thang for a quick one-timer past Alaska goaltender Wylie Rogers.

“I don’t look at the standpoint as like the guy just had a shot from the slot there, I look at it as the fact that that’s a save I have to have,” Rogers said after the game, “That’s five minutes left in the game, I have to be on it. I don’t care if Wayne Gretzky’s shooting from the slot; I have to have that.”

The Irish struck first on Friday, with a power-play goal late in the first period. Junior Christian Hanson sent the puck to Brock Sheahan, who was waiting on Alaska’s back door. Sheahan tipped the puck up to Brett Blatchford, who put it past Rogers.

The second period was scoreless for both teams.

In the third period, freshman Nathan Lawrence struck for the Nanooks. Junior Braden Walls took the puck into the zone and bounced the puck off of Notre Dame goalie Jordan Pearce’s pads, where Lawrence took the opportunity to tally one.

“(Walls) happened to put it right on the goalie’s pad perfectly and it came out right onto my stick and I just had to kindof tap it into the open net, so it was a good play on his part,” Lawrence said after the game.

DelCastillo outlined some of the difficulties in playing the defending conference champions. “I thought it was a good clean hockey game and probably could’ve went either way,” he said, “but that’s why they’re a top-ten team in the country right now, when it is 1-1 and they get an opportunity, they bury it.”

Saturday, the Nanooks got off to a quick start. Senior Aaron Lee nearly added to his tally after putting a rebound past Pearce, but the goal was reviewed and disallowed after officials concluded that a Nanook player had made contact with Pearce.

The Nanooks came back to life with a power-play goal from freshman Landon Novotney. Defender Tyler Eckford wound up for a shot from the point, but sent the puck instead to Novotney at the top of the circles. He spun around with a well-placed backhander and set in his team-high 14th goal of the season.

The game proved exciting, as Rogers stood on his head, making diving saves left and right, and scoring chances arose on both ends of the ice. One Rogers save sent the rebound across the crease, and Rogers dove across the open net. The puck was airborne and headed for the net when Rogers landed on his back and caught it.

Rogers ended the game with 40 saves, compared to Pearce’s 13. Rogers also broke his previously-set Alaska record of saves in a season at 820.

In an Alaska scoring chance, a shot from sophomore Dion Knelsen was headed for a seemingly wide-open net; as Pearce sprawled across the crease, the puck ricocheted off his stick and away from the goal.

Halfway through the third period, Mark VanGuilder took advantage of another Notre Dame power play. His score was assisted by Kyle Lawson and Dan VeNard.

At the end of regulation, the two teams were still tied. Despite a team penalty on Notre Dame for too many men on the ice in the extra period, the Nanooks couldn’t find a victory.

This weekend the Nanooks take on the Lake Superior State Lakers in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. How they fare in those games, along with how other teams in the league manage their series, will determine whether the Nanooks will be able to jump up into eighth place or higher and come back to Fairbanks for the first round of the CCHA playoffs.