Alaska Aces

Alaska Aces forward Scott Howes, who sat out game three of the Kelly Cup Finals with an upper body injury, will be back in the lineup Friday night as the Aces look to extend their series lead to 3-1 over the Kalamazoo Wings. Howes leads all Aces in playoff points with 7 goals and 10 assists in his 10 games. The presence of Howes means that the Aces can get back to using the line combinations that were so successful all season and postseason. Howes will skate alongside usual linemates Wes Goldie and Brian Swanson on Alaska's top line.

One night after scoring a season-high in goals with eight, the Alaska Aces were blanked at home.  Ontario Reign goaltender Jean-Francois Berube made 22 saves to out-duel Alaska's Adam Courchaine in a 2-0 Ontario victory Saturday night at Sullivan Arena.  Courchaine made 29 stops in his season debut, but couldn't hold off a furious Reign charge that led to the go-ahead goal by Chris Cloud at 13:14 of the third period.  Ontario added...

Garry Nunn scored one minute, 45 seconds into overtime to lift the Alaska Aces to a 4-3 come from behind win over the Bakersfield Condors on Tuesday night, giving the Aces a 2-0-1 start to their eight-game road trip. Alaska trailed 2-0 into the third period, carrying a streak of five consecutive scoreless periods.  However, the defending Kelly Cup champions rallied behind third period goals from Brian Swanson, Wes Goldie, and Dan Kissel to force overtime.  Swanson's tally was the first of the season for the Alaska captain.  Alaska's only lead was the final score.

Adam Courchaine finally got the help he needed to collect his first win in three starts for the Alaska Aces this season.  The second year goaltender wasn't too bad, either. Courchaine made 41 saves to lead Alaska to a 4-1 victory over the Stockton Thunder on Wednesday night.  The win gives the Aces a 3-0-1 start to their eight-game road trip. Alaska received goals from Jordan Kremyr, Wes Goldie, Dan Kissel, and Chris Bruton in the victory.  Kremyer's was the first of his pro career, while Goldie and Kissel have now scored in back to back games.  Kissel leads the team with 10 goals.

Wes Goldie scored for the fourth straight game and Gerald Coleman made 33 saves as the Alaska Aces fended off the Ontario Reign, 3-1 in a series opener Friday night at Sullivan Arena.  The Aces improve to an ECHL-best 19-4-2 overall, and remain unbeaten in their last 13 games. Following a scoreless first period, Alaska struck on two second period power plays.  Steve Ward buried his third goal of the season at 6:10 and Garry Nunn tallied his eighth about 11 minutes later to make it 2-0 after two periods.  With Ontario down only 2-1, Goldie closed the scoring with his 12th of the year at the 10:42 mark of period three.

The Idaho Steelheads edged the Alaska Aces in an overtime game for the third straight night, and fourth straight meeting with a 4-3 shootout Friday night in Alaska's final road game of 2011.  The Aces earned a point with the shootout loss, extending their point streak to 11 games, making it the longest such stretch in franchise history.  Alaska will go into the Holiday break with a league best record of 20-5-5.After the weekend the Aces...

Alaska Aces captain Brian Swanson scored the winning goal with 1:34 left in regulation in his second game back from injury as the Aces broke a three-game slide, 3-2 over the Idaho Steelheads.  Swanson missed 12 games with an injury and his winning tally marked his first goal since December 18th, when he buried two goals against Stockton. Swanson also assisted on Dan Kissel's goal that tied the game in the third period only one minute and 10 seconds after Idaho took a 2-1 lead.  Steelheads goaltender Jerry Kuhn saved 45 of 48 shots, while Adam Courchaine earned the win with 16 saves.

Ethan Cox scored two of the Aces four goals and James Reid made 24 saves for his first pro victory as the Alaska Aces started a three-game road trip with a 4-2 win over the Stockton Thunder. Wes Goldie added his team-leading 31st goal, while Blair Yaworski tallied three assists for the ECHL leaders.  Alaska improves to 37-14-8 this season, and stays five points ahead of the Las Vegas Wranglers for the most in the league.  The 21-year old Reid, signed last week, played one game in net last weekend, a shootout loss to Las Vegas.

Forward Scott Howes has been assigned to the Alaska Aces from the American Hockey League's Bridgeport Sound Tigers.  Howes addition to the lineup finalizes Alaska's playoffs roster at 23 players. Howes will join the Aces in Las Vegas for Game 1 of the ECHL's Western Conference Finals.  Howes was the Most Valuable Player of the ECHL Playoffs last year, registering points in 11 out of 12 games.  This season, Howes appeard in 6 games for the Aces.  Howes had 4 points (2 goals, 2 assists)

Scott Campbell scored his sixth and seventh goals of the playoffs, and former UAA Seawolf Josh Lunden struck 1:28 into regulation as the Las Vegas Wranglers evened the ECHL's Western Conference Finals against the Alaska Aces with a 3-0 win on Friday night in Las Vegas.  The series is tied 1-1, with game three in Anchorage on Sunday night. Joe Fallon stopped all 23 Aces shots and received all the goal scoring he needed in the opening period.  Following Lunden's goal early on, Campbell buried his first of two goals only 1:36 later to make it 2-0.  Campbell's second goal came with only 42 seconds left in the first.