Brian Swanson

The Aces organization confirmed on Saturday that Aces star Brian Swanson is retiring after thirteen seasons as a pro. Swanson had an impressive career as star at Chugiak High School, even before he got paid as a star.  He was an All-American at Colorado College where he led his team in scoring in three of his four seasons. Swanson made his way into pro-hockey in the NHL, where he played a 44 game stretch with the Oilers - his longest stint. He played in various leagues in the States and even abroad in Germany for a while before coming back to Alaska to help lead the Aces to a Kelly Cup championship a year ago in the ECHL.

Avenging Saturday's loss, the Alaska Aces drowned the Ontario Reign 6 - 3 for the series win Sunday evening. In the first period, Alaska's Garry Nunn scored at 7:18 with assists from Zach Harrison and Brandon Gentile.  By first intermission, Alaska had tallied 13 shots on goal while Ontario only managed 6. The Aces held on to their momentum going into the second. Brian Swanson added the second goal of the evening at 3:12. Also scoring for the Aces were Wes Goldie and Dan Kissel.

The Alaska Aces matched their longest winning streak since the 2008-09 campaign, a 3-1 victory over the Idaho Steelheads Wednesday night at Sullivan Arena.  That's six consecutive wins for the Aces.  After Idaho struck first, Alaska scored once in each period on goals by Zach Harrison, Brian Swanson, and Mark Isherwood.   After being out-shot 10-5 in the first period, the Aces peppered the Steelheads net in the second, with a 20-5 advantage in shots on goal. The win makes the Aces 17-9-1 overall, good for 35 points.

The Alaska Aces won their seventh in a row, a 5-3 see-saw victory over the Ontario Reign on New Year's Eve.  Alaska trailed 2-1 until Scott Howes and Kory Falite scored 66 seconds apart late in the second period to give Alaska the lead entering the third. After Ontario tied it, Brian Swanson buried the game-winner 44 seconds later for a 4-3 advantage.  Swanson now has 11 goals on the season.  Howes added an empty net goal for the final margin, his second of the game.   Alaska stand 18-9-1 on the season, and enters 2011 as the hottest team in the ECHL.

The Alaska Aces streak of 11 straight games earning at least one point was broken Wednesday night in a 3-2 regulation loss to the Ontario Reign.  Alaska took a 2-1 lead early in the third on a goal by Brian Swanson, but the Reign quickly evened things up, getting the game-winning shorthanded goal by Dusty Collins. Scott Howes also buried one for Alaska, his 12th of the season. The Aces, who finished their recent 12-game homestand 10-1-1, played in Ontario to begin a stretch of five games in seven days.

Jarrett Konkle scored two third period goals to carry the Stockton Thunder past the Alaska Aces, 3-2 Sunday night at Sullivan Arena.  The win thwarts the Aces bid at sweeping the three-game series and gives Stockton its first victory over Alaska this season in six tries.  Alaska continues to receive strong play from rookie Chris Langkow.  The forward, named an ECHL all-star earlier this season, delivered a second period goal and has five points in the last three games.

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.

The Alaska Aces scored four goals in a span of four minutes and 18 seconds to score an early TKO of the Stockton Thunder, 8-3 Wednesday night at Sullivan Arena.  The flurry of goals all came during the same five-minute major penalty given to the Thunder.  Wes Goldie notched a hat trick in the rout, his 12th, 13th ,and 14th goals of the season. The game was tied at one goal apiece when Alaska reeled off its scoring spree.  Goldie, Kory Falite, Bryan Miller, and Brian Swanson all buried goals in the rally.

Brian Swanson's homecoming to Alaska resulted in a Kelly Cup title.  Now, the former Chugiak High standout seeks a repeat ECHL championship with the Alaska Aces.  Swanson, who a year ago returned home for the first time in 17 seasons, has re-signed with the Aces after scoring 24 goals and adding 46 assists in his first ECHL season.  That point total represented the 11th highest in the league last season. The 35 year old has nearly 700 pro games to his credit, including stops in the AHL, NHL, and European pro leagues.  He has been around long enough that he was once teammates with new Aces coach Rob Murray while both were playing for Hamilton of the AHL.  Swanson becomes the eighth member of last year's Kelly Cup champions to announce his return, and he is also the fourth veteran player to commit to Alaska.  the Aces begin defense of their championship Friday, October 14th at home versus Las Vegas.     

Half a lifetime ago, Brian Swanson was the leading cause of lamp lighting across Anchorage.  Now at age 34, the former Chugiak High School standout and veteran of 13 professional seasons still has that scoring touch. Swanson scored the Aces only goal in Alaska's 2-1 exhibition loss Wednesday night to the Stockton Thunder, the team that eliminated the Aces from last year's Kelly Cup Playoffs. Swanson's second period strike evened the score at one goal apiece. The game remained tied until Stockton's Chris D'Alvise buried the game-winning goal 7:58 into the third period.

The Aces organization confirmed on Saturday that Aces star Brian Swanson is retiring after thirteen seasons as a pro. Swanson had an impressive career as star at Chugiak High School, even before he got paid as a star.  He was an All-American at Colorado College where he led his team in scoring in three of his four seasons. Swanson made his way into pro-hockey in the NHL, where he played a 44 game stretch with the Oilers - his longest stint. He played in various leagues in the States and even abroad in Germany for a while before coming back to Alaska to help lead the Aces to a Kelly Cup championship a year ago in the ECHL.

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.

Avenging Saturday's loss, the Alaska Aces drowned the Ontario Reign 6 - 3 for the series win Sunday evening. In the first period, Alaska's Garry Nunn scored at 7:18 with assists from Zach Harrison and Brandon Gentile.  By first intermission, Alaska had tallied 13 shots on goal while Ontario only managed 6. The Aces held on to their momentum going into the second. Brian Swanson added the second goal of the evening at 3:12. Also scoring for the Aces were Wes Goldie and Dan Kissel.

Brian Swanson's homecoming to Alaska resulted in a Kelly Cup title.  Now, the former Chugiak High standout seeks a repeat ECHL championship with the Alaska Aces.  Swanson, who a year ago returned home for the first time in 17 seasons, has re-signed with the Aces after scoring 24 goals and adding 46 assists in his first ECHL season.  That point total represented the 11th highest in the league last season. The 35 year old has nearly 700 pro games to his credit, including stops in the AHL, NHL, and European pro leagues.  He has been around long enough that he was once teammates with new Aces coach Rob Murray while both were playing for Hamilton of the AHL.  Swanson becomes the eighth member of last year's Kelly Cup champions to announce his return, and he is also the fourth veteran player to commit to Alaska.  the Aces begin defense of their championship Friday, October 14th at home versus Las Vegas.     

Jarrett Konkle scored two third period goals to carry the Stockton Thunder past the Alaska Aces, 3-2 Sunday night at Sullivan Arena.  The win thwarts the Aces bid at sweeping the three-game series and gives Stockton its first victory over Alaska this season in six tries.  Alaska continues to receive strong play from rookie Chris Langkow.  The forward, named an ECHL all-star earlier this season, delivered a second period goal and has five points in the last three games.

The Alaska Aces streak of 11 straight games earning at least one point was broken Wednesday night in a 3-2 regulation loss to the Ontario Reign.  Alaska took a 2-1 lead early in the third on a goal by Brian Swanson, but the Reign quickly evened things up, getting the game-winning shorthanded goal by Dusty Collins. Scott Howes also buried one for Alaska, his 12th of the season. The Aces, who finished their recent 12-game homestand 10-1-1, played in Ontario to begin a stretch of five games in seven days.

The Alaska Aces won their seventh in a row, a 5-3 see-saw victory over the Ontario Reign on New Year's Eve.  Alaska trailed 2-1 until Scott Howes and Kory Falite scored 66 seconds apart late in the second period to give Alaska the lead entering the third. After Ontario tied it, Brian Swanson buried the game-winner 44 seconds later for a 4-3 advantage.  Swanson now has 11 goals on the season.  Howes added an empty net goal for the final margin, his second of the game.   Alaska stand 18-9-1 on the season, and enters 2011 as the hottest team in the ECHL.

The Alaska Aces matched their longest winning streak since the 2008-09 campaign, a 3-1 victory over the Idaho Steelheads Wednesday night at Sullivan Arena.  That's six consecutive wins for the Aces.  After Idaho struck first, Alaska scored once in each period on goals by Zach Harrison, Brian Swanson, and Mark Isherwood.   After being out-shot 10-5 in the first period, the Aces peppered the Steelheads net in the second, with a 20-5 advantage in shots on goal. The win makes the Aces 17-9-1 overall, good for 35 points.

The Alaska Aces scored four goals in a span of four minutes and 18 seconds to score an early TKO of the Stockton Thunder, 8-3 Wednesday night at Sullivan Arena.  The flurry of goals all came during the same five-minute major penalty given to the Thunder.  Wes Goldie notched a hat trick in the rout, his 12th, 13th ,and 14th goals of the season. The game was tied at one goal apiece when Alaska reeled off its scoring spree.  Goldie, Kory Falite, Bryan Miller, and Brian Swanson all buried goals in the rally.

Half a lifetime ago, Brian Swanson was the leading cause of lamp lighting across Anchorage.  Now at age 34, the former Chugiak High School standout and veteran of 13 professional seasons still has that scoring touch. Swanson scored the Aces only goal in Alaska's 2-1 exhibition loss Wednesday night to the Stockton Thunder, the team that eliminated the Aces from last year's Kelly Cup Playoffs. Swanson's second period strike evened the score at one goal apiece. The game remained tied until Stockton's Chris D'Alvise buried the game-winning goal 7:58 into the third period.