Media Day: Captain's Named, Tours Given, Enthusiasm Increased

Austin Sevalrud was named Captain for this year's Seawolves. He'll be a hard-working and responsible Captain. It's a good choice, his assistants are Blake Tatchell, Chris Williams and Matt Anholt.  It's a quality group of leaders and the inclusion of Anholt makes for a good bridge to the underclassmen. I like it. Sevalrud is a grown-up. And his cop-stache should ensure everyone stays in line.

In naming the captains, Coach Thomas mentioned the leadership of Blake Leask and Olivier Mantha; in particular noting their commitment on the ice which of course serves as the best example to other players.

Thomas seemed to purposely use the word elite when referencing our freshman. It isn't a word that I've heard him toss out there too often so it caught my ear. He wasn't referring to every one of the rookies but the discussion leads me to the conclusion that I may have underestimated more than a couple of our new players.

Thomas pegs Erb-Ekholm as a player that may surprise and delight us so I'll retract my initial guess that he is some sort of project.

The new facilities were nice and you guys should definitely check it out this weekend at the green and gold game. KTVA and ADN both have good coverage on their websites in pictures and video. The locker room and team lounge are a sweet combination that the players will really love. The new training rooms and hot/cold tubs etc are all kewl beans  and both AD Keith Hackett and Coach Thomas emphasized the benefit the new facilities will pay in terms of recruiting. New ice-making plant, new boards, new lighting, new seamless glass add to the renovation

Nothing about media day lessened my enthusiasm for this coming season. Instead, I'm even more enthusiastic to see whats up and optimistic as I can be that we'll have a better season than most people believe.

Mark Your Calendars

I understand the team had it's first official practice today. Soooooo ... hockey is really now upon us. It's fixin' to be rainin' hockey all over us. Here's a list of things coming up in the next couple of weeks which you might want to mark on your calendar.

On Tuesday the 29th I'll be going to the Seawolves media day. It includes the usual press conference, player and staff availability for interviews and tours of all the new stuff in The BCHC (Brush Christiansen Hockey Center). I'll have a full report that evening here.

Friday the 2nd is of course the exhibition game in Soldotna against Mr. Royal. I'll have a little preview up on Thursday and I'm looking for a ride there and back if anyone has an extra seat. I'm all about riding my bicycle everywhere I need to go but Soldotna would be a bit much for me right now. Anyway, I'll be a gracious passenger and good company. Then everyone else will get to read a good game recap because you gave me a ride.

On Sunday the 4th the Wells Fargo Sports Center is having it's grand re-opening. There's tours of the BCHC (locker room, training rooms, etc ...) at 3pm which is also when a practice is scheduled. Then at 4pm is the Green/Gold game and skills competition. Then at 5pm is a Skate With The Seawolves event for the kids. I'll have full coverage of all this as well.

Then on Friday the 9th ... game on. But earlier on Friday there's the tournament's Coaches Luncheon. That should be a good event; get your tickets early though as I'm guessing they'll go quickly. All four coaches will be there. I'm planning on going to this.

And just as an afterthought for the tournament. Come watch the games that UAA isn't playing in even if it's just to cheer against UAF. 

Big Surprise: I'm Optimistic At The Start of The Season

What's this season going to be like? Well, if you ask the internet the answer is going to be; something a lot like last year. We're picked 9th and 10th by the coaches and media in a preseason poll. This blog and it's readers already know that the polls don't matter. Here's some reasons this team won't finish in the basement in 2015-16.

The 2015-2016 UAA Hockey Freshman Class

There's quite a few new players for fans to get familiar with this season. We thought it was going to be 12 but it looks fairly certain to me that the number is 10 due to the Renouf brothers having to sit out a transfer year after a residency rule change to the NCAA's transfer policy went into effect this past spring. No worries, there's a lot to learn about the 10 guys that will be playing this season.

The 2015-2016 UAA Hockey Sophomore Class

There are many factors which will contribute to or detract from the Seawolves' success this coming season. One thing I'm pretty sure is that as this class of six skaters and two goaltenders goes, so goes the team. 

Follow The Blog On Facebook

For those of you on the Book of Faces who might wish to follow the blog there, I've created a page called the Seawolf Hockey Fan Blog.  I'll post links to articles there so you don't have to leave the joint to see when I've posted something new here.

One of the difficulties writing the blog is seeing/finding all of the relevant topics which Seawolf Hockey fans would be interested in knowing. If you see something on the internet you think is relevant, interesting and/or you'd be interested in my analysis or commentary then Facebook is another place where you can let me know about it. My strength isn't in having a well organized information gathering process.

I think we've got excellent participation here. You guys are always bringing good info, observations, questions and most importantly enthusiasm and I hope we grow that this year. Facebook might help that effort and moreso; I think the team is going to help us with it this season by winning more often.

The 2015-2016 UAA Hockey Junior Class

Tanner Dusyk, Brad Duwe, Dylan Hubbs, Conner Wright and Chase Van Allen comprise the Junior class of this season's Seawolf Hockey team. These five guys have a wide range of experiences in the green and gold which they can draw upon as a very important part of the Seawolves upperclass leadership paradigm.

Renouf Twins (Nathan and Jonah) Ruled Ineligible

Word on the street is that Jonah and Nathan Renouf have been ruled ineligible. Something to do with the transfer rule which was changed at the end of last season. I'll wait for someone to explain it to me before commenting here.

This is sure a waste. They will be eligible next year as freshman. That's some minor silver lining for them I guess.

It rapidly ingests large volumes of air for them to learn about this today instead of ... um ... oh ... let's say ... MONTHS AGO.

In the old days, in an effort to balance the emotional toll this kind of news puts on us fans I would have posted a picture of a hot chick in hockey gear instead of writing this sentence. It's not the old days.

The 2015-2016 UAA Hockey Senior Class

The four Seawolves who comprise the 2015-16 Senior Class bring four unique sets of hockey characteristics to this year's team. Blake Leask, Austin Sevalrud, Blake Tatchell and Chris Williams bring a combined 400 games of Division 1 hockey experience to the squad.

Some Catching Up

If you haven't been following with Seawolf news and events over the summer then this post is for you. If you have been following then not much in this post is going to be news.