Alaska Aces (ECHL)

This article is about the professional hockey team. For other uses, see Alaska Aces (disambiguation).
Alaska Aces
2016–17 ECHL season
City Anchorage, Alaska
League ECHL
Conference Western
Division Mountain
Founded 1989 (In the PSHL)
Home arena Sullivan Arena
Colors Black, glacier blue, green, silver, white
                        
Owner(s) Terry Parks, Steve Adams, Al Haynes, Dan Coffey, Rod Udd, Jerry Mackey
General manager Terry Parks
Head coach Rob Murray
Affiliates Vancouver Canucks (NHL)
Utica Comets (AHL)
Franchise history
1989–2003 Anchorage Aces
2003–present Alaska Aces
Championships
Regular season titles 5 (2005–06, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14)
Division Championships 8 (2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14)
Conference Championships 4 (2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2013–14)
Kelly Cups 3 (2005–06, 2010–11, 2013–14)
For the Filipino professional basketball team, see Alaska Aces (PBA).

The Alaska Aces, known as the Anchorage Aces until 2003, are a minor league ice hockey team in Anchorage, Alaska. Home games are played at Sullivan Arena in Anchorage. The Aces have won three Kelly Cup championships, most recently in 2013–14.

The Aces were formed as a semi-professional team in the Pacific Southwest Hockey League (PSHL) in 1989 and became a charter member of the professional West Coast Hockey League (WCHL) in 1995. When the WCHL was absorbed by the East Coast Hockey League in 2003, the team joined the merged ECHL. As of the 2015–16 ECHL season, the Aces play in the Mountain Division of the ECHL's Western Conference.

The Aces official team mascot is a polar bear named Boomer. Aces fans are known for using small, ceremonial cow bells painted with the Aces insignia to show their support during games.

Franchise history

Early semi-professional days (1989–1995)

The team was established in 1989 as the Anchorage Aces. They were originally a semi-professional club in the Pacific Southwest Hockey League organized by Dennis Sorenson, as a senior men's ice hockey team to compete against the established Alaska Gold Kings in Fairbanks.

The Aces played four unofficial games during in the 1989-90 season. During the 1990–91 season, Keith Street led the team on a 22–game schedule, which included 20 games against teams registered with USA Hockey. The 1990–91 season ended with the Aces winning the Senior Men's Open National Championship held in Fairbanks. In 1993 and 1994, they won the National Amateur Championship. They finished second in 1992 and 1995.

The Aces joined the Pacific Northwest Hockey League (PNHL) for the 1991–92 season, playing six of their home games at the Sullivan Arena in Anchorage and eight at the Central Peninsula Sports Center in Soldotna. The Aces finished second in the PNHL with a 16–12–2 regular season record, and were the runners-up in the national USA Hockey tourney after a 0–4–1 tourney run.

In the 1992–93 season, new head coach Mike Ashley led the Aces to a 19–3–0 regular season record. In the USA Hockey Senior Men's Open Tournament, the Aces finished second for the second year in a row after compiling a 4–1 record in the tourney, losing the tiebreaker to the Chicago Chargers. Ashley resigned following the season.

For the 1993–94 season, the Aces played as an independent team. Steve Gasparini took over as head coach, and led the Aces to a 22–9–1 regular season record. The Aces also won their second championship in the USA Hockey Senior Men's Open National Tournament with a 5–0 run highlighted by the 6–0 rout of the Fresno Falcons. In 1994–95, the Aces joined the Pacific Hockey League (PHL), formed by a merger of the PSHL and PNHL.[1] The team went 27–9 and lost in the championship game to the Gold Kings.

West Coast Hockey League (1995–2003)

The PHL folded after only one season. After an unsuccessful attempt to form a new Pacific Rim Hockey League, the Aces joined the new West Coast Hockey League (WCHL) for the 1995–96 season. Mike Cusack, Jr. became sole owner of the franchise following the 1995–96 season.

In the 1996–97 season, the Aces initially lost in the league playoffs to the Fresno Falcons, three games to one. The WCHL commissioner determined that their 2–4 loss in game four would be changed to a 1–0 victory due to forfeit by the Fresno Falcons, when they failed to meet the minimum roster requirement due to injuries and suspensions. The Aces won the deciding fifth game 5–3 and advanced to the Taylor Cup finals, but were defeated by the San Diego Gulls.

Stirling Wright

In the 2000–01 season, Stirling Wright was brought in to serve as assistant coach. He was instrumental in bringing in former NHL players when the Aces signed former NHL goalie Vincent Riendeau and right wing Kevin Brown. The Idaho Steelheads defeated the Aces 3–0 in the first round of the playoffs. Overall, the Aces finished in third place with a 34–30–4 record and advanced to the semifinals, only to be ousted by the Tacoma Sabercats in three games.

In 2001–02, Wright was promoted within the franchise and began serving as the new General Manager. He hired former NHL coach and player Butch Goring as the team's new head coach. In effort to revamp the team, Wright only extended the contracts of four players from the previous season. The Aces additionally signed five former NHL players, including defenseman Jim Paek, goaltender Scott Bailey, wingers Todd Harkins and Daniel Goneau, and center Clayton Beddoes.

Clayton Beddoes retired just a few games into the season due to a previous shoulder injury. The Aces promoted a "Guaranteed Win Night" where if they lost the game, the fans in attendance would receive free Aces tickets.

Mike Cusack

After a 10–18–4 season start, Aces' owner, Mike Cusack, fired Goring and Lou Corletto, who served the franchise as Vice President of Business Operations. He brought back former head coach, Walt Poddubny. Stirling Wright stepped down as general manager, due to his disapproval of the owner's decisions. The Aces went on to win only a few more games and the mass exodus of players soon followed, after Wright left the team. The team itself was making a profit, but the owner's other financial ventures continued to drain the team of its revenue.

In May 2002, the team owner filed personal bankruptcy. Cusack included his ownership of the Anchorage Aces franchise in the filing. According to the filing papers, the team was almost $2 million in debt.

In June 2002, Cusack put the team up for sale on eBay. The club's owner, Cusack, accepted a $1.862 million bid from Duncan Harrison, owner of Alaskan Automotive Distributing in Anchorage, but U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge Donald MacDonald converted the Aces' bankruptcy case to Chapter 7, which allowed him to reject the Harrison bid.

The listing was withdrawn when it was discovered that a US$2.3 million bid was a college student's prank.[2]

The club was eventually sold for $1.05 million to a seven-member group. As of 2015 the Aces and Idaho Steelheads are the only former WCHL teams still playing in their original markets.

ECHL (2003–present)

Alaska Aces playing on October 27, 2006.

The Aces joined the ECHL for the 2003–04 season following a merger between the WCHL and the East Coast Hockey League. They were renamed the Alaska Aces after the league switch, and unveiled a new logo and new uniforms.

The team gained national prominence in 2004 when it signed New Jersey Devils all-star and Alaska-born Scott Gomez during that season's NHL lockout. Gomez went on to lead the ECHL in scoring and win league Most Valuable Player honors.[2]

The Aces' 2006 triple overtime win against the Las Vegas Wranglers was at the time the third-longest game in ECHL history, concluding after 113 minutes, 30 seconds.

In 2006, the Aces became only the second team in ECHL history (joining the South Carolina Stingrays of Charleston, SC) in winning both the Brabham Cup and Kelly Cup championships in the same season. In 2008, the Cincinnati Cyclones became the third team to accomplish this feat. In 2011 the Alaska Aces did it again, becoming the first team to ever do it twice.

In 2006, Alaska won the ECHL Kelly Cup title in five games over the Gwinnett Gladiators. This was the first professional sports title won by an Alaskan team since the Anchorage Northern Knights won the Continental Basketball Association championship in 1980. Mike Scott received the ECHL Kelly Cup MVP award after the Aces' 4-3 win over the Gladiators in Game Five of the series.

In 2009, the Aces stormed through the first three rounds of the Kelly Cup Playoffs, winning in five games against both the Utah Grizzlies and the Victoria Salmon Kings in the first two rounds, and sweeping the Las Vegas Wranglers in the National Conference Finals. They were in the Kelly Cup Finals for the first time since their championship season in 2006, but they lost 4 games to 3 to the South Carolina Stingrays.

In 2010–11, the Aces dominated the entire season, winning the Brabham Cup by earning the best record in the league, as well as leading the league in points scored. Wes Goldie lead the league in goals scored. In the Kelly Cup Playoffs, they swept the Idaho Steelheads and Victoria Salmon Kings, and then won the Kelly Cup Championship over the Kalamazoo Wings in five games. The Aces won a third Kelly Cup in 2014, defeating the Cincinnati Cyclones in the finals four games to two.

On August 22, 2013, the Aces announced their affiliation with the Calgary Flames.[3]

In 2014–15 the Aces defended their Kelly Cup championship playing in the Pacific Division of the ECHL's Western Conference,[4] but failed to make the playoffs for the first time since the team's WCHL days.

The Aces are by far the northernmost and westernmost team in the ECHL, located 2,731 miles (4,395 km) from their closest geographical rival, the Idaho Steelheads. As a result, the team spent over $300,000 in travel-related costs during the 2014–15 season despite playing road games in only six different locations.[5]

Season-by-season record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, SOL = Shootout losses, Pts = Points, PCT = Winning percentage, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes.
Records as of 2016.[6][7]

Regular Season Playoffs
Season GP W L T OTL SOL Pts PCT GF GA PIM Standing Year 1st round 2nd round 3rd round Finals
1995–96 58 24 29 0 5 0 53 0.414 271 299 1758 5th of 6, WCHL 1996 —Did not qualify
1996–97 64 41 18 0 5 0 87 0.641 349 260 2142 2nd of 6, WCHL 1997 —W, 3–2, FRE L, 0–4, SD
1997–98 64 36 20 0 8 0 80 0.562 308 261 2075 2nd of 4, WCHL North Div. 1998 —W, 3–1, IDA L, 0–4, TAC —
1998–99 71 46 22 0 3 0 95 0.648 332 260 1759 2nd of 4, WCHL North Div. 1999 —W, 2–1, COL L, 0–3, TAC —
1999–00 74 31 34 0 9 0 71 0.419 272 334 1828 3rd of 4, WCHL North Div. 2000 —L, 1–3, COL ——
2000–01 72 27 41 0 4 0 58 0.375 264 324 1820 4th of 4, WCHL North Div. 2001 —L, 0–3, IDA ——
2001–02 72 19 44 0 9 0 47 0.264 222 350 1573 4th of 4, WCHL North Div. 2002 —L, 1–3, IDA ——
2002–03 72 21 46 0 5 0 47 0.292 210 327 1926 6th of 6, WCHL 2003 —Did not qualify
2003–04 72 38 28 6 0 0 82 0.569 220 210 1648 4th of 7, ECHL Pacific Div. 2004 W, 3–0, SD L, 1–3, IDA ——
2004–05 72 45 19 8 0 0 98 0.681 233 187 1389 1st of 8, ECHL West Div. 2005 W, 3–2, BAKW, 3–0, LB L, 3–4, TRE —
2005–06 72 53 12 7 0 0 113 0.785 289 168 1786 1st of 6, ECHL West Div. 2006 W, 4–0, UTA W, 4–2, LV W, 4–3, FRE W, 4–1, GWT
2006–07 72 49 16 7 0 0 105 0.729 270 176 1972 1st of 5, ECHL West Div. 2007 W, 4–2, VIC W, 4–0, BAK L, 1–4, IDA —
2007–08 72 41 26 0 4 1 87 0.604 245 249 1319 3rd of 5, ECHL West Div. 2008 W, 4–0, IDA L, 1–4, LV ——
2008–09 72 45 24 1 2 0 93 0.646 232 181 1537 1st of 5, ECHL West Div. 2009 W, 4–1, UTA W, 4–1, VIC W, 4–0, LV L, 3–4, SC
2009–10 72 36 28 0 4 4 80 0.556 232 240 1566 2nd of 4, ECHL West Div. 2010 L, 1–3, STK ———
2010–11 72 47 22 0 2 1 97 0.674 241 174 947 1st of 4, ECHL Mountain Div. 2011 BYE W, 4–0, IDA W, 4–0, VIC W, 4–1, KAL
2011–12 72 43 18 0 3 8 97 0.674 224 172 929 1st of 4, ECHL Mountain Div. 2012 BYE W, 4–1, STK L, 1–4, LV —
2012–13 72 49 15 0 4 4 106 0.736 228 172 1086 1st of 4, ECHL Mountain Div. 2013 W, 4–1, SF L, 2–4, STK ——
2013–14 71 45 19 0 3 4 97 0.683 243 164 989 1st of 4, ECHL Mountain Div. 2014 W, 4–0, LV W, 4–1, IDA W, 4–2, BAK W, 4–2, CIN
2014–15 72 35 30 0 3 4 77 0.535 237 233 1211 5th of 7, ECHL Pacific Div. 2015 Did not qualify
2015–16 72 27 38 — 4 3 61 0.424 189 237 1171 5th of 5, ECHL West Div. 2016 Did not qualify

Current roster

Updated November 19, 2016.[8][9]
# Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace Contract
3 United States Breton, JustinJustin Breton F L 27 2014 Fitchburg, Massachusetts Aces
31 United States Carr, KevinKevin Carr G L 26 2016 Unionville, Ontario Aces
6 United States Coffman, TimTim Coffman F R 29 2013 Elverson, Pennsylvania Aces
31 Canada DeSerres, JacobJacob DeSerres G L 26 2016 Calgary, Alberta Aces
34 Canada Garteig, MichaelMichael Garteig G L 25 2016 Prince George, British Columbia Canucks
22 United States Geurts, MattMatt Geurts D R 26 2016 Chugiak, Alaska Aces
24 Canada Hunt, GaretGaret Hunt LW L 29 2015 Maple Ridge, British Columbia Aces
2 Canada Johnston, DanielDaniel Johnston D R 24 2015 Calgary, Alberta Aces
15 Canada Lake, BenBen Lake LW L 26 2015 Calgary, Alberta Aces
7 United States Lauwers, DaxDax Lauwers D L 25 2016 Anchorage, Alaska Aces
29 Canada Levesque, Marc-AndreMarc-Andre Levesque D R 25 2016 Longueuil, Quebec Aces
44 United States Nikiforov, VladimirVladimir Nikiforov W L 29 2016 Elektrenai, Lithuania Aces
20 United States Olczyk, TommyTommy Olczyk C L 26 2016 Long Grove, Illinois Aces
44 Canada Perfetto, StephenStephen Perfetto LW L 25 2015 Woodbridge, Ontario Aces
15 United States Ruegsegger, TylerTyler Ruegsegger C R 28 2016 Lakewood, Colorado Aces
29 United States Sampair, CharlieCharlie Sampair C L 23 2016 St. Paul, Minnesota Aces
91 Slovakia Sivák, PeterPeter Sivák RW L 34 2015 Cheb, Czechoslovakia Aces
26 United States Trenz, RyanRyan Trenz D R 24 2016 St. Louis, Missouri Aces
21 Canada Valcourt, CollinCollin Valcourt LW L 23 2015 Prince George, British Columbia Aces

Notable players

Player Position GP
Chris Beckford-Tseu G 56
Wade Brookbank LW/D72
Joey Crabb RW35
Kimbi Daniels C557
Brandon DubinskyC17
Wes GoldieRW165
Scott Gomez C 76
Stefan Grogg F 7
Derek Gustafson G 91
Barrett Heisten LW 182
Ty Jones W 12
D. J. King LW 5
Doug Lynch D30
Marek Schwarz G 19
Nate Thompson C 27
Matt UnderhillG66
B. J. Young RW144

Head coaches

Retired numbers

References

  1. ↑ Pacific Hockey League (1994-1995) history and statistics, hockeyDB.com. (accessed 11 June 2015)
  2. 1 2 Stott, Jon C. (2006). Hockey Night in Dixie: Minor Pro Hockey in the American South. Heritage House Publishing Company Ltd. pp. 180, 182. ISBN 978-1-894974-21-9.
  3. ↑ "Flames, Heat announce affiliation with Alaska Aces". Calgary Flames. August 21, 2013. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Annual ECHL Board of Governors Meeting concludes", ECHL, June 24, 2014. (accessed 24 June 2014)
  5. ↑ Woody, Doyle. "Aces' 2015-16 schedule: Diversity and distant travel", Alaska Dispatch News, April 27, 2015. (accessed 11 June 2015)
  6. ↑ "Anchorage Aces season statistics and records 1995–2003". Hockeydb.com. 2012-03-04. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
  7. ↑ "Anchorage Aces season statistics and records 2003-Present". Hockeydb.com. 2014-05-02. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
  8. ↑ "Aces player roster". Alaska Aces. Retrieved 2016-07-12.
  9. ↑ "Alaska Aces Elite Prospects". Elite Prospects. Retrieved February 20, 2016.

External links

Media related to Alaska Aces at Wikimedia Commons

League Championships
Preceded by
Pensacola Ice Pilots		 Brabham Cup
2005–06 		Succeeded by
Las Vegas Wranglers
Preceded by
Trenton Titans		 Kelly Cup
2005–06 		Succeeded by
Idaho Steelheads
Preceded by
Idaho Steelheads		 Brabham Cup
2010–11 to 2013–14 		Succeeded by
Toledo Walleye
Preceded by
Cincinnati Cyclones		 Kelly Cup
2010–11 		Succeeded by
Florida Everblades
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