Sarsland Impresses in Return to Ice Dogs
Published on March 24, 2022 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Fairbanks Ice Dogs News Release
FAIRBANKS, ALASKA - Fairbanks Ice Dogs rookie Tristan Sarsland registered four assists in six games as an Ice Dogs affiliate player last season. He recently returned to Fairbanks following his senior year at Benilde-St. Margaret's high school in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, making his season debut over the weekend against Anchorage. The 6 ¬Â² 182 lb. defenseman scored goals in each of the two games at the Big Dipper Ice arena, helping the Dogs earn a split and maintain their lead in the Alaska Airlines Club 49 Cup.
"The atmosphere was awesome , the fans really get into it and it's really fun playing with all the guys too," Sarsland said of his first games in the Dip with a full crowd. "it was pretty much full for warm-ups and I'm like this is crazy. After the goals you could barely hear your thoughts. It was just awesome."
Sarsland, a 4-year letter winner at BSM, scored 12 goals with 21 assists, earning all-metro honors as a senior, and named as a finalist for Mr. Hockey in the state of Minnesota. Sarsland was ranked 82nd among North American skaters in the NHL Central Scouting Bureau's mid-term rankings for 2022. Lines.com projected Sarsland as a 7th round pick in a 2022 mock draft.
The Dogs are back in action at the Dip this weekend, hosting Chippewa Falls in a 2-game series. The race for the NAHL Midwest Division regular season title is extremely close with a mere 13 points separating the top six teams in the division. The Ice Dogs lead the division by two points over the Springfield Jr. Blues. The Dogs are 5-4-0-1 in their last 10 games, and are hoping to ride the momentum following Saturday's 8-3 win over the Wolverines.
"It's the NAHL so every game is a battle," said Ice Dogs alternate captain Jake Hale. "The playoff push kinda starts when you come back from Christmas break and you solidify yourself as a team. We've struggled a bit, but we're finding ourselves and trusting the process under our new coach Dave Stewart."
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