A Service of The Arrow           Friday December 17, 1999 7:52 PM

By: Andy Frey

ARROW STAFF

It may not be as violent or intense as professional hockey, but for four Flathead High students, Glacier Avalanche hockey is a way to be competitive and have fun. With a new coach and a revamped offense, the Avalanche is ready for the season.

“I've been playing hockey for eight years, and I enjoy skating,” said junior David Palchak. “Hockey gives me something to do in the winter, and it is the coolest game on earth.”

“I enjoy hockey,” said senior Grant Hewitt. “I came from Dallas, Texas, where I played roller hockey, and since there is none of that here I had to take up ice hockey.”

Joining Palchak and Hewitt from Flathead High are senior Andy Nystuen and junior Nahum Tkachyk.

“We are going to be one of the better teams in the state this year,” said Nystuen. “We didn't lose many players, and so far we have been demonstrating good teamwork.”

The four Braves are just a small portion of the team, with most of the rest of the team being from other parts of the Flathead Valley. Two members of the team are from outside the valley, one from Eureka and one from Hot Springs.

“Our team is looking pretty tight,” said Palchak. “Our defense is weak and the few players we lost were key, but our offense is very strong and score happy.”

Last year the Avalache placed second in the Western Conference, but had to settle for fifth place at the state tournament.

“We expected to do a lot better at state last year,” said Nystuen. “However this year I think we will do better because we are more closely knit.”

This year the Avalanche is playing under new head coach Bob Melcer, who replaces former coach Mike Fitzgerald, who took a job teaching and coaching a junior varsity hockey team at a private high school in Connecticut.

“He (the new coach) has a really different style than what a lot of players are used to,” said Palchak, “But he knows what he is talking about and I think he will be good for the team this year.”

The first two games of the season for the Avalanche came last weekend in Bozeman. The Avalanche was victorious in both games, 6-5 and 6-4 respectively.

“In the first game we were down 2-1 after the second period,” said Palchak. “We scored five goals in the third period to work them over.”

“The second game we stayed ahead, but they played a lot better,” said Palchak. “There were some huge hits.”

This weekend the Avalanche have two tough matchups, against Bozeman and Salmon, Idaho, at the ice rink in Whitefish.

“We want to play evenly and balanced and score a lot of goals,” said Nystuen. “We want to be competitive.”

News | Features | Opinions | In-Depth | Sports | A & E | Backpage

Contact us: Submit feedback, send a letter to the editor.

The Arrow is Copyright © 1999 by The FHS, a High school Newspaper.

This page has been accessed times since 2/27/98