04/16/2006

Stars look forward to second year

With inaugural season under belt, team aims for top

BY JAMES COOK

jcook@record-eagle.com

TRAVERSE CITY — Next year will be another in a line of firsts for Scott Gardiner.

The Traverse City North Stars coach will be able to field a veteran team against the rest of the North American Hockey League for the first time after throwing a roster full of mainly rookies into the ring this year.

Of course, considering this season was the team's inaugural venture into the NAHL, just about everything was a first.

"Going into next season, our guys are going to know how to battle every night," Gardiner said.

The Stars finished the team's rookie campaign with a 17-34-7 record, but earned a playoff berth and gave the top-seeded Team USA U-17s a tough test before finally bowing out 3-2 in a best-of-five series that TC led 2-1 at one point.

"It's awesome for a first-year team to make the playoffs and give Team USA a good run," said leading scorer Patrick Nagorsen. "Next year we'll have veterans. We'll expect to win the division next year, and nothing less."

The Stars finished fourth in the North Division this year, a division that will gain the Marquette Rangers expansion team.

"We're pretty excited," said Steve Fournier, one of the team's principal owners. "It only took a couple seconds of depression on Sunday in Ann Arbor (when the Stars lost to Team USA 1-0 in Game 5) ... and by Monday afternoon we were fired up to get going again."

Traverse City drew an average of 775 fans per home contest, 10th in the 20-team NAHL and second in the North Division behind Alpena (930 per game).

"Financially, it wasn't a successful year, but it went as expected," Fournier said. "We reached a lot of the goals we had as far as the product we put out there. We sowed a lot of seeds that will pay off in the end."

Fournier said one goal for next year is to start up a booster club.

The North Stars did take three of four points from South Division winner Texas at home in late Febraury.

"It was an up-and-down season," Gardiner said. "We had that month and a half where we played all the tough teams and all on the road. Beating Texas was a big weekend for us. That was a confidence-builder.

"We scheduled a tough schedule on purpose. We learned a lot and were better for it at the end of the season. It's onward and upward from here."

Gardiner said he expects 10-12 players to return next season, and has commitments from 10 already.

Finishing the season as three of the team's top five scorers, linemates Jared Mullen (14-19-33), Jonathan Juliano (11-20-31) and Matt Larke (14-16-30) all return in what could be one of the league's most formidable lines.

Also back will be Nagorsen (17-25-42), although second-leading scorer Travis Paeth is undecided. Other returnees include defensemen Rich Zobak and Arthur Bidwell and forwards Brett Englebright, Ryan Bond and Jon Madden.

Traverse City native Jake Erway won't be able to return next season, passing the league's age limit, as will defensemen Jarrett Rush and Steve Hackman. Rush received a scholarship to play at Manhattanville College.

Nagorsen turned down a scholarship offer from Wayne State to return to the Stars. Defenseman Steven Oleksy is in talks with Wayne State and Lake Superior about a scholarship, but is a possibility to return.

"It was awesome up there," Nagorsen said. "We got everything we needed, plus more. The fans were great. That makes me want to come back and win a championship."

Gardiner is already out scouting talent for the May 23 draft. He was in Toronto this weekend at a prospects tournament featuring TC signee Zach Hitch of Brighton, among others. Hitch was named Michigan's Mr. Hockey this season by the state coaching association.

The Stars have also been busy at getting players inked for next year, having used all but one of their tenders, including one on Honeybaked defenseman and captain Chris Heinemen last week.

Thinking that starting goaltender Jeremy Kaleniecki was going back to college next season, Gardiner tendered Cleveland Midget Major standout goalie Stefan Shively, who had a 2.64 goals against average and .925 save percentage for the Barons. With Ryan Donovan a confirmed returner between the pipes, the netminder position could be crowded going into next season.

The North Stars have scheduled tryout camps for May 18-21 at Centre ICE, a June 1-4 camp at Compuware Arena in Plymouth and the invitation-only training camp in Traverse City on Aug. 4-6.