Alaska Promotes Assistant Lance West to Head Coach

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July 20, 2017
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FAIRBANKS, Alaska — Forced to find a new head coach relatively late in the offseason, Alaska promoted assistant Lance West to the position.

West replaces Dallas Ferguson, who left last week to become the head coach of Calgary in in the WHL. West was Ferguson's assistant coach during the latter's entire tenure, starting in 2008.

"I am very pleased Lance West has accepted our offer to become the next head coach of the Alaska Nanooks hockey team," Alaska athletic director Gary Gray said Wednesday. "I am equally confident his many years of experience as one of our assistant coaches, along with his outstanding recruiting skills over those past several years, will serve us well as he takes on his new leadership responsibilities. Lance will work hard to advance Nanook hockey within the WCHA."

A four-year letter winner as a forward at Alabama-Huntsville, West originally came to Alaska as a volunteer assistant coach and video coordinator in the 2007-08 season, while also working full-time at the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Student Recreation Center as the Facility Manager. Under Ferguson and West, Alaska made its only trip to the NCAAs in 2010.

Prior to moving to Fairbanks, West served as an assistant coach to his alma mater for seven seasons (2000-07), helping the Chargers to win two College Hockey America regular-season championships, four conference tournament appearances and one NCAA tournament appearance (2006-07). West had previously served as the volunteer assistant coach for UAH from 1995-98, helping the Chargers capture two NCAA Division II National Championships in 1996 and 1998.
As a player, West was considered an offensive-minded centerma; he had 43 goals and 65 assists for 108 points in 106 career games.






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