The Kenai River Brown Bears take to the ice at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex for the final time when Kenai River hosts the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights in a two-game series Friday and Saturday, March 24-25. Game times are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. each night.
The Brown Bears stand at 11-42-2-0 in the NAHL’s Midwest Division with two home games and three games in Fairbanks remaining in the regular season. The final Brown Bears contest will be against the Fairbanks Ice Dogs at the Big Dipper Arena on April 1st.
Skate with the Bears
Following Saturday’s home game, the Brown Bears will hold an open-skate, Skate with the Bears event on the Sports Center ice.
Brown Bears Ending Operations (from earlier story -2/28/2017)
The Kenai River Brown Bears Junior A Tier II hockey organization announced on Monday, February 27th that it will cease operations at the conclusion of the 2016-17 regular season in the North American Hockey League.
Press release from Brown Bears General Manager Nate Keil…
Soldotna, AK – The Kenai River Brown Bears have announced that they will cease hockey operations for the 2017-18 season. According to General Manager Nate Kiel, the team was granted inactive status by the North American Hockey League and will not compete next season.
The Bears, operating out of the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex and in their tenth NAHL season, have faced considerable challenges ever since the Alaska Avalanche left Wasilla in 2012 and moved to Pennsylvania. As the footprint of the NAHL grew, the Bears travel budget increased substantially, forcing them to compete against teams from across the country. Kiel cited the dissolution of the league’s western division and subsequent direction and growth of the NAHL in recent years as the prime factor impacting the Bears’ operating budget. “The downturn in the Alaska economy has compounded our overall problem and a combination of these factors ultimately led to our decision.”
