Fairbanks defenseman Erkkila makes NCAA D1 commitment

March 19, 2020

The Fairbanks Ice Dogs of the North American Hockey League (NAHL) are pleased to announce that defenseman Tim Erkkila has committed to play NCAA Division 1 hockey for Northern Michigan University in the WCHA.

 

Erkkila, 19, is in his first season playing in the NAHL. The 6’1/185 lbs. native of Brighton, Michigan, generated 18 points (2 goals, 16 assists) in 49 games played in 2019-20, ranking him 13th among the team’s scorers and third for points among the Ice Dogs defensemen.

 

“Northern Michigan, obviously, has a rich history of hockey and academics,” Erkkila said. “I really like their coaching staff’s vision for me and for the next four years of their team.”

 

Erkkila said Wildcats head coach Grant Potulny and his staff plan to help him develop his game. “Try to develop my game as much as possible and turn me into as much as an asset as they can going into my four years there.”

 

Northern Michigan placed third in the WCHA regular season and lost both games of its quarterfinal series against Michigan Tech. The Wildcats were eliminated after 4-3 loss in triple overtime on March 7 at the Berry Events Center in Marquette.

 

“He’s very steady and he does have a lot of offensive tools that coaches really appreciate,” Ice Dogs head coach Trevor Stewart said. “He’s on the ice early every single day working on things. He’s just going to be one of those stories where he continues to get better. He’s not going to be the guy that pads the top of points production for defensemen, but he’s going to be an integral part because it’s the little things that he brings to his game.”