It may not be his first choice of professional hockey leagues, but Scott Gomez is making the most of his time with the Alaska Aces.

Gomez, who up until the NHL lockout played for the NHL's New Jersey Devils, has been a hero in Anchorage since his junior Western Hockey League (WHL) days, but now he is the face of his hometown team.

Drafted in 1998 by the Devils and named NHL Rookie of the Year in 2000, Gomez said he had plenty of offers in Europe this season, but got the blessing from the NHLPA to play in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) instead.

'I talked to some of the vets that I always kind of looked up to and they said, Hey, I mean, the European guys get to go home and play in front of their home town,' so I jumped on the opportunity. Hopefully, I never have this opportunity again, but I thought it would be great to give back to my community.'

Before accepting the offer to play with the Aces, Gomez wanted to make sure there was a veteran spot open and he wasn't taking anyone else's job.

'Coming back, that would be the worst thing, I think, if I came back in and a guy was ... had to pack up his family and leave. As great as it would have been (to play), if that would have been the case, I wouldn't have done it.'

It's that attitude matched with his skill that won Gomez the respect of all of his teammates.

There was no jealousy or bad blood between him and any of the guys in the locker room when he arrived, a couple of whom he played hockey with in high school. More than anything, the Devil has been a role model for some of the younger players he was +12 heading into the weekend series.

'He's a great kid, on and off the ice,' said Aces head coach Davis Payne. 'He's an outstanding teammate and he's friends with some of the guys already. He brings a light side, keeps the locker room very light. In that way, he's outstanding. Then you get onto the ice and you've got one player who should make your team significantly better.'

Payne admitted the first part of the season was somewhat difficult after Gomez arrived, as everyone seemed to forget that the other 17 pieces of the team had to put their best effort forward as well, in order to make the team better.

'Once we got through that, it became him going through an adjustment period as well, getting used to the league, and the other guys going through an adjustment, getting used to him and what he's able to accomplish. And how we need to support him on the ice and where we need to go to make him a better play maker, so to speak.

'Some guys get a little nervous playing with an NHLer who expects you to score every time he gives you the puck, and quite frankly, he's able to give you a lot of great chances. You've just got to relax.'

Gomez said at first, he got tons of questions from everyone, especially since New Jersey has been so successful in the last 10 years.

'I'm the one telling them, Hey, you can't do this. Let's try not to do this.

'My first five years on the Devils ... last year was the first year I wasn't the youngest, so it's kind of nice to actually be looked upon. In New Jersey, I never had to worry about that.'

The forward joked that the only thing people were angry about when he returned was the loss of a good Aces employee his dad worked for the team last year but now that he represents his son, he can't work there.

For both of Gomez's parents, his return has definitely been a nice surprise.

'I've always come home just because the fact I can be a kid again,' he smiled. 'I'm kind of a mama's boy, I'm not afraid to admit it, so it's always nice just to go over to my parents house ... it's always great to be back with my sisters, my family and my friends.'

The hockey star still hangs out with the same friends he's had in Anchorage for years, and even gave up his own house for one of his best friends who is working his way through medical school. Before Gomez knew he was returning to Alaska, he offered the house to his friend, giving him 'a pretty sweet deal' on rent.

'When I found out I was coming back, he was going to move out and I'm like, that's just not my style.

'I live two minutes from the house (in a team-rented apartment). Plus, I'm always there anyway, hanging out with him.'

Besides a new bed, Gomez has also had to adjust to a new style of team travel. In New Jersey, the majority of games were played against teams in the Eastern Conference, which kept lengthy travel to a minimum. Even though the Aces mainly play against teams on the West Coast, monthly trips to Victoria, California and Idaho can take their toll.

'One thing that's good though, is the guys can't call me a silver spooner anymore,' he laughed. 'I played in the Dub (WHL), so that was all the buses I wanted to take. You have your own plane in New Jersey and you're never waiting. But, it reminds me of kind of the old days, kind of being a kid, kind of being no better than anyone else.

'Sometimes the guys give it to me. I got bumped ... eight of us got bumped off the plane and I was one of the guys and they all kind of got a kick out of that, just to see my reaction. You miss the first class, but hey, what are you going to do? It's part of being on the team.'

Asked if he would be up for his new lifestyle long term, if the NHL lockout goes on for more than a season, Gomez wasn't too sure.

'I'm committed here for a year. You always have to see what happens. Maybe next year, if the lockout does go on that long, you never know ... maybe the (NHL)PA doesn't want guys to play. You're always going to have to keep your options open.'

Last year with the Devils, Gomez had a breakout following the All-Star break and finished tied for the NHL lead in assists with 56, to go along with 14 goals and a career-best +18 rating. Although it can't be easy on him leaving the NHL after a great year, Gomez was more concerned about others affected by the lockout.

'That would be selfish on my part to even think of that, because there's guys that might not ever play again. There's guys that are 18 years old and their dreams are put on hold.

'It's unfortunate guys like myself and some others were getting into our primes, but that would be selfish, because like I said, there's been a lot of guys that sacrificed for me to play in the National Hockey League. So I don't even worry about that (his own career).'

Gomez added he does have a tinge of hope remaining that a deal between the NHL and NHLPA can be worked out this week, although things don't look good.

'There's only one loser and that's the fans and the employees at the arenas. Hopefully, Mr. Bettman ... because you know, the guys and the players are willing to do whatever it takes, but there's got to be some kind of compromise.

'Your boss can't just come in and say. Oops, I messed up. You've got to fix it.' You've got to believe in what's right and I'm 100 per cent behind the (NHL)PA. They're (the NHL) trying to break the union and it's not going to happen.'

You can read more about the Alaska Aces, and their series with the Victoria Salmon Kings this past weekend, in the Tues. and Wed. editions of the Star.