BOISE — Ben Nelson’s family didn’t get to see him play much hockey the past four years at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. Now that he’s with the Idaho Steelheads in his first full season of pro hockey, that has changed a bit.

Nelson, the team’s leading scorer so far on the young season, has notched four goals and four assists in seven games. But maybe more importantly, he’ll have a few friendly faces at many of the home games inside Qwest Arena this season.

Nelson’s parents still live in his hometown of Spokane, Wash., and will be in attendance this evening when the Steelheads drop the puck with divisional rival Alaska at 7:10 p.m.

“They came out once a year if they could make it,” said Nelson, who was second in scoring last season for the Bobcats of the ECAC. “It’s nice, if they want to take a drive, or take that quick hour flight from Spokane. Hopefully they should be able to come down a few times.”

Nelson’s seven games so far this season have matched his seven games he played with the South Carolina Stingrays, his first as a pro. Ironically, he also scored four goals in that seven-game span as well.

Idaho head coach Derek Laxdal said scoring goals is why he added Nelson to the team after losing offensive standouts Taggart Desmet and Greg Rallo in the offseason. Some of the success, though, comes from having good linemates such as Garett Bembridge and Steve Gainey, as well as being on a power-play unit with captain Marty Flichel and Darrell Hay.

“Anytime a first-year guy can come in and lead your team in scoring, obviously that’s a big thing for your team,” said Flichel, who is second on the team with seven points. “Hopefully he can keep going, he’s a solid two-way player, he works hard every day. I hope he doesn’t play too well for our liking so he doesn’t get called up.”

So far the hardest adjustment for Nelson has been getting up to speed with the fast-paced nature of professional hockey. In college, there was a larger focus on practice, but in the ECHL, life is a bit different.

“It’s almost the complete opposite of college,” Nelson said. “Here you play a lot of games and practice a lot less.”

So far, the new format is working for the Steelheads’ rookie.

Road trip helps bond team

The last time the Steelheads played in Boise was Oct. 18, the team’s one and only home game this season. After five games on the road, the team feel like it is starting to bond and build team chemistry.

“It was a real long road trip,” Laxdal said. “Overall I think it was a success and the other side of it was just watching some of the young kids develop and watch them play on other peoples’ rinks. I think it was a good learning step for our kids.”

Tough series starts tonight

The Idaho Steelheads (3-2-1) were swept last season in the conference quarterfinal by the Alaska Aces (5-2-0), a veteran team that will be in Boise for the next three games. Laxdal said this year’s Steelheads team isn’t thinking about that last series with their divisional rival.

“We don’t have the same team, but you do have the rivalry,” Laxdal said. “You have to have that intensity and you have to have that passion.”

The team can use this series as a measuring stick to see just how good they are with so many new players on the squad.

“Any time you play a first-place team, you got to be ready to go,” Flichel said. “We’re looking forward to it, we have a lot young guys here and they haven’t played against Alaska yet ... I’m sure it’s gonna be a good three-game set.”