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Kolarik Lifts Whale Late in OT

December 17, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Connecticut Whale News Release


HARTFORD, Conn. - Chad Kolarik's goal with 29.5 seconds left in overtime lifted the Connecticut Whale to its sixth straight win Friday night, a 3-2 victory over the Worcester Sharks before 5,307 at the XL Center.

After Whale goaltender Chad Johnson kicked out Sean Sullivan's screened bid, the goalie cleared the puck to Wade Redden, who tossed a pass that found Kolarik and took off on a 2-on-1 against Sharks defenseman Mike Moore. After getting some unexpected help from Sharks coach Roy Sommer, Kolarik calmly skated in on Alex Stalock and fired a 30-foot wrist shot that beat the goalie high to the glove side for his seventh goal and first winner in 15 games since being acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets and Springfield Falcons for former Wolf Pack captain Dane Byers on Nov. 11.

"I actually missed the block on (Sullivan's) shot, Johnny made a good save and Reds just chipped it up to me and beat his man up the ice," Kolarik said. "That's great hustle by him making it a 2-on-1 because if it's 1-on-1 it doesn't happen. I thought I'd let (Redden) catch up a little bit to have that 2-on-1 and actually heard their coach say, 'Give him the shot.' "

Kolarik paused and smiled.

"I'm like, 'All right,' " Kolarik continued. "As a shooter, that takes all the options away from me, which is actually probably better because you're not thinking about it. I was going for that high glove. If you ask the goalie, that's my bread and butter, a little chip shot. I think (Sommer) was just yelling at his (defenseman), but I happened to cross by the bench at the same time. It was good information."

The Whale's (14-11-2-4) six-game winning streak is the franchise's longest since the Wolf Pack won seven in a row from Feb. 20 to March 4, 2009. The Whale also has a 10-game point streak (8-0-0-2), is 8-0-0-1 since being rebranded from the Wolf Pack on Nov. 27 and is three games above .500 for the first time this season.

"He's brought lots of offense," Whale coach Ken Gernander said of Kolarik, who has been instrumental in the team being 10-2-0-3 since his arrival. "He's been very good for us playing a number of different roles from our top line to our third line. He seems to be productive wherever we slot him in there. He skates well. He makes some smart, heady plays and he can finish.

"He's someone who knows what's doing offensively. (The winner) wasn't a rushed shot or a hurried shot. He pretty much evaluated the situation, found a corner and hit it with a good shot."

Redden admitted he didn't see Kolarik, just tried to get Sullivan's rebound out of dangerous territory.

"I was just trying to clear the front of the net more than anything, and (Kolarik) happened to be right in the right spot," Redden said. "I flipped it to him, and we were off to the races. He made a great play, kind of froze the goalie, and I was ready for (the puck), so the goalie didn't know what was going to happen. He made a quick shot, and it was a good one."

The Whale's current run follows a 1-9-1-2 slide and has lifted them into fourth place in the Atlantic Division, two points behind Worcester and Portland and four back of leader Manchester, a 4-3 winner over Portland on Friday night. The Whale has won six in a row at home and is 7-1-0-1 at the XL Center after starting 1-5-2-0.

The Sharks (15-8-2-4) had been 5-1-0-1 in their previous seven games, but the Whale is now 2-1-0-1 against Sommer's team.

The first period featured two more penalties (12, including six fighting majors) than shots (10) and a Sharks' tying goal by Matt Irwin that came just as time expired. Irwin one-timed a pass from Jonathan Cheechoo that got through Whale defenseman Ryan McDonagh, Sharks wing Brandon Mashinter and a screened Johnson.

The Whale nearly took the lead 2:26 into the game, but Stalock denied a wide-open Kris Newbury in front during an early power play. But at 5:40, Kelsey Tessier outmuscled Cory Quirk in front and stuffed in Jyri Niemi's rebound for his fifth goal and a 1-0 Whale lead.

The second period started much like the first, with Newbury being stopped on a partial breakaway at 27 seconds. On the ensuing counterattack, Mats Zuccarello knocked Cheechoo off his skates, and the Sharks' leading scorer (31 points) and 56-goal scorer with the San Jose Sharks in 2005-06 went sliding into the boards and had to be helped off. Zuccarello was called for boarding, and Cheechoo never returned.

The Sharks then went ahead for the first time when Mashinter picked up a loose puck in center ice, skated down the left wing and let go a shot from the top of the circle that beat Johnson to the far glove side at 7:13.

"That was definitely a wakeup call for me," said Johnson, who has won three in a row and is 6-0-2 in his last eight decisions. "I don't know to explain it other than it was embarrassing to let in that kind of goal. Goals like that can either tear you apart or you use it for motivation, and that's kind of what I did. I know I'm better than that. It's just inexcusable to let in a goal like that.

"But then I just wanted to have a good (third) period. I knew they were going to come out hard. They were kind of sitting back and didn't have a lot of emotion the first two periods, so I knew they were going to come out hard. That kind just kind of ticked me off, and I didn't want to let in anything after that and just kind of found my groove. It's about the best I've felt in a long time in the third period. I was just seeing the puck well, reading plays and was on my feet patient when I had to be. It's probably the best period I've played so far, and I kind of hope we can carry it over to the next game (Sunday afternoon in Syracuse)."

After the goal, the Whale tried to pick up Johnson with stronger forechecking, forcing Stalock to make a good arm save on Tim Kennedy from 25 feet in the slot with 7:54 left during the Whale's second power play before sliding across to stop Jeremy Williams' one-timer from the left circle with 5:18 to go during the Whale's third man advantage.

But the Whale tied it with 3:55 left on a power play, as Newbury passed to the left circle to Williams, whose shot deflected past Stalock for his team-leading 16th goal after Sharks penalty killer Andrews Desjardins had broken his stick. Newbury's assist extended his team-high point streak to eight games (three goals, 12 assists).

The Whale then nearly regained the lead, but Stalock made an alert stop on Ryan Garlock's one-timer from the right circle with 2:35 left.

Stalock kept it tied with a left-toe save on Newbury at 4:36 of the third period, then the Whale didn't a terrific job of killing off Dupont's double minor for bloodying Irwin with a high stick and a delay of game to Jared Nightingale that gave the Sharks a 5-on-3 for 29 seconds. During all that time, the Sharks had only two shots, one a dangerous bid by Mashinter after Dupont had returned but broke his stick.

"That kill was a big effort," Gernander said. "We've had some defensemen (McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko) who have been great blocking shots net-front, and Chad had one or two big saves and there was pressure from the forwards. It was a good group effort. It obviously was a big kill."

Midway through the overtime, Kolarik lost the puck coming out of the corner alone, then Redden was denied off a pass from Kennedy with 2:13 left. A Redden turnover led to a Sharks' 3-on-2, but Johnson bailed out the veteran defenseman and sent him and Kolarik off on the game's deciding play with his first assist of the season.

"There were so many one-goal games (12 losses) during the early bad stretch," Gernander said. "So much happens in the course of a season as far as guys growing together, injuries, call-ups and a lot of games crammed in, five in seven nights, so we really didn't have time to regroup.

"But I like the way the guys are coming together right now. We're playing some good hockey, and now we just have to continue building all season long. We're a long way from home. The difference between winning and losing is such a small margin, so we have to stay sharp."

EIZENMAN REPLACES WEISE

With Whale right wing Dale Weise recalled by the New York Rangers, center Oren Eizenman reentered the lineup and played on a line with Tessier and Kolarik. The Whale also scratched defensemen Stu Bickel and Lee Baldwin. The Sharks scratched defenseman Joe Loprieno and injured left wings Tony Lucia and Frazer McLaren. ... Howard Baldwin Jr., the new president and chief operating officer of Whalers Sports and Entertainment, has a new Twitter account that is accessible to Whale fans at howardbaldwinjr. ... Former Wolf Pack assistant coach Nick Fotiu, one of the biggest fan favorites in the history of the Rangers and New England and Hartford Whalers because of his toughness, will sign autographs in the XL Center atrium Dec. 29 from 6-7 p.m. before the Whale plays the Portland Pirates and coach Kevin Dineen, the last captain of the Whalers. ... Fans can give the gift of Whale hockey during the holiday season. The Whale Hockey Pack of six dark green undated flex tickets and one Heritage Connecticut Whale hat is $122, a savings of $38. Six yellow undated flex tickets and one hat are $74, a savings of $14. Holiday packages are available through Jan. 3 at the Fan Center behind Section 101 in the XL Center or by calling 860-728-3366 or visiting www.ctwhaleshop.com . ... The Whale has moved the starting time of their Jan. 1 game against the Providence Bruins from 7 p.m. to 5 p.m. so it doesn't conflict with the University of Connecticut football team playing Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, which starts at 8:30.

VIRTUE, YOUNG AMONG FIRST INDUCTEES INTO WORCESTER SHRINE

Former Wolf Pack defenseman Terry Virtue and Hartford Whalers wing Scott Young will be among the first six inductees into the Worcester Hockey Hall of Fame on Jan. 22 at the DCU Center in Worcester. It's "Salute to the IceCats" Night, the name of the AHL franchise that preceded the Sharks, and other inductees will be Marvin Degon Sr., father of former Wolf Pack defenseman Marvin Degon, Kelly O'Leary, Eddie Bates and Larz Anderson. ... Former New Canaan High and Taft School-Watertown grad Max Pacioretty, who leads the AHL in goals with 17, had a goal and an assist in his NHL debut this season as the Montreal Canadiens beat the Boston Bruins 4-3 on Thursday night. Pacioretty, the Canadiens' first-round pick (22nd overall) in 2007, had six goals and 19 assists in 87 NHL games in the previous two seasons. ... All 30 AHL teams were in action Friday night, making the 15 games the busiest day in the league's 75-year history.

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