A Perfect 10: Flags Go Undefeated and Earn 10th Win in Week 10
Published on December 18, 2006 under International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Port Huron Flags News Release
Game Recaps
Wednesday, Dec. 13 Port Huron 2 @ Elmira 1
The Flags traveled to Elmira to take on a high-powered Jackals offense. In the previous three contests between the teams, the Flags had been unable to beat the Jackals and were 0-2-1 in the series. Brent Cullaton scored first for Elmira, but a pair of goals from Bobby Kukulka gave the Flags a big win on the road. Kukulka's second score came with just a minute and a half left in the game. He and Shayne Tomlinson were named 1st and 2nd Stars of the Game, respectively. Tomlinson had assists on both of Kukulka's goals.
Friday, Dec. 15 Elmira 2 vs. Port Huron 4
Steve Hildenbrand scored first for the Flags, but Derek Miller tied it up 1-1, until Bobby Kukulka's goal near the end of the first period. Craig Mahon scored the only goal of the second period, giving the Flags a comfortable 3-1 lead. Elmira closed in when Yevgeny Lazarev scored in the first half of the third, but a beautiful pass from Colt King set up Mike Olynyk to seal the game with 35 seconds left. Kukulka, Mahon and Noah Ruden were named 1st, 2nd and 3rd Stars of the Game, respectively.
Saturday, Dec. 0 Quad City 2 vs. Port Huron 5
The first and second periods belonged exclusively to the Flags. Bobby Kukulka lit up the scoreboard first, and then Colt King contributed another goal in the first period. In the second, Garett Cameron made it 3-0, followed by Mike Olynyk, whose score was the reason that Jason Tapp was pulled from goal by the Mallards and replaced with Zach Sikich. The first half of third period looked bright for the visiting team, when they took advantage of a 5-on-3 power play to score their first goal from Don Parsons and second from Nick Harloff within a minute of each other. However, Steve Hildenbrand's power play goal put the nail on the coffin for the Mallards. Kukulka, Cameron and Greg Bullock were awarded the honors of the night.
Sunday, Dec. 10 Flint 3 vs. Port Huron 4
Flint came into Port Huron on a 4-game winning streak, while the Flags had rolled to a 3-game streak of their own. Prior to the contest, the Flags were 1-3-1 against the Generals overall and winless at home. Flint scored first, on a Jeff Zehr power play goal in the first period. In the second, three goals were scored in 32 seconds, when Greg Bullock tied it up for the Flags, followed by Dion Hyman's score, which was returned by Rob Snowball, tying the game at twos. The start of the third period saw a 5-on-3 advantage for Flint, who capitalized when Gerrard Miller recorded the go-ahead goal. However, the Flags rallied from behind and Mark Cadotte tied the game again, followed by the game-winner from Bobby Kukulka with 11 seconds left on the clock. Kukulka, Snowball and Dustin Traylen were named Stars of the Game.
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Player of the Week: Bobby Kukulka
DATE Vs. G A PTS PIM +/-
12/13 Elmira 2 0 2 0 +1
12/15 Elmira 1 0 1 4 +1
12/16 Quad City 1 2 3 0 +1
12/17 Flint 1 0 1 2 0
TOTALS 4 5 2 7 6 +3
In all 4 contests this week, Bobby was named 1st Star of the Game. His 5 goals and 2 assists propelled the Flags to their 4-0-0 week, their first undefeated week and longest winning streak of the season. He scored both goals in Elmira, winning the game for the Flags, and also netted the game-winning goal on Sunday against Flint, in the final 11 seconds of the game, ending the Generals' 4-game winning streak. Bobby was brought to the team a week and half ago to score goals and jump start the offense, which is exactly what he's doing.
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Goaltender of the Week: Noah Ruden
DATE Vs. W/L/SOL MIN GA SAVES SPCT.
12/13 Elmira 1/0/0 60:00 1 32 .969
12/15 Elmira 1/0/0 60:00 2 26 .923
TOTALS 2 2/0/0 120:00 3 58 .951
Noah earned his first and second professional Wins in consecutive contests against the Elmira Jackals, once on the road and once at home. He allowed just 3 goals in 2 games, finishing the week with a .951 GAA. He is currently fifth in the league in SPCT with .913 on the season. On Wednesday, his performance gave the Flags their first road victory since October 13, when the Flags won in Flint during the season opener. Noah was named 3rd Star of the Game in Friday's competition and moved up to #6 in the League's Leading Goalies.
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Team Notes
- Craig Mahon scored his first goal of the season during Friday's 4-2 victory over Elmira.
- In the last month, the Flags have won 6 of 7 games at McMorran Arena.
- Ryan Markham is 3rd in the league for shorthanded goals and 1st for rookie shorthanded goals, with 4 on the season.
- Mark Cadotte is third in the league for shorthanded assists, with 3.
- Markham is 5th in the league in Shooting Percentage, with a .182
- Bobby Kukulka has the league-leading current player streak with 5 goals in 4 games
- Port Huron's 4-game winning streak is 2nd only to Muskegon's 5-game streak
- The Flags are currently in 7th place in the league, with 24 points and a 5 point margin above the 8th place team (Quad City). They are just 2 points behind Elmira, Rockford and Flint, who are all tied for 6th with 26 points.
Upcoming Games:
Friday, Dec. 22 vs. Bloomington PrairieThunder (Home)
The Flags look to continue their winning streak when they host the PrairieThunder in the teams' third meeting of the season on Friday. Currently the series is split at 1-1. The last time they played at McMorran Arena, the Flags won 1-0 on a late goal by Mike Olynyk. Against the PrairieThunder, the Flags have been scoreless in the first period, and will attempt to break that trend. Defensively, they will have to look out for Jon Booras, who leads his team in scoring against the Flags. Former Port Huron players Jeff Cameron and Ryan Gillis will face off against their old teammates.
Saturday, Dec. 16 @ Kalamazoo Wings
The Flags are 1-3-1 against the Wings and are winless when playing at Wings Stadium. Their victory came on Nov. 22, when they smoked Kalamazoo, 4-0, at McMorran. However, the Wings are 17-9-0 and have won their last 4 of 6 games. They are led in scoring by Nick Bootland, Kory Karlander and Justin Cross, who have a combined 78 points. As a conference match-up, this game is important for the Flags, who are looking to move ahead of Flint in the Eastern Conference standings.
Final Game Scores:
Wednesday, Dec. 13 Port Huron 2
Elmira Jackals 1
Friday, Dec. 15 Elmira Jackals 2
Port Huron 4
Saturday, Dec. 16 Quad City Mallards 2
Port Huron 5
Sunday, Dec. 17 Flint Generals 3
Port Huron 4
Flags Season Record: 10-14-4
At home: 8-6-2 On the road: 2-8-2
Conference: 5-11-4 Non-Conference: 5-3-0
Eastern Standing: 5th League Standing: 7th
International Hockey League 2 Stories from December 18, 2006
- Flags on the rise - IHL 2
- Bobby Kukulka Named UHL Player of the Week - Port Huron Flags
- Generals visit children at Hurley Hospital - Flint Generals
- K-Wings Week in Review - Kalamazoo Wings
- UHL names players of the week - IHL 2
- Komets continue to lead West - Fort Wayne Komets
- Jackals Coach's Show Schedule Update - Elmira Jackals
- A Perfect 10: Flags Go Undefeated and Earn 10th Win in Week 10 - Port Huron Flags
- Mallards Began Four Game Home Stand on Wednesday - Quad City Mallards
- Big win puts Rockford's offense back on track - Rockford IceHogs
- U.S. Cellular Coliseum sets box office hours - Bloomington PrairieThunder
- Generals Weekly Recap - Flint Generals
- Booras earns Player of the Week award - Bloomington PrairieThunder
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