Aces Polish Off Grizzlies, 8-4

November 17, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Alaska Aces News Release


ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Luke Erickson and Tomas Kana each had a goal and two assists while Erik Felde scored the first two goals of his pro career as the Alaska Aces completed a three-game sweep of Utah over the weekend with an 8-4 rout Sunday in front of 4,144 at Sullivan Arena.

The Aces have matched the best start in team history (the 1996-97 club also began 10-2-1) and take an eight-game unbeaten streak into Victoria next week. Sunday marked the first time during the current 7-0-1 run that Alaska had allowed more than two goals.

The Aces racked up season-highs of 41 shots on goal and eight that beat Grizzlies goalie Mike Mole. The onslaught started early, as Erickson and defenseman Matt Shasby scored 64 seconds apart to give Alaska a 2-0 lead at 3:13 of the opening period. Rookie Jordan Foreman pushed the margin to 3-0 with his second goal of the series and third of the season. The Aces out-shot Utah 17-7 in taking a 3-0 lead at the break.

Dennis Packard scored the first of his two goals on the night to give the Grizz a brief glimmer of hope at 3:26 of the second period, but goals by Vladmir Novak and Felde 28 seconds apart midway through the frame ended the competitive phase of the contest, as Alaska led 5-1 after two. James Sixsmith scored 42 seconds into the final period, marking the first time in seven games that Jean-Philippe Lamoureux had allowed more than one goal. Any thoughts of a miraculous Utah comeback quickly subsided, however, as Cam Keith scored off the rush barely a minute later to push the lead back to 6-2. Keith has at least a point in each of his last seven games, the last four of which have been multiple-point nights.

Felde's second goal of the night gave Alaska its largest bulge with 9:15 left in regulation, but Vladimir Nikiforov and Packard scored less than two minutes apart to make the score more respectable at 7-4. Tomas Kana, who assisted on two other Aces goals, registered his second of the year with 1:14 remaining to complete the scoring.

Lamoureux finished with 29 saves, while all but two of Alaska's 16 skaters accounted for at least a point in the victory. The Aces have won their last four meetings with the Grizzlies by a combined score of 22-6. The series at Victoria (7-6-1 overall, but unbeaten in its last five games) begins Wednesday and continues Friday and Saturday. The Salmon Kings ended Alaska's three-year reign atop the West Division with a win in the 2007-08 regular season finale, securing the title for themselves. All three games from Canada will be broadcast live on the flagship home of Aces hockey, KFQD 750 AM, with Peanut Farm Pre-Game Show coverage beginning at 5:45 p.m.



ECHL Stories from November 17, 2008


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central