Aces three-peat as West champions, lose in Fresno

March 18, 2007 - ECHL (ECHL)
Alaska Aces News Release


FRESNO, Calif. - John Morlang scored a goal and assisted on two others as Fresno ended Alaska's 13-game unbeaten streak with a 5-1 victory over the Aces Sunday at the Save-Mart Center.

Alaska clinched its third consecutive West Division title by virtue of Idaho's 4-2 loss in Stockton Sunday. By winning the division, the Aces will be guaranteed no worse than the second seed in the upcoming National Conference playoffs, but their lead in the race for the Brabham Cup shrank to five points as Las Vegas defeated Long Beach.

Luke Curtin, Fresno's leading scorer who missed Friday's 3-1 loss to Alaska, scored his 20th goal of the year at 6:09 of the first period, giving the Falcons an early 1-0 lead. Veteran defenseman Cory Murphy increased the gap to 2-0 on a slap shot from the top of the right circle in a five-on-three situation with 35 seconds left in the period. A scoreless middle frame followed, and the Aces entered the final period needing to rally in order to keep their 13-game unbeaten streak (10-0-3) alive.

No such comeback materialized, however, and goals by Jason Tejchma at 5:14, set up by an Alaska turnover, and a well-executed give-and-go polished off by Morlang at 10:03 put the Aces away. A power play goal scored by Pierre-Olivier Beaulieu with 6:53 lead pushed Fresno's lead to 5-0, and while Matt Robinson's 18th goal of the year ended Ryan MacDonald's shutout bid 25 seconds later, the game's outcome was never in doubt. Derek Gustafson finished with 33 saves while seeing his seven-game winning streak dating to February 13 (the last time his team had lost) come to a screeching halt.

Alaska (45-14-5) heads to Boise tomorrow morning in preparation for a three-game series against Idaho that opens at Qwest Arena Wednesday, March 21, at 5:10 p.m. ADT. The Aces, who took five of a possible six points from the Steelheads (35-23-5) in a three-game set played in Anchorage just before Christmas, complete their 11-day road trip with two more games in Idaho Saturday and Sunday, March 23-24, with both games starting at 5:10 p.m. ADT.

Tickets for Alaska's three-game series against Utah at Sullivan Arena, opening April 4 at 7:15 p.m., are now available at participating Fred Meyer locations or by logging onto www.alaskaaces.com. 2007 Kelly Cup playoff tickets go on sale to the general public on March 26.



ECHL Stories from March 18, 2007


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