Aces win 3-2
February 19, 2005 - ECHL (ECHL)
Alaska Aces News Release
PEORIA, Ill. â Alaska coughed up a 2-0 lead in regulation with less than four minutes to play, then recovered to pull out a 3-2 shootout behind the heroics of goaltender Lance Mayes, who won his sixth straight start Saturday in front of 5,259 at Carver Arena.
The two clubs battled through a scoreless 40 minutes before Alaska took charge on the first shift of the third period, dominating Peoria in the offensive zone before Olivier Filion beat Alfie Michaud with a wrist shot from the right circle at 1:17. After the Aces held the Rivermen without a shot on goal during a four-minute power play midway through the final stanza, Joe Talbot scored on a wrist shot that somehow squeezed between the legs of Michaud with 5:40 left in regulation.
Peoria came roaring back, pulling its goaltender and finally solving Mayes, who finished with a season-high 37 saves, with 3:16 remaining on a goal by Colin Hemingway. With the net still empty in favor of the extra attacker, the Rivermen tied the game with 28.6 seconds left when Brian McCullough whacked a loose puck out of mid-air and by Mayes, forcing overtime with the teams knotted 2-2.
After neither club scored in OT, each team scored once in the first four rounds of the shootout, Filion connecting in the third round for the Aces and Igor Valeev for Peoria. But in the fifth round, B.J. Young duplicated a maneuver he had used to score the game-winner against Idaho January 11, as he feinted forehand, kicked the puck back to his forehand with his right skate, and tucked it by a befuddled Michaud. Mayes stopped Rejean Stringer cold, and Alaska remained unbeaten in its last seven games on the road (6-0-1) while claiming its 30th victory of the season.
The Aces (30-15-5 overall) face a six-hour bus ride overnight to Dayton for tomorrow's match against the Bombers at 10:00 a.m. AST, broadcast on flagship station KFQD 750 AM, with coverage beginning at 9:45. Immediately after tomorrow's contest, the Aces will travel to Toledo, take Monday off, practice Tuesday, and play the Storm next Wednesday at 6:30 a.m. AST. The game will be broadcast on a tape delay basis on KFQD at 9:00 a.m. Of course, all of Alaska's games on its swing through the Midwest also can be heard by logging onto www.alaskaaces.com.
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