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April 28, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL) News Release


Jimmie Olvestad snapped a 32-game scoring drought with two goals to lead Hamilton to a 5-3 win over Cleveland in Game 3 last night at Gund Arena. The victory gives the Bulldogs a 2-1 series lead. Eero Somervuori and Francois Beauchemin broke open a 1-1 tie with goals 2:31 apart late in the second period, then Olvestad, who scored two of his seven regular-season goals against the Barons, scored twice in the third to salt away the win. J.F. Damphousse made 10 of his 24 saves in the final frame for Hamilton.

Philadelphia continued to its suffocating defense in a 3-1 win over Norfolk in Game 3 last night to regain the series lead; Game 4 is tonight at Scope (7:15 ET). Mark Murphy tallied a pair of goals – his first of the postseason – and John Slaney added a goal and an assist for the Phantoms, who needed just 17 saves from Antero Niittymaki. The Admirals have taken a total of 34 shots on goal over the last two contests.

Rochester returns home looking to keep its season alive in Game 6 against Syracuse tonight (7:05 ET). The Crunch's three wins in the series have all been by 3-2 scores; the Amerks' two victories were both 6-0 shutouts. Tom Askey got the start on Sunday for Rochester and made 30 saves for his first pro playoff win after eight losses (0-7 AHL, 0-1 NHL). The Amerks' Paul Gaustad is the leading scorer in the series with seven points, including a goal and two assists in a Game 5 victory.

Hartford can knock out Portland in Game 5 tonight (7:05 ET) as the Wolf Pack hold a 3-1 series lead after back-to-back wins in Maine over the weekend. The Pack won Game 3 with defense, getting 43 saves from Jason LaBarbera in a double-overtime affair, then took Game 4 with offense, striking four times in the first period en route to a 5-3 decision. Alexander Semin continues to pace the Pirates with a league-leading 11 postseason points, including four in this series.

Game 5 at Cincinnati Gardens pits the host Mighty Ducks against Milwaukee tonight (7:35 ET, 6:35 CT) with the series even at two games apiece. The Admirals pulled even on Jay Henderson's overtime goal on Monday night and have clamped down on defense, allowing four goals in the last three games after a 5-4 loss to open the series. Cincinnati's Tony Martensson, who scored the only goal in Game 3, leads the AHL with eight playoff assists.


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TODAY'S GAMES
Game 5 – Portland at Hartford, 7:05
Game 6 – Syracuse at Rochester, 7:05
Game 4 – Philadelphia at Norfolk, 7:15
Game 5 – Milwaukee at Cincinnati, 7:35



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SERIES SCHEDULES
Atlantic Division Semifinals
1-Hartford vs. 5-Portland
Game 1 – Portland 3, HARTFORD 1
Game 2 – HARTFORD 1, Portland 0
Game 3 – Hartford 2, PORTLAND 1 (2OT)
Game 4 – Hartford 5, PORTLAND 3
Game 5 – Wed 4/28 at Hartford, 7:05
*Game 6 – Fri 4/30 at Portland, 7:05
*Game 7 – Sun 5/2 at Hartford, 4:05

2-Manchester vs. 3-Worcester
Game 1 – Worcester 2, MANCHESTER 1
Game 2 – Worcester 3, MANCHESTER 2 (OT)
Game 3 – Manchester 2, WORCESTER 0
Game 4 – Manchester 6, WORCESTER 0
Game 5 – Worcester 3, MANCHESTER 2 (3OT)
Game 6 – WORCESTER 6, Manchester 1

East Division Semifinals
1-Philadelphia vs. 5-Norfolk
$Game 1 – PHILADELPHIA 2, Norfolk 1
$Game 2 – Norfolk 2, PHILADELPHIA 1 (OT)
Game 3 – Philadelphia 3, NORFOLK 1
Game 4 – Wed 4/28 at Norfolk, 7:15
Game 5 – Fri 4/30 at Norfolk, 7:30
*$Game 6 – Sat 5/1 at Philadelphia, 7:05
*$Game 7 – Mon 5/3 at Philadelphia, 7:05
$at Wachovia Center

2-Bridgeport vs. 3-Wilkes-Barre
Game 1 – BRIDGEPORT 5, Wilkes-Barre 4 (OT)
Game 2 – BRIDGEPORT 5, Wilkes-Barre 4 (OT)
Game 3 – WILKES-BARRE 3, Bridgeport 2 (OT)
Game 4 – Bridgeport 4, WILKES-BARRE 2
Game 5 – Wilkes-Barre 2, BRIDGEPORT 1 (OT)
Game 6 – WILKES-BARRE 5, Bridgeport 0
Game 7 – Wilkes-Barre 3, BRIDGEPORT 2 (OT)

North Division Semifinals
1-Hamilton vs. 4-Cleveland
Game 1 – HAMILTON 4, Cleveland 0
Game 2 – Cleveland 4, HAMILTON 3 (OT)
Game 3 – Hamilton 5, CLEVELAND 3
Game 4 – Thu 4/29 at Cleveland, 7:00
Game 5 – Fri 4/30 at Hamilton, 7:00
*Game 6 – Sun 5/2 at Cleveland, 4:00
*Game 7 – Mon 5/3 at Hamilton, 7:00

2-Syracuse vs. 3-Rochester
Game 1 – SYRACUSE 3, Rochester 2
Game 2 – Rochester 6, SYRACUSE 0
Game 3 – Syracuse 3, ROCHESTER 2
Game 4 – Syracuse 3, ROCHESTER 2
Game 5 – Rochester 6, SYRACUSE 0
Game 6 – Wed 4/28 at Rochester, 7:05
*Game 7 – Sat 5/1 at Syracuse, 7:30

West Division Semifinals
1-Milwaukee vs. 5-Cincinnati
Game 1 – Cincinnati 5, MILWAUKEE 4 (OT)
Game 2 – MILWAUKEE 6, Cincinnati 0
Game 3 – CINCINNATI 1, Milwaukee 0
Game 4 – Milwaukee 4, CINCINNATI 3 (OT)
Game 5 – Wed 4/28 at Cincinnati, 7:35
Game 6 – Fri 4/30 at Milwaukee, 8:00
*Game 7 – TBA at Milwaukee, TBA

2-Grand Rapids vs. 3-Chicago
Game 1 – Chicago 4, GRAND RAPIDS 3 (OT)
Game 2 – Chicago 1, GRAND RAPIDS 0
Game 3 – CHICAGO 4, Grand Rapids 1
Game 4 – CHICAGO 8, Grand Rapids 2

*if necessary... All times Eastern



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BY THE NUMBERS:
6-1 -- Series record this postseason of lower-seeded teams... Of the seven series completed to date, only Cleveland held form with its qualifying-round win over Toronto.



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ON THIS DATE (APRIL 28):
1996 – Mike Maneluk's overtime goal gives the Baltimore Bandits a 4-3 win at Hershey in the deciding Game 5 of their conference quarterfinal series... 1976 – Rookie Paul Woods scores 2:20 into overtime to give Nova Scotia a 5-4 win over Hershey and its second Calder Cup championship in five seasons... 1972 – In the highest-scoring game in AHL postseason history, the Baltimore Clippers take a 3-2 series lead with a 10-8 win over visiting Cincinnati.


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LIVE CHAT:
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goaltender Andy Chiodo answers questions live on theahl.com and caldercup.com, this Friday at 1:30 p.m. ET.

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American Hockey League Stories from April 28, 2004


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