Alaska nips Victoria 6-5, unbeaten in 16

December 31, 2005 - ECHL (ECHL)
Alaska Aces News Release


ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Ryan Ramsay, playing only the third ECHL game of his pro career, scored twice, including the tie-breaking goal with 14:06 left in regulation, as Alaska squeezed by Victoria 6-5 before its largest crowd of the season, a standing-room only throng of 6,269 at Sullivan Arena.

The Aces stunned the Salmon Kings with a goal just nine seconds into the contest, off a give-and-go between Chris Minard and Oliver Filion, who beat Victoria starter Rob McVicar five-hole for his sixth of the year. Minard scored the first of his two goals on the night with a wrist shot that handcuffed McVicar and trickled past him at 14:04, leading to his removal from the game after stopping 10 of 12 shots. Ryan Wade scored the first goal of the series for the Salmon Kings shorthanded with 1:15 left in the first period to trim Victoria's deficit in half, but on the same power play, Ramsay skated around McVicar's replacement, David Currie, and tucked the puck inside the right post to push the margin to 3-1 with 36 seconds left in the frame.

Trailing 3-1, the Salmon Kings scored twice in 51 seconds to pull even five minutes into the second period, as Steve Lingren set up Lanny Gare for a tap-in at 4:14 and Wade registered his second of the night for the equalizer. Joe Talbot pushed Alaska back in front with a power play goal at 7:01, and Minard's second of the night, 23rd of the season (tying him for the ECHL lead), and eighth in five games against Victoria gave the Aces a 5-3 edge with 10:52 still remaining in the period. The Salmon Kings battled back to tie the game once more, as Kurt Drummond scored at the 11:30 mark and Jade Galbraith smacked home a rebound for the tying goal on a Victoria power play with 4:38 left in the middle frame, marking the first time all season Alaska had surrendered five goals in regulation.

Ramsay's deciding goal came after Talbot won a face-off back to Peter Metcalf, who finished with three assists on the night. Metcalf let fly with a blast that Currie failed to handle cleanly, and Ramsay tucked home the rebound for a 6-5 lead that the Aces never relinquished. Matt Underhill finished with 24 saves, including eight in the final period, and collected his ninth straight victory between the pipes.

Alaska still trails Las Vegas by four points in the West Division but actually sets the pace in terms of winning percentage at .833 with a 21-3-3 overall record, as compared to .817 and a 23-4-3 mark for the Wranglers. The Aces have won 11 straight at home and extended their unbeaten streak to a club record 16 games, going 15-0-1, with the only blemish a 5-4 overtime loss to the Salmon Kings December 16.

Alaska and Victoria meet tomorrow night in the series finale at 7:15 p.m. The Salmon Kings have dropped six straight and fallen to 10-21-1 overall. All Alaska Aces games, home and away, are broadcast live on KFQD AM 750 and at www.alaskaaces.com. In addition, all home games and selected road contests will be available on a pay-per-view basis on the internet, courtesy of B2 Networks.



ECHL Stories from December 31, 2005


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