Bulldogs rebound to beat Wolves

Published on January 13, 2007 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hamilton Bulldogs News Release


CHICAGO, IL - Mikhail Grabovski and Andre Benoit each had a goal and two assists, leading the Hamilton Bulldogs to a 6-3 win over the Chicago Wolves on Saturday night at Allstate Arena. With the win, Hamilton snapped a four-game losing streak and improved its record to 23-17-1-1.

After a scoreless opening period, the Bulldogs tallied first when Jean-Philippe Cote notched his second goal of the season just 1:30 into the middle stanza. Cote jumped into the play creating an odd-man rush, took a pass from Duncan Milroy and beat Wolves netminder Michael Garnett with a low shot to the stick side.

Chicago evened the score 1-1 on the power play at 4:08 of the second period, courtesy of Troy Milam's third goal of the campaign. Brian Fahey and Cory Larose earned assists on the game-tying goal.

The Bulldogs jumped out to a two-goal lead in the middle frame, scoring twice in a 48 second span to make the score 3-1. Zack Stortini posted his ninth goal of the season at the 5:43 mark to give the ‘Dogs a 2-1 lead. Jonathan Ferland then tipped in an Andre Benoit shot to register his 10th marker of the campaign just 48 seconds later.

Mikhail Grabovski scored the eventual game-winning goal at 1:06 of the third period to give Hamilton a 4-1 lead. Grabovski danced down the left wing, was tripped to the ice and scored his 11th goal of the season while lying flat on his stomach.

Chicago then tallied two third-period power-play goals to pull within one at 4-3. Derek MacKenzie posted his 10th goal of the season at the 3:44 mark. Then Darren Haydar potted his 25th marker of the campaign at 9:59 to make the score 4-3.

The Bulldogs added two late insurance markers in the final frame to seal a 6-3 victory. Benoit recorded his fourth goal of the season at 16:52 on the power play. Ajay Baines then scored an empty-net goal at the 17:33 mark to officially put the game out of Chicago's reach.

Special teams played a large role in the Hamilton victory. The Bulldogs were 2-for-4 on the power play and went 11-for14 on the penalty-kill. Hamilton also allowed only one 5-on-3 goal despite facing six two-man disadvantages.

Bulldogs goaltender Jaroslav Halak faced 41 shots and made 38 saves to earn his 12th win of the season, while Garnett made 25 saves on 30 shots in a losing effort for the Wolves.

The Bulldogs return to action on Tuesday, January 16th at 8:00 p.m. when they take on the Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. Fans can listen to the game on the flagship station of the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network, 820 CHAM "The Legend," beginning with the Park's Furniture Pre-Game Show at 7:40 p.m. Fans can also listen or watch at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com by clicking on the ‘B2 Networks' or ‘820 CHAM' icon on the ‘Dogs website.

Hamilton's next home game is on Friday, January 19th when the Grand Rapids Griffins invade Copps Coliseum at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for all ‘Dogs home games (except home game #32) are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, any Ticketmaster outlet, online at www.ticketmaster.ca, or through charge-by-phone at 905-527-7666.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 13, 2007


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