Bullying Their Way To The Top

January 5, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies News Release


BULLIES REWIND: The Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies took five of a possible six points last week to run their unbeaten streak in regulation to eight games and remain in second place in the ECHL's Northern Division. The Bullies enter play this week five points behind the Wheeling Nailers with three games in hand.

Atlantic City opened play on Wednesday, New Year's Eve, with a 3-2 overtime win over the Peoria Rivermen in the first of two games at Carver Arena. Brian Fahey scored on the power play with 2:26 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Bullies their sixth consecutive win. Peoria jumped out of the gate quickly scoring the game's first two goals with tallies from Trevor Baker at 3:43 of the first period and Tyler Rennette at 6:24 of the second to take a 2-0 lead early in the middle frame. But the Bullies would counter at 8:24 of the second on the power play when Fahey's one-time blast from the slot beat Peoria goaltender Mike Valley to cut the deficit to 2-1. John Longo would net the equalizer at 16:34 of the second when he took the puck from Stefan Rivard alone in front of the cage and slapped it along the ice by Valley to tie the game 2-2. After a physical, but scoreless third period, Peoria's Scott Crawford was whistled for a penalty at 1:36 of overtime that set up Fahey's dramatics. Luke Curtin set-up Fahey at the right-wing circle and his one-time drive found the back of the net to give the Bullies the 3-2 win. The Bullies out-shot the Rivermen 32-29 for the game. Bullies goaltender Scott Stirling made 27 saves for his 17th win of the year. Atlantic City went 2-6 on the power play and held Peoria to 0-3.

Friday, former Trenton Titan Marty Johnston, in his Peoria debut, put home Adam Edinger's rebound 1:06 into overtime as the Rivermen defeated the Bullies 4-3. The loss snapped the Bullies six-game winning streak. After a scoreless first period, Peoria opened the scoring with a two-man advantage power play goal at 3:52 as Joe Vandermeer's blast from the high slot found its way behind Bullies goaltender Scott Stirling to give the Rivermen a 1-0 lead. The Bullies would counter at 5:58 when John Longo tipped Dave Reid's rebound by Peoria goalie Levente Szuper for the equalizer to tie the game 1-1. The Rivermen would grab the lead back late in the period on the power play once again, when Baker deflected Marty Johnston's shot from the right point by Stirling at 15:16 to give Peoria a 2-1 lead heading into the second intermission.

The Bullies would once again net the equalizer at 15:04 of the third period when Pierre-Luc Sleigher's shot from the high slot deflected off Szuper's stick and into the back of the net to the game at 2-2. That set up a dramatic last 1:00 minute of regulation. Scott Turner gave Peoria a 3-2 lead with his first professional goal at 19:08, but the Bullies would counter again when Brian Fahey's blast from the blue-line got through traffic and behind Szuper at 19:44 to tie the game again at 3-3 and send the contest to overtime, setting up Johnston's dramatics. The Rivermen out-shot the Bullies for the game 39-30. Atlantic City went 1-3 on the power play.

Sunday, Luke Curtin recorded his second four-point game of the season with 2 goals and 2 assists as the Bullies defeated the Johnstown Chiefs 5-1 before 3176 on "Kids Day" at Boardwalk Hall. The Bullies opened the scoring just 1:47 into the game on the power play, when Jon Cullen set up the trailer Curtin cutting to the net, and Curtin's one-timer beat Johnstown goalie Cory Campbell along the ice to give Atlantic City the early 1-0 lead. Johnstown would fight back to tie the game 1-1 at 4:18 of the first period when Richard Paul picked up Brent Kelly's rebound and tipped it by the outstretched pad of Bullies goalie Scott Stirling. The Bullies would take the lead for good later in the period at 11:40 when Scott Horvath's snap shot from the left-wing boards found its way into the back of the net for a 2-1 lead. In the second period, Curtin would give the Bullies some insurance when he fired the puck top shelf over the left shoulder of Campbell at 18:20 to give Atlantic City a 3-1 edge. Stefan Rivard and Jim Henkel would add to the Bullies lead with tallies at 5:25 and 8:49 of the third period to make the final score 5-1. Johnstown out-shot the Bullies 36-29. Stirling made 35 saves for his 18th win of the season. The Bullies went 1-3 on the power play and now have scored a power play goal in 15 out of their last 16 games.

BULLIES "TOP DAWG" AWARD: Each Monday from now until the end of the season, Public Relations and Broadcasting Manager Dan Weiss will select the Bullies "Top Dawg" for the week. This week's winner is defenseman Brian Fahey who tallied three goals, including the game-winning goal on Wednesday and the game-tying goal on Friday. Honorable mention goes out to forward Scott Horvath who recorded the game-winning goal on Sunday, his first as a member of the Bullies. Previous winners below include:

10/20/03: Jim Henkel (4 goals, 2 assists)
10/27/03: Luke Curtin (1 goal, 2 assists)
11/3/03: Brian Fahey (0 goals, 5 assists)
11/10/03: Scott Stirling (55 shots, 53 saves)
11/17/03: Matt Hubbauer (1 goal, first professional)
11/24/03: Jon Cullen (2 goals, 3 assists)
12/1/03: Josh Prudden (1 goal, 2 assists)
12/8/03: Luke Curtin (2 goals, 6 assists)
12/15/03: Stefan Rivard (1 goal, 3 assists, 400 Career Points)
12/22/03: Scott Stirling (35 shots, 33 saves, 100 Career Wins)
12/29/03: Luke Curtin (2 goals, 3 assists, OT GW goal)

HENKEL RETURNS NORTH: Center Jim Henkel's return to Atlantic City was brief at best. The Hazlet, NJ native has been loaned to Worcester of the American Hockey League. Henkel returned to the Bullies last Wednesday after a five-week stint with Grand Rapids, in which he tallied 2 goals and 1 assist in 15 games for the Griffins. Henkel has 9 goals and 7 assists in 17 games with Atlantic City this season. The Worcester Ice Cats are the AHL affiliate of the St. Louis Blues.

CARDIAC KIDS: In an amazing two game series in Peoria, the Bullies captured 3 of a possible 4 points from the Rivermen despite not leading once in the entire series. To call them the "Cardiac Kids" might be an overstatement, as Atlantic City is only 1-8-1 when trailing after two periods this season, with their lone win coming on November 29 in Charlotte. However, the Bullies are a respectable 4-8-1 when surrendering the game's opening goal, a good sign for a young team. The Bullies have won 2 out of the last 3 games in which their opponent scores first.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE LASTING IMPRESSIONS: On the flip side, the Bullies continue to be one tough team to beat if you surrender the first goal or trail heading into the third period. The Bullies are 17-1 when scoring the game's opening goal and 17-1 when leading after two periods, the fourth best record in the ECHL. Dating back to last season, Atlantic City is 49-8-2 when scoring first, and a dominant 44-2-6 when leading after two periods.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE LASTING IMPRESSIONS PART II: The Bullies defense, ranked first overall in the ECHL, has surrendered just 14 first period goals all year, the fewest of any team in the league. In 27 of their 31 games, the Bullies have either led or been tied heading into the locker room after 20 minutes.

GIVE HIM THE PUCK! The Bullies are a perfect 12-0 this season when Luke Curtin scores a goal.

E-A-G-L-E-S, EAGLES: The Bullies are rooting along with the rest of South Jersey as the Philadelphia Eagles make their way towards the Super Bowl. To pay tribute to the NFC regular season champions, the Bullies will hold a special "Eagles Night" on Friday, January 16 when they host the Trenton Titans at 7:05PM. All fans are encouraged to wear their Eagles green and white, and join "Swoop" as he invades Boardwalk Hall to help cheer on the Eagles. For more information or to order tickets, call (609) 348-PUCK

POWER PLAY FOR UNITED WAY: The Bullies have teamed up with United Way of Atlantic County to sponsor the Power Play for United Way. For every power play goal the Bullies score this season, Trump Plaza, Sands Casino Hotel, Advance Door & Supply, Kline Construction and HR Solutions will donate $10 dollars to United Way of Atlantic County. The Bullies tallied 4 power play goals last week good for $1,650 dollars towards the Power Play for United Way.

STAY ONLINE WITH THE BULLIES: Follow the Bullies throughout the season by pointing your computer mouse to www.boardwalkbullies.com. You can read game updates, get to know your favorite Bullies, and find out where "Wooly" and the team will be appearing next. Click and score with www.boardwalkbullies.com!

UP NEXT: The defending ECHL Kelly Cup Champions play three games in three nights on the road beginning Thursday in Dayton at 7PM. Friday, the Bullies travel to Roanoke to battle the Express at 7:30PM. Saturday, the Bullies conclude the trip down in Greensboro, NC against the Generals at 7:30PM. Catch all three games live on ESPN Radio 1450AM and the Surfer Network at www.boardwalkbullies.com beginning with the pre-game show 20 minutes prior to face-off with Dan Weiss.



ECHL Stories from January 5, 2004


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