Checkers win fifth in a rrrow
March 11, 2005 - ECHL (ECHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release
CHARLOTTE, NC â From the outset, the Checkers game versus the Greenville Grrrowl promised to be a big one, if only because the Checkers starting line-up included Steve MacIntyre (6'6", 255), Martin Grenier (6'6", 258), and Lee Falardeau (6'5", 220). The Checkers didn't disappoint, mauling the Grrrowl by a score of 7-1 in front of 7,038 witnesses.
The Checkers Thomas Bellemare struck first at the 9:36 mark of the opening period. Grrrowl goalie Jeff Deslauriers staved off a flurry of activity around the net until Dan Preston's shot was deflected to Bellemare who sailed it past Deslauriers glove. The period ended 1-0 in favor of the Checkers.
The dam broke for Greenville in the second period, leaving their net flooded with pucks. Lee Falardeau had his first goal of the period off assists from Jason Dawe and Ryan Glenn. Just a minute and seven seconds later, Mike Wirll would slice through the Greenville defense and find the back of the net, making the score 3-0. Thirty-five seconds later, Falardeau had his second goal of the period at 5:53 to make it 4-0.
It looked like the worst was over for Greenville until Deslauriers found himself facing Wirll, Dan Preston, and Eddie Pershin on the power play. Literally taking advantage, the three Checkers peppered Deslauriers with shots until Pershin rang the bell at 14:56. The second period ended with the Checkers on top 5-0.
In the first two periods, six Checkers had multiple points on the evening: Lee Falardeau had two goals; Mike Wirll had a goal and an assist; Eddie Pershin had a goal and an assist; Ryan Glenn had three assists, including two in the second period; Dan Preston had two assists; and Jason Dawe got his second assist of the evening.
At the 3:52 mark of the third period and killing a penalty, Pershin took a feed from Brian Escobedo in front of the Checkers goal. Streaking down the ice, Pershin sailed it between the pipes for the shorthanded score.
Less than a minute later and down 6-0, Greenville finally began to show signs of life when Greenville's Simon Ferguson snuck one past Checkers goalie Alex Westlund. ECHL Goalie of the Week, Westlund shut-out the Grrrowl in their last meeting on March 5th.
With the third period winding down, the Checkers Bogdan Rudenko put the finishing touch on the offensive blitzkrieg, sounding the horn at 15:03 for a 7-1 final.
Tomorrow night, the two top teams in the American Conference have a showdown as the Charlotte Checkers take on conference leader, the Pensacola Ice Pilots. The action at Cricket Arena begins at 7 PM.
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