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Dineen Tops Pirates Charts With 190 Wins

March 27, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Portland Pirates News Release


Portland, ME - The Pirates picked up a 3-2 win over the Lowell Devils as head coach Kevin Dineen moved past Barry Trotz to become the winningest coach in Pirates franchise history, with 190 victories.

The two teams played a scoreless first period, as a pair of top notch goaltenders showcased their skills. Portland goaltender Jhonas Enroth stopped 11 shots, while Lowell netminder Jeff Frazee stopped 10 Pirates shots.

In the second period, the Pirates jumped into the lead when Tim Kennedy stickhandled to the front of the net and waited for Frazee to go down before beating him up high. Kennedy's 15th goal of the season was assisted by Tyler Bouck at 2:04 of the second. Later in the same period, Marek Zagrapan tipped home a Mark Mancari shot during a power play to pick up his 19th goal of the season. Mark Mancari and Colin Murphy grabbed helpers at 15:15 of the second and the Pirates had a 2-0 lead. Just a couple minutes later Marc-Andre Gragnani notched his 8th goal of the season, with the helpers again going to Mancari and Murphy at 17:28 of the second period. Portland took a 3-0 lead into the third.

The Devils didn't go away without a fight though, and Steven Gionta buried a rebound on the right side for his 1st goal of the season from Rod Pelley. The marker came at 6:42 of the third and cut it to a 3-1 game. The Devils continued battling, but Jhonas Enroth made a number of big saves. At 19:30 of the third, Nicklas Bergfors tallied his 20th goal of the season from Jon DiSalvatore on a power play. The Devils pulled to within one at 3-2, but Portlang hung on for the one goal win.

Pirates goaltender Jhonas Enroth made 39 saves on 41 shots and took the loss. Jeff Frazee made 32 saves on 35 shots but took the loss.

Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the Game: 1. Jhonas Enroth (POR) 2. Colin Murphy (POR) 3. Mark Mancari (POR)

Notes: Kevin Dineen is now the winningest coach in Pirates history with 190 victories...The Pirates inducted former owner, the late Tom Ebright into the Pirates Hall of Fame during a ceremony in the first intermission. Ebright brought the Pirates franchise to Portland in 1993...The Pirates snapped a three game losing streak...Attendance: 5,005.

The Pirates are back in action tomorrow night when the Manchester Monarchs visit the Cumberland County Civic Center. The Pirates will wear special Maine Mariners jerseys for the game. It will also be the last Labatt Blue Light Hockey Night in Portland of the season. Fans can follow the Pirates on U.S. Cellular Pirates Radio Network or watch the game LIVE on the internet courtesy of AHL Live by clicking the icon on the left side of the home page. The U.S. Cellular Pirates Radio Network includes the Pirates flagship station, the Bay 1400AM and 1490AM (Portland) and affiliates WEZR 1240 AM (Lewiston-Auburn), WTME 780AM (Rumford) and WKTQ 1450AM (South Paris).

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