Dogs Win Big Over Runners
March 26, 2005 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hamilton Bulldogs News Release
EDMONTON, AB - Captain Jason Ward had two goals and an assist, leading the Hamilton Bulldogs to a 7-3 win over the Edmonton Road Runners on Friday night at Rexall Place.
Hamilton's record through 69 games improves to 30-27-7-5. The Bulldogs (72 points) pull two points ahead of the Road Runners (70 points), but remain tied with the Syracuse Crunch (72 points) for the fourth and final playoff spot in the North Division. Syracuse has played 68 games and has a game-in-hand on both the Road Runners and Bulldogs who have played in 69 contests each.
The Road Runners opened the scoring exactly five minutes into the first period when Captain Dan Smith scored his sixth goal of the season. Jarret Stoll and Rick Mrozik recorded assists on the goal.
With two goals in 19 seconds of the first period, the Bulldogs took a 2-1 lead. Jonathan Ferland tied the score 1-1 when he one-timed a pass from Corey Locke that beat Road Runners goaltender Tyler Moss. Then at 7:18, Antti Miettinen gave the Bulldogs a 2-1 lead with his sixth goal of the season.
The teams traded goals in the late stages of the opening frame. Edmonton tied the game 2-2 at the 16:04 mark when Paul Healey scored on the power play. Then at 19:13, Jason Ward restored the Bulldogs one-goal lead, making the score 3-2 with his sixteenth goal of the season.
The Bulldogs scored two more goals in the second period, increasing their lead to 5-2. At 10:14, Steve Begin tallied his fourth goal of the season to give the Bulldogs a 4-2 lead. Then Hamilton's leading goal scorer Chris Higgins made the score 5-2 at the 14:20 mark. Following the goal, Jeff Deslauriers replaced Moss in net for Edmonton.
The Road Runners would cut into the Bulldogs lead, making the score 5-3 when Jarret Stoll scored his 17th goal of the season at 4:15 of the third period.
The Bulldogs would put the game away with two more goals in the third period. Jason Ward scored his second goal of the game to make the score 6-3, followed by a Gavin Morgan goal to seal the 7-3 victory for the Hamilton Bulldogs.
With an assist on Miettinen's goal in the first period, Tomas Plekanec became only the third Bulldog to record 100 career assists and tied Peter Sarno for second on the all-time Bulldogs scoring list. Plekanec now has 165 points (65g, 100a) in 220 games as a Bulldog, while Sarno recorded 165 points (42g, 123a) in 230 games in Hamilton.
The Bulldogs next game is tomorrow afternoon, (Saturday, March 26th) against the Edmonton Road Runners. Game time is 4:00 p.m. and Bulldogs fans can listen to Derek Wills call all the action, starting with the pre-game show at 3:45 p.m. on 820 CHAM 'The Legend' in Hamilton, on the Team 990 in Montreal, or via the Internet at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com.
The Bulldogs next home game is on Wednesday, March 30th, against the Manitoba Moose at Copps Coliseum. The Bulldogs will welcome their 'Two Millionth Fan' to this game and will be giving away over $20,000 games in prizes to lucky fans. The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. and tickets are available for purchase at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, at all Ticketmaster outlets, by calling Ticketmaster at (905) 527-7666 or online at www.ticketmaster.ca.
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American Hockey League Stories from March 26, 2005
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- Cassivi sets franchise record with seventh shutout in 7-0 win over Milwaukee - Cincinnati RailRaiders
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- Sound Tigers Defeat Hartford 3-2 In Overtime - Bridgeport Islanders
- Phantoms rally to down Bears 4-2 - Hershey Bears
- Guite, Toivonen lead Bruins to shootout win - Providence Bruins
- Dogs Down Runners - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Falcons Nipped by Albany, 1-0 - Springfield Falcons
- Grizzlies Lose Skalde for Remainder of the Season - Utah Grizzlies
- Rampage Game Day - San Antonio Rampage
- Dogs Win Big Over Runners - Hamilton Bulldogs
- MacDonald's career night lifts Grand Rapids - Houston Aeros
- Mac backstops Griffins to 3-2 SO win - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Utah defeated by Chicago - Utah Grizzlies
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