Falcons Win See-saw Game in a Shootout

February 21, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Fresno Falcons News Release


FRESNO, Calif. – Tapio Sammalkangas' goal as the eighth shooter in a shootout delivered a 5-4 victory to the Fresno Falcons over the Las Vegas Wranglers on Friday at Save Mart Center in front of 5,556.

Fresno drew first blood in a game that featured four lead changes when Boris Protsenko blasted a slapshot past the blocker side of Wranglers goaltender Marc Magliarditi at 1:49 of the first for his 11th of the season. Las Vegas tied and then took the lead in the game after goals by Blaine Bablitz at 8:31 and Doug Wright at 16:38 of the opening period. The Falcons re-tied the game at two in the period's final minute after Jordan Landry, playing his first game since missing 41 due to injury, found John Wroblewski for his eighth of the season at 19:13.

The Wranglers scored the only goal in the second period to break the stalemate. It came with Fresno on the power play as Las Vegas' Jeff Attard left a drop pass just inside the Falcons' blue-line for Wright. Fresno's defense kept backing up, allowing Wright to blister a slapper past Falcons goaltender Mike Brusseau at 9:12 of the period. The goal was Fresno's league-high 13th short-handed goal against this year.

In the third, Mike Mathers quickly knotted the game once more at three when he re-directed Kevin Truelson's shot from the point at 2:46. Defenseman Drew Schoneck then re-captured his club's first lead since the opening period when he walked by a Wranglers defenseman before beating Magliarditi five-hole for his sixth of the season at 8:44. Fresno couldn't hold the one-goal edge, though, as Las Vegas capitalized just seven seconds into their second power play of the game off a deflection by Ryan Christie at 16:53.

Tied at four into overtime, both teams played it close to the vest, combining for just three shots on goal. In the ensuing shootout, Bablitz opened the scoring as the Wranglers' first shooter before Protsenko answered for the Falcons. The goaltenders then slammed the door shut on the next six shooters from each side. After Christie was thwarted by Brusseau on his chance to re-create his late-game heroics for Las Vegas, Sammalkangas ended the proceedings as Fresno's eighth shooter by beating Magliarditi with a back-hand.

The 5-4 shootout victory marked the Falcons' first win this season in six attempts against the Wranglers and brings their record to 14-30-6 with 34 points.

The Falcons hopped on a bus following tonight's game to travel to San Diego where they will battle the Pacific Division-leading Gulls tomorrow. All of the live play-by-play action can be heard on KAAT 103.1 FM beginning at 6:50 p.m. with the Shop and Go Pre-game Show.

Fresno's next home game is on Wednesday, Feb. 25, at 7 p.m. when the Gulls visit Save Mart Center. Tickets to the game can be purchased at Save Mart Center's Box Office and all Ticketmaster outlets, which include select Save Mart Supermarkets, Tower Records, Wherehouse Music and Ritmo Latino locations, charged by phone at 485-TIXS or bought online by clicking the Ticketmaster icon throughout www.fresnofalcons.com.



ECHL Stories from February 21, 2004


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