Greenville Grrrowl Win SE Division Playoff Title
April 17, 2002 - ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Grrrowl News Release
FLORENCE, SC - The East Coast Hockey League's Southeast Division regular-season Champion Greenville Grrrowl added the playoff title to their list of this season's accomplishments with a 5-4 overtime road win over the Pee Dee Pride Wednesday to take their second-round series three games to one.
Pee Dee opened the scoring with two goals one minute apart late in the first period. Aaron Gates scored his fist of the playoffs at 12:19 on assists from Wes Goldie and Peter Geronazzo then Gregor Krajnc added his third of the post season at 13:19 on assists from Matt Reid and former Grrrowl captain Scott Kirton. The 2-0 lead held up through the end of the first period.
Simon Gamache pulled the Grrrowl to within 2-1 with a power-play goal, his playoff-leading eighth goal and 13th point, 3:04 into the second period on assists from Roger Trudeau and Sean Venedam, but Pee Dee regained the two-goal lead at 3-1 on a power-play goal by Kevin Haupt 1:46 later on an assist from Dany Bousquet.
Jeff Dessner cut the lead to 3-2 with his first playoff goal for the Grrrowl with 8:27 left in the second period on assists from Steve Rymsha and Luke Sellars.
Pee Dee appeared to have forced a fifth-and-deciding game tomorrow in Greenville when Bousquet scored his fourth playoff goal with 8:25 to play on an assist from Goldie, but the Grrrowl roared back to force overtime.
Jonathan Roy made it 4-3 with exactly three minutes left to play with his fourth goal of the playoffs on assists from Trudeau and Simon Tremblay, and Sellars tied the game with :49.1 to go on his third goal of the post season, a power-play tally, with Tremblay and Venedam assisting.
Pee Dee pressured the Grrrowl to start the overtime, but Gamache started a rush by feeding Damon Whitten who slipped a pass to Roy. The left-handed Roy then lasered a wrist shot past Pee Dee goaltender David Brumby at 2:32 of the extra session for his second goal of the game and fifth of the playoffs giving the Grrrowl the division playoff title.
The Grrrowl finished the game 2 for 9 on the power play while Pee Dee was 1 for 4. The Pride had a 44-37 shots on goal advantage.
The Grrrowl now must wait for the winner of the Southwest Division Championship to see whom they will play in the Southern Conference Finals. The Mississippi Sea Wolves lead the Jackson Bandits two games to none with game three scheduled for Friday in Jackson.
Grrrowl games, and "The Grrrowl Hour" live from Dougal Maguire's Mondays at 7 p.m., are broadcast on NewsRadio 1330 & 950 WORD-AM and at grrrowl.
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