AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins Rally Past Moose, 4-3 in OT

Published on March 20, 2003 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


Grand Rapids, Mich. - Stacy Roest's second goal of the game, with just 25.7 ticks remaining in overtime, completed Grand Rapids' comeback from a 3-1 deficit and gave the Griffins a 4-3 win over the Manitoba Moose on Thursday night at Van Andel Arena.

Roest, who began the rally by scoring at 6:59 of the second period, sprinted down the right side off a feed from Jason Williams and ripped a shot over the glove of Alex Auld, igniting the crowd of 5,726.

With the victory, their fourth in the last five games, the Griffins (44-19-8-2) claimed their 98th point of the campaign and moved four points ahead of Houston in the race for the top seed in the Western Conference, pending completion of the Aeros' game at San Antonio later tonight. Grand Rapids will enjoy a rare Friday and Saturday off before hosting those same Aeros in a 4 p.m. showdown Sunday at Van Andel Arena.

The Moose, who brought a four-game road winning streak into the night, grabbed the lead just 1:25 into the contest. Ryan Ready took a pass at the Grand Rapids blueline, skated to the top of the left circle and unleashed a shot that beat Marc Lamothe inside the right post.

It didn't take long for the Griffins to answer. Off a cycle in the right corner, Williams took a pass, burst towards the net and lifted a backhand over Auld's right shoulder at the 4:03 mark. Michel Picard and Mark Mowers, the AHL's top two scorers, earned assists on the play.

Manitoba again assumed the upper hand during at power play at 9:10. Lamothe made a series of saves as the Moose buzzed around his net, but Pat Kavanagh finally popped a shot into the upper right corner from the slot. They extended their lead to two goals 5:13 into the middle period, when Justin Morrison crashed the crease and tapped a rebound into the net.

Roest trimmed the deficit back to one just 1:46 later, fighting off a defender and blasting a 35-foot slapshot past Auld. Bryan Adams then netted the tying tally 11:18 into the third period, taking a sharp-angle shot from low in the left circle that deflected off the Moose netminder and trickled across the line.

With the victory, the Griffins improved their record when trailing after two periods to an AHL-best 7-10-3-0.

Lamothe earned his league-leading 31st win on 25 saves, while Auld sustained the loss with 27 stops. The Moose (34-30-8-1) became the last AHL team to lose in overtime this season despite going 1-for-2 on the power play and holding Grand Rapids scoreless in five attempts.

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American Hockey League Stories from March 20, 2003


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