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Gulls Win Third Straight In Long Beach, 4-1

January 15, 2005 - ECHL (ECHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release


LONG BEACH, Calif. – It was a relatively easier night for head coach Martin St. Amour and company. The San Diego Gulls, who've played a plethora of one-goal games lately, finally had a little breathing room Friday night, after a 4-1 road victory against the Long Beach Ice Dogs.

Brian Gornick, led the offensive attack for San Diego with two goals, while Sylvain Deschatelets chipped in with two assists. Netminder Eddy Ferhi was rock-solid in net, turning aside 26 of 27 shots.

The Gulls (18-11-4) have now won three straight and move within three points of second place in the West Division. The Ice Dogs (20-11-3) remain second in the West, six points back of the first-place Bakersfield Condors.

Scott Borders gave the Gulls a 1-0 lead with his fourth goal 8:38 into the first period. Chris Lynch won an endzone faceoff back to Andrew Canzanello, stationed at the right point. Canzanello's ensuing slap shot was steered aside by Long Beach goaltender Chris Madden, but Borders was right there to grab the rebound and bang it home.

Both Madden and Ferhi put on quite a goaltending duel, keeping it a 1-0 game. That is until Curtis Brown made it a two-goal lead for the Gulls with his fifth marker 9:07 into the second period.

Brown stole the puck at center ice, entered the Long Beach zone and waited for Max Birbraer to join the play, making it a two-on-one opportunity. The NHLer, however, wouldn't need his linemate as he beat Madden short-side with a wicked wrist shot.

Meanwhile, Ferhi remained red-hot between the pipes, holding the Ice Dogs at bay and retaining San Diego's 2-0 cushion. Long Beach had a handful of grade-A scoring opportunities throughout the first two periods, including a few odd-man rushes and a bunch of shots from point-blank range. The 6-foot-3-inch, 197-pound Ferhi however, certainly played his size and thwarted every Ice Dogs chance.

Ferhi's stellar goaltending was rewarded again 3:59 into the third period when Gornick notched his first of the night, connecting on a nice setup feed from Deschatelets. After grabbing the puck out of the left wing corner Deschatelets sent a centering feed that Gornick, as he was skating through the crease, knocked past Madden.

The Ice Dogs finally dented the scoreboard and beat Ferhi 45 seconds later, as Joe Cardarelli pounced on a loose rebound and jammed in his 11th goal of the season. But Gornick quickly regained San Diego's three-goal lead at 5:42, partnering again with Deschatelets. It happened on a Deschatelets drop pass from the right wing side, as Gornick picked it up and ripped a shot top-shelf. It was his second tally of the night – team-leading 13th of the season – and chased Madden from the game.

That proved to be more than enough for Ferhi, as the second-year netminder closed the door from there and picked up his fourth win of the season. Madden, who entered the day second in the ECHL with a 1.87 goals-against average, suffered only his fourth loss of the year.

Notes: The Gulls are now unbeaten in 25 of their last 26 head-to-head games against Long Beach (24-1-1)... They are 38-11-2 all-time against the Ice Dogs, including a 17-8-1 mark at the Long Beach Arena... San Diego is 7-8-2 on the road this season... Despite killing all six penalties Thursday and another Friday, the Gulls have still allowed 23-power-play goals in their last 17 games... Brown is in the midst of a six-game point streak (3g, 6a)... Mike Garrow's five-game point and assist streak was snapped. He had six points in that span (1g, 5a)... San Diego still has six regulars out of the lineup: Evgueni Nourislamov (sprained knee), Sean Murphy (broken thumb), Jonathon Shockey (separated shoulder), Sean O'Connor (charley horse), Guillaume Fournier (concussion-like symptoms) and Trevor Koenig (elbow tendonitis)...

San Diego closes out the first half of the season with a four-game homestand, beginning Saturday against the Louisiana IceGators, making their first-ever visit to the Sports Arena. It will be a 7:05 p.m. start and the first 6,000 fans in attendance will receive a special pair of Gulls boxer shorts, courtesy of Coast-to-Coast Tax Service. A portion from every terrace ticket purchased Saturday will be donated to the Asia Tsunami relief fund. The Gulls will also donate half of the proceeds from their "Chuck-a-Puck" sales, which take place on the North Concourse up until the second intermission. In addition, collection bins will be passed around the stands, starting in the first period. Another collection bin will also be stationed at the Gulls Information Booth, located on the North Concourse. San Diego will host the Las Vegas Wranglers Wednesday and Friday, Jan. 21, then the Pensacola Ice Pilots Saturday Jan. 22 before heading into the all-star break.

All games can be heard live on KLSD 1360AM and www.sandiegogulls.com with Chris Ello calling the play-by-play. All home games and many road games can be viewed on the Gulls' web site, courtesy of B2 Networks. Click the B2 Networks link on the home page for a list of the upcoming telecasted games. To view pictures from this season, visit www.sdgullsphotos.com and www.zerodogentertainment.com.



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