Ice Chips

March 7, 2015 - Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL) News Release

Wolves Down Whalers 4-1 In Playoff Preview

The snow is melting outside, the temperature rising, and the march to the playoffs is underway. The ice remains chilled to pristine playing conditions and the Wolves and Whalers finished off their 16 game season series here in Danbury Arena, and the Wolves, who trailed 1-0 until the late 2nd period, found their way to a 4-1 victory.

The Whalers started the way they wanted to, and 1:29 in, Ian DeLong finished a setup from Ryan Patsch in front to make it 1-0 Whalers. The score would remain the same until the Whalers took 2 penalties in one play late in the 2nd, sending Brett Liscomb and Zach Kuta to the penalty box. 11 seconds into the 5 on 3, Cody Dion tied the game. Then, 33 seconds later on the 5 on 4, its Cody Dion again, making it 2-1 Wolves. In the 3rd period the Whalers couldnt find a response. And to make matters worse, Mike Brown had a very unfortunate bounce, having the puck on his stick in the corner, and putting it right onto Justin Alonzo's stick, and into the back of the net to make it 3-1. Dane Erickson would finish off with an empty netter and 4-1 is your final score.

For the Whalers, Ian DeLong had the lone goal and Mike Brown stopped 47 of 50 shots. For the Wolves, Cody Dion had 2 goals, Dane Erickson had a goal and 2 assists, and Justin Alonzo had a goal. Jo St. Pierre finished the night stopping 26 of 27 shots.

The Whalers finish off their regular season tomorrow vs Steel City, meanwhile Watertown has two more meetings with Berkshire before both teams head for the playoffs, right now set to face each other in the 1st round. 2,374 fans packed Danbury Arena for this Friday night contest.

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Danville Shuts Out Dayton 4-0

The Dayton Demonz and Danville Dashers squared off in a critical game at Hara Arena on Friday. The Demonz were still looking to secure the top seed heading into next week's FHL Playoffs. The Dashers, the league's hottest team over the last month, were hoping to keep it going. For Dayton, Ahmed Mahfouz was forced out of the lineup due to injury and Danville took advantage with a 4-0 victory.

It started off inauspiciously for Dayton when Justin Levac beat Matt Kinsella for his 11th of the season just 54 seconds into the contest. With 6:15 to go in the first, one of the wildest goals of the season was scored by Danville. The puck deflected high into the air, landing on the back of a stunned Kinsella, and falling into the net. Credit for the score was given to Jonahtan Hannums and Danville led 2-0.

The Dashers dominated the second period. On the power play, Justin Brausen scored 5:53 into the period, his 32nd goal of the year, to give Danville a 3-0 advantage over reeling Dayton. To make matters worse for the home team, Jonathan Juliano fired from near the blue line, to make it 4-0. The shot came off a scramble, catching Kinsella off guard as the crowd looked on in stunned silence.

Dayton was shutout for the first time all season as Danville totally controlled the game. The Demonz surprisingly outshot the Dashers, 38-28, but rarely threatened to tally against Matt Anthony. Without Mahfouz, Dayton looked out of sync from the start, never showing the intensity typical of the club. With the Playoffs on the horizon, it will be critical to get back on track quickly.

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Federal Prospects Hockey League Stories from March 7, 2015

• Demonz WIN - Dayton Demonz
• Whalers Home Tonight - Danbury Whalers
• Ice Chips - FPHL

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