IceCats Double Up Monarchs, 4-2
November 5, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Manchester Monarchs News Release
WORCESTER, MA â Three teams share first place in the Atlantic Division of the American Hockey League after the Worcester IceCats handed the Manchester Monarchs their first loss of the season, a 4-2 setback witnessed by 2,576 fans at the DCU Center on Friday night.
The Monarchs (7-1-0-0, 14 points) entered Friday's game with a seven-game winning streak and a four-game winning streak on the road. Both streaks were one win shy of franchise records.
The IceCats (7-2-0-0, 14 points), winners of six straight games, joined the Monarchs and the idle Hartford Wolf Pack (7-0-0-0, 14 points) atop of the division thanks to strong goaltending and three power play goals.
The Monarchs and the IceCats, the two top-scoring teams in the league, showed why in the opening period as both teams collected a pair of goals.
The Monarchs opened the period with a power play goal from left wing Dustin Brown at 2:52. Right wing Brad Smyth and center Yanick Lehoux each collected assists on the goal, the third of the season for Brown. With the assist, Smyth extended his team-leading scoring streak to eight games (4-6=10).
The IceCats tied the game at 11:51 when right wing Jon DiSalvatore one-timed his shot by goaltender Mathieu Garon from the right circle for a power play goal. Center Blake Evans and defenseman Mike Mottau assisted on DiSalvatore's fourth goal of the season.
Brown put the Monarchs back on top less than two minutes later with his second goal of the period. Center Michael Cammalleri and defenseman Troy Milam assisted on Brown's fourth goal overall, scored seconds after defenseman Tim Gleason broke up an IceCats scoring chance with a diving stick check through the slot in the Monarchs zone.
The IceCats drew even at the close of the period with the first goal of the season for defenseman Aris Brimanis. Brimanis scored with a blue line slap shot that appeared to clip the stick of Monarchs defenseman Denis Grebeshkov before sliding by Garon at 19:41. Right wing Alexei Shkotov had the only assist on the play.
The IceCats had the only second period goal, scored by Evans on the power play at 12:08. Mottau and right wing Mike Glumac shared assists on Evans' third goal of the season.
The Monarchs, trailing for the first time this season, surrendered the next goal as well, scored by rookie center Ryan Ramsay on the power play at 3:10 of the third period. Left wing Peter Sejna and Shkotov assisted on Ramsay's first goal as a professional.
The Monarchs tried to close the gap in the period, but failed to convert on four consecutive power play chances. IceCats goaltender Curtis Sanford proved to be the main reason why. The Worcester netminder turned aside 21 shots over the final two periods.
Sanford improved his record to 6-1-0 on the season with 26 saves. The loss for Garon was his first in five outings this season. His record dropped to 4-1-0 despite 24 saves.
The Monarchs return to action on Saturday, November 6 at 7:35 p.m. when they meet the Albany River Rats at the Verizon Wireless Arena. Catch all of the play-by-play action with Ken Cail on the Monarchs Radio Network (WGIR-AM 610, Manchester; WGIN-AM 930, Rochester; WGIP-AM 1540, Exeter; WTSL-AM 1400, Lebanon) and at www.monarchshockey.com.
Ticket Availability: Single seats in the Gold level and 1,000 seats in the Silver level remain for the Monarchs game against the River Rats. The first 5,000 fans attending the game will receive a Monarchs T-shirt courtesy of Crowley Foods.
Fans in need of Monarchs tickets may purchase them in person at the Verizon Wireless Arena box office, at any TicketMaster location, by phone at (603) 868-7300 or on-line at www.ticketmaster.com. The box office opens at 10:00 a.m.
• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...
American Hockey League Stories from November 5, 2004
- Falcons Rally from Four-Goal Deficit to 6-5 OT Win over Portland - Springfield Falcons
- Bulldogs power play strikes three times in win - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Worcester wins sixth straight - Worcester IceCats
- Bouchard scores in OT as Aeros stun Griffins 4-3 - Houston Aeros
- Phantoms Continue Mastery over Hershey - OSC Original by David W. Unkle
- Bruins drop heartbreaker to Norfolk - Providence Bruins
- Vanek's two goals lead Americans past Ducks - Cincinnati RailRaiders
- Phantoms beat Bears 4-1 - Adirondack Phantoms
- IceCats Double Up Monarchs, 4-2 - Manchester Monarchs
- Bears start quick, but fall in Philadelphia 4-1 - Hershey Bears
- Road Runners Sign Niinimaki - Edmonton Road Runners
- 2005 Dodge AHL All-Star Classic tickets on sale Monday - AHL
- Spurs, Rampage and UPS Lend a Helping Yam - San Antonio Rampage
- AHL All-Star Tickets On Sale Monday - Manchester Monarchs
- Bryzgalov and Konopka to appear on Mighty Ducks Weekly - Cincinnati RailRaiders
- Rampage Game Day - San Antonio Rampage
- Bears open November schedule tonight in Philly - Hershey Bears
- Moose put one in win column at home - Manitoba Moose
- AHL Quick Hits - AHL
- Aeros continue road trip in Grand Rapids tonight - Houston Aeros
- Grizzlies Drop 2-1 Decision to Manitoba - Utah Grizzlies
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
