Jackal Bites

Published on March 10, 2003 under ECHL (ECHL)
Elmira Jackals News Release


You may not be able to win them all, but the Elmira Jackals ended up with exactly half of their six possible points this weekend, taking three with a shootout win over Fort Wayne on Thursday, and a shootout loss to Adriondack on Friday. 3/6/03 JACKALS 4 – Komets 3 (SO)

It's not been an easy season for the Jackals against the Komets, with Elmira earning just three of a possible 12 points from the first six meetings between the two clubs. But a determined Jackals team took the ice on Thursday, looking to show that they are ready for the playoffs, come what may... including the Fort Wayne Komets.

The two teams would surprise perhaps even themselves when they combined for a total of five goals in the first period. Fort Wayne opened the game with a Michel Massie goal to take a 1-0 lead, but the Jackals replied with a Mike Thompson shorthanded marker at 9:32 from Mike Hofstrand and Marco Emond. The Komets scored twice more, jumping ahead 3-1 before Aaron Phillips notched his first of the game at 18:12 of the period from Glenn Stewart and Randy Murphy to close the gap to 3-2.

The Jackals and Komets would completely change the style of game in the second period, with neither side able to score. Komet starter Pokey Reddick left the game after allowing two goals on four shots with an injured shoulder, replaced by Tom Lawson. Both Lawson and Emond played well in the second period to keep their foes from scoring. Finally, Elmira broke through once more in the third period when Phillips notched his second of the game from Murphy and Ryan Esselmont to forge a 3-3 tie in regulation.

The shootout would turn into a contest of who would score last. Each team scored three times in four rounds, but Emond came up big in the fifth round with a save while Brad Wingfield got the shootout winner to give Elmira the two points. Emond stopped 33 of 36 shots in regulation, and two of five in the shootout for the victory. Emond's shootout win was his league-leading eighth of the year.

3/7/03 JACKALS 4 – IceHawks 5 (SO)

Elmira and Adirondack kicked off a home and home series at the Coach USA Center on Friday night, one with more than just four points up for grabs. Each game this close in the season counts one way or another towards a possible playoff matchup between these two teams, who have never met in the post season.

The first period saw the Jackals fall behind 1-0 on a Hugo Belanger goal just :29 into the game. The IceHawks were on the power play due to a Jeremy Symington delay of game penalty to start things off. It would prove to be the only marker of the period, with Adirondack out shooting Elmira 12-10.

The second period was almost a déjà vu for the Jackals, as it took only 33 seconds for the IceHawks to score to make it 2-0. Dominic Chiasson's 51st of the year was his second consecutive unassisted goal against the Jackals. Elmira finally responded at 12:18 when Glenn Stewart scored on the power play from Trevor Burgess and Randy Murphy, starting an avalanche of Jackal goals. At 12:57, Mike Hofstrand scored from Rob Guinn and David Lessard, and then at 13:36 Stewart scored his second of the game from Murphy and Aaron Phillips to make it 3-2 in a matter of just one minute and 18 seconds. That would also be the end of the game for Adirondack starter Martin Villeneuve, who was replaced by Jason Wolfe. Villeneuve stopped 18 of 21 shots in the game. Elmira left the ice up by a goal after two periods of play.

In the third, the Jackals allowed the IceHawks to tie the game at 3-3 when Alex Dumas scored his sixth of the year 2:44 in, but Mike Thompson's power play goal at 14:46 put the Jackals ahead once more. Bogdan Rudenko made sure the Jackals' celebration was short lived, however, as he scored just 18 seconds later to tie the game once again at four. Regulation would ended deadlocked, with Adirondack making all three shootout attempts against Symington, and Wolfe stopping all three Jackal shooters faced for the win. Symington turned aside 31 of 35 in regulation while taking the shootout loss.

3/8/03 Jackals 2 – ICEHAWKS 3

The rematch of the home and home took place at the Glens Falls Civic Center on Saturday night. Both teams opened up with some scoring opportunities, but it was Adirondack scoring first at 6:12 when Jesse Rooney cracked the scoring column from Andreas Sjolund and Ben Blais to make it 1-0. Elmira responded at 14:07 when Glenn Stewart scored, slipping the puck between the legs of Jason Wolfe to tie the game at 1-1. Randy Murphy and Ryan Esselmont collected the assists on the goal.

Middle frame action saw the Jackals actually claim the lead at 4:43 when Mike Hofstrand scored from Corey Neilson to give Elmira the 2-1 advantage. But the IceHawks would get a pair from Frank Littlejohn to go back ahead 3-2. The first marker from Littlejohn was a disputed one, with Elmira saying the puck never crossed the line, but eventually it was ruled a goal. The second was a knife through Elmira's penalty kill with just :10 left in the period as he ripped a laser over the shoulder of Emond. The third period saw no further scoring for the Jackals or IceHawks, and Adirondack took the two points in regulation to move one point ahead of the Jackals for second place in the UHL's Eastern Conferece.

* * *

The Jackals will now travel to Kalamazoo where they will play on Friday and Saturday night at 7 :30 pm. A mid-week trip to Flint on the 19th will be followed by games at home against Kalamazoo on Friday and Port Huron Saturday before the team dashes out to Michigan to finish the home and home with the Beacons on Sunday.

Tickets for next weekend's and all remaining Jackal home games may be purchased through the Coach USA Center Box Office, open 10 am to 6 pm Monday – Friday, and 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday. Seats may also be obtained through all TicketMaster locations, on line at www.TicketMaster.com, or charge by phone at (607) 722-3711.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINATION:

Randy Murphy – C 3 GP, 0-5-5, +3 rating, 6 shots

DATE TEAM OPPN HV GM# G A PTS +- SHOTS PIM
03/06/03 ELM FW H 316 2 2 2
03/07/03 ELM ADI H 317 2 2 4
03/08/03 ELM ADI V 321 1 1 1 2

JACKAL BITES:

- With his assist on Sunday against Adirondack, Randy Murphy has now tied David Lessard's record for most points in a single season in team history with 81. Murphy is currently on a seven game point scoring streak, and has notched at least one point in 27 of his last 32 games.

- With their shootout win over Fort Wayne, the Jackals won their 30th OT session in team history. The Jackals are 30-24 in shootouts over their first two and a half seasons.

- The only team from the Western Conference the Jackals will face over the final three weeks of the season is Kalamazoo (3 times). Elmira is 2-1-0 against the K-Wings this season, and 3-2-2 in the all time series. No Jackals are reported to have girls there, despite what the song says.

- Glenn Stewart became the first Jackal to hit 30 goals this year, scoring the big three-oh against Adirondack on Saturday night. It is Stewart's 8th professional 30-goal season.

NEWS AND NOTES:

The Elmira Jackals Coach's Show will air live from Patrick's, 303 College Ave. on Tuesday at 7 pm. Along with Jackals Head Coach Todd Brost, Tom Callahan, and WiNZ's Joe Munroe, David Lessard and Tom Clayton are scheduled for the broadcast. Tune it in on your home for Jackals Hockey, WiNGZ 104.9!

Along with Jody Robinson still being on recall, Brad Wingfield was called up by the Syracuse Crunch and assigned to Hershey on Monday. He will play with the Bears in Norfolk on Wednesday. The Jackals are unsure when Wingfield may be back in the lineup this season. Along the same lines, Jeremy Symington was returned to the club by Binghamton on Monday after dressing but not playing in Bridgeport against the SoundTigers.

The Elmira Jackals will have at least one more chapter in the Monthly Dinner Series At Horigan's, with the date to be determined. Horigan's is located at 365 Davis St. in downtown Elmira, where Irish Hospitality Is Always On Tap!

Jackals Playoff Packages are now on sale to all full and partial season ticket holders! Packages go on sale to the general public on Monday, March 17th at 10 am. Prices are as follows:

REGULAR SEASON PLAYOFF PACKAGES PLAYOFFS INDIVIDUAL

Restaurant $21.00 $23.00 ($276) $24.00

VIP $15.00 $17.00 ($204) $18.00

Center Ice $13.00 $15.00 ($180) $16.00

Endzone $10.00 $12.00 ($144) $13.00

All seats that remain unused can either be put towards a down payment on packages for next season, or refunded through the Coach USA Center Box Office.

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ECHL Stories from March 10, 2003


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