Jackals first team to seven wins, one away from tying ECHL record
October 31, 2009 - ECHL (ECHL)
Elmira Jackals News Release
The Elmira Jackals became the ECHL's first 7-0 team tonight with a 4-1 win over the Trenton Devils in front of 3,512 fans at First Arena. With the victory, the Jackals are one win shy of the ECHL record for wins to begin a regular season, which currently stands at eight.
After a scoreless first period, Tyler Donati scored his fourth goal of the season on a snap shot from the right circle 48 seconds into the second period, which beat Trenton goaltender Dave Caruso five hole.
Chanse Fitzpatrick continued the scoring for the Jackals, with what proved to be the game-winning goal at 5:15 of the second period, beating Caruso between the pads off a feed from Travis Gawryletz.
Justin Donati scored a shorthanded goal at 6:12 of the third period for his fourth of the season. Mat Robinson chipped the puck out of the Jackals zone and created a two-on-one chance with Donati. Robinson held the puck long enough to force Caruso to commit, and that left an open net for Donati's fourth of the season. It was the third straight game in which the Jackals scored a shorthanded goal, placing them into a tie with Cincinnati for second in the ECHL with three.
Chanse Fitzpatrick scored at 15:11 for his team-leading seventh goal of the season, which put him alone in second in the ECHL in goals.
Tyler and Justin Donati each had three points on the evening to move them back into sole possession of first place in the ECHL with 14 points. Each has 10 assists, which also tops the ECHL.
Chris Holt made 25 saves in net on 26 Devils shots, with the lone Trenton goal coming off the stick of Justin Pender at 13:56 of the third period. Holt improved to 4-0-0-0 on the season, while Caruso fell to 1-3-1-0 in 2009-2010, making 23 saves on 27 Jackals shots in the loss.
The Kalamazoo Wings lost 7-5 to the Toledo Walleye Saturday, making the Jackals one of two undefeated teams in the ECHL along with the Idaho Steelheads, who were scheduled to play late Saturday night at the Alaska Aces.
The Jackals will remain home for a game next Friday night at First Arena when they host the Devils for the second of four straight games between the two teams at 7:35 PM. The Jackals will attempt to tie the ECHL record of eight consecutive wins to begin a season, accomplished by Trenton in 2001 and Dayton in 1994. Elmira will head to Trenton for games on Saturday and Sunday between the two squads.
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