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Kelly Cup Defense Begins

April 5, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies News Release


ATLANTIC CITY - WEEK RECORD: 3-1-0 - SEASON RECORD: 47-19-6 - 2nd NORTHERN

BULLIES REWIND: The Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies won their final three games of the regular season to clinch second place in the ECHL's Northern Division. The Bullies will open the best-of-five Divisional Semifinals against the Peoria Rivermen at 7:05PM on Wednesday with Game 1 (Game A) at Boardwalk Hall. Game 2 (Game B) is scheduled for 7:05PM on Friday at Boardwalk Hall.

Tuesday, Mathieu Brunelle had a goal and two assists as the Trenton Titans defeated the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies 3-1 before 5832 at Sovereign Bank Arena in ECHL action Tuesday. With the victory, Trenton captures the 2003-04 Garden State Cup. Trenton opened the scoring at 11:33 of the first period on the power play. Mathieu Brunelle picked up the loose puck in the slot and slapped it by Bullies goaltender Bujar Amidovski for the early 1-0 lead. The Bullies would counter with the next power play at 14:26. Nick Parillo off Marc St. Jean's rebound fired a backhander past Titans goalie Andrew Allen to tie the game 1-1. Peter Metcalf gave the Titans a 2-1 lead with a power play goal at 1:31 of the second when his shot from the blue line beat a screened Amidovski. Matt Zultek extended the lead to 3-1 at 9:22 of the period, as streaking up the left side he took a cross-ice feed from Brunelle and put a slap shot through Amidovski for the tally. The Bullies out-shot Trenton 29-18. Amidovski stopped 15 shots in falling to 12-16-3 on the year. Atlantic City went 1-6 on the power play.

Wednesday, Bujar Amidovski stopped all 14 Toledo shots on goal and Stefan Rivard tallied a goal and an assist as the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies defeated the Toledo Storm 4-0 before 2448 at Boardwalk Hall in ECHL action Wednesday. The victory by the Bullies also sets the all-time franchise record for single season wins (45) and single season points (96). Atlantic City would get all the scoring they would need just 1:07 into the first period. Josh Prudden re-directed Ian Walterson's shot past Toledo goaltender Cory Campbell for a 1-0 lead. Rivard made it 2-0 at 19:26 of the first, deflecting Jerramie Domish's point shot past Campbell for the tally. After a scoreless second period, the Bullies added some insurance with a pair of goals 38 seconds apart in the third period. Nick Parillo tipped in Pierre-Luc Sleigher's shot that trickled through Campbell's pads at 9:02 for a 3-0 advantage. Scott Horvath gave the Bullies a 4-0 lead when he backhanded Paul Falco's rebound from the slot past Campbell at 9:40. The Bullies out-shot Toledo 46-14. Amidovksi improved 13-16-3 with his third shutout in a Bullies uniform. Atlantic City went 0-5 on the power play.

Friday, the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies erupted for 6 goals in a span of 9:06 seconds in the second period and defeated the Toledo Storm 7-0 before 3398 at Boardwalk Hall in ECHL action Friday. After a scoreless first period, the Bullies opened the scoring at 6:13 of the second. Preston Mizzi fed a backhander into the slot and Stefan Rivard slapped it over the left shoulder of Toledo goaltender Cory Campbell for a 1-0 lead. Dave Reid made it 2-0 just 26 seconds later when his slap shot from the left point sifted through traffic and beat Campbell at 6:29. Rivard tallied his second goal of the night at 9:26 on a two-man advantage power play, knocking the puck off Campbell from the near post and into the back of the net to give Atlantic City a 3-0 lead. Paul Falco made it 4-0 when he picked up the loose puck in the slot and fired a slap shot past Campbell at 13:15. Pierre-Luc Sleigher extended the lead to 5-0 just 33 seconds afterwards at 13:48, knocking the puck in from the far circle. Rookie defenseman Tom Galvin, in his professional debut, finished the scoring in the period at 15:19 with his first professional goal, cutting in from the left-wing circle and slapping the puck over Campbell for a 6-0 advantage at the end of the period. Rivard completed the hat trick early in the third, deflecting a shot from the point by Campbell at 2:22. The Bullies out-shot the Storm 44-17. Bujar Amidovski stopped all 17 shots for his fifth shutout of the season and improved to 14-16-3. Atlantic City went 1-4 on the power play. The Bullies finish the season-series against Toledo outscoring the Storm 21-0 and out-shooting them 184-57 in four games.

Saturday, Josh Prudden had a goal and two assists as the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies survived a late rally to defeat the Wheeling Nailers 4-3 before 4430 at Boardwalk Hall in ECHL action Saturday. With the win, the Bullies (47-19-6) finish with the best regular season record in franchise history, earn 100 points for the first time in franchise history, and clinch the second seed in the Northern Division in the 2004 ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs. Jerramie Domish opened the scoring for the Bullies with his first professional goal at 18:31 of the first period, firing a slap shot by Wheeling goaltender Nick Boucher for a 1-0 lead. Stefan Rivard made it 2-0 at 9:32 of the second on the power play, taking a centering feed from Prudden behind the net and slapping by Boucher for the tally. The Nailers (51-17-5) would cut the deficit in half as Bogdan Rudenko found the back of the net from the short side at 12:30 of the second to make it 2-1. Sam Paolini gave the Bullies their 2-goal lead back when he collected his own rebound and tapped it by Boucher at 4:05 of the third for a 3-1 advantage. Prudden made it 4-1 at 14:29 on the power play, firing a slap shot into the back of the net. The Nailers would quickly counter just 10 seconds later, as Drew Fata from the blue line placed the puck just by the outstretched skate of Bullies goaltender Bujar Amidovski at 14:39 to get within two goals at 4-2. JC Ruid would get Wheeling within one, deflecting Fata's shot by Amidvoski with the extra-attacker at 19:25 of the third, but the Nailers could not muster the equalizer. The Bullies out-shot Wheeling 30-25. Amidovski made 22 saves to finish the season with a record of 15-16-3. The Bullies went 2-7 on the power play.

BULLIES "TOP DAWG" AWARD: Each Monday from now until the end of the season, Public Relations and Broadcasting Manager Dan Weiss will select the Bullies "Top Dawg" for the week. This week's winner is captain Stefan Rivard, who enjoyed three multiple point games including his first hat trick of the season. Rivard finished the week with 5 goals and 3 assists. Honorable mention goes out to goaltender Bujar Amidovski who went 3-1-0 with two shutouts. Previous recent winners below include:

3/8/04: Scott Stirling (4th shutout of the season; 14th of his career) 3/15/04: Sam Paolini (3 goals, 1 assist) 3/22/04: Josh Prudden (1 goal, 3 assists) 3/29/04: Bujar Amidovski (2-0-0, 2 shutouts, 0.00 GAA, 1.000% save percentage) 4/5/04: Stefan Rivard (5 goals, 3 assists)

SIMPLY THE BEST: The 2003-04 Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies finished an all-time best 47-19-6, breaking seven team records and five individual records. As a team, the Bullies set all-time franchise records for wins (47), road wins (23), points (100), fewest losses (17), fewest goals against (159), lowest goals against average (2.21), and shutouts (10). Individually, Scott Stirling set franchise records for appearances (49), minutes (2955), wins (31), lowest goals against average (1.91), and highest save percentage (.933). The Bullies become the 14th team in ECHL history to reach the 100-point plateau. The Bullies finished three goals behind the 2001-02 Louisiana Ice Gators for the record of fewest goals against in one season. Their 2.21 goals against average also ranks second behind Louisiana. The 23 road victories place them third all-time joining Pee Dee, Peoria, and Charlotte, while the 10 shutouts ranks second all-time behind this year's Wheeling Nailers who recorded 11 shutouts. For Stirling, his goals against average ties Curtis Sanford for second lowest in ECHL history, while his save percentage ties Jeff Salajko for third best all-time.

BULLIES HONOR THEIR OWN: Prior to Saturday's regular season finale, the Bullies recognized their own players for this season's accomplishments. Rookie Jon Cullen was a big winner, honored as the Health First Chiropractic Players' Choice Co-Player of the Year, the Planet Hollywood Star of the Season, and the 2003-04 Rookie of the Year. Cullen finished his first season with 29 goals and 48 assists, and was runner-up to Gwinnett's Kevin Doell for the CCM ECHL Rookie of the Year. Leading scorer Luke Curtin took home the Compass Massage and Bodywork Most Valuable Player and the Health First Chiropractic Players' Choice Co-Player of the Year. Rookie defenseman Brian Fahey was honored as the 2003-04 Defenseman of the Year, and rookie forward Josh Prudden was selected through Internet voting as the 2003-04 Fans' Choice Player of the Year. Congratulations to all the winners!

O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU? As the Bullies begin their march to repeat as ECHL Kelly Cup Champions, 7 players remain on recall to teams in the American Hockey League: Jim Henkel (Lowell), Fahey (Hershey), Kirk Furey (Philadelphia), Jake Moreland (Worcester), Alexandre Jacques (Milwaukee), Stirling (Bridgeport), and Curtin (Bridgeport). Curtin is the Bullies active leading playoff scorer with 8 goals and 35 points in 31 postseason games. Stirling is 14-6 in Bullies playoff history with a 1.97 goals against average and a .931% save percentage.

THE SERIES: The Bullies went 2-1-1 in the regular season against Peoria and 1-1 at Boardwalk Hall. Each game was decided by 2 goals or less and three out of the four meetings went past regulation. Brian Fahey led the Bullies with 4 goals and 5 points in 3 games against Peoria, including both the game-winning and game-tying goal in two thrilling contests at Carver Arena. Scott Stirling was 2-1-1 with a 2.84 goals against average and a .911% save percentage allowing 11 goals in 3 starts and 1 relief appearance. Peoria finished the regular season winning 15 out of their last 18 games, including 9 in a row at Carver Arena. Forwards Tyler Rennette and Colin Hemingway are two of the hottest players in the ECHL right now. Rennette has 8 goals and 26 points in his last 14 games, while Hemingway has 15 goals and 26 points in his last 15 games. Both players finished the month of March with an ECHL-high plus-minus ratio of plus-19. In net, Levente Szuper is 7-1 in his last 8 starts with a 2.00 goals against average, having allowed just 16 goals. Peoria is making its eighth consecutive trip to the ECHL Playoffs, winners of the Kelly Cup in 2000. The Rivermen are 34-24 lifetime in the playoffs. Atlantic City and Peoria have never met in postseason. "QUEST FOR THE CUP" CONTINUES TONIGHT: The Bullies continue their "Quest For the Cup" presented by Swingers at Sands Casino Hotel, Atlantic City, tonight from 7PM-8PM on ESPN Radio 1450 and on the internet at www.boardwalkbullies.com. Tonight, host Dan Weiss welcomes Head Coach Mike Haviland and Captain Stefan Rivard. Join us live on location at Swingers Bar inside the Sands Casino for your chance to be apart of the show. That's "Quest For the Cup", tonight from 7PM-8PM.

POWER PLAY FOR UNITED WAY: The Bullies have teamed up with United Way of Atlantic County to sponsor the Power Play for United Way. For every power play goal the Bullies score this season, Trump Plaza, Sands Casino Hotel, Advance Door & Supply, Kline Construction and HR Solutions will donate $10 dollars to United Way of Atlantic County. The Bullies finished the season with 77 power play goals, good for $3,850 towards Power Play for United Way.

UP NEXT: 2004 ECHL NORTHERN DIVISION SEMIFINALS

Wednesday, April 7 Game 1 (Game A): Peoria @ Atlantic City 7:05PM - Surfer Network

Friday, April 9 Game 2 (Game B): Peoria @ Atlantic City 7:05PM - Surfer Network

Monday, April 12 Game 3: Atlantic City @ Peoria 8PM - 1450AM & Surfer Network

Tuesday, April 13 Game 4 (If Necessary): Atlantic City @ Peoria 8PM - 1450AM & Surfer Network

Thursday, April 15 Game 5 (Game C - If Necessary) : Peoria @ Atlantic City 7:05PM - Surfer Network

With the Bullies on their way to the postseason, tickets for the 2004 ECHL Kelly Cup playoffs are on sale now. 13-game playoff packages start as low as $156. All unplayed game tickets can be applied toward ticket packages for the 2004-05 season. Individual playoff tickets for first round games are also on sale now, starting at $8. For more information or to order your 2004 ECHL Kelly Cup playoff tickets, call (609) 348-PUCK

Every Wednesday home game this season is a Wild Wednesday sponsored by Coors Light and Molson Canadian. All college students, casino workers, military and service industry personnel get in for just $8! Enjoy great Coors Light and Molson Canadian draught beer all night for just $2! For more information or to order tickets, call (609) 348-PUCK.

BULLIES SCHEDULE WEEK OF APRIL 5TH

Monday, April 5: Practice 11:30AM-1PM @ Flyers SkateZone

Tuesday, April 6: Practice 10:30AM-12PM

Wednesday, April 7: Morning Skate 10AM; Game A: Bullies vs. Peoria 7:05PM

Thursday, April 8: Practice 10:30AM-12PM

Friday, April 9: Morning Skate 10AM; Game B: Bullies vs. Peoria 7:05PM

Saturday, April 10: Practice TBA @ Flyers SkateZone; Depart For Peoria 8PM

Sunday, April 11: TBA

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