Marlies powerplay kills Moose point streak

Published on March 29, 2008 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Manitoba Moose News Release


TORONTO, ON -- Though the Manitoba Moose out-shot the Toronto Marlies 32-30 Saturday night, Toronto's potent powerplay unit and sturdy goaltender carried the club to a 6-1 victory. For the Moose, the loss ended a franchise-record 13-game point streak. Both clubs meet again next weekend in Winnipeg.

At 10:33 of the first period, Moose defenceman Nolan Baumgartner was called for high-sticking and Toronto got the chance to test goalie Drew MacIntyre on the man-advantage. Just over a minute into the powerplay, Derrick Walser one-timed a rocket from the point, and Toronto's leading scorer, David Ling, caught a piece of the puck, redirecting it into the Moose net to give the home team a 1-0 lead.

Manitoba responded by reclaiming the shot-lead, but Toronto extended their lead to two in the period's final two minutes. Stuck in the corner, Ben Ondrus wired a pass to Bryan Muir at the bottom of the opposite circle, who lifted it under MacIntyre's crossbar to give the Marlies a 2-0 lead.

Though Michael Grabner got the puck behind goalie Scott Clemmensen with less than 30 seconds on the clock, referee Brian Pochmara ruled that the rookie scored on a high-stick and disallowed the goal.

A tripping penalty to Jannik Hansen early in the second period gave the Marlies their second powerplay, but the man-advantage was cut short when Ondrus headed off the ice for hooking. Hansen completed his penalty, but Ondrus never got the chance as Grabner backhanded a rebound past Clemmensen to get the Moose on the scoreboard and back within a goal on the powerplay.

Three minutes after the goal, rookie defenceman Travis Ramsey put Manitoba back on the PK by taking a holding penalty. Though Toronto was unable to score on their second powerplay, they didn't let a third opportunity slip away, as blueliner Jay Harrison directed a slapshot into the Moose net to set a 3-1 score.

54 seconds later, an identical shot made it 4-1 Marlies. From the top of the same face-off circle, John Mitchell fired a slapshot under MacIntyre's right pad to give the Marlies a three-goal cushion on their 16th shot of the game.

In the final five minutes, a fourth Marlies powerplay goal produced their fifth goal when Bates Battaglia capitalized on an open net. The goal was Toronto's third powerplay marker, tying this season's Moose record for most powerplay goals against in a game.

The Moose earned an extended man-advantage early in the third period when Andy Wozniewski's interference penalty overlapped Harrison's slashing infraction for 18 seconds. Manitoba tested Clemmensen with six shots through the powerplays, but Toronto's 'tender made a handful of stellar saves to keep his club up by four.

The powerplay tables turned back in Toronto's favour near the midway point of the frame when Manitoba was caught with too many men. Though the Moose killed that penalty, enforcer Mike Brown took an extra two minutes for a battle with Phil Oreskovic at center ice, keeping Moose penalty killers in action. The Marlies used the opportunity to set a new Moose record. With five minutes left to play, Robbie Earl tallied his club's fourth powerplay goal of the game to put the home team up 6-1.

Though the Marlies were out-shot by the Moose 32-30 through three periods, Toronto's potent powerplay unit carried them to a convincing 6-1 win over the Moose, ending Manitoba's 13-game point streak.

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from March 29, 2008


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.

OurSports Central