AHL Cleveland Monsters

Monsters Ride Special Teams to 3-1 Series Advantage

Published on April 22, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Monsters News Release


After trading wins with Manitoba through the first three games of the North Division Semi-Finals of the 2011 AHL Calder Cup Playoffs, the Lake Erie Monsters posted a 6-3 win over the Moose on Thursday night to take a 3-1 series lead. Part of the two-game advantage can be attributed to Lake Erie's successful special teams against Manitoba. The Monsters have held the Moose scoreless (0-19) on the power play through four Playoff games, after also going 0-20 in four regular season games. Lake Erie scored three of its goals on the power play on Thursday, plus a shorthander.

Lake Erie will have a chance to finish the series in Game 5, which will be played at the MTS Centre at 8:30 p.m. (ET) on Friday night.

The Monsters took a 2-0 lead off a pair of power play goals in the first period. At 13:12, Ben Walter scored off assists from Justin Mercier and David van der Gulik. Van der Gulik's assist marked his fourth point (2G, 2A) in his last three games. Just 3:17 later, Luke Walker scored his first of the Playoffs on a breakaway off helpers from Mark Olver and Stefan Elliot. For Elliot, who just signed with the Monsters on April 16th, it was his first point as a professional.

After an opening period in which both teams recorded 16 shots, the Monsters carried a 2-0 lead.

Just 3:08 into the middle frame, the Moose cut their deficit in half and made the score 2-1 off a tally by Kevin Clark. Bill Sweatt and Nolan Baumgartner assisted.

At the 7:56 mark, the Monsters regained their two-goal lead when Mercier netted a power play goal to make the score 3-1. Walter, who has recorded at least a point in each game of this series, assisted to mark his fifth point (3G, 2A) of the Playoffs. Shawn Belle also assisted.

Just 1:04 later, with Matt Ford serving a minor penalty for slashing, Mercier shot down the middle of the ice on a breakaway and scored his second shorthanded goal of the Playoffs to put Lake Erie ahead by a 4-1 count.

Mercier's goal chased former Monster Tyler Weiman from the Manitoba cage, making way for rookie Eddie Lack, who started Game 1 before getting replaced by Weiman mid-game.

Before the second period expired, the Moose climbed to within two of Lake Erie, as Jason Jaffray scored at the 17:45 mark. Sergei Shirokov and Marco Rosa assisted.

The Monsters recorded seven shots compared to 13 by Manitoba in the second period, but led by a 4-2 score after 40 minutes.

In the third period, the Moose made the score 4-3 when Clark scored at 13:56 to mark his second goal of the game. Jaffray and Rosa recorded assists.

With an empty Manitoba net, at 19:27 of the period, Matt Ford put the Monsters up 5-3 with a goal that was assisted by Julian Talbot and Julien Brouillette. Ford raced to beat out a Moose defender for the puck behind the goal and wrapped around to put it in the empty net.

Then, with just 10 seconds remaining in regulation, Olver scored an empty-net goal off an assist from goaltender John Grahame to finalize a 6-3 game.

Grahame turned aside 33 of 36 shots faced in his third consecutive start for the Monsters.

Weiman went 16-for-20 in goal for the Moose, while Lack posted eight saves on 10 shots in relief.

Three Stars: 1. LE Walter (1 goal, 1 assist); 2. MTB Clark (2 goals); 3. LE Mercier (2 goals, 1 assist)

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American Hockey League Stories from April 22, 2011


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