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Moose fall to Griffins, 5-1

February 20, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Manitoba Moose News Release


The two top seeds in the North Division faced off in front of a sold-out crowd at the Van Andel Arena on Friday night and the Grand Rapids Griffins defeated the Manitoba Moose 5-1. This is the first time the Moose have lost in regulation time on the road since Dec. 28th @ Toronto. Dusty Collins scored Manitoba's lone goal while Cory Schneider and Curtis Sanford both saw ice-time in the loss. The Griffins now sit four points behind the Moose for top spot in the division.

An interference penalty to Guillaume Desbiens put Manitoba on the penalty kill a mere 1:51 into the matchup. Manitoba's penalty killers, second in the league, only allowed three shots on net and goaltender Cory Schneider blocked them all to ensure the club would remain unmarked.

Jason Jaffray and Justin Abdelkader, known for scoring goals, showcased a new skill when they decided to scrap at 9:40. After several solid punches, Abdelkader fell to the ice and both players were reprimanded with five-minute fighting majors and additional minors each.

Near the midway point of the opening period, Evan McGrath's holding call put the visiting Moose on their first powerplay, but like the Griffins, Manitoba failed to score on the man-advantage.

Five-on-five hockey paid off for the visitors, when Mike Keane sent the puck to Dusty Collins who snapped a wrist shot past Daniel Larsson to open the scoring.

The second period saw the Moose right back on the powerplay, but the Griffins would be the ones to capitalize. A shorthanded surge into the visiting zone saw Garrett Stafford knot the game at one, the third shorty scored against Manitoba this season.

With Nolan Baumgarter serving time for hooking, Cory Emmerton wired the puck under Schneider's cross-bar to gain a 2-1 lead.

30 seconds later, the Griffins did it again, this time courtesy of Evan McGrath. After the goals, the Moose called a 30 second time-out.

The short break didn't help the visitors, as Grand Rapids added another one to their tally less than a minute later. Cory Emmerton netted the 22nd shot of the night, his second of the contest, to put the home team up 4-1.

The Moose decided to switch goaltenders in the third period, putting Curtis Sanford between the pipes.

Nathan McIver's roughing penalty put the Griffins on their fourth powerplay of the night. Garrett Stafford planted himself in the Moose zone and fired a slap shot from the right side to score his second of the night, 5-1.

Despite their efforts, the Moose were unable to inch closer to the Griffins and the home team stole two points from the visiting Manitobans.



American Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2009


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