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Moose Maul Bears 5-0

March 15, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Manitoba Moose News Release


HERSHEY, PA. -- The Hershey Bears faced a perfect storm in the Manitoba Moose Saturday night. Led by Brad Moran and Mike Brown with two goals each, Manitoba forwards produced five goals on 33 shots, including three in the second period. Not to be outdone by his offensive teammates, rookie goalie Cory Schneider was perfect at the opposite end of the ice, making 33 saves to register his second shutout in three games.

Only 6:32 into his first AHL game of the season, one of Manitoba's newest acquisitions, Kevin Estrada, was drilled by Jason Morgan and shaken up on the collision. Moose enforcer Nathan McIver dropped the gloves with Morgan immediately after the check, and though both players were dealt fighting offenses, an extra elbowing major and game misconduct for Morgan offered the Moose a three-minute powerplay.

Not long into the man advantage, Manitoba's leading scorer Moran beat Frederic Cassivi to give the Moose the first lead of the game. The visitors stayed on the powerplay but were unable to extend their lead, and the home team countered by tallying their first shots of the game upon the return of five-on-five play.

In the period's dying minutes, a hooking penalty to Pierre-Cedric Labrie paved the way for a brawl behind Schneider's net involving Shaun Heshka and the league's penalty minute leader, Louis Robitaille. Hershey's first powerplay of the game was soon upgraded to a one-minute five-on-three as Jannik Hansen took a tripping penalty while playing shorthanded. The Moose killed Labrie's initial infraction but stayed on the penalty kill through to the end of the first period.

Though Manitoba carried a commanding 11-0 shot lead earlier in the game, the Bears had clawed back to make it 12-9 by the start of the second period. The home team carried offensive momentum into the middle frame, but the Moose would be next to hit the back of the net, as Brown got the puck past Cassivi from the top of the crease to put the Moose up 2-0 less than two minutes into the period.

Exciting scoring chances and odd-man rushes packed the following four minutes, but the spotlight stayed on Brown. Streaking up the right wing, the feisty forward tallied his seventh of the season and second of the game to put the Moose up 3-0 at 5:31.

Following the third unanswered goal, Cassivi was pulled from the Bears net and replaced by 21-year-old Daren Machesney. Emotions continued to run high following the goaltending change, and both teams earned multiple roughing penalties near the game's midway point.

At the tail end of the period, Moran made it 4-0 for the Moose by pouncing on Hansen's slapshot rebound and surprising Machesney with a quick release. Robitaille continued to rub the Moose the wrong way, and a short shoving match with McIver prompted roughing and instigating penalties. An unrelated hooking penalty to Moose rookie Daniel Rahimi skewed the skater numbers and the visitors closed out another period on the penalty kill.

After 40 minutes of play, Manitoba and Hershey had registered a combined 73 penalty minutes, only one minute shy of this season's Moose record for most total penalty minutes in a game.

Schneider stayed strong in net through the third period, and Moose forwards did the same in the offensive zone. With just over 10 minutes left in the game, fellow first-year Juraj Simek did the legwork to set up Captain Mike Keane's seventh of the season, which gave the Moose a commanding 5-0 lead.

A pair of penalties in the final minutes had no effect on the final score, and Manitoba's total team effort produced the club's fifth consecutive win and Schneider's second shutout in three games, extending his winning streak to seven.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Moose conclude their five-game road trip tomorrow afternoon in Hershey before returning home to face San Antonio Wednesday and Thursday nights.

NEXT GAME: SUNDAY, MARCH 16 (GIANT CENTER - HERSHEY, PA.)

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