Moose withstand the Heat 4-1
March 23, 2018 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Manitoba Moose News Release
The Manitoba Moose (39-19-4-4) returned to Bell MTS Place following a seven-game road trip to face the Stockton Heat (29-23-2-4) on Thursday night. JC Lipon set the tone in the opening minute, delivering a hard body-check on a Stockton defender before dropping the gloves against Stockton's Ryan Lomberg. Manitoba put the pressure on in the frame, outshooting the Heat by a 12-3 count, but Jon Gillies kept the hosts off the board. Cam Maclise and Darren Kramer both got pucks past Gillies, but were foiled by the posts in a scoreless first period.
Manitoba came out firing in the second, and Peter Stoykewych nearly opened the scoring twice, but hit the post on a pair of shots. The Moose finally found twine moments later as Jan Kostalek pounced on a loose puck for his fourth of the season. Manitoba added to the lead at 9:21 when JC Lipon stole the puck in front of the Stockton net, fired a backhand, and got a friendly bounce off a defender and into the goal. The Moose made it 3-0 with a couple minutes left as Mason Appleton rushed the puck ahead at the tail end of a four-on-four segment, spun at the goal line, and found Nic Petan wide open in front for a quick strike. The goal would go down as a shorthanded marker as the Moose took their three-goal edge to the final frame.
Jamie Phillips held onto his shutout bid until the final three minutes of the game. Ryan Lomberg broke up the clean sheet on a scramble around the Moose net to get Stockton on the board. The Heat called Gillies to the bench with the game in reach, but Buddy Robinson came up with the puck in the neutral zone and deposited it into the empty net to close out the game by a 4-1 score.
Quick Hits
Mason Appleton tallied his 39th assist to set the Moose franchise record for assists in a rookie season.
JC Lipon set a new career high with his 14th goal of the season.
Attendance was announced at 3,093.
Quotable
Head Coach Pascal Vincent on playing down the stretch - "It is important to play well, but it's one day at a time. It's eight games at home, it's a long stretch. We took care of tonight, tomorrow will be a day off, and then we'll take care of the next game. That's how we're going to approach it. First place is a luxury, and we've earned the right to be there. We've played well this year overall to be in that position. We want to keep it, but at the same time we'll take one day at a time."
Forward Mason Appleton on setting the rookie assist record - "It's nice, obviously I had no clue about (the record) so it feels good. For me, it's just playing my game and doing the things that make me successful. I like my game, and I like my team's game, so I'm happy we got the two points."
Linked Up
Game Summary: http://mbmoo.se/2pxFPNA
Highlights and Post-Game Coverage: http://moosehockey.com/moosetv/
Photo Gallery: http://mbmoo.se/2pxZfRy
What's Next?
The Moose and Heat clash again on Saturday in a 7 p.m. matchup on JC Lipon Mini Bobblehead Night. The first 3,000 fans in attendance will receive a JC Lipon Mini Bobblehead. Tickets for Saturday's game are available at moosehockey.com/tickets.
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