Petrecki Downs Falcons with Overtime Heroics

Published on January 11, 2013 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


Worcester, MA- The Worcester Sharks (19-13-1-2, 41pts) topped the Northeast Division leading Springfield Falcons (19-9-3-3, 44pts) 4-3 in a see-saw overtime thriller on Friday evening in front of 3,663 fans at the DCU Center.

Sharks defenseman Nick Petrecki (1st) delivered the knockout blow in overtime, burying the game-winner with 42 seconds remaining. The Sharks led 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, and eventually won 4-3. Denny Urban (2nd), Bracken Kearns (9th), and Freddie Hamilton (5th) also scored for Worcester. Harri Sateri was great in net for the Sharks, making 25 saves on 28 shots, giving his team a chance to win as John McCarthy and Jon Matsumoto each had two assists.

After Springfield carried much of the play early on, the Sharks were able to break the stalemate at 6:05. Freddie Hamilton (5th) got the Sharks on the board with a highlight reel goal, pulling the puck past a Falcon's defenseman and sniping it top shelf over the shoulder of Curtis McElhinney, giving the Sharks a 1-0 lead. The Sharks were successful in killing off both of Springfield's two power plays in the period as Harri Sateri was sharp with 11 saves.

Springfield's relentless pressure finally paid dividends at 6:00 of the second period, when Tomas Kubalik (7th) redirected a nice pass from Michael Chaput past Harri Sateri, evening the score at 1-1. Worcester's Matt Pelech (9th FM) and Springfield's Dalton Smith (6th FM) dropped the gloves just past the midway point of the second period, after Pelech hit Smith in open ice, but not many punches connected. The Sharks grabbed ahold of the lead once again less than five minutes later, when Worcester won a draw in the offensive zone back to Denny Urban (2nd), who wristed a shot through traffic to the back of the net, making it a 2-1 game.

The Falcons found the equalizer yet again just over six minutes into the third period, when Sean Collins (7th) cleaned up a rebound on the doorstep after a nice passing sequence from Manchester, tying the game 2-2. However, it didn't take Worcester long to answer. It was Bracken Kearns (9th) deflected home a Denny Urban bomb from the point on a Shark's power play, rifling it past Curtis McElhinney, giving the Sharks a 3-2 lead. After the Sharks were called for a penalty with just 2:11 left in regulation, Tomas Kubalik (8th) notched his second goal of the game, burying a rebound, sending the game into overtime.

The second shot of overtime came at 4:18 and sent Sharks fans home happy. After Mike Wilson made a nice backhand feed, Nick Petrecki (1st) collected the puck at the point and wristed the puck through traffic, finding the back of the cage and giving the Sharks a 4-3 win.

The Sharks overall record improves to 19-13-1-2 (41pts in 35gp) and 8-5-1-1 at the DCU Center.

Notes: FIVE GUYS BURGERS Three Stars: 3rd star: Tomas Kubalik (2-0-2) 2nd star: Denny Urban (1-1-2) 1st star: Nick Petrecki (1-0-1, GWG)... Final shots were 28-25 in favor of Springfield... Curtis McElhinney made 21 saves on 25 shots for Springfield... Harri Sateri made 25 saves on 28 shots for Worcester.... Worcester went 1-for-3 on the power play while Springfield went 1-for-4... Taylor Doherty (inj), Sena Acolatse (inj), Danny Groulx (inj), Tim Kennedy (inj), Matt Irwin (scr), Mikael Tam (scr), Jimmy Bonneau (scr), Yanni Gourde (scr), Patrick Rissmiller (scr), James Sheppard (scr), and Matt Tennyson (scr) did not dress for Worcester... Mike Wilson played in his first game of the season for the Sharks...Petrecki's game-winner was his first goal of the season...the Sharks have now won three straight home games and have played five straight one goal games on home ice (3-1-0-1).... Worcester now has 44 fighting majors through 35 games...the Sharks are now 35-17-3 all time vs. the Falcons.... Jon Matsumoto (1-5-6) and Brodie Reid (2-2-4)now have a three game point streak.

Coming up...

Worcester will head to Albany on Saturday to square off against the Devils at 5pm.

The 5th annual High School Hockey Clash between the Hudson Hawks and the Marlboro Panthers will take place on Sunday, January 13 at 12pm before the Sharks host the Portland Pirates at 3pm. Doors open at 11:30am with one ticket to get you entry into both games! As always, kid's tickets are just $5 with the purchase of an adult ticket.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 11, 2013


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