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Phoenix, Bakersfield Clash This Week in a Battle for the Playoffs

March 3, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Phoenix RoadRunners News Release


'RUNNERS REWIND: The Phoenix RoadRunners snapped a season-high eight-game winless streak Sunday by defeating the Alaska after dropping their first four contests of the week. With a record of 19-33-7 and 45 points, the RoadRunners are currently fifth in the West Division and eighth overall in the National Conference. Phoenix is four points behind Stockton for seventh and two points ahead of Bakersfield who is currently in ninth place. The Thunder has two games in hand over the RoadRunners while the Condors have played three fewer games.

Monday, former RoadRunners' forward Lance Monych and Brandon Schwartz each tallied a goal and added an assist, and goalie Glenn Fisher stopped 35 of 36 shots to lead the Stockton Thunder to a 4-1 victory over the Phoenix RoadRunners before 3,985 at Stockton Arena.

Stockton's (22-29-3) Adam Huxley opened the scoring at 7:32 of the first period when he beat RoadRunners goalie Dave McKee with a low shot from the left-wing circle giving the Thunder a 1-0 lead.

Stockton would build their lead to three goals with a pair of second period tallies. David Rohlf's extended the Thunder lead to 2-0 when he slipped the puck behind McKee on the back door at 9:14 of the period. Brandon Schwartz later finished off a two-on-one rush up the ice with Pat Bateman and slapped the past McKee on the weak side at 11:36 for a 3-0 advantage. The RoadRunners (18-30-7) would finally break the ice as Ryan Walsh collected his ninth goal of the season stuffing Peder Skinner's rebound through Stockton goalie Glenn Fisher at 17:16 of the period.

Monych closed out the scoring with his first goal since returning to Stockton in a trade last week at 11:24 of the third period to seal the win.

Phoenix out-shot Stockton 36-24. McKee stopped 20 shots but fell to 6-11-4 on the season. The RoadRunners went 0-7 on the power play while Stockton was 0-4 with the man-advantage.

Tuesday, Luke Curtin tallied a pair of goals to propel the Fresno Falcons to a 5-2 win over the Phoenix RoadRunners before 3,088 at the Save Mart Center.

The Falcons (30-14-8) blitzed the RoadRunners with a three-goal first period. Curtin scored in the opening minute of play beating RoadRunners goalie Cody Rudkowsky from the left-wing circle at 0:39 seconds for a 1-0 lead. Matt Quinn extended the lead to two when he collected Daryl Marcoux's rebound in front of the net and slapped it past Rudkowsky at 16:40. Tyler Kindle finished the first period scoring 1:05 seconds following Quinn's goal when he cut to the net from the right-wing boards and tipped the puck past Rudkowsky on the short side at 17:45 giving Fresno a commanding 3-0 advantage going into the first intermission.

The RoadRunners (18-31-7) would cut into the Fresno lead at 6:52 of the second period on the power play when Ian Turner's shot deflected off a Falcons' body and rolled right to Peder Skinner. Skinner settled the puck and slapped it past an out-stretched Fresno goalie Kris Mayotte for the score.

Curtin netted his second of the game when he split the pads of Rudkowsky with a slap shot from the high slot at 6:18 of the third period on the power play to make it 4-1. Fresno's Pierre-Olivier Beaulieu scored an un-assisted, shorthanded empty-net goal at 18:11 and the RoadRunners Nicolas Bachand scored his first goal in a Phoenix uniform at 19:01 on the power play to complete the scoring.

Fresno out-shot Phoenix 33-27. Rudkowsky stopped 28 shots but fell to 9-19-3 on the season. The RoadRunners went 2-8 on the power play while Fresno was 1-5 with the man-advantage.

Thursday, Sean O'Connor tallied a pair of goals and Gino Guyer added three assists but it was not enough as the Alaska Aces defeated the Phoenix RoadRunners 6-3 before 2,835 at US Airways Center.

Following a scoreless first period, the two clubs traded six goals in the middle frame. Alaska (29-19-5) jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of power play goals in the first three minutes of the second period. Peter Metcalf beat RoadRunners goalie Cody Rudkowsky with a slap shot from the right point on a two-man advantage power play just 37 seconds into the period for the game's first tally. Matt Shasby extended Alaska's lead to 2-0 when he received a cross-ice pass down low from Josh Soares and tapped the puck behind Rudkowsky at 2:22 on the power play. The RoadRunners (18-32-7) retaliated at 10:43 on the man-advantage when Sean O'Connor scored his first of the evening beating Alaska goalie Mike Brown off the post and into the net to cut the deficit to 2-1. The Aces quickly countered though as Vladimir Novak stripped a RoadRunners' defenseman of the puck, broke in alone on Rudkowsky, and stuffed the puck through his pads at 11:26 for a 3-1 advantage. Kimbi Daniels extended the Alaska lead to 4-1 when he beat Rudkowsky with a snap shot from the left-wing circle at 13:12 of the period. O'Connor however would cut the Aces lead in half before the period ended as he finished off a great individual effort by moving the puck through Corbin Schmidt's skates and slapping it over the shoulder of Brown at 15:57.

The Aces quickly put the game out of reach scoring twice in a two-minute span in the first four minutes of the third period. Daniels netted his second of the game at 1:15 of the third and Michael Lambert scored at 3:15 to give the Aces a 6-2 lead. Francois-Pierre Guenette assisted on both goals. Peder Skinner gave Phoenix a bit of life when he beat Brown with a slap shot from left wall at 11:33 of the third period, but the RoadRunners could not muster anything else.

Phoenix out-shot Alaska 40-28. Rudkowsky stopped 22 shots and fell to 9-20-3 on the season. The RoadRunners went 1-7 on the power play while Alaska was 2-5 with the man-advantage.

Friday, Daniel Sisca scored a pair of goals and goaltender Taylor Dakers stopped 31 shots in his RoadRunners debut, but the Alaska Aces used two goals from Matt Robinson to defeat the Phoenix RoadRunners 4-2 before 4,477 at US Airways Center.

Alaska (30-19-5) opened the scoring at 15:19 of the first period when Brett Hemingway scored on a back-door play at the side of the RoadRunners net.

The Aces built their lead to two goals just 2:24 into the second period as Robinson collected Corbin Schmidt's rebound and stuffed it behind Dakers. The RoadRunners (18-33-7) countered at 9:11 to cut the deficit to 2-1. Taylor Christie's shot from the left point deflected off Alaska goalie Mike Brown's glove, and Sisca knocked the rebound down and into the cage for the tally. The two clubs would trade goals in the final minute of the second period. Josh Soares found an open Vladimir Novak at the left side of the net, and Novak went upstairs with a shot beating Dakers over the left shoulder at 19:08 to give Alaska a 3-1 lead. Phoenix responded 13 seconds later when off an Alaska turnover in their defensive zone, Dusty Jamieson found a wide open Sisca who slapped the puck by Brown and in at 19:21 to pull the RoadRunners to within one goal heading into the second intermission.

In a third period in which Alaska out-shot Phoenix 14-9, neither club could find the back of the net as both goalies Dakers and Brown did their jobs. Robinson put the finishing touches on the win when he scored into the empty-net at 19:07.

Phoenix out-shot Alaska 40-35. Dakers fell to 0-1-0 on the season. The RoadRunners went 0-5 on the power play while Alaska was 0-6 with the man-advantage.

Sunday, Dusty Jamieson tallied a pair of goals and Mitch Carefoot added three assists to propel the Phoenix RoadRunners to a 5-1 win over the Alaska Aces before 3,904 at US Airways Center.

The RoadRunners (19-33-7) built a 2-0 first period lead powered by goals from Jamieson and Ian Turner. Jamieson collected his first in a RoadRunners uniform at 9:52 on the power play when he snapped a shot from the left-wing circle through the pads of Alaska goalie Derek Gustafson for a 1-0 lead. Turner extended the Phoenix lead to two when Gustafson misplayed Turner's centering pass and watched the puck deflect off his pads and into the net at 17:13.

The RoadRunners continued their attack in the middle period with two more goals to take a commanding 4-0 lead into the second intermission. Jamieson scored his second of the game when he punched in a rolling puck in front of Gustafson at 5:05 of the second to give the RoadRunners a 3-0 edge. Daniel Sisca extended the margin to four goals when he finished off a nifty pass from Mitch Carefoot from behind the Alaska net at 12:33.

Alaska (30-20-5) awoke in the third period out-shooting the RoadRunners 18-7. Brett Hemingway put the Aces on the scoreboard when he flipped Olivier Filion's pass behind RoadRunners goalie Taylor Dakers at 5:42 on the power play to cut the Phoenix lead to 4-1. But that's as close as Alaska would come as Dakers shut the door for the rest of the period. Peder Skinner added an insurance goal at 15:50 to complete the scoring.

Alaska out-shot Phoenix 35-23. Dakers stopped 34 shots to improve to 1-1-0 on the season. The RoadRunners went 1-3 on the power play while Alaska was 1-5 with the man-advantage.

TAYLOR-MADE DEBUT: Rookie goalie Taylor Dakers impressed in his weekend debut with the RoadRunners after being re-assigned by San Jose from the Worcester Sharks of the American Hockey League Friday. Dakers went 1-1 in two games against Alaska stopping 65 of 69 shots to post a 2.01 goals against average and a .942% save percentage. Dakers, 21, posted a 4-10-1 record with a 3.24 goals against average and a .886% save percentage in 18 games with Worcester. The Langley, British Columbia native went 82-42-7 in four seasons with the Kootenay Ice of the Western Hockey League with a 2.25 goals against average, a .916% save percentage, and 18 shutouts in 137 games. He was named a 2006-07 WHL Eastern Conference Second-Team All-Star after collecting a career-best 33 wins last season. Dakers was selected by San Jose in the fifth round (140th overall) at the 2005 NHL Entry Draft.

JAMIESON GETS ROLLING: Veteran Dusty Jamieson notched his first two goals in a RoadRunners uniform Sunday, and now has four points (two goals, two assists) in four games since being acquired from Charlotte in exchange for forward Justin Maiser. Jamieson enjoyed his second multi-goal game and his seventh multiple-point effort of the season. The six-year professional currently ranks fourth on the RoadRunners in scoring with 19 goals and 30 points in 57 games.

PERFECTION AT THE START: Sunday's win improved the RoadRunners record to a perfect 6-0-0 in first games of a new month. Phoenix has defeated Utah (October), Fresno (November), Utah (December), Idaho (January), Idaho (February), and Alaska (March) to kick off every month of the season to date. The RoadRunners stiffest test may come in April when they host the National Conference leaders, the Las Vegas Wranglers on April 1.

DOWN THE STRETCH THEY COME: The RoadRunners have 13 games remaining in the regular season with seven of those coming at US Airways Center. Phoenix faces off against Las Vegas four times, Alaska three times, Fresno twice, Victoria twice, and Bakersfield twice to conclude the year. The combined winning percentage of their opponents is .617% with a record of 400-228-103.

MILESTONES ON DECK: Forward Ryan Walsh is one game shy of 100 for his professional career...Defenseman Ian Turner is five points shy of 100 for his career...Center Daniel Sisca is one games away from 200 for his career and nine points shy of the 200 point plateau... Forward Jeff Smith skated in his 300th career game Thursday.

NEWS & NOTES: Center Daniel Sisca is just four points shy of tying the RoadRunners' ECHL single-season points total. Sisca has a team-leading 53 points with 16 goals and 37 assists...Defenseman Ian Turner registered his first three-point game of the season Sunday with a goal and two assists. Turner now has eight multiple-point games this year....Defenseman Chris Murray was released from his professional try-out agreement with Springfield of the American Hockey League Thursday and signed a PTO with Albany Friday.

FACE-OFF AGAINST KIDS CANCER CONCLUDES MARCH 14: The Phoenix RoadRunners' second "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" is currently underway.

"Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" is a program that will pair RoadRunners' players with 20 children from across Arizona who suffer from pediatric cancer. For the next two months, the players and children will participate in a series of four social events with the hopes of creating a lasting relationship and increased awareness about childhood cancer in the community.

The "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" will culminate at 7:11 p.m. Friday, March 14 when the RoadRunners take the ice against the Victoria Salmon Kings wearing special commemorative jerseys dedicated to those Phoenix Children's patients participating in the program. These jerseys will be auctioned off immediately after the game with the proceeds benefiting the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Phoenix Children's Hospital and Caps For Kids, a national non-profit organization which provides hats autographed by athletes and celebrities to children who lose their hair due to the effects of chemotherapy.

For more information or to find out how you can donate to the "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer", contact the RoadRunners at (602) 379-7870.

RECESS WITH THE ROADRUNNERS TUESDAY: The RoadRunners will host their second annual "Recess with the RoadRunners" from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Tuesday at US Airways Center.

With over 1,200 school-children Valley wide expected to participate, "Recess with the RoadRunners" will educate students about the sport of hockey, plus tie together a variety of subjects including math, geography, science, and physical education into a special one-hour lesson.

Students will also have the opportunity to watch a RoadRunners practice live from 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. and meet the players and coaches following practice.

Tickets are still available for "Recess with the RoadRunners". Admission is $5 and includes a ticket to the RoadRunners game on Thursday against the Bakersfield Condors along with a free RoadRunners foam finger and a free autographed school day diploma. If you're school is interested in participating or for more information, contact Bob Hamer at (602) 379-7527.

WATCH THE 'RUNNERS LIVE IN '07-08: The RoadRunners have teamed up with B2 Networks to bring you live action of Phoenix RoadRunners hockey in 2007-08. RoadRunners fans will be able to click the "Watch Online" link at www.phxroadrunners.com to view and listen to the game. These broadcasts are available to fans for a charge of $6 per game. All 72 RoadRunners broadcasts will be available on-line. A cable or DSL Internet connection and Windows Media Player 9 are required to view the games.

UP NEXT: The RoadRunners host the Bakersfield Condors at 7:11 p.m. Thursday and visit the Las Vegas Wranglers at 8:05 p.m. Saturday. Great seats are still available beginning as low as $8 and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at (480) 784-4444, purchasing online at ticketmaster.com or visiting the US Airways Center Box Office. Catch all the action of both games live on Independent 1310 KXAM and at www.phxroadrunners.com beginning with "RoadRunners Countdown" twenty minutes prior to face-off. Information on season tickets, half-season packages, and flex plans for the 2007-08 season of Phoenix RoadRunners Hockey are available by calling (602) 462-GOAL.

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