Sports stats



Plymouth Defeats Sudbury, 4-1, In Game 1 of Rogers OHL Championship Series

May 4, 2007 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Plymouth Whalers News Release


PLYMOUTH - The Plymouth Whalers scored four unanswered goals in the third period to overcome a 1-0 deficit and the Whalers went on to defeat the Sudbury Wolves, 4-1, in the first game of the best-of-seven Ontario Hockey League Rogers Championship Final series. The game was played before 3,200 at the Compuware Sports Arena.

First star Andrew Fournier scored twice in the decisive third period for the Whalers and added an assist while James Neal (team-leading 11th of the playoff) and Chris Terry (6) added singles. Earlier, Matt Dias scored the lone Sudbury goal in the first period, stuffing a shot past Plymouth goaltender Michal Neuvirth for his seventh goal of the playoffs.

Neal tied the game at 1-1 on a power play at 1:43 of the third period when he beat Sudbury goaltender Sebastian Dahm with a severe angle shot from the right wing. Fournier scored the eventual game-winner at 7:56 of the Whalers' shorthanded when he picked the puck off a Sudbury defender and beat Dahm with a shot in tight five-hole.Terry gave Plymouth a 3-1 lead at 9:36 when he accepted Fournier's pass and scored with a one-timer from the lower rim of the right circle. Fournier closed the scoring with 51 sections left in the period.

Plymouth - who played the game without suspended left wing Tom Sestito - used overall depth for the victory.

"I thought it was a very entertaining game," said Plymouth President, General Manager and Head Coach Mike Vellucci. "I was proud of our players. We stuck with our game plan, even though things weren't going our way over the first two periods. But we stuck with it and played hard. We got a lucky bounce on the power play goal to tie the game and then we dominated the rest of the way."

"On the (shorthanded) goal, I was forechecking their defenseman and he coughed up the puck," Fournier said of the game-winning goal. "I beat him wide and went back-hand five-hole."

Plymouth outshot Sudbury, 37-30, with Neuvirth running his record to 11-2 in the post season.

The rest of the Ontario Hockey League Rogers Championship Series is as follows:

Game 2 - Sun., May 6 at Plymouth, 3:00. Game 3 - Tues., May 8 at Sudbury, 7:30. Game 4 - Wed., May 9 at Sudbury, 7:30. Game 5 - Fri., May 11 at Plymouth, 7:05. Game 6 - Sun., May 13 at Sudbury, TBA. Game 7 - Tues., May 15 at Plymouth, 7:05.

Tickets are available by calling the Compuware Sports Arena box office at (734) 453-8400 or by going to Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com.

• Discuss this story on the Ontario Hockey League message board...

Ontario Hockey League Stories from May 4, 2007


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central