Ring ceremony dampened by 4-0 loss to Vegas

November 17, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL)
Alaska Aces News Release


ANCHORAGE, Alaska - On a night when Alaska collected its 2006 Kelly Cup championship rings, the Las Vegas Wranglers exacted a measure of revenge for last year's playoff defeat with an emphatic 4-0 shutout of the Aces before 4,449 at Sullivan Arena.

A total of 14 players from last year's ECHL champions, 10 on the active roster and four not currently with the club but still living in the Anchorage area, were presented their rings by Aces ownership in a pre-game ceremony near center ice. Once the game began, Alaska still appeared to have its mind on the heroics of last year, when the Aces survived a grueling West Division Finals against Las Vegas with a triple overtime victory in Game Six to win the series 4-2.

Marco Peluso, one of the seven Wranglers who played in that dramatic playoff tilt, scored just 16 seconds into the game, and Alaska never seemed to recover. Aki Seitsonen scored the first of three Las Vegas power play goals at 4:57, and the Wranglers cruised into the dressing room leading 2-0, having out-shot the Aces 11-3.

A late first period penalty set Las Vegas up with a power play to start the second, and Chris Neiszner pumped in his own rebound to build the margin to 3-0 just 64 seconds into the frame. When Ryan Bonni's drive from the blue line found the net barely a minute later, the Wranglers lead was 4-0 and Alaska starter Derek Gustafson was pulled, having stopped 10 of 14 shots.

Rookie Isaac Reichmuth replaced Gustafson and stemmed the tide, stopping all 19 shots he faced, but the Aces never seriously threatened, managing just five shots in the second period and 12 more, mostly from the perimeter, in the third. Mike McKenna became the first opposing netminder to shut out Alaska at Sullivan Arena in the regular season since December 18, 2004, when a Matt Underhill-led Mississippi club turned the trick, 3-0. Las Vegas also blanked the Aces 5-0 in the opener of last year's West Finals.

The Wranglers have lost just one of their first 13 games (5-1-7), while Alaska slips to 6-4 overall and into fourth place in the West Division, although the Aces have a better winning percentage than either of the second (Phoenix) or third (Victoria) place clubs. Alaska and Las Vegas return to action against one another Saturday at 2:05 p.m. and Sunday at 1:05 p.m. Both weekend games will be broadcast live on KFQD 750 AM, with live coverage starting 15 minutes before the opening face-off. Tickets are now available at the Aces office, www.alaskaaces.com, and all Fred Meyer locations in Anchorage. Fans also may call Ticketmaster at 562-4800.



ECHL Stories from November 17, 2006


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