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RiverBlades Clinch Playoff Spot in Busy Week

March 3, 2003 - ECHL (ECHL)
Arkansas RiverBlades News Release


The Arkansas RiverBlades went 1-2 last week, and clinched the team's first playoff berth since the 2000-2001 season. The Blades are currently in fourth place in the Southwest Division with a record of 29-20-9, 67 points, six ahead of fifth-place Jackson.

Last week...The RiverBlades kicked off their week with a road contest Wednesday in Baton Rouge. Damon Whitten scored two goals and an assist, and Mike Cirillo added three helpers, but the Blades fell short by a score of 4-3. Scott Fankhouser made 31 saves in the loss for Arkansas.

Arkansas then returned home the next night for another divisional battle with the Pensacola Ice Pilots. Eric Long and Matt Pagnutti each tallied a goal and an assist, and Buddy Smith had two assists as the Blades edged the Ice Pilots 4-3. Mike Cirillo and Dean Stock also lit the lamp in the win for Arkansas.

Saturday, the Blades traveled to Biloxi to take on the first-place Mississippi Sea Wolves. Eric Long and Buddy Smith scored early to give the Blades a 2-0 lead, but Arkansas could not hold it, as Dave Paradise scored twice, including the game-winner, to give Mississippi the 3-2 win. Matt Pagnutti added two more assists, and Scott Fankhouser stopped 35 in the narrow defeat.

Team Leaders... Buddy Smith set a new team record with 61 assists and 85 points. Smith has scored 13 points in his last 10 games, and 7 in his last 5. He is tied with Brian McCullough of Reading and Rejean Stringer of Columbia for the ECHL lead with 85 points. Jason Bermingham has set a new professional-best with 60 points, surpassing the 59 he racked up last season. Bermingham leads the team with 29 goals and 14 power-play goals. Terry Marchant has set new career-highs with 19 goals and 39 assists for 58 points, third on the team. Marchant has also set a new team record with 5 short-handed goals. Matt Pagnutti has a career-high 14 goals and ranks third among ECHL defensemen with 50 points. Pagnutti is tied for the lead among blue-liners with 12 power-play tallies. Captain Eric Long leads the team with a +7 rating, and is tied for fifth among D-men with 45 points. Mike Sandbeck has set new career marks this year with 12 goals and 23 points. Damon Whitten has 8 points in his last 10 games, and has 31 on the year, just 1 shy of the 32 he tallied as a rookie last year with Greenville.

Ernie in the AHL...Ernie Hartlieb continues to shine with the AHL's Worcester IceCats, scoring 5 points in 8 games and helping Worcester go 2-1-2 in its last 5. The IceCats now stand at 24-24-12-3, 63 points, and currently hold the No. 8 seed in the AHL's Eastern Conference.

A look ahead...The RiverBlades remain on the road this week, traveling to Lexington to take on the Lexington Men-O-War on Friday and Sunday. The Blades return home to the Alltel Arena on Friday, March 14th, hosting the Louisiana IceGators. All games can be heard on the CSN radio network, FM 101 The River, and on the Internet at www.riverblades.com.



ECHL Stories from March 3, 2003


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.

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