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RiverBlades Get 3 of 4 Points in Weekend

March 10, 2003 - ECHL (ECHL)
Arkansas RiverBlades News Release


The Arkansas RiverBlades went 1-0-1 last week during the team's 2-game road trip to Lexington. The Blades are currently in fourth place in the Southwest Division with a record of 30-20-10, 70 points, four ahead of fifth-place Jackson.

Last week...The RiverBlades hit the road for a 2-game weekend set with the Lexington Men-O-War at Rupp Arena. First, on Friday night, Mike Cirillo scored twice, and Terry Marchant assisted twice as the Blades went on to defeat the Men-O-War by a score of 4-3. Scott Fankhouser made 34 saves to earn the victory in net for the Blades, who also got goals from captain Eric Long and Jason Bermingham..

Then, on Sunday, the Blades, despite dressing only 13 skaters, earned a regulation tie with the Men-O-War, but went on to lose in a shootout. Damon Whitten scored his third short-handed goal of the season, and Sam Paquet and Jason Bermingham each added goals in defeat for the RiverBlades. Scott Fankhouser again played well between the pipes for Arkansas, stopping 32 of 35 Men-O-War offerings. The Blades played without 3 key defensemen, as Dean Stork, Matt Pagnutti and Eric Long were not able to play.

Team Leaders... Buddy Smith set a new team record with 63 assists and 87 points to lead the ECHL in both categories. Smith has scored 13 points in his last 10 games, and 6 in his last 5. Jason Bermingham has set a new professional-bests this year with 31 goals and 62 points. Bermingham also leads the team with 14 power-play goals and 225 shots on goal. Terry Marchant has set new career-highs with 19 goals and 42 assists for 61 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 ECHL blue-liners with 12 power-play tallies. Captain Eric Long leads the team with a +8 rating, and is sixth among D-men with 46 points. Mike Sandbeck has set new career marks this year with 12 goals and 12 assists for 24 points. Damon Whitten has 8 points in his last 10 games, and a career-best 33 points, one more than the 32 he scored last year with Greenville. Goaltender Scott Fankhouser is 4-2-2 since joining the Blades, posting a 2.85 goals-against-average and a .906 save percentage with one shutout.

Ernie in the AHL...Ernie Hartlieb has played well with the AHL's Worcester IceCats, scoring 3 goals and 3 assists for 6 points in 10 games with 10 penalty minutes. Hartlieb has scored 2 power-play goals in that span and Worcester has posted a 5-2-3 record, holding the No. 9 spot in the AHL's Eastern Conference playoff hunt.

A look ahead...The RiverBlades play Tuesday in Mississippi, but then return home to the Alltel Arena on Friday, hosting the Louisiana IceGators. It marks the beginning of "March Madness, RiverBlades Style." Friday, the Blades will give away an "Instant Getaway" to Isle of Capri Casino, and Monday, the Blades will wear and then auction off special "St. Patrick's Day" jerseys. Full details can be found on www.riverblades.com. 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 10, 2003


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