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ECHL Peoria Rivermen

Rivermen Unleash Offense Late Against Dayton with 5-2 Win in Home Opener

October 22, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Peoria Rivermen News Release


Peoria, Ill. (October 22, 2004) – The Peoria Rivermen scored five unanswered goals, including four in the third period, to beat the archrival Dayton Bombers 5-2 on Friday in front of a Peoria ECHL-record, home-opening crowd of 7,593 at Carver Arena.

Three-time ECHL All-Star Brian McCullough opened the third-period scoring just 53 seconds into the action. McCullough, a three-time ECHL All-Star who signed just yesterday after leaving the German Second Division, took a pass from Igor Valeev in the high slot after racing off the bench, did a 180 and slid a low shot inside the right post past a screened Andrew Penner.

The Rivermen took their first lead of the night at 5:08 on the power play with McCullough setting up Valeev this time. McCullough worked into the zone down the middle of the ice, held on to the puck after faking a shot and maneuvered to the left side of the goal. McCullough snapped a cross-ice pass to Valeev in the right face-off circle for a one-time slap shot tally.

Valeev earned First Star honors with a goal and two assists.

Peoria pushed its lead to 4-2 at 12:37 of the final session. Rookie left wing Kris Kasper muscled the puck free behind the Dayton goal and fed Trevor Baker at the right side of the net for a one-touch tap-in between Penner's left pad and the post.

The Rivermen completed the scoring with 1:57 left in regulation. Kasper brought the puck down the left wing to the top of the face-off circle, where he wristed the puck through the legs of an unscreened Penner for his first professional tally.

The Rivermen (1-0-0) improved to 4-3-2 in ECHL home openers with the victory. Rivermen Head Coach Jason Christie is 13 wins away from tying Pat Kelly's Rivermen International Hockey League (IHL)/ECHL All-Time Wins Record (Regular Season and Playoffs) at 209. The Bombers (0-1-0) dropped their first game under new local ownership and new Head Coach Don MacAdam.

Rivermen netminder Alfie Michaud stopped 31 of 33 shots in the win, while Penner turned away 31 of 36 in defeat.

The Bombers dominated much of the first period, outshooting Peoria 8-2 for much of it, but they could only muster one goal. Off a draw in the right-wing face-off circle in the Peoria zone, Janne Jokila picked up a loose puck off the boards, curled out to the high slot untouched and snapped his first of the season over the glove of Michaud.

Dayton made it 2-0 at 4:53 of the second period on the power play. Shawn Limpright, an ECHL All-Star with Roanoke last season, slipped a rebound just between Michaud's left pad and the right goal post for his first of the season.

The Rivermen got on the board for the first time this year on rookie Justin Maiser's first professional tally. Defenseman Bryce Charpentier held the puck in at the right point in the Dayton zone and poked it ahead to Valeev at the top face-off circle along the boards. Valeev waited patiently before sending a cross-ice pass to a breaking Maiser, who chipped the puck in from just off the left goal post.

On Friday, October 29, the Rivermen travel to Toledo to face off against the archrival Storm in the first of 11 meetings on the season. Game time is 6:30 p.m. at the Toledo Sports Arena.

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