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RoadRunners Slide Back To Eighth

February 25, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Phoenix RoadRunners News Release


'RUNNERS REWIND: The Phoenix RoadRunners could not continue their momentum from Idaho as they managed just one out of a possible six points last week. With a record of 18-29-7 and 43 points, the RoadRunners are currently fifth in the West Division and eighth overall in the National Conference. Phoenix is two points behind Stockton for seventh and two points ahead of Bakersfield who is currently in ninth place. The Thunder and Condors each have one game in hand over the RoadRunners.

Monday, Nathan Gillies produced his first multi-goal game of the season with a pair of tallies but it was not enough as the Phoenix RoadRunners fell to the Victoria Salmon Kings 6-4 before 2,629 at US Airways Center.

A very entertaining and offensive first period produced six total goals. Victoria (32-14-5) struck for the first three of the game in the opening eight minutes. Matt Kelly started the Salmon Kings scoring just 1:02 into the first on the power play when he picked up a rebound at the side of the net and stuffed it past RoadRunners goalie Dave McKee for a 1-0 lead. Dylan Yeo made it 2-0 minutes later at 5:44 scoring his eighth goal of the season from the high slot. Darryl Lloyd extended Victoria's advantage to 3-0 beating McKee on a breakaway at 7:03 turning the game into a possible runaway. But the RoadRunners (18-28-6) responded with a pair of goals 44 seconds apart to get right back into the contest. Mitch Carefoot collected his own rebound in front of the net and shot it over the left shoulder of Victoria goalie Billy Thompson at 7:44 to get Phoenix on the scoreboard. Nathan Gillies made it a 3-2 game just seconds later when Peder Skinner fed him the puck at the top of the crease and Gillies tapped it into an open net at 8:28. But Victoria would have the period's final say as Kyle McLeod tipped in his own rebound at 18:04 on the power play for a 4-2 edge after twenty minutes.

McLeod scored his second of the night to open the middle period beating McKee from the left wing circle with a snap shot at 5:01 on the power play to extend the Kings lead to 5-2. Phoenix got one back as Tom Sawatske's shot was re-directed by Gillies' stick in the slot and trickled past Thompson at 10:49. But Wes Goldie gave Victoria their second three-goal lead of the game with a shorthanded goal at 14:49.

Chris Stevens gave Phoenix some life in the third period when he deflected Reagan Rome's point shot over the head of Thompson, but despite some good chances at the finish the RoadRunners could not muster the tying goals.

Phoenix out-shot Victoria 36-34. McKee stopped 28 shots but fell to 6-10-3 on the season. The RoadRunners went 0-4 on the power play while Victoria was 3-6 with the man-advantage.

Thursday, James Sanford broke a 4-4 tie 53 seconds into overtime on a power play to lift the Utah Grizzlies to a 5-4 win over the Phoenix RoadRunners before 3,126 at US Airways Center.

A spirited first period saw the RoadRunners (18-28-7) build a 2-1 lead. Phoenix opened the scoring at 5:07 on the power play when Daniel Sisca beat a screened Utah goalie Mike Mole with a snap shot from the blue line to give the RoadRunners a 1-0 lead. Utah's Rob Sirianni tied the contest at 1-1 scoring on a penalty shot at 8:27 of the first. The RoadRunners reclaimed their lead back before the end of the period as Jeff Smith jammed his own rebound through Mole on the short side at 16:48.

Utah (28-22-5) would square the contest at 2-2 when Garett Bembridge re-directed Tyler Haskins' centering pass through the pads of RoadRunners goalie Dave McKee at 3:21 of the second period. Phoenix would promptly counter at 7:01 when Mitch Carefoot's drive from the right-wing circle deflected off Mole and trickled into the open net behind him giving the RoadRunners a 3-2 edge. The Grizzlies however would end the period with two goals on the power play to take their first lead of the game into the second intermission. Olivier Labelle scored his 22nd goal of the year collecting his own rebound out in front and snapping the puck behind McKee at 9:37 to tie the contest. Sirianni scored his second goal of the game at 18:41 converting off a weird deflection off the glass behind McKee for a 4-3 advantage after forty minutes.

The RoadRunners would tie the score at 5:31 of the third period when Brett Angel was credited with his first goal in a RoadRunners uniform as his push to the cage deflected off a Utah defenseman's skate and trickled into the net. While both teams had chances, the score remain tied setting up overtime.

In the overtime session, Sanford beat McKee with a slap shot from the high slot on a four-on-three power play for the game-winner.

Phoenix out-shot Utah 39-35. McKee stopped 30 shots but fell to 6-10-4 on the season. The RoadRunners went 1-2 on the power play while Utah was 3-8 with the man-advantage.

Saturday, the Utah Grizzlies scored three times in the third period to come from behind and defeat the Phoenix RoadRunners 3-1 before a season-high crowd of 5,007 at US Airways Center.

Following a scoreless opening twenty minutes, Tom Sawatske got the RoadRunners (18-29-7) on the scoreboard first at 8:22 of the second when he beat Utah goalie Mike Mole with a shot from the high slot.

Utah (29-22-5) tied the score at 1-1 at 5:27 of the third period as Ryan Kinasewich slipped behind the defense and worked the puck around RoadRunners goalie Cody Rudkowsky and into the net for the equalizer. The score would remain tied until the final five minutes of regulation. On a power play, Tyler Haskins got to the front of the net and puck a backhand shot past Rudkowsky at 16:00 for the go-ahead and eventual game-winning goal. Garett Bembridge added an insurance tally at 17:42 to close the scoring.

Utah out-shot Phoenix 34-32. Rudkowsky stopped 31 shots but fell to 9-18-3 on the season. The RoadRunners went 0-7 on the power play while Utah was 1-5 with the man-advantage.

BUSY WEEK COMING UP: The RoadRunners will play five games in seven nights this week as they look to make up some ground in the National Conference playoff race. Phoenix visits Stockton Monday and Fresno on Tuesday, and returns to US Airways Center for a three-game series Thursday, Friday, and Sunday against Alaska. The RoadRunners trail Stockton by two points for the #7 seed, and Alaska by 18 points for the #6 seed with 19 games remaining in the regular season. Phoenix is 2-4-0 this season against Stockton, 1-4-0 against Fresno, and 1-0-1 against Alaska. It's the second time this year that the RoadRunners have played a five-game week.

THE LUCKY 13: Center Daniel Sisca produced his team-leading 13th multiple-point game of the season Thursday. With four points in his last three games and now 50 total points on the year, Sisca is just seven shy of tying the RoadRunners' ECHL single season point record currently held by Justin Aikins who recorded 27 goals and 30 assists last year.

MILESTONES ON DECK: Forward Ryan Walsh is six games short of 100 for his professional career...Defenseman Ian Turner is 10 points shy of 100 for his career...Center Daniel Sisca is six games away from 200 for his career and 12 points shy of the 200 point plateau... Forward Jeff Smith is three games shy of 300 for his career.

SKATE WITH THE ROADRUNNERS SUNDAY: Don't miss your chance to skate with the Phoenix RoadRunners Sunday following their game against the Alaska Aces. Bring your own skates and join the team for an hour of fun on the ice. A reminder that Sunday's start time is a special 1:00 p.m. face-off.

NEWS & NOTES: The RoadRunners finished 5-4-1 in their 10-game season series with the Utah Grizzlies and are 12-13-2 lifetime against Utah...Phoenix is just 1-22 on the power play in their last five games...Newly acquired forward Nicolas Bachand will make his RoadRunners' debut Monday at Stockton...Forward Nathan Gillies was placed on the seven-day injured reserve Wednesday.

FACE-OFF AGAINST KIDS CANCER AN EARLY SUCCESS: The Phoenix RoadRunners' second "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" is off to a wonderful start following the first two events.

"Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" is a program that will pair RoadRunners' players with 20 children from across Arizona who suffer from pediatric cancer. For the next two months, the players and children will participate in a series of four social events with the hopes of creating a lasting relationship and increased awareness about childhood cancer in the community.

The "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" will culminate at 7:11 p.m. Friday, March 14 when the RoadRunners take the ice against the Victoria Salmon Kings wearing special commemorative jerseys dedicated to those Phoenix Children's patients participating in the program. These jerseys will be auctioned off immediately after the game with the proceeds benefiting the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Phoenix Children's Hospital and Caps For Kids, a national non-profit organization which provides hats autographed by athletes and celebrities to children who lose their hair due to the effects of chemotherapy.

The next "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer" event is Sunday with a post-game locker room tour and special skate with the players following the RoadRunners game against the Alaska Aces.

For more information or to find out how you can donate to the "Face-Off Against Kids Cancer", contact the RoadRunners at (602) 379-7870.

WATCH THE ‘RUNNERS LIVE IN '07-08: The RoadRunners have teamed up with B2 Networks to bring you live action of Phoenix RoadRunners hockey in 2007-08. RoadRunners fans will be able to click the "Watch Online" link at www.phxroadrunners.com to view and listen to the game. These broadcasts are available to fans for a charge of $6 per game. All 72 RoadRunners broadcasts will be available on-line. A cable or DSL Internet connection and Windows Media Player 9 are required to view the games.

UP NEXT: The RoadRunners visit Stockton at 8:00 p.m. Monday and Fresno at 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, and return to US Airways Center for a three-game series with the Alaska Aces at 7:11 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and at 1:00 p.m. Sunday. Great seats are still available beginning as low as $8 and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at (480) 784-4444, purchasing online at ticketmaster.com or visiting the US Airways Center Box Office. Catch the action Tuesday and Friday live on Independent 1310 KXAM and all five games live at www.phxroadrunners.com beginning with "RoadRunners Countdown" twenty minutes prior to face-off. Information on season tickets, half-season packages, and flex plans for the 2007-08 season of Phoenix RoadRunners Hockey are available by calling (602) 462-GOAL.

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