Rolling Into Thanksgiving

November 24, 2003 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies News Release


ATLANTIC CITY – WEEK RECORD: 2-1-0 SEASON RECORD: 11-5-0 2nd NORTHERN

BULLIES REWIND: The Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies got consistent goaltending and an offensive boost from their rookies to take two out of three games the past week, and keep pace three points behind the Johnstown Chiefs for second in the Northern Division.

The Bullies got off to a good start on Tuesday as goaltender Scott Stirling stopped all 26 Las Vegas shots for his second shutout of the season and 11th as a professional, helping the Bullies top the Wranglers 3-0 for the second straight time. The Bullies started the game with a bang when Pierre-Luc Sleigher scored from the right point over Wranglers goalie Marc Magliarditi's shoulder at 3:09 of the first period for a 1-0 lead. Jim Henkel doubled the Bullies advantage in the second period tallying his seventh goal of the season, a power play goal, assisted by Luke Curtin and Jon Cullen at 16:56 for a 2-0 edge. Henkel capped the scoring for the Bullies netting an empty net goal at 19:45 in the third period, making the final score 3-0. Shots were even for the game at 26 apiece. Magliarditi made 23 saves in the loss. The Bullies went 1-4 on the power play while Las Vegas was 0-4.

Friday, in game one of a home-and-home series with Trenton at the Sovereign Bank Arena, the Titans used a goal and an assist from rookie defenseman PJ Martin and two assists from Scott Bertoli to topple the Bullies 2-1. Trenton broke open a scoreless game in the second period when Martin recorded his first professional goal from the left point at 14:11 to give the Titans a 1-0 lead. Matt Zultek would extend the Titans lead in the third period on a two-man advantage when he deflected Martin's wrist shot over the glove of Bullies goaltender Scott Stirling at 10:25 for a 2-0 edge. The Bullies would get one back at 14:06 of the period as Josh Prudden netted his first professional goal, tucking it home past Titans goalie Chris Houle. However it wasn't enough, as Houle would keep the Bullies off the scoreboard for the remainder of the game. The Bullies out-shot the Titans 36-24 and went 0-3 on the power play. Stirling made 22 saves in suffering the defeat.

Saturday, the Bullies quickly bounced back as rookie forward Jon Cullen tallied 2 goals and an assist and goaltender Scott Stirling made 34 saves as the Bullies defeated the Titans 4-2 in the back-end of the series at Boardwalk Hall. The Bullies opened a wild first period of scoring at 7:07 when Aaron Foster tucked home his first professional goal past Titans goalie Chris Houle on the power play to give the Bullies a 1-0 lead. Trenton would quickly counter on the power play themselves at 9:15 when Matt Zultek deflected Dan Riva's shot past Stirling to tie the game at 1-1. The Bullies would take the lead for good just 14 seconds after the Zultek goal when Jon Cullen slipped the puck by Houle at 9:29 for a 2-1 lead. Cullen tacked on his second of the game at 9:21 of the 2nd period for a 3-1 Bullies advantage, and Sam Paolini capped the Bullies scoring at 3:25 of the 3rd. Joe Rybar brought the Titans back to within 2 when he scored on a two-man advantage power play at 12:07, but Trenton was unable to muster anything more. The Titans out-shot the Bullies 37-26 for the game. The Bullies went 1-4 on the power play while the Titans went 2-10. The 10 power plays surrendered by the Bullies was a season-high.

BULLIES "TOP DAWG" AWARD: Each Monday from now until the end of the season, Public Relations and Broadcasting Manager Dan Weiss will select the Bullies "Top Dawg" for the week. This week's winner is rookie forward Jon Cullen who tallied 2 goals and 3 assists. Honorable mention goes out to Pierre-Luc Sleigher who netted a goal and 2 assists over the course of the week. Previous winners below include:

10/20/03: Jim Henkel (4 goals, 2 assists)
10/27/03: Luke Curtin (1 goal, 2 assists)
11/3/03: Brian Fahey (0 goals, 5 assists)
11/10/03: Scott Stirling (55 shots, 53 saves)
11/17/03: Matt Hubbauer (1 goal, first professional)

HOME SWEET HOME: The Bullies 4-2 win over Trenton Saturday at Boardwalk Hall gave them eight wins at home for the season, tied for the most in the ECHL with Johnstown. There are still five teams with unbeaten records in regulation at home (Gwinnett, Florida, Las Vegas, Mississippi, and Fresno), yet neither of those clubs have as many home wins as the Bullies or Johnstown.

TITANS EXTERMINATE BULLIES PENALTY KILL STREAK: After not allowing a power play goal in 14 consecutive chances over 4 games, the Bullies surrendered four in the home-and-home series with Trenton. The 10 power play opportunities the Bullies gave the Titans on Saturday also ranked as a season high. Furthermore, of the 12 power play goals the Bullies have allowed this season, 6 have been against Trenton. Prior to the series with Trenton, the penalty kill had wiped out 53 of the opponents' last 58 power plays, a 91.3% efficiency rate. The penalty kill is still eighth in the ECHL at 85.5%.

YOUNG GUNS: For the first time this season, all the Bullies scoring in Saturday's 4-2 win over Trenton came from rookies. Aaron Foster tallied his first professional goal from Brian Fahey and Josh Prudden. Jon Cullen recorded two goals with assists from Sam Paolini and Pierre-Luc Sleigher. Paolini also picked up a goal himself, his first since October 28 at Roanoke, with assists by Cullen and Sleigher.

YOUNG GUNS PART II: Sam Paolini and Jon Cullen rank fourth and fifth respectively in the ECHL rookie-scoring race. Paolini enjoyed his first multiple point game Saturday since picking up two assists on October 29 in Greensboro. Cullen currently is the hottest Bully with two goals and four assists in his last four games. Defenseman Brian Fahey ranks among the top 15 rookies in scoring with a goal and nine assists on the season.

FIGHT OR FLIGHT? The Bullies refused to be intimidated by the bigger Titans this weekend dropping the gloves five times. In the process, the Bullies incurred a season-high 78 penalty minutes on Saturday, and the 134 minutes combined between the two teams was also a season high. The Bullies rank 9th in the league in penalty minutes with an average of 27.8 per game.

POWER PLAY FOR UNITED WAY: The Bullies have teamed up with United Way of Atlantic County to sponsor the Power Play for United Way. For every power play goal the Bullies score this season, Trump Plaza, Sands Casino Hotel, Advance Door & Supply, Kline Construction and HR Solutions will donate $10 dollars to United Way of Atlantic County. The Bullies broke out of their mini slump with two power play goals this week. The Bullies have tallied 15 power play goals so far in 2003-04, good for $750 dollars towards the Power Play for United Way.

BULLIES IN THE COMMUNITY THIS WEEK: The Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies will kick off their Check It Out Reading Program today with assemblies at Dawes Avenue Elementary School in Somers Point at 2PM and Swift Elementary School and Slaybaugh Elementary School in Egg Harbor Township at 1:45PM and 2:30PM respectively. The Bullies will also head to Catholic Charities on 9 North Georgia Avenue in Atlantic City at 1:30PM this afternoon to help load several thousands of pounds of turkeys to be delivered to the Community FoodBank of New Jersey. "Wooly" makes his rounds this week beginning tomorrow at 12PM at the grand opening of Krispy Kreme on Tilton Rd in Northfield. "Wooly" will also partake in the Thanksgiving festivities on Saturday by joining in the Atlantic City Thanksgiving Parade at 9AM, and then heading to Northfield to cheer on runners in the Turkey Trot to benefit AC Rescue Mission beginning at 10AM. For more information about upcoming events and appearances, contact Dan Weiss at (609) 348-7809.

STAY ONLINE WITH THE BULLIES: Follow the Bullies throughout the season by pointing your computer mouse to www.boardwalkbullies.com. You can read game updates, get to know your favorite Bullies, and find out where "Wooly" and the team will be appearing next. Click and score with www.boardwalkbullies.com!

UP NEXT: The defending ECHL Kelly Cup Champions host the Cincinnati Cyclones at 7:05PM tomorrow at Boardwalk Hall in their final home game in the month of November. Tuesday marks the second Twisted Tuesday of the season presented by Coors Light and Molson Canadian. All college students, casino and service industry workers, and military personnel get in the door for just $6 dollars with a valid ID. Twisted Tuesday also features a special beer and hot dog special for just $4 dollars and the season-long first intermission broomball challenge. Friday and Saturday, the Bullies travel to the War Memorial in Johnstown to battle the Chiefs at 7PM on both nights. Catch all the action this week on ESPN Radio 1450AM and the Surfer Network at www.boardwalkbullies.com beginning with the pre-game show 20 minutes prior to face-off with Dan Weiss.



ECHL Stories from November 24, 2003


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