Roughnecks Roll Over Rebel
December 28, 2002 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Calgary Roughnecks News Release
Led by captain Tracey Kelusky, the Calgary Roughnecks showed that last year was last year and this season is a totally different story dropping division rivals the Ottawa Storm 14-9 Saturday afternoon in the nation's capital.
Kelusky lived up the anticipation of the organization and it's fans, when he was selected by the Roughnecks with the first overall pick in the Montreal Express dispersal draft, leading all Roughnecks scorers with his four goals and five assists for nine total points in his Roughnecks debut. His renowned offensive creativity was highlighted on more than one occasion as he dazzled the Ottawa faithful with highlight reel assists in the first half.
"It felt good today, the boys were ready and we showed that the Calgary Roughnecks are a different team," said Kelusky named the Player of the Game following the win.
Goaltender Curtis Palidwor was outstanding in his Roughnecks debut turning aside all but nine Ottawa shots en route to his first win of the season.
Palidwor was acquired December 13th from the Columbus Landsharks in exchange for the Roughnecks first round selection in the 2003 National Lacrosse League Entry Draft.
A third newcomer to the Calgary Roster also stood out in the win as defenseman Tyson Leies scored a hat-trick ripping three breakaway goals.
Besides scoring goals, Leies helped anchor a much-improved Roughnecks defense that held the opposition to under 10 goals for the first time in the club's short history. Native Calgarian Kaleb Toth also chipped in with a hat-trick.
"It's a great start to the season, we identified some breakdowns we need to address prior to our next game, but overall I'm very satisfied with the effort and the result," said Roughnecks head coach Chris Hall.
The Roughnecks return to the Pengrowth Saddledome to open the home portion of the 2003 NLL season on Sunday, January 12 at 1:30pm when the New Jersey Storm visit Calgary.
CALGARY ROUGHNECKS @ OTTAWA REBEL FINAL GAME REPORT
National Lacrosse League -- Saturday, December 28 at Ottawa, ON (Civic Centre)
Calgary Roughnecks 14, Ottawa Rebel 9
Calgary Record: 1-0
Ottawa Record: 0-1
Player of the Game:
Calgary attacker Tracey Kelusky with a nine-point game (4 goals, 5 assists).
Scorers:
Calgary -- Tracey Kelusky 4 goals, 5 assists; Tyson Leies 3 goals, 1 assist; Kaleb Toth 3 goals; Kyle Goundrey 2 goals, 2 assists; John Olson 2 goals; Jason Wulder 4 assists.
Ottawa -- Stephen Evans 2 goals, 2 assists; Kevin Howard 2 goals, 1 assist; Linsday Plunkett 2 goals; Brad Self 1 goal, 1 assist; Mat Giles 1 goal; Jamie Roy 1 goal; Jason Clark 3 assists; Matt Disher 1 assist; Scott Self 1 assist.
Synopsis:
Tracey Kelusky haunted his former coach Terry Sanderson (now the coach in Ottawa) with a nine-point game as the Calgary Roughnecks downed the Ottawa Rebel 14-9 in front of 3,642 fans at the Civic Centre in the opening game of the National Lacrosse League for both teams.
Kelusky, who played for Sanderson for the Montreal Express last season, figured on each of his team's first six goals. The Roughnecks owned a 5-2 lead at the halftime intermission and controlled most of the game.
Mat Giles scored for Ottawa with 4:14 remaining in the fourth quarter to make the score 11-8 in favour of Calgary, but the Roughnecks rallied for the final three goals of the game to put the Rebel out of commission.
National Lacrosse League Stories from December 28, 2002
- Storm win thriller in Rochester, 13-11 - New Jersey Storm
- Roughnecks Roll Over Rebel - Calgary Roughnecks
- Calgary Topples Rebel, 14-9 - Ottawa Rebel
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