Scorpions split road games to finish 03-04 season

Published on March 16, 2004 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
New Mexico Scorpions News Release


SCORPIONS RECAP –

ODESSA 3, SCORPIONS 2 – The Jackalopes ended the Scorpions' playoff hopes with a 3-2 win in Odessa last Tuesday. Peter Ambroziak led the Scorpions with a goal and an assist. Daniel Tetrault had the other Scorpions goal. Miguel Beaudry made 31 saves in goal for the Scorpions.

SCORPIONS 4, AMARILLO 3 – Mike Oliveira's shorthanded goal with 7:08 left in the third period capped off the largest comeback of the season for the Scorpions as they rallied from a 3-0 second period deficit to surprise Amarillo by a 4-3 score on Friday. Oliveira led the way with two goals and an assist, while Mike Possin and Shaun Peet each chipped in two helpers. Daryl Moor and Walker McDonald had the other Scorpions goals while Danny Lorenz made 34 saves, including stopping all 16 Amarillo shots in the third period.

SCORPIONS 4, SAN ANGELO 3 – For the second straight night, the Scorpions erased a 3-0 deficit, this time scoring four goals in the third period to shock San Angelo for a 4-3 win. San Angelo led 2-0 after the first period before tacking on the only goal of the second period. Clint Wensley scored at the 5:35 mark of the third, and then the Scorpions went off for three goals in a 2:33 span. Shaun Peet started the outburst by scoring a shorthanded goal, the first of his six-year career, with 5:50 to play. Daryl Moor tied the game with 3:30 on the clock before Walker McDonald netted the game-winner just 13 seconds later. Miguel Beaudry made 26 saves for the Scorpions.

OKLAHOMA CITY 7, SCORPIONS 1 – The Scorpions ran out of gas in the season finale as Oklahoma City scored the first seven goals en route to a 7-1 victory over the Scorpions on Sunday. Vladimir Hartinger broke up Boyd Ballard's shutout bid at the 7:52 mark of the third period. Danny Lorenz and Miguel Beaudry split the game in goal as the Blazers outshot the Scorpions 47-30 for the game.

AWARDS BANQUET HELD LAST NIGHT –

The Scorpions held their annual banquet last night at the Old Town Sheraton. The winners of the Scorpions year-end awards were as follows –

Crystal Springs Ironman Award – Erik Adams, Brian Barker, Vladimir Hartinger and Pat Stachniak

After having no players play all 64 games last season, the Scorpions had three turn the trick this season in rookie Barker along with defensemen Adams and Hartinger. In addition, Stachniak actually played 65 games, one more than the usual maximum, after his January trade from Odessa.

Sonic Rookie of the Year Award – Miguel Beaudry and Brian Barker

Although Barker was a finalist for the CHL Rookie of the Year, Beaudry was a worthy candidate as well. Barker finished tied for third among all league rookies with 46 points. The Deer Lake, Newfoundland native was first among first-year players with three shorthanded goals and fifth with 21 goals. Beaudry finished tied for first among rookie netminders with 38 games played, and was second with three shutouts.

Charlie's Sporting Goods Leading Scorer – Mike Oliveira

Mike Oliveira posted 36 goals and 79 points, the highest totals for any Scorpion since Peter Ambroziak scored 39 goals and Randy Murphy garnered 86 points in the 2000-01 season. Oliveira finished tied for sixth in the Central Hockey League in points, the highest finish for a Scorpion since Murphy finished fourth in the 2000-01 race.

PNM Community Service Award – Matt Mathias and Danny Lorenz

While the Scorpions had several players who went above and beyond in their service to the community, Mathias and Lorenz stood out. The rookie from Minnesota-Duluth and the veteran goalie of eight NHL games always stepped up when called upon, visiting schools and hospitals throughout the season.

Dodge Best Defenseman Award – Vladimir Hartinger

In his first full season with the Scorpions after a deadline day trade last year from Wichita, Vladimir Hartinger set a career high with 35 points and finished with 12 goals, just one off his best mark from last year. He tied for second among all league blueliners with four game-winning goals. The Czech Republic native is one of the best bodycheckers in the CHL.

Jeff File Unsung Hero Award – Craig Stahl

Filling in as captain for a good part of the season when Shaun Peet was out of the lineup due to his NASCAR duties, injury or suspension, Stahl' s importance to the team is measured by his presence on the ice and in the dressing room as opposed to any point total. The consummate team player, Stahl also saw a breath of fresh air when his longtime friend Shawn Legault joined the team in late January.

First State Bank Most Valuable Player Award – Peter Ambroziak

The Scorpions franchise leader in goals, assists, points and games played collected his second MVP award last night and first since 2000-01. Ambroziak finished second on the team with 26 goals and 55 points, his best totals since that 2000-01 campaign. In addition, he posted his first hat trick since 2001 on Oct. 24 at Wichita.

CHL PLAYOFFS – The playoff seeds are decided, and for the first time in three years there will be a new champion as the two-time defending President 's Cup champion Memphis RiverKings were eliminated on the final day of the season. In the Northern Conference, top seed Colorado will play fourth seed Wichita while second seed Bossier-Shreveport faces third seed Indianapolis in the opening best-of-five series. Down south, Governor's Cup champion Laredo faces Rio Grande Valley while Southwest Division champ San Angelo faces rival Amarillo in the other series. All four series start with Games 1 and 2 this Friday and Saturday.

OLIVEIRA NOTABLES – In addition to his achievements noted above, Oliveira finished tied for third in the league with eight game-winning goals and tied for first with four shorthanded tallies. He was named the CHL Player of the Week for the final week of November and posted his first two career hat tricks this season. Not bad for a player who missed the first seven games before being contacted and signed by Scorpions coach Bill McDonald.

STINGERS – The Scorpions actually finished the 2003-04 season with one more win than the previous season when they qualified for the CHL playoffs, and finished 7-3 in their last ten games compared to 6-4 last year... New Mexico was tied for fourth with ten shorthanded goals scored, including five in the final eight games, and were first by allowing just three shorthanded goals against... The Scorpions' seven wins when trailing after two periods were second only to Wichita, who had eight... The Scorpions were first in the league with eight shootout wins and 12 total overtime and shootout victories... Miguel Beaudry and Danny Lorenz were tied for first with four shootout wins each, and were 1-2 in shootout save percentage for goalies who faced more than ten attempts. Lorenz was 19-of-23 for 82.6 percent while Beaudry was 23-of-28 for 82.1 percent.

MORE STINGERS – Five Scorpions players set career highs for points in the 2003-04 season – Mike Oliveira (79, previous high 37), Erik Adams (37, 27 last year as a rookie), Vladimir Hartinger (35, previous 30), Shawn Legault (31, previous 27), and Daryl Moor (14, 4 last year as a rookie)... With 36 points, Walker McDonald posted the second-best total of his career... Shawn Legault finished fourth in the league with 294 penalty minutes, and tied for third with 63 minor (two-minute) penalties... Daryl Moor also crept over the 200 PIM, finishing with 205 after two fights on Sunday.

SCORPIONS FINAL RESULTS –

32-27-5 record, 69 pts., 3rd place, Northwest Division (21-10-1 home, 11-17-4 away)

Tuesday, March 9 ODESSA 3, Scorpions 2 – Peter Ambroziak – 1 goal, 1 assist; Daniel Tetrault – 1 goal

Friday, March 12 Scorpions 4, AMARILLO 3 – Mike Oliveira – 2 goals, 1 assist; Moor, McDonald – 1 goal each

Saturday, March 13 Scorpions 4, SAN ANGELO 3 – Clint Wensley, Shaun Peet, Daryl Moor, W. McDonald – 1 goal

Sunday, March 14 OKLAHOMA CITY 7, Scorpions 1 – Vladimir Hartinger – 1 goal

Home team in CAPS

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Central Hockey League Stories from March 16, 2004


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