Sharks Fall 3-2 in Final Seconds in Feisty Home Opener

Published on October 19, 2013 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


WORCESTER, MA - Freddie Hamilton and John McCarthy both scored for Worcester, but the Sharks (0-2-0-0, 0pts) couldn't hold off the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (5-0-0-0, 10pts) explosive third period offense, falling 3-2 at the DCU Center in front of 5,476 in the home opener on Saturday night. The Sharks will play again Sunday, taking on division rival Portland Pirates at the DCU Center at 5pm.

Harri Sateri made 20 saves in goal in the loss while Sena Acolatse, Brodie Reid, Rylan Schwartz and Bracken Kearns each added an assist as Worcester dropped to 3-3-1-1 in eight career home openers. Tom Kuhnhackl scored twice for the Penguins while Andrew Ebbett added a goal and an assist for the Penguins in a game that featured five fights and 86 penalty minutes.

The game was extremely physical right from the start with the two teams combining for 42 minutes of penalties with the first two minutes. Curt Gogol (1st FM) delivered a tough hit to Reid McNeill (1st FM) against the boards, instigating a fight between the two. 11 seconds later, another brawl broke out against the boards behind the Sharks net after a trip by Tom Kuhnhackl. Bracken Kearns (2nd FM) and Brian Gibbons (1st FM) went toe-to-toe with Paul Thompson getting in the mix as well. The Sharks drew first blood at 9:27 when Freddie Hamilton (1st) netted his first goal of the season with a beautiful snapshot from the right circle over the shoulder of Penguins goaltender Peter Mannino. The Sharks led after twenty minutes as Worcester outshot the Penguins 11-4.

Before the puck even dropped in the middle frame a fight broke out between bruisers Jimmy Bonneau (2nd FM) and Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (3rd FM). Goaltender Harri Sateri and the Sharks penalty kill unit were impressive throughout the period, holding off the Penguins power play on three different occasions. Sateri had a number of notable saves and looked very sharp after being virtually untested in the first. Despite being outshot 10-6, the Sharks maintained their 1-0 lead heading into the final period.

The game picked up offensively in the third period as the Penguins outscored the Sharks 3-1 in the final frame. Tom Kuhnhackl (2nd) evened up the score at 1:48 when he snuck one past Sateri. The Sharks regained the lead at 4:02 when Sena Acolatse put the puck right in front of the net for John McCarthy (1st) who masterfully directed it past Mannino. Andrew Ebbett (1st) retied the game at 2-2 on a wrist shot from the top of the left circle at 12:45. At 17:40 Matt Tennyson left the game for holding giving the Penguins another power play. The Penguins stole the victory from Worcester at 19:20 on a goal from Tom Kuhnhackl (3rd), his second of the night after Kuhnackl found a loose puck at the side of the net and fired it past Sateri for the eventual game winner.

The Sharks overall record sinks to 0-2-0-0 and 0-1-0-0 at home.

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American Hockey League Stories from October 19, 2013


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