Sharks Stoned By Morrison, Fall To Bridgeport 3-0

February 13, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


BRIDEPORT, CT - Despite a season-high 41 shots on goal, the Worcester Sharks couldn't beat goaltender Mike Morrison as he led the Bridgeport Sound Tigers to a 3-0 victory on Wednesday evening at the Arena at Harbor Yard.

With Springfield and Manchester also losing, the Sharks remain four points behind Manchester for fifth place and seven behind Springfield for fourth.

Morrison finished with 41 saves on 41 shots, his fourth shutout of the season. Sharks goaltender Thomas Greiss made 20 stops on 23 shots.

After over five minutes of defensive and cautious hockey, Riley Armstrong gave Morrison his first true test at 7:15 of the first period. Derek Joslin, who was stationed behind the Sharks' blue line, made the pass to Armstrong streaking up ice. Armstrong skated in all alone on Morrison. After going to his backhand and baiting the Sound Tigers' netminder to commit to the low shot, Morrison was still able to get a piece of the puck, keeping the game scoreless.

A few minutes later, Bridgeport had an opportunity when Kyle Okposo took a shot from the left wing circle that bounced off the post to the right of Greiss.

Bridgeport lit the lamp first at 17:44 of the first period when Okposo converted on a 5-on-3 power play. With Brad Staubitz already in the penalty box for high sticking, Devin Setoguchi was called for boarding, giving the Sound Tigers 37 seconds of a two-man advantage. It only took them 12 of those seconds, as Opkoso buried a one-timer from the top of the left wing circle for his fifth goal of the season. Ben Walter and Tim Jackman were credited with the assists on the play.

The Sharks held the 11-8 shot advantage after one period.

Worcester came out in the second period with an extra jump in its step, but was unable to find the back of the net. After playing the majority of the second period in the Sharks' offensive zone, the Sound Tigers took advantage of one of their few offensive opportunities to up their lead to 2-0 at 12:12. Okposo carried the puck into the zone and left it behind the net to Trevor Smith. Smith made the pass to Jackman, who was skating toward the net from center ice. Jackman let go a shot from 40 feet away that was ticketed for the top shelf for his fifth of the season.

After out shooting the Sound Tigers 15-8 in the second period, the Sharks held the 26-16 shot advantage heading into the second intermission.

At 5:51 of the third period, Bridgeport took a high-sticking penalty, giving Worcester its fourth power play of the game. The Sharks put numerous quality opportunities on net, with none better than T.J. Fox's chance. Off a rebound, Fox controlled a bouncing puck and put it right back on goal. As Morrison was falling down, he was able to get a piece of the puck to keep the shutout bid alive.

Bridgeport made the Sharks pay when they opened up a three-goal advantage at 8:45. Smith capitalized on a Dan Spang turnover in front of the Sharks net. He dangled the puck until Greiss went down, and flipped it over the Worcester goaltender for his sixth of the season.

With less than 10 minutes remaining in the third, the Sharks were denied once again, but this time by the post. Setoguchi made a cross-crease pass to Tom Cavanagh, but Cavanagh's shot hit iron. A few minutes later, Graham Mink had an opportunity from between the two face-off circles, but his fluttering shot hit the crossbar as well

The Sharks continue their six-game road swing this weekend with a pair of games at Norfolk on Friday and Saturday. Worcester returns to the DCU Center on Friday, Feb. 22, for a 3-in-3 weekend, with all three games on home ice. Friday's match up features Lowell, with Portland skating into town on Saturday and the Springfield Falcons wrapping up the weekend with an 8:05pm start on Sunday the 24th. To learn more about ticket packages and other promotions, crash the net at sharksahl.com or call the Sharks offices at 508-929-0500.

NOTES: The Sharks (21-22-3-3) fell under .500 for the first time since 12/14 when they were 9-10-1-2 ... The Sharks broke a season high in shots on goal. The previous high (40) was 12/7 vs. Manchester, a 4-3 shootout loss ... With Bridgeport scoring the first goal of the game, it snapped the Sharks' streak of scoring first at five games ... With no goals scored, numerous Worcester point streaks were snapped: Patrick Traverse (3 games), Tom Walsh (2), Tom Cavanagh (2), T.J. Fox (4), Devin Setoguchi (3), Riley Armstrong (3), Dennis Packard (2), Mike Iggulden (2), and Brennan Evans (2) ... Also, Setoguchi had a three-game goal streak snapped and Fox had a two-game streak broken ... Dan Spang and Lukas Kaspar had their pointless droughts extended to 10 and six games ... The final attendance figure was 2,256 ... Greiss had 20 saves on 23 shots for the Sharks while Morrison stopped 41 of 41 for Bridgeport ... Power plays: Worcester: 0 for 4, Bridgeport: 1 for 2 ... Niche Hospitality Group 3 Stars: Mezcal 3rd star - Okposo (1g, 1a), Bocado 2nd star - Smith (1g, 1a), Block 5 1st star - Morrison (41 saves on 41 shots)



American Hockey League Stories from February 13, 2008


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