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Snakes secure second, prepare for Havoc

March 22, 2006 - SPHL (SPHL)
Columbus Cottonmouths News Release


COLUMBUS, Ga. - The Columbus Cottonmouths went 1-1-1 during their final week of regular season games, securing the second seed in the 2006 SPHL playoffs and a best-of-three series showdown against the fifth-seeded Huntsville Havoc. The series kicks off with Game 1 in the Snake Pit on Friday at 7:30 PM EST. The action will shift to the Rocket City of Huntsville, Ala. on Saturday night with an 8:35 PM EST scheduled puck drop. If necessary, a deciding Game 3 will be played Tuesday, March 28 back in Columbus. Saturday's game is tentatively scheduled to be aired on WCJM 100.9 FM with the "Voice of the Snakes" Dana Barker bringing all the action from the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. The broadcast begins at 8:30 PM EST. After the game, the "Fourth Period Show" will air on WCJM, where fans can call 706.645.2991 with questions or comments. All playoff games will be broadcast live on the Internet via Live365. Follow the broadcast link on the Snakes' homepage at www.cottonmouths.com.

CURRENT RECORDS AND STATS

Last Week: 1-1-1

Record: 34-16-6, 74 points (2nd, SPHL)

247 GF, 182 GA

20.1% PP (4th, SPHL); 83.9% PK (1st, SPHL)

LAST WEEK'S TRANSACTIONS

3/17 - F Craig Stahl suspended one game by SPHL

SPHL PLAYOFF OUTLOOK

(2) Columbus vs. (5) Huntsville - Season Series: COL won 6-4-2

Fri, 7:30 PM in COL; Sat, 8:35 PM in HSV; Tue 3/28 (if needed), 7:30 PM in COL

The Snakes and Havoc will battle it out in a best-of-three series this weekend in both cities. The Cottonmouths had the slight upper hand in the season series, winning five of the nine games decided in regulation and picking up 14 total standing points (6-4-2) over Huntsville's 13 (6-5-1) in the series. It was the tale of two halves of the series, however, as the Havoc took the first five straight decisions over the Snakes and Columbus finished out the series 6-0-1 against the Havoc, with the only blemish in the last seven against against Huntsville a 3-2 shootout loss last Friday night. Tim Green (7G, 5A), Orrin Hergott (5G, 6A), and Tylor Keller (1G, 9A) have all had success against Huntsville with each scoring in double digits versus the Havoc. Bill Monkman (8G, 3A, including a hat trick against Columbus) and James Patterson (6G, 4A) lead the way for Huntsville in their games against Columbus. Both teams' top goaltenders have shone in the series. The Snakes' Chad Rycroft is 5-3-1 with a 2.46 GAA and .920 save percentage (and a shutout) against the Havoc. Huntsville's Matt Carmichael is 6-1-1 versus Columbus with a 2.19 GAA and .929 save percentage.

(3) Florida vs. (4) Fayetteville - Season Series: FLA won 6-4-0

Fri, 7:35 PM in FLA; Sat, 7:35 PM in FAY; Tue 3/28 (if needed), 7:35 PM in FLA

SPHL PLAYOFF OUTLOOK (cont'd)

(3) Florida vs. (4) Fayetteville - Season Series: FLA won 6-4-0 (cont'd)

What looks to be a very interesting series is shaping up between the Fayetteville FireAntz and Florida Seals. The Seals finished the regular season with a six-game winning streak and looks to saddle up and ride goaltender Terry Denike into the playoffs. Florida had the slight edge in the season series, splitting the eight games that finished in regulation and winning both games that were decided in overtime. Both teams had a shutout against the other, with Terry Denike blanking Fayetteville on January 13 and Chad Collins shutting out the Seals on January 26. Florida's Justin Keller (5G, 5A) and Rob Sich (2G, 8A) each finished with 10 points against Fayetteville, while George Nistas (5G, 3A), Mark Phenow (3G, 5A), and Scott Corbett (2G, 6A) led the FireAntz with eight points each in the series with the Seals. Between the pipes, Chad Collins is 1-1-2 versus Florida with a 2.20 GAA and .938 save percentage, while Terry Denike has played every minute of every game against the FireAntz for Florida, finishing 6-4-0 against Fayetteville with a 2.29 GAA and .926 save percentage.

(1) Knoxville vs. (6) Pee Dee - Season Series: KNX won 9-2-0

Fri, 7:35 PM in PD; Sat, 7:35 PM in PD; Fri, 3/31, 7:30 PM in KNX; Sat, 4/1 (if needed), 7:30 PM in KNX; Tue, 4/4 (if needed), 7:30 PM in KNX

On paper, the regular-season champion Ice Bears look to be the heavy favorites, but the Cyclones have proven that games aren't played on paper. The two Pee Dee wins have been signature victories: a 6-5 victory in Florence, S.C. despite being outshot by Knoxville 65-43, and a 7-5 win on January 17 in Florence where the Ice Bears set an SPHL record with 81 shots on goal in the game, only to see the Cyclones' Kevin Schieve turn away 76 of them. Ryan Person was the goaltender of record for the Ice Bears in both games; however, Person will not see any action between the pipes until April Fool's Day at the earliest as he serves a three-game league suspension. Jamie Ronayne, who was a perfect 6-0-0 against Pee Dee with a 1.81 GAA and .949 save percentage, will be the penciled starter for Knoxville at the outset of the series. Kelly Shields is projected as the #1 goaltender for the Cyclones, as he has a 0-1-1 record against Knoxville with a 4.36 GAA and .913 save percentage. The Ice Bears have nine players who have scored double digits against Pee Dee this season, including K.J. Voorhees (11G, 14A) and Kevin Swider (6G, 19A), who have notched 25 points apiece - nearly one-third of Voorhees's season total and exactly one-fourth of Swider's - against the Cyclones. Edan Welch leads all Cyclones in scoring against Knoxville on the season, notching 12 points (8G, 4A) against the Ice Bears.

COTTONMOUTHS WEEK IN REVIEW

Thursday, March 16 - Columbus 2 at Fayetteville 3 (Attendance: 5,458)

The hometown FireAntz put on a show for the fans in their last home game of the regular season, defeating the Snakes 3-2 in a game marred by 262 total penalty minutes. Riley Riddell and Ryan Aikia notched the two goals for Columbus. The Snakes finished 2 for 11 on the power play while Fayetteville was 2 for 10. Chad Rycroft stopped 25 of 28 shots for Columbus, taking the loss in net, while Chad Collins of the FireAntz made 38 saves on 40 shots for the win.

Friday, March 17 - Huntsville 3 at Columbus 2 (SO) (Attendance: 4,088)

The Huntsville Havoc became the first visiting team to win in the Snake Pit after trailing after two periods on Friday night. Tom Wilson scored his first goal as a Snake and Tom McMonagle gave Columbus a two-goal lead prior to the Havoc's pair of goals in the final frame. James Patterson scored the deciding goal in the shootout to give Huntsville the extra standing point. Columbus was 0 for 6 on the power play while Huntsville was 1 for 9. Chad Rycroft got the tie for Columbus, stopping 28 of 30, while Matt Carmichael earned the win for Huntsville with 31 saves on 33 shots.

Saturday, March 18 - Pee Dee 5 at Columbus 11 (Attendance: 3,452)

Tim Green broke a three-way tie for the SPHL goal-scoring lead wide open with four goals on the night, helping Columbus to the win in their final regular-season game. Tylor Keller and Riley Riddell scored two goals each while Tom McMonagle, Mat Ponto, and Craig Stahl scored a goal apiece. The Snakes only had one power play and failed to convert while Pee Dee was 1 for 4 with the man advantage. Ryan Senft stopped 32 of 37 for the win while Kelly Shields stopped 35 of 46 in the losing effort for the Cyclones

THREE STARS OF THE YEAR

1. F Tim Green - Green finished the year leading all players in the SPHL with 41 goals, including ten in the final two weeks of the season.

2. F Ryan Rutz - Rutz, who led the league in goals throughout most of the season until the final day, improved his goal output by 20 from last season (17) to this one (37).

3. F Tylor Keller/G Chad Rycroft - Keller finished second in the league in overall scoring with 94 points and tied with Knoxville's Kevin Swider for the assist lead with 66. Rycroft, meanwhile, finished the season second among all goaltenders in wins (26) and goals-against average (2.90) and third in save percentage (.911).

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