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Stars survive for 3-2 shootout win

March 4, 2011 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Traverse City North Stars News Release


FLINT - Sixty-five minutes of hockey wasn't enough to decide the issue on Friday evening at Perani Arena. The Traverse City North Stars scored a pair of first period goals, the host Michigan Warriors did likewise in the second, and the clubs traded scoring chances in a scoreless third period and five-minute overtime.

After going down 2-0 in the first two rounds of the shootout session, Tim Opie and Travis White evened things up, and Alec Shields fit the puck under the crossbar in the fifth round to give the North Stars a 3-2 victory in the opener of a three-game series with Michigan.

"It was pretty ugly at times, and we didn't have a lot of guys ‘going' tonight," said Stars head coach/GM Anthony Palumbo. "As a team, we didn't have enough jump. Other than getting out to an early lead, we didn't generate a whole lot of offense. The good news is that we won, but we'll have to better the rest of this weekend."

The Stars improved to 31-15-1, and inched ahead of the fourth-place Warriors by another point; Heading into Saturday's rematch, TC owns a three-point lead on Michigan.

Traverse City surged ahead 9:16 into the game on Kelin Ainsworth's (Thunder Bay, ONT/TC North Stars/Lake Superior St.) team-leading 24th tally of the season. The bulge swelled to two goals a little more than four minutes later, when Shields (Pittsburgh, PA/TC North Stars/Mercyhurst College) racked an unassisted marker. The edge dwindled in a hurry to open the second frame, as Michigan needed a mere 5:56 to erase its deficit.

The North Stars were assessed a goaltender interference infraction late in the third period, while Michigan drew a similar penalty in overtime; Both teams survived those late scares, setting up the shootout. Traverse City goaltender Steve Bolton (Las Vegas, NV/Amarillo NAHL) was especially busy, turning aside 36 shots for his fifth win in as many starts.

"Bolton was big for us tonight," Palumbo added. "He made a late save on a two-on-one where he slid over to make the stop - just unbelievable, and helped get us to overtime and eventually the shootout."

Opie (Troy, MI/TC North Stars) and Michal Toman (Slovakia/Cedar Rapids USHL) drew assists on Ainsworth's goal.

The series now shifts to Centre ICE Arena, as teams meet up again on Saturday evening (7 p.m.) and wrap their regular season slate on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

"We know we can play better," Palumbo said. "But we did show a lot of heart, especially when we got down 2-0 in the shootout, and we came away with the extra point against a very good team that we're competing with. We'll take that for now and get ready for tomorrow."

We thank you, our media partners, for your continued interest in Traverse City North Stars hockey. If there is anything we can do to help facilitate any aspect of your coverage, please do not hesitate to contact us. You are a valued component of North Stars hockey.

For more information, call Lance-Michael Correia at (231) 632-5047, the Traverse City North Stars office at (231) 941-9200 or visit the team's Web site at: www.traversecitynorthstars.com.



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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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