Titans knock Checkers from unbeaten ranks with 4-1 win
November 6, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release
Charlotte, NC - The Charlotte Checkers finally saw their unbeaten streak come to an end Friday night at Cricket Arena against a very familiar nemesis. The Trenton Titans jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period and cruised to a 4-1 win, ending the Checkers four-game, season-opening winning streak. Charlotte hasn't beaten Trenton at home since February of 2003 after dropping both contests at Cricket Arena last season. Rick Kowalsky tallied two goals for the Titans and Trenton goalie Chris Houle was solid with 45 saves. The Checkers played even with the Titans the last two periods, out-shooting Trenton 33-9.
"We didn't come out as strong as I would have liked tonight", remarked Charlotte coach Derek Wilkinson. "We ran into a hot goalie too and had two players in our lineup playing in their very first professional games. We moved the puck well and I saw some good things too, but the first period was our downfall tonight." In the first period the Titans scored just 15 seconds into the contest as three Trenton players converged on the Charlotte net before Kowalsky netted a rebound past Checkers goalie Alex Westlund for a 1-0 lead. The Titans made it 2-0 on the power play at 7:25 as Leon Hayward deflected in a Mathieu Brunelle pass past Westlund. Kowalsky scored his second goal of the night at 16:17 for a 3-0 Trenton lead. The Checkers finally responded with just 1:49 left in the period as Mike Harder knocked home his third goal of the season at the right side of the Trenton crease on a power play to bring Charlotte to within two goals at 3-1 after the first stanza. Despite outshooting the Titans 17-3 in the second period, the Checkers were continually frustrated by Houle. B.J. Abel extended Trenton's lead to 4-1at 13:46 as the Checkers went to the locker room trailing by three goals after two periods. Charlotte kept the pressure on in the final period by outshooting the Titans 16-6, but Trenton relied on Houle to hold the fort and walked away with the 4-1 win. The win dropped the Checkers record to 4-1-0 for eight points, while the Titans remained undefeated at 4-0-0 for eight points. Charlotte will have just less than 24 hours to try to redeem themselves as the South Carolina Stingrays invade Cricket Arena Saturday night with face-off set for 7:00 p.m. Tickets are available now through the Charlotte Checkers office by calling (704) 342-4ICE, through all TicketMaster locations, or on line through www.TicketMaster.com.
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ECHL Stories from November 6, 2004
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