Titans Sweep Series With 7-5 Victory Over Chiefs

Published on April 10, 2007 under ECHL (ECHL)
Trenton Devils News Release


JOHNSTOWN, PA (April 10, 2007) - The Trenton Titans almost let the Johnstown Chiefs off the hook, but ultimately were able to pull away for a 7-5 win over the Johnstown Chiefs in Game 2 of the North Division Quarterfinal on Tuesday at the War Memorial. With the victory, the Titans sweep first round series and get ready for the North Division Semifinal versus the Dayton Bombers.

Trailing 5-3 heading into the final frame, Johnstown got back within one on the second goal of the night by Zbynek Hrdel, who took a drop pass from Gus Katsuras before blasting a one-timer inside the near post at 7:22.

The Chiefs then tied it up with 5:54 left in regulation as Marek Kvapil finished a 3-on-2 rush, beating Gregg Naumenko from between the hash marks.

It took only 52 seconds for Trenton to get the lead once again when Don Morrison went crashing to towards the crease to tap in a centering pass from Troy Riddle past a sprawled Morgan Cey.

Mark Pandolo provided the insurance for the second consecutive night gathering his second marker in the match with just 1:36 remaining in the game.

Behind 2-1 thanks to a Bryan Nathe power play goal midway through the second, the Titans rattled off the next three to take the their first lead of the contest. Troy Riddle tied the score at 12:52 as he was left alone in front for a shorthanded goal - Trenton's second of the game - after a pass in the corner from Pandolfo. Benoit Mondou then put Trenton up 3-2, taking a pass from Scott Bertoli and getting behind the defense before sending a backhander to the top shelf. Twenty-one seconds later it was Pandolfo tipping in Jake Ortmeyer's point shot to make the score 4-2 in favor of the Titans.

Hrdel answered back with a shorthanded goal to cut the Titans' lead in half at 18:09 of the second. Trenton, however, went back up by two with fifteen seconds left until the intermission as, skating on a delayed call, Riddle picked up the rebound from Bertoli's point shot and dumped it into the open net.

The Chiefs went up 1-0 at 11:13 of the first as the Titans lost track of the puck in the slot, where Katsuras swooped in to fire a wrist shot into the top right corner. Later in the period, Johnstown looked to the extend their lead with the help of the man-advantage, but Titans' center Jim Henkel blocked John Adams' slapshot and took the puck down the length for the shorthanded tally at 14:15.

The Titans finished the game 0-for-3 on the power play and 7-for-8 on the penalty kill.

TRENTON TITANS - The Buzz is Back!!! - Titans tickets for the 2007 Kelly Cup Playoffs are available by calling a Titans Ticket Representative at (609) 599-9500.

The Trenton Titans are a member of the ECHL - North America's Premier "AA" Hockey League. The Trenton Titans are owned and operated by the National Hockey League's New Jersey Devils.

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