Today in Worcester hockey history: November 28

25B

1954 at New Haven 9-1 loss
Goals by period:
Worcester 1-0-0=1
New Haven 3-2-4=9
Warriors goal
1st
8:24 Greeley (Allain)

1997 at Cincinnati 4-3 win
The Worcester IceCats scored a last minute goal to take the lead and then might have gotten some luck on their side when referee Tim Peel ruled a last second bid by the Mighty Ducks didn’t cross the goal line until after the horn sounded as the ‘Cats escaped Cincinnati with a 4-3 win. After a scoreless opening period Antti Aalto gave the Mighty Ducks a 1-0 lead at 4:37. Michal Handzus tied it for the IceCats at 13:57 with help from Terry Virtue. Bob Lachance had the next two to open a 3-1 Worcester lead. His first came at 16:37 on the power play when one of the penalty killers lost his stick. Virtue also assisted on the goal. The second came at 18:40, with assists going to Chris Kenady and Terry Hollinger. In the third Cincinnati would tie it on two goals from Bob Wren, at 7:13 and on the power play at 15:45. With 40 seconds remaining in regulation Jason Zent scored unassisted to make it 4-3. Either just before or just after the horn sounded, depending on the color of the jersey who you asked, Nikolai Tsulygin put the puck into the net. Referee Peel originally signaled the goal was good, but after discussions with the linesmen and goal judge James Wolfe (who told stringer Tim Pennington it was a good goal) Peel overruled himself and waved the goal off, giving the ‘Cats the win. Brent Johnson made 29 saves in the win.

1998 at Portland 2-1 win
(PORTLAND) In a game that was far less exciting than the close score would indicate Daniel Corso and Andrej Podkonicky scored second period goals and Brent Johnson made several big saves as the IceCats edged the Pirates, 2-1, before a crowd of 3,843 at the Cumberland County Civic Center. After a scoreless first period, the IceCats wasted little time taking the lead in the second period, scoring on their first two shots. Corso got the first goal, at 1:38, when he was sent in alone by Podkonicky and beat goalie Mike Rosati with a backhander. Then the IceCats caught the Pirates in a line change and Podkonicky scored on the odd-man rush at 3:58, his snapping shot from the right circle breaking through Rosati and into the far corner. Portland pulled to within 2-1 at 9:22 on Trent Whitfield’s third goal of the season, but Johnson maintained the lead for the IceCats when he snagged a Trevor Halverson bid from the slot out of the air with his catching glove three minutes later. Johnson, who finished with 25 saves, then preserved the win when the caught a Jean-Pierre Dumont shot from the low slot with 10 seconds left in the game.

2000 at Hartford 3-2 win
(TICKER) Chris Murray scored a pair of goals and assisted on another as the Worcester IceCats defeated the Hartford Wolf Pack, 3-2. Murray opened the scoring 24 seconds into the contest and netted his seventh goal of the season eight minutes later. He then assisted on Pascal Rheaume’s marker with 4:32 left in the first period for Worcester, which has won seven of its last eight contests (7-1-0). Dwayne Roloson turned away 42 shots, including 16 in the final period, to improve to 8-4-0. Stefan Cherneski and Derek Armstrong both had a tally for Hartford, which has dropped three in a row. Vitali Yeremeyev surrendered all three goals on 26 shots for the loss.

2003 vs Springfield 3-2 win
(ICECATS) The Worcester IceCats roared back from an early deficit to post an exciting 3-2 overtime victory against the Springfield Falcons last night before 4,517 fans at Worcester’s Centrum Centre. Defenseman Aris Brimanis bagged the game-winner with 72 seconds remaining in the overtime period. The IceCats jumped out to the early lead on the power play at 3:45 of the first period, as veteran IceCat Terry Virtue recorded his first goal of the season. However, Springfield’s Frank Banham answered just 54 seconds later at 4:39, poking the puck in off a scramble in front of Worcester goaltender Reinhard Divis. The Falcons took the lead when Frantisek Lukes scored at the 13:19 mark of the second period, and the 2-1 advantage looked like it might stand up. But first-year IceCat Mike Glumac turned in a remarkable individual effort to tie the game at 10:26 of the third period, sliding the puck under Falcons goalie Jean-Marc Pelletier. The game remained tied, 2-2, into overtime. At 3:48 of the extra session, Jay McClement, stationed at the right-wing wall, fed a pass to Brimanis in the slot. Brimanis re-directed the puck, which then fluttered over Pelletier’s left shoulder, sending the IceCats to the win. It was Worcester’s first overtime victory of the 2003-2004 campaign after five ties. Divis finished with 33 saves on 35 shots, while Pelletier turned aside 34 of the 37 shots that came his way.

2008 at Providence 5-3 loss
(WORSHARKS) Coaches often encourage their players to approach each match as three separate games. That was the very much the case on Friday night in Claude Lemieux’s Sharks debut, when the Bruins knocked off Worcester, 5-3. Providence got off to a quick start, scoring two goals in the first period. After corralling the pass from Matt Lashoff, Vladimir Sobotka wrapped the puck around the front of goalie Thomas Greiss where Martins Karsums deflected it into the wide open net for his eighth goal of the year. The Bruins struck again on a power play when Byron Bitz located Jeff Penner off to the left wing side of the goal, just outside the congestion in front of the net. Penner tallied his third goal of the year as Greiss could not recover to defend the open side of the net. The tables were turned, however, in the second period when Worcester forwards found the back of the night on three separate occasions. Jamie McGinn started the scoring spree just under seven minutes into the period when defenseman Patrick Traverse found him on the right side of the net for his sixth goal this season. Lemieux scored his first point since 2003 when he spotted Cory Larose, who touched the puck for Tom Cavanagh and the lamp was lit for Cavanagh’s eighth goal this year. Shortly thereafter, center Steven Zalewski got the puck to Ryan Vesce on the left side who sent the puck to the top right corner to make the score 3-2. The Bruins would not go into hibernation for the third period as well, as Karsums found Martin St. Pierre at Worcester’s blue line with some wide open space in front of him. St. Pierre made the most of his chance, wristing the puck over the shoulder of Greiss and tying the score at 3-3. Matt Lashoff then scored the eventual game-winner and his fourth goal of the season after taking centered pass from Adam McQuaid. Jeremy Reich added an empty-net insurance goal with just 45 seconds remaining. Lemieux made his debut minutes into the first period, skating for a brief 15-second shift. Returning to action just moments later, he was quickly whistled for a hooking penalty. Coming off of the penalty, Lemieux immediately found himself in the middle of the action, where he offered up a strong shot attempt and set up Ryan Vesce for a one-timer that was defended by Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask. Lemieux finished the contest with an assist and two penalty minutes, a +2 rating, and four shots on goal. The bad blood between the two teams was kept alive early on when Brett Westgarth and Jeremy Reich dropped their gloves to fight. Westgarth landed two punches, but Reich capitalized on an opening and landed multiple punches on Westgarth forcing him to the ice. The loss brings Worcester to 10-9-0-0, while the win improves Providence record to 12-7-1-0.

2009 vs Bridgeport 4-1 win
(WORSHARKS) Danny Groulx picked up a goal and his 16th assist of the year and Logan Couture scored his 5th game winner of the season to aid the Sharks to a 4-1 win over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Saturday night at the DCU Center. Worcester’s Alex Stalock made 29 saves and Steven Zalewski had three assists on the night. Andrew Desjardins (6th goal) and Ryan Vesce each had a goal apiece. The Sharks attacked at 6:06 in the first period when Danny Groulx took a hard shot from the point that was tipped in by Andrew Desjardins. Alex Stalock stopped 12 shots for Worcester and Nathan Lawson stopped 17 for Bridgeport after twenty minutes of play. The speedy line of Steven Zalewski, Logan Couture, and Ryan Vesce struck 6:00 into the second period when the two forwards coordinated their passing efforts and reached Couture, who scored the only goal of the period to put the Sharks up 2-0. The third period got rough when former Shark Brett Westgarth went after Nick Petrecki, causing a 10-man pile up which resulted in a power play for the Sharks. Bridgeport’s Tyler Haskins answered back with a breakaway shorthanded goal at 10:40, bringing the score to 2-1. Danny Groulx continued his point streak with a slap shot power play goal from the top of the point at 11:19, putting the Sharks up 3-1. Ryan Vesce scored on the Sound Tigers’ open net at 18:56, solidifying the Sharks win 4-1. With the win, the Sharks swim to 13-10-0-1 (27 points) on the season and currently have a five game winning streak.

2010 vs Manchester 5-2 loss
(WORSHARKS) Manchester scored three 2nd period goals as the Sharks dropped a 5-2 decision at the DCU Center in Worcester on Sunday afternoon to close out their 4-in-5 stretch at 2-2-0-0. Jonathan Cheechoo and Matt Irwin scored for Worcester as the Sharks fell in their second straight game at the DCU Center. Neither team would find the back of the net in the first period as there were no penalties and very few whistles. Alex Stalock made 10 saves while Jeff Zatkoff turned aside 12 pucks in the scoreless opening period. Manchester charged out to a 3-0 lead in the 2nd period aided by five power play chances. Ray Kaunisto (4th) scored from the center slot after a great feed by Corey Elkins from the left wall just 40 seconds into the 2nd period. David Meckler (9th) found the back of the net after his shot snuck through Stalock on the power play at 10:20. Oscar Moller (5th) scored on a breakaway as his shot found room between the pads at 17:58. The Sharks trailed 3-0 after 40 minutes and were outshot 20-22. Riley Gill began the third period in goal for Worcester and made his AHL debut as each team found the back of the net twice. Bud Holloway (5th) struck on the power play at 2:07 from the center slot to give the Monarchs a 4-0 edge. Matt Irwin (3rd) extended his point streak to three games (2-1-3) with a power play tally for the Sharks at 5:27. T.J. Trevelyan sent a terrific feed to Irwin in front from the right wing boards to get the Sharks on the board. Manchester countered right back as Andrei Loktionov scored on a breakaway at 15:08 to make the score 5-1. Jonathan Cheechoo (7th) scored on a breakaway chance on the power play after a super pass from Sean Sullivan at 16:12 to close out the scoring. The Sharks record falls to 10-7-1-3 with 24 points through 21 games and 5-4-1-1 at the DCU Center.

2014 vs Springfield 3-2 OTL
(WORSHARKS) The Worcester Sharks (8-8-2-0, 18pts) picked up a much needed point but fell short in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Springfield Falcons (14-7-1-0, 29pts) in front of 2,639 fans at the DCU Center on Friday night. Evan Trupp and Melker Karlsson scored for Worcester while Aaron Dell made 22 saves in his first DCU Center start as the Sharks losing skid hit six games (0-5-1-0). Anton Forsberg made 33 saves in net for Springfield and Nathan Oystrick netted the game winner in overtime at 2:42 as the Falcons extended their win streak to eight games. Worcester outshot the Falcons 11-5 in a fast paced opening frame but Springfield would score the only goal. Mathieu Gagnon (1st) fired a snap shot from the right slot through a screen and past Aaron Dell for an unassisted tally at 3:17 to put the Falcons ahead 1-0. Gagnon (2nd FM) then fought Micheal Haley (6th FM) at 11:37 in a great tilt at center ice. Anton Forsberg made 11 saves in the opening period to extend the Sharks scoring drought to a franchise record 170:29. Evan Trupp (4th) tied the score for Worcester with a nice deflection of a Gus Young point shot at 2:27 to get the Sharks on the board and to break the shutout streak at 172:55. Worcester outshot Springfield 13-7 in the second period as the two teams headed into the second intermission tied 1-1. The Sharks went ahead just 26 seconds into the third period after rookie Chris Tierney stole the puck away from the Falcons goaltender behind the net and centered to a wide open Melker Karlsson (4th) for a 2-1 Worcester advantage. The lead only lasted 35 seconds as Marko Dano (2nd) snapped a quick shot from the right circle past the glove of Aaron Dell at 1:01 to tie the score at 2-2. Neither team found the back of the net the rest of the third period as Springfield outshot Worcester 12-8 in the third frame. In overtime, defenseman Nathan Oystrick (1st) finished off a 3-on-1 rush with a shot from the left circle at 2:42 to give the Falcons a 3-2 win and their 8th straight victory overall. The Sharks overall record falls to 8-8-2-0, 18pts, and 5-4-2-0, 12pts on home ice this season.

2021 vs Newfoundland 6-0 Loss
(RAILERS) Newfoundland got four goals from Zach O’Brien and one apiece from Marcus Power and Orrin Centazzo. O’Brien recorded the third four-goal game ever against the Railers. The other four-goal guys are Scott Pooley, also of Newfoundland, and Nic Pierog when he played for Manchester. “I wish I had an answer. I’d do something about it,” Railers coach Dave Cunniff said of his team’s DCU Center ineptitude. “We have great fans. They deserve better.” So did Worcester’s goalies. Cunniff lifted Ken Appleby in favor of Colten Ellis after Appleby allowed five goals in two periods. “I told Ken I took him out because he didn’t deserve what he had in front of him,” Cunniff said. “Ellis didn’t deserve it either, but we had to have a goalie. We just didn’t compete. Maybe we gave them too much respect. I don’t know.” The result meant that the Railers’ 8-1 victory in Glens Falls Wednesday night was not the turnaround game Worcester had hoped for. That rout of the Thunder marked the most goals ever scored by a Railers team and were the most scored by a Worcester pro team since the Sharks beat Portland, 8-2, on Dec. 6, 2013. The Adirondack game included two record-tying points performances as Ross Olsson went 3-1-4 and Jordan Smotherman went 1-3-4. Those tied a Railers best. The seven-goal margin of victory was third-best in Worcester pro history and the biggest one since the Sharks won at Springfield, 9-0, on Oct. 23, 2004. MAKING TRACKS_The Railers continue this four-game homestand when they play host to the Maine Mariners at 7:05 Wednesday night. … Bridgeport signed defenseman Will Cullen and assigned him to Worcester. Cullen and forward Carlos Fornaris did not dress for the Railers. 10 of the 20 Railers eligible to play Sunday were pro rookies. … With the win Growlers goalie Evan Cormier is 4-2-1 versus Worcester including a stint with Adirondack. It was his first shutout against the Railers. … The defeat dropped Worcester’s all-time record against ECHL Canadian teams to 17-25-5. That includes 5-14-2 versus the Growlers, 3-7-0 at the DCU Center. … The goalie switch was the first of the year for Worcester. … Some good news — the Railers don’t play the Growlers again until March 19.

2025 at Adirondack 2-1 OTL
(RAILERS) The Worcester Railers HC (6-8-1-1) fell to the Adirondack Thunder (7-4-2-1) in overtime on Friday, November 28th, with a final score of 2-1 at Harding Mazzotti Arena in front of a crowd of 4911. The Railers will take on the Thunder again tomorrow evening, November 29th, again at the Harding Mazzotti Arena. Puck drops at 7:00 p.m. EST. Adirondack got the first goal of the game from T.J. Friedmann (1-0-1), assisted by fellow fourth-liner Chase McLane (0-1-1) 2:47 in the first. Worcester’s Riley Ginnell (1-0-1), assisted by Ross Mitton (0-1-1) and Ryan Miotto (0-1-1), answered the Thunder goal at 10:39 in the third, which brought the game’s score up to 1-1. The final goal of the game came from Adirondack’s Brannon McManus (1-0-1) in overtime to bring the score up 2-1 final in favor of the Thunder. The Railers found a quick offensive position against the Thunder to start the night, gaining two shots on goal before Adirondack could take control of the puck. Despite the aggressive start, less than three minutes into the first, Adirondack’s T.J. Friedmann (2nd) was able to take an early lead for the team with their first shot on goal successfully slipping past the left shoulder of Railers’ goaltender Parker Gahagan, one of Worcester’s newest additions to the team following Henrik Tikknanen’s reassignment to Bridgeport. Neither team managed to find the net again for the remainder of the period. Worcester spent some time in the defensive zone as Adirondack outshot the Railers 12-7 for the first 20 minutes. There were no penalties or power plays for either side. Worcester came out swinging in the second with an early fighting major for Lincoln Hatten and Adirondack’s Jacob Graves, who dropped gloves at 1:57 and each gained an additional two minutes for removing helmets preemptively. Another mid-period penalty from MacAuley Carson at 11:13 would put Worcester on their first penalty kill of the night, the first of the game for either team. The Railers had a brief moment of even strength play against the Thunder before a collision at the blue line between Worcester’s Cam McDonald and Adirondack’s Matt Salhany put Worcester in search of their first short-handed goal of the season as McDonald headed to the box for two minutes for cross-checking at 15:59. The Railers managed to accumulate just four shots on goal to Adirondack’s 10 in the second. Despite attempts from players such as Ross Mitton and Anthony Callin, Worcester remained shut out against Adirondack to close the period. Final penalty counts were four for Worcester and two for Adirondack for the second. The tides looked to be turning in favor of Worcester for the third period. The Railers gained the majority of puck possession for the first 10 minutes of play, collecting eight shots on goal—their highest number of shots in any singular period of the night. With most of Worcester’s playing time being in the offensive zone in the third, the Railers’ would tie the game with their only goal of the night from Riley Ginnell (2nd), who sank a one-timer into the net at 10:39. Ginnell’s goal was initially set up by an overhead shot from teammate Ross Mitton, which put the puck behind Adirondack’s net for Ryan Miotto to retrieve with a wrap-around pass to Ginnell for the point to make it 1-1. The tied game pushed both teams into overtime as neither Adirondack nor Worcester was able to take the lead to close the third. An early overtime goal on the only shot of the extra frame from Adirondack’s Brannon McManus (7th) ended the night with a final score of 2-1 in favor of Adirondack. NOTES: Three stars: 3rd Star: Parker Gahagan (28 saves, 2GA, .933 SV%), 2nd Star: Jakub Málek (21 saves, 1GA, .955 SV%), 1st Star: Brannon McManus (1-0-1, GWG, +1, 3 shots)… Final shots were 30-22 in favor of Adirondack… Jakub Málek (1-0-1-0) made 21 saves on 22 shots and Parker Gahagen (0-1-0-0) made 28 saves on 30 shots while Tristan Lennox served as backup… Worcester went 0-for-0 on power plays while Adirondack went 0-for-2… The Railers are now 0-1-1-0 this season vs. the Thunder and 0-0-1-0 at Harding Mazzotti Arena…Parker Gahagen, Gleb Veremyev, and Macauley Carson all made their Worcester Railers debuts…Max Dorrington (SUS), Tanner Schachle (IR), Porter Schachle (IR), TJ Walsh (IR), Brendan Dowler (DNP), Thomas Gale (IR) did not dress for Worcester…

-30-

Comments are closed.

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑