 |
| POWER
PLAY |
18TH
- 15.7 |
| PENALTY
KILL |
23RD
- 79.5 |
| FORWARDS |
| SCOTT
BURT |
27-33-60
(+2) |
| RYAN
KINASEWICH |
23-37-60
(+11) |
| KEITH
JOHNSON |
27-26-53
(-4) |
| DEFENSEMEN |
| JAMES
SANFORD |
9-24-33
(-1) |
| SEAN
OFFERS |
2-19-21
(-3) |
| JEFF
DWYER |
3-14-17
(-13) |
| GOALTENDERS |
| MIKE
MOLE |
18-13-1
(0 SO)
3.29 GA
.897 PCT |
|
| NATHAN
LAWSON |
17-9-0
(2 SO)
2.91 GA
.906 PCT |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
Utah
vs Fresno |
|
|
SCHEDULE |
| 1 |
APR.
13 |
UTAH
6 - FRESNO 1 |
SEED
6 |
2 |
APR.
14 |
UTAH
4 - FRESNO 3 (3OT) |
SEED
3 |
32-30-2
(74) |
3 |
APR.
16 |
FRESNO
3 - UTAH 0 |
42-22-4
(92) |
| |
4 |
APR.
18 |
FRESNO
6 - UTAH 1 |
|
| |
5 |
APR.
19 |
FRESNO
0 - UTAH 1 (OT) |
|
| |
6 |
APR.
21 |
UTAH
4 - FRESNO 2 |
|
| |
7 |
APR.
23 |
UTAH
at FRESNO |
|
| Utah
Wins Series 4-2 |
|
SERIES
PREVIEW |
| |
As springtime arrives and the temperatures reach into the ‘90s here in Fresno one’s mind focuses on playoff hockey as the Falcons enter the playoffs for the third consecutive year. In Fresno high temperatures mean hard hitting playoff action is on the calendar.
The Falcons had a solid regular season and finished with the second best record in the National Conference but were seeded third in the playoff bracket due to Victoria winning the West Division despite having fewer points than the Falcons. Utah missed the playoffs last year but had a solid enough season this year to finish out the last six weeks of the season with a secured playoff spot.
Head to head during the regular season Fresno posted a record of 6-3-0-1 while Utah managed a 4-4-1-1 record versus Fresno. Many of the regular season tilts were nail-biters especially late in the year. Both teams had a couple blow out wins against each other as well. When healthy the teams match-up well and a tight series is expected as reinforcements have returned to both teams from the AHL.
Series Overview:
Utah:
The Grizzlies have a strong lineup that was decimated for much of the season by call-ups to the AHL. Heading to the playoffs they have received much of their team back and they are chomping at the bit to show what they can do with a nearly full roster. They struggled at times as there have been 45 total transactions since opening week involving the Grizzlies and the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Five players (Keith Johnson, Justin Bourne, Andrew MacDonald, Ryan Cruthers and Mike Mole) have returned to the Grizzlies in the last week alone from Bridgeport just in time for the playoffs. The season has been a roller coaster but they are looking strong at this point as they have nine rookies on their playoff roster who now have a year’s playing time under their belts.
Mole has been particularly outstanding in goal for the Grizzlies and Bridgeport and even earned a brief call up to the New York Islanders this year. It was a great year for Mole despite what might have been going on around him. Mole finished the year with a 3.29 GAA in the ECHL which was not indicative of his play. Rookie Nathan Lawson will be called on for backup duty in the playoffs and performed admirably during the regular season.
Ian Forbes (who will miss game one due to suspension) and Jordan Hart lead a tough Utah defensive corps that really slows teams down through neutral ice and are strong shot blockers. Forbes and Hart logged 137 and 142 penalty minutes respectively and are a force in keeping things clear for Mole to do his job. Hart had an impressive +12 during the regular season. MacDonald, recently returned from Bridgeport, is a solid stay- at-home type defender who was voted best defenseman by his teammates.
Up front the Grizzlies are led by veteran captain Scott Burt (voted MVP by his teammates) and Ryan Kinasewich who both notched a club leading 60 points. Kinasewich’s numbers were especially impressive as he only played in 44 contests and had a +11 on a team with a fairly high goals against. Both are wily forwards who bury the puck when the chance is there and are both creative passers. Keith Johnson was a steady contributor with 53 points and Olivier Labelle notched nearly a point per game with his grinding style with bursts of speed.
Fresno:
The Falcons had solid season in compiling 92 points. There were nights when they were unbeatable and nights when they couldn’t do anything right but they were mostly consistent, strong on D and at times offensively explosive.
Jake Moreland came out of retirement in November to play in Fresno and took a club with a .500 record and helped them finish second in points in the entire conference. He has been a confidence builder for the whole team and was voted the MVP of the club by his teammates. Moreland’s number were solid with a 2.64 GAA and save percentage of .911. He is backed up by rookie Kris Mayotte who had a solid year with a GAA of 2.97.
Veteran team captain Matt O’Dette leads the club by example from the defense and is solid as a rock in front of the net. When the club’s power play was in a mighty slump late in the year O’Dette even camped out in front of the opponent's goals and notched four goals in the last five games while seeing some rare time up front on the power play. P-O Beaulieu has come along nicely in three seasons with the Falcons and has become a smart and big defender as well. Tyler Kindle is returning form injury for this series and will provide an offensive flair to match his defensive toughness. Rookie Kenny MacAuley will return from the AHL just in time for this series and will provide more smart defensive techniques along with some speed and puck handling skill.
With players returning from injury and the AHL the Falcons are downright loaded up front heading into this series. Rookie scoring sensation Oren Eizenman missed the last month of the regular season while in the AHL and still led the team in points and goals with 27 and 66 in only 53 games. Hustling veteran John Morlang is the soul of the Falcons offense, but missed most of the regular season with a pair of injuries. Despite his injury woes Morlang still notched 31 points in 33 games, when he’s there the whole team just seems to play better. Skilled centerman Josh Prudden returned from the AHL late in the year to add 21 points in 18 games.
Even without the returnees the Falcons have a strong front line led by veteran Luke Curtin who led the club in assists (42) and is the quarterback on the power play unit. Brady Leisenring is consistent contributor with 60 points in 64 games and impresses with his hustling style. Kenny Bernard, Matt Quinn and Mike Ramsay are trio that can kill with lightning speed and all have had breakout nights while scoring goals in bunches. Igor Gongalsky bridges the gap between a speedster and agitator and does both well for Fresno. Matt Stefanishion has made all the difference for the Falcons with his size and agitator style, he has scored consistently while getting the other team's skin and protecting his teammates, you can’t ask for much more than that! His hustle and style led to his being voted the Falcon’s fan favorite.
Intangibles:
Both teams had disappointing seasons on the penalty kill and power play so that will likely not be a huge factor in this series unless one or the other gets hot at some point. This may be a way for Utah to pull off a huge upset would be for their power play to take over and put away some games. Either team would have to step it up considerably in this area to get much beyond this round.
The expected 90 degree + temperatures for the first two games in Fresno may put some strain on the ice making machine but that hasn’t been a problem at Save Mart Center in the past (though there have been ice problems), hopefully the surface will hold and not slow the game down.
Fresno gave up the fewest goals in the league during the first period this year and is nearly perfect when they score first in a game.
Prediction:
All games in this series will be a battle if Fresno doesn't take an early lead. These two teams played four times in March and two of the games went to overtime. Fresno is downright loaded up front and should take this series but it will likely take at least five if not all seven games. Utah can take this one if their power play catches fire and they play defense at the level they are capable of.
Notes:
The Utah Grizzlies have announced that they will host a playoff watch party Sunday night at the E-Center as the team visits the Fresno Falcons in game one of the playoffs. Face-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. The live feed of the game will feature Grizzlies broadcaster Adrian Denny’s call on Utah Grizzlies Radio and B-2 Networks.
- B-2 video will be available for all games in the series as well as radio and internet broadcasts for both teams.
Contact the author at: mike.canady@prohockeynews.com |
|
| Game
1 |
Utah
6 - Fresno 1 |
| by
Mike Canady - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Utah
Leads Series 1-0 |
Fresno, CA - This was the last series in the National conference quarterfinals to get underway and all had an upset in game #1. The Utah Grizzlies routed the Fresno Falcons 6-1 tonight in front of a gathering of 1,991 fans at Fresno’s Save Mart Center.
Rookie Utah goaltender Nathan Lawson missed a shutout in his first ECHL playoff appearance when the Falcons Oren Eizenman lifted a second rebound over his outstretched arms with only :27.9 remaining. Lawson also stopped a penalty shot near the mid point of the third period on Fresno’s Brady Leisenring. In all, Lawson made 31 saves on 32 shots and was named the game’s #2 star.
Utah took the lead at 15:39 of the opening period when Tavis Rycroft lifted a rebound over the left leg pad of Fresno Goaltender Jake Moreland (22 saves on 26 shots). The Grizzlies took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission after a shorthanded goal by Rob Sirianni who dove to get his stick on an incredible feathered pass through center ice from Keith Johnson and poking the puck through the pads of Moreland at 18:22.
 |
Fresno dominated play early on in the second period and took the lead on the shot counter but not the scoreboard as Utah padded their lead to 4-0 on goals by James Sanford and Michael Haley.
The rout was on in the third as the Grizzlies moved out to a 6-0 lead with goals by Jordan Hart and Haley’s second of the night. From there the game degenerated and resulted in a major penalty to Fresno’s Kenny Bernard for spearing right off a neutral zone faceoff. Utah retaliated with a pair of ugly high sticks to two of Fresno’s biggest offensive weapons in Oren Eizenman and Josh Prudden. The high sticking penalty’s were a double minor to Haley who drew blood on Eizenman and Hart was the guilty party taking Prudden down.
After the first period Fresno outshot the Grizzlies by a 27-19 margin and 32-27 overall.
Utah was 3-10 on the powerplay and scored a shorthanded goal while Fresno went 1-5 scoring with a two man advantage.
Game 2 of the series is Monday night April 14 at the Save Mart Center. The puck drops at 7:00pm PDT.
Contact the author at mike.canady@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at chris.canady@prohockeynews.com |
|
| Game
2 |
Utah
4 - Fresno 3 (3OT) |
| by
Mike Canady - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Utah
Leads Series 2-0 |
Fresno,
CA - Justin Bourne notched the game winning
goal on a beautiful deke move around Fresno goaltender
Jake Moreland (56 saves on 60 shots). Bourne put the puck
between Morland's skate and the right post at the 6:23
mark of the the third overtime to give the Utah Grizzlies
a 2-0 lead in the best of seven series. A huge assist
on the game winner went to Tyler Haskins who stole the
puck from Igor Gongalsky of Fresno at the blue line and
fed the puck to Bourne who was all alone in the right
circle behind the play.
This was the sixth longest game in ECHL history and ended
at 11:40pm pacific time, 4:40 minutes after it started.
Tonight also may have been the last ECHL game at Fresno’s
Save Mart Center as the Falcons are moving to downtown
Fresno’s Selland arena next season. The Falcons must win
two of the next three games in Utah to bring the series
back home for game six.
This game turned into an epic battle as the two teams
short shifted and fought on through the exhaustion of
two scoreless periods of overtime hockey. In the best
scoring chance of the first overtime Moreland stopped
Haskins on a rare penalty shot that was awarded due to
a Falcon defender covering the puck with his glove in
the crease during a scramble that saw Moreland make a
series of saves just prior. Both teams had scoring changes
through the overtimes but Utah clearly had the stronger
legs more of the time carrying the play and outshooting
the Falcons on the night by a 60-42 margin.
The disappointed Fresno fans mostly stood and cheered
for the combatants of both sides who put forth the monumental
effort. Even the mascots earned applause (Freddie and
Little Cesar) as they kept up the antics into the sixth
period.
The game started out well enough for the 1616 fans gathered
in Fresno’s Save Mart Center as the Falcon’s Oren Eizenman
notched the game’s first goal at the 14:23 mark on a deflection
past Utah goalie Nathan Lawson (39 saves on 42 shots).
Fresno moved out to a 3-0 lead in the second period on
goals a deflection of a Joe Van Culin shot headed wide
by Gongalsky and Luke Curtin capitalizing on a deflection
off a defender that landed right on his stick, the veteran
Curtin made no mistake in roofing the puck over the sprawling
Lawson. Fresno nearly escaped the second period unscathed
before a rash of penalties allowed Utah back in the game.
The got on the board with only :38 remaining in the period
on a power play score by Rob Sirianni who batted in a
rebound of an initial spectacular save by Moreland.
The turning point of the game came when the Falcons were
successfully killing a penalty to Darryl Marcoux when
Kenny MacAulay was whistled for tripping, giving Utah
a two man advantage for 1:01. Moreland made a couple huge
sprawling saves before a blast from the right circle off
the stick of Andrew MacDonald eluded him over the glove.
Utah doubled up on the extended advantage with another
blast from the right circle this time by Jeff Dwyer at
the 7:07 mark to even the score at 3-3. It would remain
that way for nearly two more hours.
Fresno went 2 of 6 on the powerplay while Utah capitalized
on the powerplay for all three of their regulation goals.
Fresno did not score on the only power play of the overtime
which was in period 5.
The series shifts to The E Center in West Valley City,
Utah for game three of the best-of-seven series on Wednesday
at 7:05 p.m. MT.
Contact the author at mike.canady@prohockeynews.com
|
|
Game
3 |
Fresno
3 - Utah 0 |
| by
Mike Canady - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Utah
Leads Series 2-1 |
West
Valley City, UT - Facing a 2-0 deficit in the
series the Fresno Falcons came out flying and dominated
much of play early on trying their best to claw their
way back into the series. They fired sixteen shots on
Utah goaltender Nathan Lawson (31 saves on 33 shots) but
only managed to get one past him in the period. The one
goal of the period came at 11:16 when Fresno’s Kenny Bernard
made a steal at his own blue line and led the play into
the zone on a 2-on-1 break with Oren Eizenman. Bernard
faked a shot and then slid a pass cross crease to Eizenman
at the left post who made the easy tap in. Eizenman is
the only player to have scored in all three games of the
series.
The second period was much more even with Utah outshooting
Fresno 9-8 but neither team was able to put the puck in
the net. Utah had several chances on a late period power
play but Fresno’s Jake Moreland (37 saves on 37 shots)
had his "A" game in net making a quick series of saves
as the momentum started to go Utah’s way.
Utah came out firing in the third but couldn't solve Moreland.
Andrew MacDonald made things tougher on the Grizzlies
when he took a tripping penalty late in the period that
allowed Josh Prudden to fire in a wrister from right wing
circle to give the Falcons a 2-0 lead with an assist to
Joe VanCulin at 15:30. Moreland continued his strong play
in the final period as he faced 17 shots.
With 3:30 remaining a small line brawl erupted as frustrations
boiled over for the Grizzlies. Another brawl erupted shortly
after that which left the Grizzlies shorthanded and allowing
Fresno’s Daryl Marcoux to fire in an empty net goal to
make the final score 3-0. For Moreland it was his first
shutout of the season and the timing couldn’t have been
better. Fresno went 2-6 on the power play while Utah went
0-6. Final shots on goal were 37-34 in Utah's favor. The
attendance at Utah’s E-Center was 2906, the largest so
far in the series.
The next game in the series is at 6:05 PM MT on Friday,
April 18.
Contact the author at mike.canady@prohockeynews.com
|
|
|
Game
4 |
Fresno
6 - Utah 1 |
| by
Mike Canady - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Series
Tied 2-2 |
West
Valley City, UT - Fresno goaltender Jake Moreland
(18-19) came within 1:54 of putting together consecutive
shutouts to lead the Falcons to a 6-1 victory and tying
the series 2-2. Rob Sirianni finally put the puck in the
net for the Grizzlies to spoil the shutout. Fresno got
goals from five different players to get their offense
untracked.
Oren Eizenman wasted no time in keeping his four-game
goal scoring streak alive when he scored just 1:56 into
the first period on an assist from Kenny Bernard. Eizenman
has scored Fresno’s first goal in all four games. Mike
Ramsay deflected a shot from Luke Curtin over Nathan Lawson
(11-15) on the power play, a second assist was given to
John Morlang for his first playoff point of the year.
Fresno continued to carry the play in the stanza with
a 13-7 shot advantage.
Ramsay scored his second of the night, again on the power
play early in the second period to give the Falcons a
3-0 lead with assists to Curtin and Eizenman. Fresno took
a commanding 4-0 lead just past the game’s mid-point on
Brady Leisenring’s first of the playoffs finishing the
rebound of a shot from the point by Matt O’Dette with
an assist to Josh Prudden.
Lawson who had been very strong all series was chased
to the bench after the fourth Fresno goal in favor of
Mike Mole (4-6) who was seeing his first action of the
playoffs.
Moreland made two exceptional saves to frustrate the Grizzlies
and Olivier Labelle in particular late in the period before
Morlang struck for his first goal of the playoffs at 19:57
to make the score 5-0 at the break. Morlang scored shortly
after the Falcons killed a penalty by finishing a two-on-one
with a rebound of a shot from Curtin who notched three
assists in the game.
 |
Utah’s first shot of the third period came 7:00 into the
final period as the Falcons closed down the center and
slowed things down. Utah’s frustration’s boiled over late
with three consecutive roughing penalties in the last
5:00 (one to Ian Forbes and a pair to Labelle) and a slashing
penalty to Jordan Hart that sent Eizenman off the ice
with an apparent injury. Fresno notched the game's final
goal at 19:34 when Matt Quinn notched his first of the
playoffs.
Game 5 in the series is Saturday night April 19 @ 7:05MT
NOTE- The Fresno radio broadcast will be on 1430AM instead
of 790AM due to a scheduling conflict.
Contact the author at mike.canady@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at chris.canady@prohockeynews.com
|
|
|
Game
5 |
Fresno
0 - Utah 1 (OT) |
| by
Mike Canady - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Utah
Leads Series 3-2 |
West
Valley City, UT - Utah’s Keith Johnson buried
a rebound of a shot off a face-off following an icing
by Fresno to score the game’s only goal 3:38 into overtime
with assists to Ryan Kinaswewich and Tyler Haskins.
This series has seen highs and lows for both teams with
a 6-1 blowout victory for each, an overtime epic win for
the Grizzlies that went to six periods and a 3-0 shutout
victory for the Falcons and now a 1-0 shutout win for
the Grizzlies.
There were plenty of chances during regulation but the
goaltenders, Jake Moreland (31-32) for Fresno and Nathan
Lawson (34-34) of Utah had all the answers with Moreland
making 28 saves and Lawson 31 through regulation.
The Grizzlies had an apparent early goal by Olivier Labelle
but it was waived off as the whistle had blown before
the puck trickled through Moreland and over the line.
The light went on the fans cheered but no goal was awarded
on the play. Shots on goal were nearly even with a 10-9
advantage to the Grizzlies. Fresno killed two penalties
in the stanza.
 |
The second period saw more of the same but with Fresno
moving to a shot advantage of 12-9 after a couple of flurries
that tested Lawson to his limits. Moreland made several
solid saves in the stanza as well.
Fresno’s league-leading power play didn’t receive their
first chance until early in the third period when Jordan
Hart was whistled for slashing but the Falcons power play
didn’t convert. Moreland made a huge save on Rob Sirianni
all alone from the top of the crease before Brady Leisenring
rang a shot off the post after a race to the opposite
end near the 6:00 mark. Lawson made a huge save on Kenny
Bernard with just five seconds remaining to send the game
to overtime for the second time in the series. Shots on
goal in the third period were 9-8 in the Grizzlies favor.
Fresno had all the pressure early in the overtime but
Lawson made some heroic saves on Mike Ramsay and Matt
Stefanishion in the first couple minutes.
Utah will have a chance to close out the series when it
returns to Fresno’s Save Mart Center Monday night April,
28 at 7:05 PDT.
Contact the author at mike.canady@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at chris.canady@prohockeynews.com
|
|
|
Game
6 |
Utah
4 - Fresno 2 |
| by
Mike Canady - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Utah
Wins Series 4-2 |
Fresno,
CA - The Fresno Falcons had their 2007-08 season
come to an end as the Utah Grizzlies clawed their way
to a 4-2 win in Game 6 of the National Conference Quarterfinals,
winning the series 4 games to 2. The Falcons have played
their last game at the enormous Save Mart Center on the
campus of California State University/Fresno and will
move to downtown Fresno next season and play their games
at Selland Arena (which is currently undergoing renovations).
The Grizzlies will move on to the Conference Semifinals
facing a yet to be determined opponent.
For a team fighting for their lives it was a bit surprising
to see the Falcons come out looking flat in the first
period. Utah was obviously trying to slow things down,
and it worked, as they held the Falcons to just four shots
in the period while scoring twice on their seven shots.
Rob Sirianni opened the scoring with his third of the
playoffs as he finished a two-on-one play down low, off
a pass from Travis Rycroft. A blast from the blue line
by Andrew MacDonald found it’s way through the pads of
Fresno goaltender Jake Moreland (20-23) and silenced the
announced Save Mart Center crowd of 1,560 near the end
of the first period. It was one of those goals you know
Moreland would love to have back.
The Falcons showed signs of life in the second period
outscoring the Grizzlies 2-1 and out-shooting them 12-9.
Fresno got on the board at 2:01 when Brady Leisenring
made a spin-a-rama move along the right wing boards to
elude a defender and fired a blast off the toe of Utah
goaltender Nathan Lawson (20-22) that rebounded onto the
stick of Kenny MaCaulay who batted it right back between
Lawson’s pads. Utah answered back just :20 later to make
the score 3-1 as the Falcons defense backed away from
Ryan Kinasewich in the right circle and he blasted an
uncontested shot past Moreland with assists to Tyler Haskins
and Jeff Dwyer for what would prove to be the game and
series-winning goal. Fresno kept the game close with a
goal at 10:10 on a flip shot from the point by FP Lachance
that was deflected in the slot by Leisenring to make the
score 3-2 (one Lawson would probably like back as well).
The Falcons buzzed the Utah net for the remainder of the
period but Lawson made several spectacular saves and Fresno
just couldn’t find the equalizer.
In the third period Fresno had two cracks at power plays
but could not manage a shot on either as the Utah defense
packed it in and blocked shots while cutting off the passing
lanes to frustrate the Falcons throughout. Fresno’s best
chance to even it up came near the 9:00 mark as Oren Eizenman
snaked through the defense but couldn’t get the puck past
Lawson who sprawled in front of him. Utah iced the final
score of 4-2 as Keith Johnson finished a two on zero break
into an empty net with an assist to Olivier Labelle with
just :40 remaining on the clock.
Game Notes
Utah outshot the Falcons in the final period by a margin
of 7-6.
Fresno went 0-7 on the power play while Utah managed 1-5.
Fresno did not win a game at home in the series and Utah
only managed one win on home ice (and that was in overtime).
This was Utah's first ever ECHL playoff victory.
Fresno the second consecutive year they were ousted in
the first round.
Contact the author at mike.canady@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at chris.canady@prohockeynews.com
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
| POWER
PLAY |
19TH
- 15.5 |
| PENALTY
KILL |
15TH
- 81.6 |
| FORWARDS |
| OREN
EIZENMAN |
27-39-66
(+12) |
| BRADY
LEISENRING |
25-35-60
(-2) |
| LUKE
CURTIN |
12-42-54
(-8) |
| DEFENSEMEN |
| TYLER
KINDLE |
10-34-44
(+2) |
| PO
BEAULIEU |
13-18-31
(+6) |
| JOE
VAN CULIN |
4-21-25
(+12) |
| GOALTENDERS |
| JAKE
MORELAND |
22-11-0
(1 SO)
2.64 GA
.911 PCT |
|
| KRIS
MAYOTTE |
18-9-4
(1 SO)
2.97 GA
.901 PCT |
|
|
|
