Amerks Win Marathon 15-Round Shootout
By: Thad Brown
Updated: February 26, 2012
The
Rochester Americans rallied from
a two-goal deficit and came out on top in a marathon 15-round shootout
to defeat the Lake Erie Monsters by a score of 4-3 at The Blue Cross
Arena on Saturday night. The victory, which came in front of 5,398
fans, extended the Amerks' winning streak to three
games.
"I
thought we got stronger as the game went on and then in the third it
went back-and-forth as far as momentum goes,"
said Head Coach Ron Rolston. "We had that span there (in the second
period) when we popped a couple of goals and that really swung the
momentum to our side, which really helped the energy on our bench."
Phil
Varone assisted on all three Rochester goals in the contest, all of
which were scored by defensemen. T.J. Brennan
scored twice while Brayden McNabb also contributed a goal and an
assist. David Leggio was strong in goal once again, finishing with 22
saves. In the shootout, Leggio stopped 13 of 15 Lake Erie shooters as
Varone, Marcus Foligno, and Igor Gongalsky lit the
lamp. Gongalsky's tally was the deciding goal in the 15th round.
Evan
Brophey, Eric Hunter and Ryan Stoa each scored a goal for Lake Erie in
regulation, with Hunter and Justin Mercier
also finding the back of the net in the shootout. Netminder Gerald
Coleman turned away 24 of 27 shots in regulation and overtime stopped 12
of Rochester's 15 shooters in the shootout.
The Monsters took a 1-0 lead 7:12 into the opening period when Brophey netted his team-leading 15th
goal of the season. Greg Mauldin circled the net and centered the puck for Brophey, who one-touched it into the empty side.
Lake Erie doubled its advantage to 2-0 at 11:19 of the second period, as Hunter made his way out from behind the Rochester
net and squeaked a backhander between Leggio's pad and the post.
The
Amerks responded within three minutes with a pair of goals to even the
score at two apiece. First, Brennan blasted
a one-timer from the right circle to the top shelf on the power-play at
12:50. Just 44 seconds later, McNabb buried a centering pass from Evan
Rankin in the slot.
Brennan
scored his second of the night to give Rochester its first lead at 5:43
of the final period. After Varone's initial
bid from the top of the left circle was denied by Coleman, Brennan, who
had crept in from the right point, was there to put home the rebound.
The Monsters fought back to knot things up at three midway through the third when Stoa deposited a Brad Malone feed off
the rush past Leggio.
With neither team able to capitalize on their opportunities over the remainder of regulation or overtime, the game was
ultimately decided in the shootout when Gongalsky won it for Rochester in the 15th round.
The
Amerks open up the month of March on the road on Friday, March 2 when
they travel to Van Andel Arena to take on the
North Division rival Grand Rapids Griffins. The 7 p.m. contest will be
the fifth of six scheduled meetings this season between the two teams.
