Peebs win Game 4 at Portland, one win away from AD semi closeout

By DAN HICKLING

PORTLAND, Maine -- On the verge. And on the prowl.
The Providence Bruins are now one win away from advancing to the Atlantic Division final playoff series, after squeezing past the Portland Pirates, 2-1, before a disappointed Cumberland County Civic Center crowd of 3,559.
Kirk MacDonald’s goal at 19:43 of the second period held up as the game winner, and was buttressed by the 31 save yeoman’s performance by goalie Tuukka Rask.
Providence can now close out the Buccos in Game 5, tonight (7 p.m.) at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
It will be a stiff test of the club’s killer instinct.
“We know what’s at stake, (Friday),” said MacDonald, the former RPI Engineer who has bounced around aplenty during his three year pro career. “We don’t want to give them any life. If we don’t win, we have to come back here for Sunday. And nobody wants to do that.”
Providence trailed 1-0 after the first period, and would have trailed by two if Pirates’ right wing Colin Murphy been able to convert his late penalty shot opportunity.
As it was, Mark Mancari put Portland in front at 11:55, when he polished off a nifty three way passing play.
Tim Kennedy, newly installed at left wing passed ahead into the left circle to new linemate Marek Zagrapan. Zagrapan, in turn dished across the crease to Mancari, who rapped the puck into the open right side.
Six minutes later, Murphy barreled in alone on Peebs goalie Tuukka Rask, but was tripped up by defenseman Adam McQuaid before he could get off a shot.
Referee Chris Brown signaled a penalty shot, but on the ensuing attempt, Murphy was thwarted by Rask, who cut down the angle and made a pad save.
“I was just trying to go to my back hand,” said Murphy, “and put it through his ‘five hole’.”
Said Rask, “Coming back from 2-0 would have been tough. I just wanted to let him make the first move, and go from there.”
The Pirates nursed the lead deep into the second period, as the contest settled into a goalie’s duel between Rask (31 stops) and Portland’s Jhonas Enroth (35 saves).
Then Providence struck for both its goals in the space of 2:30 and spun the game on its axis.
Brad Marchand was credited with the first of those, when a Johnny Boychuk’s left point shot snuck through a tangle and rattled Enroth.
Then, with :17 left in the stanza, Kirk MacDonald took Wacey Rabbit’s dish into the right circle, then zipped a wrister over Enroth’s shoulder, making it 2-1.
That one held up as the game-winner despite a strong show of third period urgency by the Pirates.
“I’m probably in a lot better mood than Kevin (Dineen, Pirates’ coach) is. That could have (gone) either way. That’s a good, hard fought playoff hockey game. Fortunately, we came out with the win.”

EMPTY NETTERS: Should Portland win tonight, Game 6 would be played Sunday afternoon (4 p.m.) at the Civic Center…Portland failed to convert either of its power play chances, while the Peebs PK unit is now a perfect 15-for-15 for the series, to date. Rabbit chalks its effectiveness to consistency. “We’re trying to keep them off the score sheet. They have some really good players. But when called upon, we’ve got to do a job.”

Selective amnesia; Portland Pirates off-day skate

By DAN HICKLING

PORTLAND, Maine -- Out of mind, out of the memory banks.
That’s how the Portland Pirates are dealing with last Sunday’s lopsided 5-1 loss to the Providence Bruins in Game 3 of their Atlantic Division semifinal series.
Since that one is in the books and unrepairable, the Pirates would rather focus on matters within their power.
Such as a strong effort in Thursday’s Game 4, to be staged at the Civic Center (7 p.m.).
A win would square the best of seven series a two games each.
A loss?
The Pirates would rather not think about it.
“Put that game behind us,” said veteran winger Colin Murphy, following Tuesday‘s brisk one hour workout at Portland Ice Arena. “That’s why it’s a seven game series. It doesn’t matter about that game anymore. We know we can beat these guys. It’s just a matter of going out and doing it.”
What the Pirates aren’t doing so far is getting pucks past Providence goalie Tuukka Rask.
They’ve netted a measly two goals in the last two games, and have yet to convert a power play opportunity in the series.
That, the Pirates say, will have to change, come Thursday.
“It’s been all our doing,” said winger Kyle Rank. “We didn’t capitalize on our power plays. They’re a good team. They’re going to make you pay when you don’t play well.”
Murphy said that the Pirates’ mettle has been tested before, and that they’ve always found the will to respond.
He said he expects nothing different from the club going forward.
“We’ve had games like this before,” he said, “and we’ve bounced back with a better effort the next game. We’re not worried about it at all.”

While every Pirate has struggled in the offensive zone, the club’s top line -- the threesome of Tim Kennedy, Mathieu Darche, and Nathan Gerbe -- have come under the greatest scrutiny.
The trio has yet to register a point in the three games thus far.
So, Portland coach Kevin Dineen has done what all coaches do. Tinker with the lines.
Tuesday found Kennedy skating at left wing on a line with Marek Zagrapan and Mark Mancari, with Murphy taking his place with Darche and Gerbe. Darche, who was playing right wing, was in the pivot during practice.
Dineen cautioned against reading too much into the moves.
“They’ll probably switch again tomorrow,” he said. “They were different yesterday, and they’re different today. They might be different tomorrow. There’s not a whole lot of rhyme or reason to it. Except that we’re trying to sell to all our players that it doesn’t matter who you’re on the wing with.”

Dineen was reminded that several of his former Pirate players are now enjoying great success in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Ex-Bucs Drew Miller, Bobby Ryan, and Andrew Ebbett all contributed mightly to Anaheim’s wins at San Jose, while tough guy Shawn Thornton surprised everyone by scoring for Boston in its 4-2 win at Montreal.
Not to be forgotten, Anaheim goalie Jonas Hiller is an early Conn Smythe Trophy favorite.
Dineen played a hand in getting all those players up to the National Hockey League.
True to his modest nature, however, Dineen deftly deflects any credit.
“Those ‘Pesky Pirates’”, he said. “They all spent a significant amount of time here. You hear about how Dustin Pedroia was here for a while (with the Portland Sea Dogs) and how people are excited about the Red Sox connetion.
“You’re a very small piece of the puzzle with these players. I’m a big believer that good players make good coaches. And if my name gets associated with their success, it’s a real bonus for me.”

Defenseman Chris Butler is back with the club after missing Game 3 due to an undisclosed family emergency…The Pirates were to have made a significant announcement, Tuesday, then cancelled a press conference that had been set for Portland City Hall. That will now take place on Thursday…The Pirates report that plenty of good seats are available for Thursday’s contest.

Providence scuttles the Pirates, takes 2-1 series lead

By DAN HICKLING


PORTLAND, Maine -- Advantage Providence.
The Peebs regained the upper hand -- and home ice advantage, too -- over the Portland Pirates in the their Atlantic Division semifinal series, by applying a 5-1 hammering to the Bucs, before 3,642 disgruntled fans at the Civic Center, Sunday.
Providence now leads the best of seven food I-95 spat, two games to one.
Unfortunately for them, they’ll have to wait until Thursday before playing Game 4, here. The circus, after all, is in town the next three days.
“It’s kind of hard,” said Bs d-man Johnny Boychuk, who bombed 10 shots on goal and connected on two of them. “We’ve been in a groove. You play one game, then have a day off. Then you play another one. Now you have a three day break. It’s kind of weird. You don’t want to give up all that momentum.”
The Peebs had surge to burn on Sunday.
They set the tone in the opening period, when they pelted Portland starter Jhonas Enroth with 18 shots, although they put just one shot past him.
The Peebs goal came at 13:58, when Martin St. Pierre cashed in a rink-wide pass from Brad Marchand with a slapper from the right circle.
It was Marchand’s theft from Mathieu Darche in the neutral zone that made that 2-on-1 possible.
“I thought it was a strong game by us,” said Providence coach Rob Murray. “I thought they might have been a little flat. Basically, I think we took advantage of it. We cashed in our opportunities. That was a big thing.”
Providence followed with a three-goal eruption in the second period, beginning with Marchand’s tally at the :59 mark.
That, too, was made possible by a Pirate snafu, when defensemen Marc-Andre Gragnani and Paul Baier collided, allowing Vladimir Sobotka to dish the loose puck to Boychuk. In turn, Boychuk managed to squeeze his 20-footer past Portland starter Jhonas Enroth.
Soon after, the Pirates were handed a lengthy two-man advantage to work with, but frittered it away and managed to put just two harmless shots on Peebs goalie Tuukka Rask.
“That was potentially a game changer,” said Murray. “If they’re able to get one or two, the game can change real quick.”
Instead, the Peebs kept their foot on Portland’s collective throat.
By the end of the period, Providence bulked its lead to an imposing 4-0 margin, using tallies by Sobotka (short-handed) and Boychuk (on a power play).
Enroth was pulled after Boychuk’s tally, with back up Kellen Briggs making his playoff debut.
Boychuk bombed in another goal early in the third.
By then, it was a full fledged rout.
“We just came together,” said Boychuk. “It felt good to score a couple goals. We wanted to bear down on our chances and we did that. I think that’s why we won.”


EMPTY NETTERS: Earlier in the day, Peebs’ rookie defenseman Dennis Reul was released from his ATO. Reul, Boston’s fifth round draftee in 2007, will get a full shot to make the Providence club in September. The Bruins did add defenseman Alain Goulet, whom they chose one round later that same year. Goulet most recently played for the Gatineau Olympiques, after having skated collegiately for Nebraska-Omaha for parts of two seasons…The Pirates were missing defenseman Mike Kostka, who incurred an injury to his right leg, Friday in Providence. Kostka, who hadn’t missed a game all year, took the pre-game skate, but was unable to play. Also, defenseman Chris Butler was absent due to a family emergency. Their places were taken by blue liners Matt Generous and Dennis Persson…Portland now has 10 defensemen on the active roster, after adding Sabre draft choices T.J. Brennan and Drew Schiestel, both of whom wound up their junior seasons this week. Brennan and Schiestel were Buffalo both second rounders in 2007.

Peebs stop greed in its tracks, squeaks past Portland to knot series, 1-1

By DAN HICKLING

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Greed is good, at least it is in a hockey sense.
Which is why the Portland Pirates dearly wanted to march out of the Dunkin’ Donuts Center two games up on the Providence Bruins in their best of seven Atlantic Division semifinal set.

And the Peebs were just as eager to prevent them from doing that.

This night, the Bruins prevailed taking a hard fought 2-1 grindout before a throng of 6,040.
Providence captain Jeremy Reich lashed in the game winner at 10:32 of the third stanza of a contest that burned up high octane by the tankful.

"It was exciting," Reich said about the tempo. "That's why you play the game. For the playoffs. The regular season is 80 games, and you get tuned up. Every guy was excited to play."

The same could be said of Portland.
“Once we got the first win (3-0 on Wednesday),” said veteran winger Mathieu Darche, “we definitely want both. We got one game, and we definitely wanted that. But you’re never satisfied. You get the first one, you want the second one.”
Said defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani, “After winning the first game, we talked about it and said ‘why not’. If you can do it one time, you can do it two times.”
Even so, the Pirates hold home ice advantage as series shifts to the Civic Center.
After the teams skated to a hard fought, and scoreless opening period, Providence grabbed its first lead of the series, on Vladimir Sobotka’s goal at 2:01 of the second.
Sobotka, who had missed a wide open net in the early moments of the first period, made good this time after a nifty lead feed from Brad Marchand sent him in alone on goalie Jhonas Enroth (38 saves).
Sobotka was allowed to swivel to the edge of the crease where he tucked the puck inside the right post.
Portland had an opportunity to respond, soon after, when it held a two man advantage for a full minute.
The Buccos did manage to get off a flurry of shots in that span, but none of them got past Providence goalie Tuukka Rask.
“That’s playoff hockey,” said Pirates coach Kevin Dineen. “We’re a long way from three (games) in three (nights) in December. It has a tone and an intensity.
With 3:33 gone in the third, Tyler Bouck let go a knuckler from between the circles that fooled Rask and hopped in off his glove, making it 1-1.
Moments after Portland blue liner made a huge play to sweep a loose puck off the goal line, Enroth made an enormous save on Johnny Boychuk, who had swooped in from the right point.
The deadlock held until Reich stepped away from the right boards and from 25 feet out, found space underneath the crossbar.
Portland pressed hard after that, but was unable to net the tying goal.
"Both games could have gone either way," said Providence coach Rob Murray. "It's potentially shaping up to be a seven game series."


EMPTY NETTERS: Dineen made one change from his Game One line up, inserting defenseman Geoff Waugh in place of rookie Matt Generous. Peebs coach Rob Murray also did some shuffling of his first and second lines, flipping wingers Brad Marchand and Mikko Lehtonen. “Call it a hunch,” said Murray. “I just felt more comfortable with that. I didn‘t think either line jelled together . So I decided to make the change.”…Enroth established a new franchise playoff shutout streak, 82:01. It surpassed the old mark, 77:53, set by Ron Tugnutt back in 1996…Meanwhile, the suddenly bountiful Portland blueline corps got even richer with the arrival of T.J. Brennan. Brennan, Buffalo’s top pick (31st overall) in the 2007 draft became available when his junior team, the Montreal Juniors, were ousted from the playoffs. The Pirates may be in line for another infusion of talent after the weekend ends…That depth might be put to the test, after the Pirates lost steady blue liner Mike Kostka to an unspecified right leg injury, sustained late in the second period. His status wasn’t immediately known…The teams will tangle again in Game 3 on Sunday (4 p.m.), when the scene shifts to Portland…

An AHL Mystery...Where's Mancari?

WORCESTER, Mass. --All-Star events are supposed to be without intrigue or even any hint of a subplot.
Such was not the case, however, Sunday, during the AHL All-Stars Skills Competition at the DCU Center.
Pirates’ right wing Mark Mancari, the defending champion in the Hardest Shot event, was on hand as Portland’s lone representative in the Competition, which was won by Team PlanetUSA, 18-12 win over Team Canada.
But he was not among the eight snipers who answered the “cannon” call for the event in which he set the record last year by launching a 102.8 m.p.h. missile.
When asked about it in the Team Canada dressing room, Mancari seemed at a loss for an answer.
“I think it was just one of those years,” he said. “(They) just went for a change. I don’t know, it’s just something that happens. I’m not upset about it, so it was fine.”
When pressed a little harder, Mancari, indicated that he hadn’t been approached about participating.
“It was about sticks,” he said, coyly. “It just didn’t work out.”
Instead, Mancari handed his crown to Worcester’s Derek Joslin, who delighted his hometown crowd by registering “only” 98.6 m.p.h. on the radar gun with his first of two attempts.
“I just tried to skate hard to the puck,” said Joslin, “and make contact.”
Joslin, however, fanned on his second, and registered just 48.9 m.p.h.
“I tried to shoot too hard,” he said. “I was trying to get to triple digits. But it happens. I’m glad I got the first one up there.”
Jared Ross of the Philadelphia Phantoms, and Manitoba Moose goaltender Cory Schneider led the way for PlanetUSA, which captured six of the eight events.
Ross won the Fastest Skater event, circling the rink in a time of :14.187.
“I didn’t really think about it,” said Ross, about his preparation for the event. “When you think about it, that’s when you get in trouble. I was a little nervous about falling. The key is just watching those corners.”
Schneider won the Top Goaltender Award by stopping 18 of 19 shots, a new Skills Competition record.
“It’s exciting,” said Schneider. “It’s a fun event for the fans, so you don’t get too nervous. You just go out, react to the puck, and have fun.”
The puck control relay was settled for Team PlanetUSA by Worcester’s Ryan Vesce in a head to head race with Joslin.
Vesce beat his Sharks’ teammate by a stride.
Other wins by Team PlanetUSA came in the Rapid Fire, Pass and Score, and Accuracy Shooting events.
Milwaukee Admirals forward Mike Santorelli of Vancouver, B.C., became just the third shooter in the history of the accuracy event to hit all four targets with just four shots.
Team Canada’s other win came in the Breakaway Relay, which they won 5-2.