Wings Win Third In A Row
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Philadelphia- The Wings continued their winning streak
with a 10-9 win over the Toronto Rock, Saturday at the Wachovia Center in front
of 11,292 fans. It was the team's second win in as many nights.
Philadelphia defeated New York Friday night. Athan Iannucci led the Wings
with three goals and two assists. Goalie Matt Roik led Philadelphia with
31 saves.
"It feels great," said Wings' General Manager and Head Coach Lindsay
Sanderson. "We won back-to-back games this weekend. It was just
fantastic. We had a slow start and came back with three strong wins.
We're starting to get things together and are confident now."
The Wings came out firing in the first quarter, taking a quick 2-0
lead. Keith Cromwell and Sean Greenhalgh each scored within a 28-second
span. Athan Iannucci assisted on both goals. The Rock capitalized on
their first power play to cut the lead in half on a goal by Aaron Wilson.
Philadelphia was unable to score on its man-advantage midway through the
quarter, but added to its lead with a Jeff Ratcliffe tally. The Rock
struck on the power play once again to pull within one on a Blaine Manning goal
at the end of the quarter.
Toronto carried the momentum in the second quarter, starting with its third
power play goal, scored by Josh Sanderson. Ryan Benesch and Wilson scored
in a 16-second span midway through the quarter to give the Rock a two-goal
lead. The Wings scored their only goal of the quarter on the power play
from Greenhalgh. Toronto took a 5-4 lead into the locker rooms.
The Rock started the scoring in the second half with Benesch's second tally
of the night. The Wings took control of the game as Athan Iannucci scored
three straight goals in less than five minutes. The third goal came on the
power play. Dan Marohl added another goal on the man advantage to give
Philadelphia a two-goal lead. Toronto quickly got the two goals back, with
scores from Matt Shearer and Derek Suddons. The game was knotted at eight
going into the final quarter.
Toronto broke the tie at the start of the fourth quarter as Benesch completed
the hat trick. Philadelphia battled back with a pair of goals from Geoff
Snider. The Rock pulled goalie Bob Watson with over three minutes
remaining in regulation, but he quickly had to return to the net when the Wings
gained possession. A holding penalty on Kevin Fines gave Philadelphia the
man-advantage with just under a minute and a half on the clock. The
Wings controlled the ball for most of the remaining time on the clock to seal
the victory.
Athan Iannucci led the Wings in scoring with five points (3G, 2A). Five
other players scored goals for Philadelphia, including Sean Greenhalgh
(2G, 2A), Keith Cromwell (1G, 2A), Dan Marohl (1G, 2A), Jeff Ratcliffe
(1G), and Geoff Snider (2G, 1A). Goaltender Matt Roik made 31
saves.
Ryan Benesch led the Rock in scoring with five points (3G, 2A).
Five other players scored for Toronto, including Blaine Manning
(1G, 4A), Josh Sanderson (1G, 1A), and Aaron Wilson (2G, 2A), Matt
Shearer (1G, 2A), and Derek Suddons (1G). Goaltender Bob Watson
had 42 saves on the night.