The kid is alright

He’s only 18, but Ryan O’Marra’s got a confidence that belies his years. He scored two goals tonight, and he could have had four.

Four would have been a tie, but hey, what a night, anyway.

Things weren’t pretty in the second, but they could have been a lot better. Philly was already outshooting the Sound Tigers when Bridgeport went on its fourth power play. Rob Collins found O’Marra at the back door. O’Marra’s twig, unbeknownst to him already cracked, snapped on the open-net try. Then Kiel McLeod blocked Jeremy Colliton with an open net.

A shift later, Pat Kavanagh scores short-handed to take a 2-1 lead, and things degenerate. It turns into a 21-shot period for Philly, and Dave Baseggio pulls Wade Dubielewicz to rest him for tomorrow.

So O’Marra. He got the regular shift on the fourth line with Papineau and a variable winger; it turned into the third line when Baseggio went down to three in the third. He also stepped in on the first-unit power play, the Jeff Hamilton spot (via Mike Omicioli). And that worked out a little.

O’Marra tied it at 15:55 of the first on a second rebound, battling to the net after Steve Regier had a swat at Allan Rourke’s point shot.

He could have grabbed the lead on a Ben Eager slashing penalty, but the stick broke.

In the third, he scored on the power-play rush, the fourth man jumping in to take the drop pass from Rob Collins and cut backhand and snap it through Martin Houle at 3:06.

And then at 8:23, he’s in the left circle, and he snaps it far side, and it goes off the far post.

“I think we’ve got a good one,” Baseggio said. He may be right.

LINEUPS
BRIDGEPORT
F: Thompson-Colliton-Collins (A)
Marjamaki-Koalska-Regier
Tunik-Tsimikalis-Tallari
Papineau/O’Marra
D: Pettinen-Jarrett (A)
Kemp-Caldwell
Rourke (A)-Pratt

PHILADELPHIA
F: Cavosie-Voce-Campbell
Ready (A)-Ellison-Ruzicka
Eager-Kavanagh-Kelly
Grant-McLeod-Cote (A)
D: Printz-Slaney (C)
Picard-Cook
Jones-(Wood-scratch)

Collins’ assist on the second goal extended his scoring streak to eight games (3-12-15).

*If I’ve got this right, this was the sixth time the Sound Tigers had to face only one power play… and the first time since Dec. 6, 2003.

Another pipe dream down: Bridgeport, provided it makes the playoffs, will now definitely open on the road. Hershey’s win, coupled with Bridgeport’s loss, means the Sound Tigers can finish no higher than third.

(And they better make the playoffs, because tickets are on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday morning.)

One little change in the magic numbers, though: Lowell’s 7-2 loss to Hershey eliminated the Lock Monsters from any playoff possibility in either division. There will be no crossover this year; all three Atlantic also-rans are eliminated.

Wilkes-Barre has clinched home ice. One more point gained by Hershey or lost by Norfolk does the same for the Bears.

*Meanwhile, scary stuff for Chris Kelleher up in Bingo. Glad it sounds like it’s gonna be all right. And since it does, back to the jokes…

*Sooooooo… now that the concrete rumor are more concrete, does this mean I won’t be able to call it the Donut Hole anymore? (Can’t wait.)

The value of doing your homework: If I’d only known Jim Larranaga, coach of George Mason, was a Parkchester kid, I’d have been on that bandwagon instead of dissing them from the start. Yeah, 10462, representin’!

*-Coupla little adds before I finally hit the hay, in case you visited between 11 and 5…

Michael Fornabaio