Really, this one had overtime written all over it. It smelled of it. Any other dumb saying you want to use: This one had it. Tambellini was even saying, at 3-3, he and one of the Phantoms looked at each other and said, one of those nights. Eleven goals, and not a two-goal lead to be found.
So you look to the best player, I guess, and he scores five points. That’s all.
So apparently everyone’s still coming, though Capuano said he didn’t know anything about their injury situation. Tom Liodice noted that Nielsen had only one shift, which seems odd from here. So we’ll see what it looks like tomorrow.
No matter what happened tonight, really, tomorrow was going to mean a ton.
BRIDGEPORT
F: Tambellini (A)-Walter-Bentivoglio
Regier-Smith-Jackman (A)
MacArthur-Mosienko-Fretter
Haskins/Morency
D: Dwyer-Ford
Kohn-Spiller
Fraser-Wotton (C)
PHILADELPHIA
F: Greentree-Matsumoto-Zingoni
Grant (A)-Potulny-Reid
Kane (C)-Ross (A)-Ruzicka
(Kalinski-scratch)-Powe-Beaulieu
D: Gauthier-Guenin
Jonsson-Fitzpatrick
Grenier-DeSantis
So obviously the big news was Matt Kinch‘s tying the game for Binghamton with seven minutes to go, making it a three-point game, and thus a three-point lead for the Bears. The Penguins took the division lead on their lonesome. And Albany moved two points behind the Phantoms, albeit with one fewer game left.
On the other side, Portland locked itself into the 3 seed, and Manchester cut its magic number to four points.
Dustin Kohn was plus-3. Spiller may get an assist on the winner.
Mole, Cruthers and Andrew MacDonald were on their way to Utah for the playoffs. Tyler Mosienko was also going back to Vegas.
Bridgeport PR director/gamenight director/(any other jobs that need doing) Kimber Auerbach was talking about how he and his interns went to the Islanders-Rangers game last night. Fata came up to him and asked him to drive his car back to Bridgeport for him. Then Comeau asked, too. And then Okposo. Don’t know if they got paid mileage. Times have changed, too: Apparently the cavalry won’t come on horses to Hershey, but in a limo-bus.
Sam Weinman sort-of name-checks those on the limo-bus in his blog. The Islanders are locked into fifth-from-the-bottom in the Stamkostakes.
How would it be to see Bruce Boudreau take Washington to the playoffs? A point tomorrow, and the Caps are the division champs. (A regulation loss, and they’re going home.)
Teddy Purcell is the AHL rookie of the year. (Stunner. Recount.)
Syracuse picked up UNH kids Mike Radja and Matt Fornabaio* Fornataro.
David Desharnais is first-team All-ECHL. Speaking of, interesting stuff about the ECHL’s playoff-roster eligibility guidelines.
Bobby Cox busted out the old put-the-pitcher-in-the-outfield move last night. It will never be executed better than Davey Johnson did it July 22, 1986, in Cincinnati — in what has to be one of the craziest games ever played. Dave Parker drops the fly ball that would have ended the game. Eric Davis pinch-runs and gets into a fight with Ray Knight. And then Roger McDowell and Jesse Orosco go back and forth between the mound and the corner outfield spots. I remember staying up to watch that one. And then trying to tell my Little League coach about it the next day, and him saying something about not caring, because it was the National League. (That sowed some seeds, believe you me.)
*-If he played here, how many times do you think I would do that?