BILOXI, Miss. � Mississippi�s Steffon Walby notched one goal and added three assists to lead the Sea Wolves to the their seventh straight victory by downing the Columbus Cottonmouths 5-1 before 5,469 fans at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.
Mississippi earns two points to bring the team to 91 points, one from tying the team record which was set last season.
�We had a solid first period and an excellent second to secure the win,� Sea Wolves director of player development Chuck Thuss said. �It was a super team effort and we�re peaking at the right time heading into the playoffs. The rematch at Columbus on Tuesday is going to be a battle though, the Cottonmouths will be fighting for their playoff lives.�
Mississippi (42-19-7) struck first on the scoreboard lighting the lamp at 13:58 of the first period. Louis Dumont slapped a shot from the slot past Jason Tapp, for his team-leading 32nd of the year.
The point for Dumont, who is the ECHL�s all-time point leader, was his 749th career in the league. Sergei Kuznetsov and Patrick Rochon picked up assists.
In the second, the Sea Wolves made it 2-0. Brent Gauvreau extended his point streak to a team-tying record 13 games, by netting his 23rd goal of the season, going stick side on Tapp at the 1:30 mark. Gauvreau ties Travis Lisabeth, who tied the point streak record earlier this season along with Kelly Hurd (1998-99). Andrew Proskurnicki collected an assist along with Walby, who extended his point streak to eight games.
Mississippi continued to apply pressure in the Cottonmouths zone. Steve O�Rourke moved into the slot and fired a shot to pot his 5th goal of the campaign with helpers being awarded to Gauvreau and Walby.
The Sea Wolves continued to pour it on, counting a goal on the power play at 15:15. Walby handcuffed Tapp on a shot from the left circle giving him the all-time team record for power-play goals with 42. The goal for Walby was also his third point of the game and 31st marker of the year. Jim Baxter and Gauvreau garnered assists.
Columbus (36-25-7) got its offense in gear on the tail end of a Patrick Rochon slashing penalty. Two seconds after the penalty expired, Jean-Francois Plourde lifted backhand shot over Greg Gardner, who was appearing in his 100th career Mississippi game. The goal for the rookie Plourde was his 19th of the campaign, assisted by Kenton Smith and Ray DiLauro.
Sea Wolves put the game away at 1:37 of the third. Proskurnicki sent a wrist shot by a screened Tapp for his second in a Mississippi uniform this season and fifth goal of the campaign. Walby and Baxter grabbed assists.
Gardner made seven third period saves and 30 stops overall to improve to 29-13-3, one win from becoming the second goaltender in ECHL history to post consecutive 30-win seasons.
Mississippi went 1-for-4 on the power play, while Columbus came up empty on five chances with the man advantage. Sea Wolves outshot the Cottonmouths 37-31.
Additional Notes: It was the 2nd annual �Face-off Against Kids� Cancer� charity event. A video was shown demonstrating the positive impact that the program has on the community. There was a postgame party and jersey auction at the Beau Rivage Magnolia Ballroom to benefit Caps For Kids and Candlelighters ... The game also featured Honor Roll Night, sponsored by Cellular South and WXXV Fox 25 ... Sea Wolves� Yannick Tremblay made his pro debut and finished with one shot on net and an even rating.
The Sea Wolves head out on the road for a mini two-game swing starting at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday against the Columbus Cottonmouths at the Columbus Civic Center in Georgia. Listen live beginning with the Nextel Pregame Show at 6:15 p.m. on WTNI-AM 1640 and online at msseawolves.com.
Mississippi returns home for the final regular season games at 7:35 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday.
On Friday, the Sea Wolves host the Pensacola Ice Pilots with the game promotion consisting of 2-for-1 military, sponsored by Keesler Federal Credit Union. Play-by-play coverage gets underway at 7:20 p.m. with the Nextel Pregame Show on WTNI-AM 1640 and online at msseawolves.com.
The Sea Wolves entertain the Louisiana IceGators at 7:35 p.m. on Saturday. It�s Southern Miss Night, with a special jersey to be worn by the Mississippi players. There will be a postgame jersey auction to benefit the Southern Miss Alumni Scholarship Fund. Game promotions also include Pack the House Night, Fan Appreciation Night and $2 drafts and $2 hotdogs from 6:30-8:30 p.m. The broadcast begins with the Nextel Pregame Show at 7:20 p.m. on WTNI-AM 1640 and online at msseawolves.com.
Tickets for the weekend games can be purchased at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum box office, all Ticketmaster locations, by calling (228) 594-3707 and online at ticketmaster.com.
Season tickets for 2004-05 are on sale! Discounted group tickets and fundraiser opportunities are also available for this season by calling (228) 275-WOLF.
--- Box Score ---
DATE - 03/28/04 Columbus (1) at Mississippi (5)
SCORE BY PERIODS
Columbus 0 1 0--1
Mississippi 1 3 1--5
FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, Mississippi-Dumont 32 (Kuznetsov; Rochon) 13:58. Penalties: Pepperall, CBS (Holding stick), 6:42. O'Rourke, MIS (High sticking), 18:50.
SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: 2, Mississippi-Gauvreau 24 (game winner) (Proskurnicki; Walby) 1:30. 3, Mississippi-O'Rourke 5 (Walby; Gauvreau) 9:54. 4, Mississippi-Walby 31 (power play) (Baxter; Gauvreau) 15:15. 5, Columbus-Plourde 19 (Smith; DiLauro) 19:03. Penalties: Dumont, MIS (High sticking), 4:02. Davis, CBS (Slashing), 7:27. BENCH, CBS served by Davis (Too many men), 14:56. Rochon, MIS (Slashing), 17:01. Miller, MIS (Fighting, Major), 20:00. Davis, CBS (Fighting, Major), 20:00.
THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: 6, Mississippi-Proskurnicki 2 (Walby; Baxter) 1:37. Penalties: O'Rourke, MIS (Tripping), 1:51. Gauvreau, MIS (Roughing), 4:49. Voth, CBS (Roughing), 4:49. Blais, MIS (Obstr goalie interference), 17:33. Voth, CBS (Board check), 18:40.
SHOTS ON GOAL
Columbus 7 17 7--31
Mississippi 14 15 8--37
Power Play Conversions: Columbus - 0-of-5, Mississippi - 1-of-4.
Goalies: Columbus-Tapp (37 shots, 32 saves; record: 15-7-4). Mississippi-Gardner (31 shots, 30 saves; record: 29-13-3).
A: 5469. Referee: Smith. Linesmen: Jones; Wright.
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