FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, March 29, 2004

Further Information:
Mike Rogers
Operating Owner/Alternate Governor
(228) 547-4897

BILOXI, Miss. � The Mississippi Sea Wolves won both games at home last week to extend their win streak to seven straight overall and four in a row at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum, with four games remaining in the regular season.

The Sea Wolves continue to hold down second place in the Central Division of the ECHL, five points behind first place Louisiana. Mississippi holds two games in hand, with one head-to-head meeting left between the teams at 7:35 p.m. on Saturday at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. The Sea Wolves clinched a 2004 Kelly Cup Playoffs berth on Friday, also sit six points ahead of Gwinnett and Pensacola for third place in the division.

After 68 of 72 games, the Sea Wolves have an overall record of 42-19-7 for 91 points. Mississippi is 23-6-5 at home, 19-13-2 on the road, 8-1-1 over its last 10 games, 2-2 in overtime games and 5-5 in shootouts.

On Friday, Mississippi slipped past Louisiana 2-1 at the Wolves Den. The Sea Wolves finished their week by downing Columbus 5-1 on Sunday at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.

Mississippi wraps up its regular season this week by visiting Columbus on Tuesday and Texas on Thursday, before hosting Pensacola on Friday and Louisiana on Saturday.


GAMES, BROADCASTS AND PROMOTIONS AT A GLANCE �

Tuesday, Mar. 30 at Columbus Cottonmouths � 6:30 p.m. CT � Columbus Civic Center, Ga.
* Broadcast starts at 6:15 p.m. on ESPN Radio WXBD-AM 1490 and online at msseawolves.com

Thursday, Apr. 1 at Texas Wildcatters � 7:05 p.m. CT � Ford Arena, Beaumont, Texas
* Broadcast begins at 6:50 p.m. on ESPN Radio WXBD-AM 1490 and online at msseawolves.com

Friday, Apr. 2 vs. Pensacola Ice Pilots � 7:35 p.m. CT � Mississippi Coast Coliseum
* Broadcast hits the airwaves at 7:20 p.m. on WTNI-AM 1640 and online at msseawolves.com
* 2-for-1 military, sponsored by Keesler Federal Credit Union

Saturday, Apr. 3 vs. Louisiana IceGators � 7:35 p.m. CT � Mississippi Coast Coliseum
* Broadcast gets underway at 7:20 p.m. on WTNI-AM 1640 and online at msseawolves.com
* Pack the House Night / Fan Appreciation Night

* Southern Miss Night and postgame jersey auction to benefit the Southern Miss Alumni Scholarship Fund
* $2 drafts and $2 hotdogs from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
* Postgame party for all ages at Roadhouse Grill


GAME PREVIEWS �

Tuesday, Mar. 30 at Columbus Cottonmouths � 6:30 p.m. CT � Columbus Civic Center, Ga.
Mississippi is 6-2-0 against Columbus in the season series and 2-1-0 at the Columbus Civic Center. It�s the ninth and final regular season game between the teams.

Mississippi defeated Columbus on Sunday, 5-1 at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. Sea Wolves� Steffon Walby led the attack by collecting four points (1g-3a), Brent Gauvreau had three points (1g-2a) and goaltender Greg Gardner made 30 saves to pick up his 29th victory of the season. Cottonmouths� Jean-Francois Plourde netted the lone goal in the losing cause. Columbus netminder Jason Tapp suffered the setback, turning away 32 shots.

The Sea Wolves won the last meeting at Columbus on January 27, 4-3 in the shootout. Mississippi defenseman Kerry Ellis-Toddington scored the deciding goal in the shootout, while netminder Sean Matile made a season-high 44 saves to backstop the Sea Wolves to victory despite being outshot 47-17. Cottonmouths goalie Jason Tapp took the loss, making 14 saves.

Steffon Walby leads Mississippi with six goals, 10 assists and 16 points against Columbus.

Colin Pepperall is tops for the Cottonmouths with four assists and six points in the head-to-head games against the Sea Wolves. John Morlang is tops with three goals versus the Sea Wolves.

Mississippi is 12-3-0 all-time against Columbus during the regular season and 4-2-0 all-time at the Snake Pit.


Thursday, Apr. 1 at Texas Wildcatters � 7:05 p.m. CT � Ford Arena, Beaumont, Texas
Mississippi leads the season series and all-time with a 12-2-0 record and is 5-1-0 at Ford Arena. This is the 15th and final regular season meeting between the teams. The Sea Wolves will be presented with the Nextel Cup at the conclusion of the game, due to having more points in the season series (24-5).

In the last head-to-head meeting, Mississippi edged Texas 3-2 at Ford Arena. Mississippi�s Louis Dumont registered two assists to become the ECHL�s all-time assist leader with 461, while Greg Gardner set the Sea Wolves all-time wins record for a goaltender with his 59th victory in team history by making 37 stops. Mississippi scorers were Brent Gauvreau, Kerry Ellis-Toddington and Sergei Kuznetsov. Texas picked up goals from John Campbell and John Snowden. Wildcatters goaltender Davis Parley turned aside 30 shots to suffer the loss.

Kuznetsov leads Mississippi in the season series with 11 goals and 23 points. Steffon Walby is tops with 16 assists and +11 against Texas.

Cory Morgan has nine assists and 13 points to lead the Wildcatters in the head-to-head meetings versus Mississippi. Martin Masa has the best goal production with six tallies and plus/minus at +3 against the Sea Wolves.


Friday, Apr. 2 vs. Pensacola Ice Pilots � 7:35 p.m. CT � Mississippi Coast Coliseum
It�s the 14th and final regular season meeting between the teams. Mississippi is 8-3-2 against Pensacola in the season series and 4-0-1 at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.

Mississippi slipped past Pensacola 4-3 in the shootout in the last head-to-head clash on March 16. Sea Wolves� Andrew Proskurnicki acquired earlier in the day in a trade with Cincinnati, scored one goal and added an assist in the win. Mississippi goaltender Greg Gardner turned aside 24 shots to preserve the victory. Pensacola goalie Brian Eklund made 34 saves in defeat.
 
The Sea Wolves won the last game at the Wolves Den on March 2, 4-2. Anthony Battaglia netted a pair of goals, while Steffon Walby and Jim Baxter each had a goal and assist and Louis Dumont collected two assists in the win. Mississippi�s Greg Gardner turned away 27 shots for the victory, out dueling Brian Eklund, who made 41 stops in the loss. Aaron Phillips notched both goals for Pensacola in defeat.

Louis Dumont leads Mississippi with 14 points (5g-9a) against Pensacola. Anthony Battaglia has seven goals to top the Sea Wolves in the season series, while Jim Baxter�s 11 assists is first for Mississippi in the head-to-head games. Goaltender Sean Matile is unbeaten in regulation versus Pensacola this season, posting a 4-0-2 record.

Corey Neilson has 11 assists and 15 points to lead the way offensively for the Ice Pilots in the head-to-head battles. Dwayne Hay is tops with seven goals for Pensacola in the season series.

Mississippi is 45-18-5 all-time in the regular season against Pensacola and 23-6-3 at the Wolves Den.


Saturday, Apr. 3 vs. Louisiana IceGators � 7:35 p.m. CT � Mississippi Coast Coliseum
This game is part of the final day of the ECHL regular season. The teams meet for the 14th head-to-head contest. Mississippi is 5-5-3 against Louisiana this season and 1-2-3 at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.

The Sea Wolves have won the last two games in the season series, including the last meeting on March 26 at the Wolves Den. Mississippi had goals from Nic Bilotto and Louis Dumont, while Greg Gardner made 29 saves in the victory. Louisiana�s Konstantin Kalmikov tallied the lone goal for the IceGators, while Frederic Cloutier took the loss despite 33 saves.

Steffon Walby leads Mississippi with seven goals and 13 points against Louisiana. Jim Baxter is tops with 10 assists in the head-to-head games with the IceGators.

Ben Storey is tops for Louisiana with eight assists and 12 points in the season series versus Mississippi. Bobby Brown has seven goals to lead the IceGators in that category.

Mississippi is 31-29-7 all-time in the regular season against Louisiana and 17-12-4 all-time at the Wolves Den.


PLAYER OF THE WEEK � Right wing Steffon Walby netted a power-play goal and four assists over the pair of victories last week. The 6-foot and 200-pound Walby recorded an assist in Friday�s win versus Louisiana. The 31-year-old Walby collected a power-play goal and three assists to notch a four-point game in the victory against Columbus on Sunday. With his goal on the man advantage, Walby became Mississippi�s all-time power-play goal leader with 42. Overall this season, Walby leads the Sea Wolves with 55 assists and 86 points.

GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK � Greg Gardner posted a perfect 2-0-0 record last week, backstopping the Sea Wolves to consecutive wins and running his personal win streak to six games. The 6-foot and 190-pound Gardner made 29 saves, surrendering just one goal in the victory against Louisiana on Friday. The 28-year-old Gardner then turned aside 30 shots in the Sunday win over Columbus. Gardner has appeared in 45 games this season, posting a 29-13-3 record with a goals against average of 2.46 and .922 save percentage.

TRANSACTIONS FROM LAST WEEK �
3/23 Delete Jason Kean, D, Placed on the 30-day injured reserve
3/26 Add Nic Bilotto, D, Reassigned by Springfield (AHL)
3/27 Delete Nic Bilotto, D, Loaned to Grand Rapids (AHL)
3/28 Add Yannick Tremblay, RW, Signed contract

STREAKING SEA WOLVES �
* Mississippi has won seven consecutive games dating back to March 11.
* Brent Gauvreau has a 13-game point streak (9g-11a), which is tied for the team record (Travis Lisabeth, 2003-04 and Kelly Hurd, 1998-99). Gauvreau has also scored in five straight road games (5g).
* Steffon Walby has 13 points (5g-8a) over his last eight contests.
* Greg Gardner has backstopped the Sea Wolves to six straight wins.
* Sergei Kuznetsov has six points (2g-4a) over his last five games.
* Andrew Proskurnicki has assists over five consecutive road games (6a).
* Jeff Hutchins, who is on loan to the Rochester Americans (AHL), picked up five points in four straight games (3g-2a) before being called-up on February 18.

MISSISSIPPI MILESTONE WATCH �
* Louis Dumont, the ECHL all-time scoring leader, is one point from 750 in his ECHL career (630 gp, 288g, 461a, 749 pts)
* Brent Gauvreau needs one point in the game at Columbus on Tuesday to set Mississippi�s all-time point streak record (enters game riding a 13-game point streak with 9g-11a over that span)
* Greg Gardner is one victory from posting consecutive 30-win seasons, becoming just the second goaltender in ECHL history to accomplish the feat (Nick Vitucci, 1994-96). Last season, Gardner won 32 games.
* Steffon Walby is three assists from tying Mississippi�s season record (58, Jim Baxter, 2002-03), seven points from tying his own team record for points in a season (93, 2001-02), and four games from 800 in his pro career, combining regular season and playoffs.
* John Evangelista is one assist from 100 in his pro career (328 gp, 61g, 99a, 160 pts, 348 PIM).
* Jim Baxter is two assists from 200 career helpers (327 gp, 71g, 198a, 267 pts)
* Patrick Rochon is four games from becoming Mississippi�s first player in team history to appear in 500 regular season games. (496 gp, 31g, 196a, 226 pts, 832 PIM) and four assists from 200, which would also be the first player in Sea Wolves history to reach the significant plateau.

SEA WOLVES INJURED RESERVE �
* Defenseman Jason Kean went on the 30-day injured reserve on March 22.
* Center John Evangelista was placed on the 7-day IR on March 19.

* Right wing Jack Baker was placed on the injured reserve on March 16.
* Defenseman Chris Cava has been on the injured reserve since February 22.

MISSISSIPPI CALL-UPS �
* Defenseman Nic Bilotto was loaned to Grand Rapids (AHL) on March 27.
(1 gp, 0g, 1a, 1 pt, +1, 0 PIM)
* Left wing Jeff Hutchins was loaned to Rochester (AHL) on February 18.
(18 gp, 1g, 4a, 5 pts, +2, 54 PIM)

TEAM LEADERS �
Goals � Louis Dumont, 32
Assists � Steffon Walby, 55
Points � Steffon Walby, 86
Plus/Minus � Brent Gauvreau, +36
Penalty Minutes � Roger Maxwell, 366
Power Play Goals � Jeff Hutchins, 11
Power Play Assists � Jim Baxter, 28
Power Play Points � Jim Baxter, 35
Shorthand Goals � Anthony Battaglia, 3
Game-Winning Goals � Brent Gauvreau, 9
Goaltender Wins � Greg Gardner, 29
Goals Against Average � Greg Gardner, 2.46
Save Percentage � Greg Gardner, .922

SPECIAL TEAMS (ECHL Rank) �
Power Play � 72-373, 19.3% (9)
Penalty Killing � 307-373, 82.3% (T16)
Shorthand Goals For � 7 (T22)
Shorthand Goals Against � 4 (T2)

PRACTICES THIS WEEK �
Monday � 10-11:30 a.m.
Tuesday � 11-11:30 a.m., morning skate, Columbus Civic Center
Wednesday � Travel to Beaumont, Texas
Thursday � 11-11:30 a.m., morning skate, Ford Arena, Beaumont, Texas
Friday � TBD
Saturday � TBD
Sunday � TBD
* All practices are open to the public at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum, unless otherwise noted.
* Dates and times are subject to change.


IN THE COMMUNITY �

Wednesday, Mar. 31 � 7-8 p.m.
�Your Home Team,� the Sea Wolves weekly radio show for all ages is on location at the Sea Wolves Outlet Store and live on ESPN Radio WXBD-AM 1490.


Groups, organizations and companies that are interested in having members of the Sea Wolves appear at an event, are invited to call (228) 388-6151.

Individual game tickets start at $9 for children and $11 for adults. Tickets are on sale at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum box office, all Ticketmaster locations, by telephone at (228) 594-3707 and online at ticketmaster.com.

Kelly Cup Playoff tickets are on sale along with season tickets for next season by calling (228) 275-WOLF.