BILOXI, Miss. � Gwinnett�s Chris Durno scored a dramatic goal in overtime to instantly lift the Gladiators past the Mississippi Sea Wolves 2-1 in Game 1 of the Central Division Semifinals best-of-five series.
�We had our opportunities to win,� Sea Wolves coach Bob Woods said. �Both goaltenders were solid. It could have went either way. We have to regroup and use this game as a motivation. I expect Friday will be a similar game at home for Game 2.�
Mississippi and Gwinnett played to a scoreless first period with the Gladiators outshooting the Sea Wolves 9-7.
Sea Wolves right wing Steffon Walby, who was playing in his 800th career pro game combining regular season and playoffs, broke in on a breakaway and beat Gwinnett�s Michael Garnett with a high shot, but clanked the puck off the crossbar.
In the second, Gwinnett opened the score on the power play. With lots of traffic in front of the Sea Wolves net, the puck went off of Rick Emmett�s skate, by goaltender Greg Gardner at 9:31. The Emmett tally was assisted by Anthony Aquino and ECHL Rookie of the Year, Kevin Doell.
Sea Wolves best chance in the middle stanza came off a rebound shot from John Evangelista, but Garnett whipped out the left pad to remain stellar, turning away 13 Mississippi shots through 40 minutes.
In the third, Mississippi tied the score 1-1, just 40 seconds into the stanza. Anthony Battaglia, who was playing in his first pro playoff game, shoveled home a loose puck to knot the game. Assists went to Louis Dumont and Sergei Kuznetsov.
In overtime, Durno unleashed a wrist shot in the high slot past a maze of legs and into the back of the cage to end the game at 16:12 of the first overtime. Joe Bourne and Kris Goodjohn garnered assists.
Mississippi failed to convert on four power play opportunities, while Gwinnett went 1-for-3. Gladiators oushot the Sea Wolves 40-38.
Additional Note: Prior the game, there was a moment of silence for longtime Sea Wolves season ticket holder Walter Bouchard, who passed away on Sunday.
Game 2 of the best-of-five series gets underway at 7:35 p.m. on Friday at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. Game coverage starts at 7:20 p.m. with the Nextel Pregame Show on WTNI-AM 1640 and online at msseawolves.com.
Individual playoff tickets are on sale at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum box office, all Ticketmaster locations, by calling (228) 594-3707 and online at ticketmaster.com.
--- Box Score ---
DATE - 04/07/04 Gwinnett (2) at Mississippi (1) OT
SCORE BY PERIODS
Gwinnett 0 1 0 1--2
Mississippi 0 0 1 0--1
FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: Nielsen, GWT (Holding), 7:13. Blais, MIS (High sticking), 12:25. Durno, GWT (Hooking), 15:24.
SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, Gwinnett-Emmett 1 (power play) (Aquino; Doell) 9:31. Penalties: Gauvreau, MIS (Holding), 8:15. Cava, MIS (High sticking, Double minor), 9:51. Jackson, GWT (Holding), 13:10.
THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: 2, Mississippi-Battaglia 1 (Kuznetsov; Dumont) 0:40. Penalties: Slonina, GWT (High sticking), 6:25.
OVERTIME -- Scoring: 3, Gwinnett-Durno 1 (game winner) (Bourne; Goodjohn) 16:12. Penalties: None.
SHOTS ON GOAL
Gwinnett 9 16 5 10--40
Mississippi 7 6 17 8--38
Power Play Conversions: Gwinnett - 1-of-3, Mississippi - 0-of-4.
Goalies: Gwinnett-Garnett (38 shots, 37 saves; record: 1-0-0). Mississippi-Gardner (40 shots, 38 saves; record: 0-0-1).
A: 1391. Referee: T. Smith. Linesmen: Finley; Ross.
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