Sabourin’s Blunder Ends Hershey Comeback, 3-2

November 13, 2010
Kathryn Hedrick
Game Recap

Dany Sabourin makes a save on Mike Zigomanis but costs Bears the game. Photo by Kyle M.

Wellar vs Rosehill (Photo by Kyle M.)

If you’re familiar with the Toronto Marlies, then you’ll certainly find it as no surprise that this was an aggressive game. The only consistent thing about the game was Hershey never losing control of the physical part of the game. Patrick Wellar took on Jay Rosehill for the fight of the night and it was a good one. Hard to pick a winner because all I saw were a ton of punches landing for both guys. They both walked away a little bruised and bloody.

Hershey saw a new player tonight, Phil Oreskovic, who was signed to a professional tryout yesterday. It was the perfect game to pick for his debut as he was playing against his former club. Oreskovic played for the Marlies for the past four seasons. He knew what to expect and came out delivering the big hits.

It took about two and a half periods for Hershey to finally get that first goal. Steve Pinizzotto had a great assist on Boyd Kane‘s tip-in that broke Toronto’s shutout. Just about a minute later, Kyle Greentree scored on the power play and suddenly Hershey had all the momentum in the world.

Well, that is until that fateful giveaway by Dany Sabourin. It’s a play that I think he’ll be replaying in his head over and over. He skated behind the goal to get the puck and then passed to the side where a Marlie awaited. I’m sure the coaches played Sabourin tonight to show confidence in him after a great showing in Charlotte. However, that move didn’t really work. I know that fans will be ripping him apart and they have ample reason to. Tonight was not his best showing, but it was also not his worst either. However, that giveaway was probably the worst moment of his trying season so far. The highlight of the night came after he made a sprawling glove on a shorthanded try by Mike Zigomanis. Check out Kyle M’s amazing photo of it below!

The power play seems to miss Keith Aucoin…a lot. The Bears had two 5-on-3 power plays during the game and could not convert on either. They even allowed a handful of shorthanded tries. That’s not to say that Hershey wasn’t playing well. There were a lot of dazzling offensive sequences but nothing was finding the back of the net. The biggest reason for this is the Marlies goaltender, Jussi Rynnäs. The young goalie was fantastic and I think it was sheer exhaustion from the Marlies that turned the game in Hershey’s favor.

Two weeks ago, Captain Andrew Joudrey touched on the importance of having a great first period. As much fun as those come-from-behind victories are, it’s also fun to see a 60 minute effort.

Tonight’s Notes:

Before the game, Aucoin received his trophy for AHL Player of the Month. Love seeing him receive it, don’t love seeing him in a suit and not playing. Get well soon!
Sean Collins has officially joined the injured crew. He cut his eyelid in the last game against Charlotte and Tim Leone reports that Collins is still having some swelling interfering with his vision.
One pleasant surprise was Lawrence Nycholat‘s return to the line-up. He was a bit of a question mark before the game but played with his usual defensive pairing, Zach Miskovic. Nycholat finished the game with one assist and three shots on goal.
Also returning to the line-up, Mathieu Perreault. He missed just one game with a groin injury. He also had one assist as he played with Brian Willsie and Andrew Gordon on the top line.
Just for fun: I haven’t heard anything officially but it would appear that Pinizzotto and Wellar are taking part in Movember. Both were sporting some interesting mustaches during the game.