News release
14 March 2005
Kurk Makes 80 Saves; Jackals Win One On Roadtrip
2004-05 RECORD: 22-39-5, 49 points (15-18-1 home, 7-21-4 road), Fourth Place, Eastern Division
March 16 7:05 pm @ Adirondack Frostbite (42-16-8, 92 pts) First Place, Eastern Division
March 18 7:30 pm @ Danbury Trashers (39-23-5, 83 pts) Second Place, Eastern Division
March 19 7:30 pm vs. Danbury Trashers (39-23-5, 83 pts) Second Place, Eastern Division
March 20 5:00 pm vs. Richmond Riverdogs (28-35-5, 61 pts) Third Place, Eastern Division
Flint, MI The Flint Generals scored four first period goals on their way to a 5-1 victory over the Elmira Jackals Friday night at Peranis Arena.
It didnt take the Generals a long time to exercise their authority in this contest. Rob Valicevic scored at 4:08 of the period and 30 seconds later Jason Woolleys slap shot made it 2-0. Kris Waltz banged in a rebound at 13:51 to put Flint up three, a goal which was followed up by Valicevics second of the period at 16:29. Mike Kinnie was given a 5-minute major penalty and a Game Misconduct at 18:35 for elbowing rookie defenseman Chris Mann. Mann was hospitalized with a broken jaw due to the incident and is out indefinitely.
In the second period the Jackals exhibited two shinning moments. Elmira College forward Jarrett Konkle scored his third goal in as many professional games. The play was created by defenseman Cory Foster who saved the puck at the point, spun around one forward, eluded two others, then drew the attention of the Generals defenseman before sliding the puck across the slot to Konkle at 7:35 to make the score 4-1. Elmiras other bright spot was a scrap between Charlie Elezi and Flints Curtis Tidball that ended almost as quickly as it began, with Elezi two-punching Tidball to the ice. The Generals regained their two-goal lead at 12:46 when John DiPace finished of a breakaway by lifting his shot over the glove of Kevin Kurk for a 5-1 score.
The Jackals continued to pressure the net in the third period and received some stellar goaltending from Kurk to keep Flint from pulling further ahead, but this game belonged to the home side.
Dan McIntyre got the win, stopping 18-of-19 in goal for Flint. Kurk made 34 saves on 39 shots in goal for Elmira.
Muskegon, MI The Muskegon Fury handed the Elmira Jackals their worst loss of the season, a 9-1 loss at the L.C. Walker Arena Friday night.
The Fury came into the game having won their only other meeting this season with the Jackals and Saturday night was not much different early on as they dominated the first few minutes. After Elmira started to counter the intense pressure, Muskegon took the lead. Defenseman Jason Lawmaster weaved his way from the far point into the slot and banked his shot off the left post and into the net at 10:01 of the period assisted by Jeff Nelson. The Fury extended their lead to 2-0 at 16:13 courtesy of a Robin Bouchard one-timer, assisted by Nelson and Scott Hollis.
The Fury blew the game wide open in the second period, erupting for four goals in the middle frame, including three goals in the first four minutes. Bouchard tallied his second goal and Muskegon also got goals from Brant Blackned, Colin Embley and Jeff Nelson. Elmira tallied their lone goal of the contest at 17:11 of the period when Eddy Lowe lifted a one-timer from Nathan Gillies over the glove of Clayton Pool. The goal put Lowe past Randy Murphy to set a new All-Time Jackals Scoring record.
In the third period Muskegon added three more goals. Blackned and Embley each scored their second of the game and Bouchard finished off the hat trick. Elmira was out-shot 25-to 1 in the final twenty minutes of the game.
Clayton Pool stopped 16-of-17 in the win, while Greg Hewitt exhibited top class as he took one for the team, stopping 49-of-58 in goal for Elmira.
Rockford, IL The Elmira Jackals erased an early short-handed goal on their way to a 4-2 victory over the Rockford IceHogs Sunday afternoon at the Rockford MetroCentre.
Given the course of the previous two games of the road trip, an early Rockford short-handed goal did not provide a strong outlook for Elmira. Miguel Lafleche scored his breakaway goal at 6:13 just 30 seconds into the Jackals first power play of the game. However, on that same advantage Elmira answered the call. Eddy Lowe scored his second goal in as many games at 6:55 for a power play strike, assisted by Jarrett Konkle and Nathan Gillies. The IceHogs continued to pressure the Jackals, but again the visitors had a response. Jason Jaworski was sent free on a breakaway by Trevor Burgess and he blasted the puck past Michel Robinson for a short-handed goal at 18:20; Konkle also assisted on the goal, his second of the game.
Jackals goaltender Kevin Kurk was the difference again in the second period. Rockford threw 20 shots on goal in the middle frame and Kurk stopped all but one. Alex Kim put home a power play goal at 4:41 to tied the game at 2-2, but the Jackals goalie would allow no more in this game. Kurk stopped 36-of-38 through 40 minutes of play.
In the third period Elmira cracked down defensively and limited the up-tempo Rockford offense to just 10 shots in the period. Elmira College star Craig Macdonald put the Jackals back in the lead 3-2 at 13:59 when he snapped a mean wrist-shot past Robinson for the first goal of his professional career. Corey Foster added an empty net goal with nine-tenths of a second left in the game to cap the scoring.
Kurk earned 1st star honors after stopping 46-of-48 for his 7th win of the season. Robinson suffered the lost, making 16 saves on 20 shots.
JACKALS PLAYER AND GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK: (WEEK 22)
Jarrett Konkle - LW 3 GP, 1 goals, 2 assists, 3 pts, Even
Jarrett Konkle becomes the first of the three Elmira College stars to earn Jackals player of the week honors. Konkle scored his third professional goal in his third pro game Friday in a 5-1 loss to Flint, the Jackals only goal of the game. Then on Sunday, Konkle had two assists in a 4-2 win over Rockford, helping him earn third star honors for the game. The rookie forward now has 5 points (3 goals, 2 assists) in his first 5 pro games and is +1 overall.
Kevin Kurk G 2 GP, 1-1-0, 3.50 GAA, 0.920 SV%, 80 saves
Kevin Kurk had another phenomenal week for the Jackals as he turned aside 80 shots in two games. Kurk played lights out in Rockford, keeping Elmira level with the IceHogs through the first two periods off aggressive attack from the home side. Friday in Flint he allowed 5 goals, but only one of them came off a first shot opportunity; the rest were second, third or fourth attempt rebounds. Kurk finishes the week with a 3.50 GAA and a .920 save percentage, earning his 7th win of the season Sunday in Illinois.
MAYOR ELECT After a season of hype, C Eddy Lowe has surpassed Randy Murphy to become the new Jackals All-Time Scoring Leader. With a goal Saturday against Muskegon to break the record, and another goal Sunday against Rockford, The Next Mayor of Elmira now has 221 points (113 goals, 108 assists) in 350 career games for Elmira.
CAREER BEGINNINGS LW Jarrett Konkle had his 3-game goal scoring streak snapped on Saturday. Konkle had scored a goal in each of his first three professional games, but made up for Saturday by getting two assists Sunday. The Elmira College star has 5 points (3 goals, 2 assists) in 5 games for the Jackals.
NO TIME LIKE A FIRST C Craig Macdonald scored his first ever professional goal Sunday in Rockford and it wasnt swept under the rug. Macdonalds third period goal broke a 2-2 tie and turned out to be the eventual game winner for the Jackals.
INJURY UPDATE EC defenseman Chris Mann suffered a broken jaw after being maliciously elbowed in the face by Flints Mike Kinnie Friday at Peranis Arena. Mann underwent surgery Saturday at the Hurley Medical Center in Flint and was released Sunday as the team made its way back from Rockford. Kinnie was given a 5-minute major for Elbowing and a Game Misconduct.
A HISTORICAL WORST Elmiras 9-1 loss at the hands of Muskegon Saturday night at the L.C. Walker Arena was the worst loss for the Jackals in their 5-year history. It was also the highest number of goals allowed in a single game by the Jackals this year.
Jackals Trade Thompson To Quad City 3/14/05
Elmira, NY The Elmira Jackals announced today that forward Jamie Thompson has been traded to the Quad City Mallards for rookie defenseman Sergei Durdin and veteran center Alexander Matheiu.
The trade comes exactly 12 days after Thompson was placed on team suspension; the left wing was put on suspension after he had been cleared from the Injured Reserve to play by the Jackals trainers, the teams physiotherapists and the teams doctors.
Durdin, a 62 185 lbs rookie defenseman, was 7th on the Mallards in scoring at the time of the trade with 21 points (6 goals, 15 assists) in 60 games played. The 25-year old from Riga, Latvia spent last season split between Metalurgs (Eastern European League) and SG Cortina (Latvia).
Matheiu, a 62, 177 lbs center, began his pro career playing three seasons in the American Hockey League with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He also spent a year with the Lexington Men O War (ECHL) and the last two years with the Memphis Riverkings (CHL). The 26-year old from Repentigny, Quebec had 13 points (4 goals, 9 assists) in 32 games for Quad City this year, adding 51 PIMs and 1 short-handed goal.
Both players have been contacted by Brost and are currently in the process of packing their things for the move. There is a possibility that they could be in the lineup on Wednesday, but it is more likely that both will make their Jackals debut on Friday in Danbury.
The Jackals are back in action Wednesday, March 16th as they travel to Glens Falls to take on the Adirondack Frostbite, a 7:05 pm face-off at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Elmiras next home game is Saturday March 19th against the Danbury Trashers, a 7:30 pm face-off at the First Arena.
Shooting Percentage: Jarrett Konkle (33.3%)