GAMES
- Friday, February 24, 7 p.m. – Brampton Beast – SNHU Arena
- Saturday, February 25, 6 p.m. – Alaska Aces – SNHU Arena – American Pride Night
- Sunday, February 26, 3 p.m. – Alaska Aces – SNHU Arena
WEEK IN REVIEW
The Monarchs made their way to South Carolina this past week to take on the Greenville Swamp Rabbits and South Carolina Stingrays, and came out with a 0-2-1-0 record and only one point.
The Monarchs played their lone Thursday night game of the season against Greenville, and fell, 4-3, in overtime. Goals by Zac Lynch, Ashton Rome and a late third-period tally by Justin Agosta weren’t enough to take the lone meeting with the Swamp Rabbits this season. The Monarchs allowed a goal in the last two minutes to Angelo Miceli, and then the game-winner to Miceli in the extra frame to drop their winless streak on the road to six games.
Friday night, the Monarchs made their way to the North Charleston Coliseum to take on the South Carolina Stingrays, and fell, 5-2. Goals by Rihards Bukarts and Matt Leitner weren’t enough, as Rob Flick recorded a hat-trick and recorded an assist, and the Monarchs were outscored, 4-0 over the course of the final two periods. Jonah Imoo made the start in net for the Monarchs, and allowed all five goals on 22 shots.
Saturday night, the Monarchs completed their South Carolina road trip with a 5-3 loss to the Stingrays. The Monarchs found themselves down, 5-0, midway through the second period before goals by Rick Pinkston, Cory Ward and Rihards Bukarts gave the Monarchs a glimmer of hope with 16 minutes remaining in the third period, but the team could only muster five shots on goal in the final frame, and went quietly into the night.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
Despite a rough road trip, the Monarchs (67 pts.) continue to lead the North Division, but by only two points over the Reading Royals, and three on the Adirondack Thunder. The Royals and Thunder both have a game in hand on the Monarchs, making the upcoming three-game home series an important one for Manchester.
If the season were to end right today, the Monarchs would be slated to host the Brampton Beast in the North Division Semifinals as the #1 seed in the North.
LEADING THE WAY
The Monarchs are led in scoring by Matt Leitner, who has 42 points on 10 goals and 32 assists in 41 games. Leitner’s assists are tied with Daniel Doremus for the team lead, while Joey Diamond continues to lead the Monarchs in goals with 17.
CROSSING THE BORDER
The Brampton Beast will need to break their passports out, as they visit the SNHU Arena for the first time this season Friday night. The game will mark the first of three match-ups between the North Division foes, with the final two games coming Apr. 7 – 8 in Brampton. The Beast are currently one of the hottest teams in the ECHL, and have gone 7-2-1-0 in their last 10 games, and are led in scoring by David Vallorani, who has 60 points on 24 goals and 36 assists in his first year back in North America after playing overseas for the last two seasons, good for 7th in the league in scoring.
FROM WEST TO EAST
The Alaska Aces will make their first-ever appearance at SNHU Arena on Saturday and Sunday, and bring with them a 25-18-1-6 record from the frozen tundra. The Aces are in a ferocious playoff battle with the Utah Grizzlies and Missouri Mavericks, and a two-game sweep at the hand of the Monarchs would do serious damage to their playoff potential. Alaska will bring two top-10 scorers of their own in Stephen Perfetto (61 pts.) and ECHL All-Star, Peter Sivak (59 pts.), who currently sit 5th and 8th respectively in the league in scoring. The Aces dynamic duo has accounted for 36.08 percent of the Alaska goals to this point in the season.
GOOD TO BE HOME
The Monarchs have struggled on the road recently, going 0-4-2-2 in their last eight games away from SNHU Arena, but have been nothing but brilliant at home since Dec. 3, taking points out of 15 consecutive games (13-0-2-0), the longest point streak at home in the league this season.
TICKETS
The Monarchs return to SNHU Arena ice Friday, Feb. 24 (7 p.m.) when they host the Brampton Beast in a critical North Division battle, as both teams jockey for playoff position.
To purchase tickets, visit ManchesterMonarchs.com or contact the Front Office at 603-626-7825! Visit us at ManchesterMonarchs.com, follow the team on Twitter: @MonarchsHockey, and like us on Facebook for additional information.
