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Aces drop Game 1 of Kelly Cup finals

by Andrew Hinkelman
Friday, May 22, 2009

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Game 1 of the Kelly Cup finals between the Alaska Aces and South Carolina Stingrays took a 180-degree turn during a stunning 20-second stretch of the third period Friday.

As a result the Aces find themselves trailing in a series for the first time all season.

Maxime Lacroix's two goals 13 seconds apart rallied the Stingrays to a 4-2 win in front of the largest crowd to ever watch an Alaska Aces game at Sullivan Arena, 6,482.

Game 2 is Saturday night at the Sully.

The Aces held a 2-1 lead until Lacroix's explosion, which came after Colin Hemingway got the puck all alone in front of the Stingrays net but couldn't settle it down.

The Stingrays rushed up ice and Lacroix buried his first at 5:56 of the third to tie it.

Off the ensuing faceoff South Carolina again controlled the puck and gained the zone. Travis Morin blasted a shot from out high that beat Aces goalie J.P. Lamoureux, but hit the post. The ricochet bounced right to Lacroix who had an easy gimme at 6:09.

"We sat back for 40 seconds," Aces winger Lance Galbraith said.

Still with plenty of time left in regulation, Alaska had a devil of a time just getting the puck out of its zone and the Stingrays carried play as the Aces looked like a team still trying to figure out how it was on the bad side of a 3-2 score.

"They got caught flat-footed, standing around," Aces coach Keith McCambridge said of his team.

The Aces did appear to tie it with 1:48 to go in the game, but referee Francis Charron said the puck did not cross the line. Replays -- not available to ECHL officials -- showed otherwise.

The play developed out of a goalmouth scrum with the Aces in scramble mode. There were bodies flying all over the place and Charron likely did not have an unobstructed view.

He immediately signaled no goal, but then conferred with a linesman and the goal judge. His initial decision stood.

"Someone's got to have an answer, and the answer was 'No,'" said Galbraith, who likely would have picked up the marker had it counted.

Jeff Corey scored his second goal of the game into an empty net late for the final margin.

"We sat back," Aces winger Cam Keith said. "You have a tendency to do that with the lead."

During a scoreless opening period, both teams exhibited early signs of rink rust, thanks to a week off between the conference finals and the Kelly Cup finals.

Outlet passes were just a shade too far, decision making wasn't great, and the first 10 minutes or so generally looked like a couple of teams trying to find their games.

"The first period was both teams feeling each other out," Keith said.

Things took a decided turn in the latter stages of the first period, though. After successfully killing off the game's first penalty, the Aces seized control.

Defenseman Ryan Turek took the initiative in the offensive zone and generated two high-quality chances. Then Alaska drew a penalty at the tail end of a long shift in the Stingrays' zone for its first power play.

With the Aces still swarming, but now with the man advantage, a helmetless Galbraith drew a roughing penalty in front of the net for a 5-on-3 power play that spilled over into the second period.

That's when Keith redirected a point shot from Bryan Miller just 14 seconds into the middle frame. Alaska won the opening draw, carried the puck into the attacking zone, setting up Miller on the right side.

South Carolina evened it up with a power-play goal of its own at 8:52 of the second. Sasha Pokulok's shot from out high rebounded right to Corey, who chipped it past Lamoureux. It was the first goal allowed in a series opener all postseason by Lamoureux.

Just over two minutes later the Stingrays had two chances to take the lead. First, Morin got in behind Matt Stefanishion for a breakaway.

Stefanishion, normally a forward, had been playing the point on an Aces power play and was skating on tired legs having been out for the full two minutes.

He tried to make a play but ended up taking out Morin's legs and the South Carolina winger was awarded a penalty shot.

Morin skated in and Lamoureux came way out of his crease to challenge -- almost to the hash marks. When Morin tried to drag the puck around Lamoureux, which would have left him an open net to shoot at, the ECHL Goalie of the Year poke-checked the puck away, denying the chance.

Alaska captain Scott Burt gave the home team the lead again late in the second, burying a breakaway from the attacking blue line in after a scramble for the puck in the neutral zone.

That lead wouldn't last, however, and the Aces have to find an answer to their first adversity of these Kelly Cup playoffs -- each of the three previous series started 2-0 in favor of Alaska.

"We have to take it to them in the first," Keith said of Game 2.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin dropped the ceremonial first puck to a loud, partially standing, ovation.

Palin addressed the crowd and talked about her bet with South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford on the outcome of the series -- if the Aces win, Sanford will send shrimp and grits and she crab soup north; if the Stingrays prevail, Palin will give up some Alaska king salmon.

"I don't know what she crab is, but I can't wait to taste it," Palin said.

Game 2 will be televised live statewide on GCI channel 1, including the Anchorage bowl.

Contact Andrew Hinkelman at ahinkelman@ktuu.com