Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 7, 1995 TAG: 9504070054
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Trouble is, it must do just that.
The Express played one of the best games in its two-year history when it shut down the powerful Renegades. Facing elimination from the East Coast Hockey League's Riley Cup playoffs, the Express had to win or call it a season.
Tonight, it has to do it again.
The Express trails 2-1 in this best-of-five quarterfinal series. Game 4 is tonight at 7:30 at the Roanoke Civic Center. A Roanoke victory would force a fifth game Sunday in Richmond.
The Express can't afford to look that far ahead. It can't even look behind and relish Wednesday's game, which was highlighted by a 34-save performance from Daniel Berthiaume.
``Our team played as hard as it could,'' said Frank Anzalone, Roanoke's coach. ``We still have a very difficult chore. We're not going to win unless Daniel Berthiaume plays great. He's the main reason we won. I have no problem with giving him that credit. Goaltending is a major factor in playoff hockey. Daniel Berthiaume has to be sharp.''
Roanoke's defense was solid in front of Berthiaume, too. Roanoke was 6-for-6 in penalty killing Wednesday, a major reason Berthiaume was able to post his first shutout with the Express.
The Renegades were shut out for only the second time this season as their five-game playoff winning streak ended.
The Express ``came out with their backs to the wall and played great,'' said Roy Sommer, Richmond's coach, who also had praise for Berthiaume. ``He stood in there and made all the great stops.''
The Renegades had several quality scoring opportunities, including Mike Taylor's rebound shot that hit the right post in the first period.
``A post here, a post there,'' Sommer said. ``It was that way on both sides.''
PRECEDENT: Only one team has rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win a five-game ECHL playoff series. It happened last year, when Raleigh dropped the first two games of its second-round series with Greensboro, then won three.
SHOTS: Roanoke's 11 first-period shots matched its output for all of Game 2, which the Express lost 4-0 in Richmond. Roanoke took 24 shots Wednesday.
``We wanted to prove we were a better team than we showed [in Game 2],'' said Tony Szabo, who scored a breakaway goal to give the Express a 2-0 lead in the third period. ``We've got to play every game like we're behind. We've got to take things shift by shift, period by period. Right now, you just reach down and ask, `How bad do you want it?'''
UNHAPPY BIRTHDAY: Express management appeared none too pleased when a happy birthday greeting directed at Sommer was blared over the public-address system during the waning seconds of Wednesday's game. Express president John Gagnon and general manager Pierre Paiement felt the birthday wish was ill-timed and a trifle mean-spirited, considering Sommer's team trailed by three goals at the time.
To add insult, Sommer was wished ``a happy 41st birthday.'' He's only 38. Sommer, who turned 38, shrugged off the jab.
``No, this wasn't the way I wanted to spend my birthday,'' he said.
OFF-ICING: Wednesday's game continued a string of offbeat, off-ice escapades that have marked this series. Police had to escort a couple of brawling fans from the civic center following a third-period fight.
``I want to praise the way our security handled that situation,'' Paiement said. ``We work hard to make sure that these kind of things don't get out of hand. Andre Savard, the head of security, did a wonderful job.''
by CNB