Game Story

Exeter, NH — The Worcester Railers and Maine Mariners met on Saturday afternoon for their only exhibition games of the pre-season.

It’s been a long six or so months since the Railers and Mariners played in an actual game, with both teams missing the playoffs in a very competitive North Division. A solid turnout for both fan bases, despite it being an hour and forty minutes from Worcester and a little over an hour from Portland. A pre-season exhibition satisfied the thirst for some hockey action with a week to go before the 2019-20 season begins.

Jakub Skarek was the starter for Worcester, playing in net for the first period and a half and was promptly replaced by Evan Buitenhuis at 9:40 in the second. This goaltending change was intentional from the start, following the trend from the last pre-season game held here where Buitenhuis and Charlie Millen split a shutout win over the Mariners. Across the sheet of ice, the Mariners also swapped Francois Brassard for Daniel Spencer at that same time.

Worcester scored the only goal of the opening frame after a number of awkward shots on goal, resulting in a rebound that was tapped in by Tommy Tsicos at the crease.

Worcester produced three goals in the third with Matt Schmalz getting a shot over the shoulder of Francois Brassard. Ivan Chukarov extended the lead to two on the power play at 6:42. When the period was all said and done, the Railers had a 4-0 lead thanks to Jason Lavallee, with Worcester outshooting Maine 19-8 in the period.

Ross Olsson dropped the gloves with Ryan Ferrill shortly after Drew Callin was crosschecked by Pierre Ouellette at 1:04 in the third, it took all of 15 seconds for the fight which ended with an Olsson victory and five each for fighting. Olsson was given an extra two for instigating the fight. Callin would join him in the box 21 seconds later on a tripping penalty. Railers had the only 5v3 disadvantage which was promptly killed off.

Hopes for a repeat shutout were killed off as a loose puck got past Evan Buitenhuis at 9:45 in the third.

Cooper Jones and Shane Morrissey were the only Worcester players with a negative plus/minus rating for Worcester. Bo Brauer, Mike Moran, Chris Rygus, John Schiavo, Henrik Samuelsson, all had relatively quiet nights on the offensive front.

The Three Stars of the Game were:

  1. Matt Schmalz (Worcester) – GWG, 1 assist, +1
  2. Drew Callin (Worcester) – 2 assists
  3. Jakub Skarek (Worcester) – 16 saves, win

With the pre-season exhibition events out of the way with the scrimmage Friday and their only pre-season game, head coach Jamie Russell is now tasked with cutting the roster down to 23, excluding any players that can be played on injured reserve. With 29 players on the roster and potentially players returning this season from Bridgeport, those decisions won’t be easy.

The 2019-20 regular season starts on Friday for 14 teams in the ECHL. Worcester just happens to start their season on Saturday, where they’ll host the Adirondack Thunder at home at 7:05. The team has a special link with tickets starting at $14.

Box Score

Scoring 1 2 3 T
Worcester Railers 1 3 0 0
Maine Mariners 0 0 1 1
Shots 1 2 3 T
Worcester Railers 8 19 6 33
Maine Mariners 10 8 9 27

 

Railers Roster # Name G A +/- SH PIM
G 34 E. Buitenhuis 0 0 0 0 0
G 35 J. Skarek 0 0 0 0 0
D 2 C. Jones 0 0 -1 2 0
D 5 K. McKenzie 0 1 +1 1 2
F 8 C. Payne 0 1 +2 4 0
F 9 R. Olsson 0 0 0 1 7
F 10 H. Samuelsson 0 0 0 0 0
F 11 N. Lukacevic 0 1 +1 1 0
D 13 I. Chukarov 1 0 +1 3 0
F 14 J. Dudek 0 0 +1 3 2
F 15 B. Brauer 0 0 0 1 0
F 17 M. Schmalz 1 1 +1 4 0
D 21 C. Rygus 0 0 0 0 0
F 22 T. Tsicos 1 0 +1 2 0
F 26 M. Moran 0 0 0 0 0
F 27 D. Callin 0 2 0 2 2
F 37 S. Morrissey 0 0 -1 1 0
F 44 J. Schiavo 0 0 0 1 0
F 72 J. Lavallee 1 0 +2 7 0
D 74 A. Cortese 0 1 +2 0 0
Team:
Totals: 4 7 10 33 13
No Name Min SH SVS GA
35 J. Skarek (W) 29:40 16 16 0
34 E. Buitenhuis 30:20 11 10 1
Totals: 60:00 27 26 1
Mariners Roster # Name G A +/- SH PIM
G 1 D. Spencer 0 0 0 0 0
G 30 F. Brassard 0 0 0 0 0
D 2 R. Boyd 0 0 -2 3 2
D 3 J. Coughlin 0 0 -1 3 0
D 4 P. Ouellette 0 0 0 0 2
D 5 G. Sylvestre 0 0 0 1 0
D 6 F. Cloutier 0 0 -1 2 0
D 7 D. Rossiter 0 1 +1 1 0
D 8 M. Crevier-Morin 0 0 0 2 0
F 9 B. Supinski 0 1 -1 1 0
F 10 S. McBride 0 0 -1 0 0
F 11 J. Elmer 0 0 -3 2 0
F 12 D. Leedahl 1 0 0 4 0
F 13 N. Master 0 0 0 2 0
F 14 T. Hart 0 0 0 0 0
F 15 R. Dmowski 0 0 0 0 0
F 16 R. Ferrill 0 0 0 0 5
F 17 L. Zerter-Gossage 0 0 -1 3 0
F 18 D. Fox 0 0 -1 1 0
F 29 D. Tschantz 0 0 0 2 0
Team:
Totals: 1 2 -10 27 9
No Name Min SH SVS GA
30 F. Brassard (L) 29:40 21 18 3
1 D. Spencer 30:20 12 11 1
Totals: 60:00 33 29 4
P T Player M Offense Time
1st H P. Ouellette 2.00 Slashing – minor (61.2) 5:54
1st V K. McKenzie 2.00 Holding – minor (54.2) 10:07
2nd H R. Boyd 2.00 Tripping – minor (57.2) 7:42
3rd V R. Olsson 2.00 Instigating – minor (46.11) 1:04
3rd V R. Olsson 5.00 Fighting – Major (46.14) 1:04
3rd H R. Ferrill 5.00 Fighting – Major (46.14) 1:04
3rd V D. Callin 2.00 Tripping – minor (57.2) 1:25
3rd V J. Dudek 2.00 Interference – minor (56.2) 11:25

Notes

  • Not Dressed for Worcester: Justin Murray, Jordan Samuels-Thomas, Anthony Florentino, Tanner Pond, Barry Almeida, Ryan Hitchcock, Kyle Thomas, Connor Doherty, Nic Pierog.
  • Not Dressed for Maine: Greg Chase, Ty Ronning, Terrance Wallin, Alex Kile, Michael McNicholas, Taylor Cammarata, Josh Couturier, Jonathan Racine, Scott Savage, Zach Tolkinen, Tom McCollum, and Connor LaCouvee.
  • Teams have until Thursday at 3 PM to get their rosters down to 23 players (21 active, 2 reserve, unlimited 14-day injured reserve). With 29 players on their roster and six of those players being try-out contracts, there shouldn’t be many surprises when those cuts are made.
  • Defenseman Anthony Fiorentino may start the season on I/R as he did not participate in Friday’s orange/white scrimmage, and was scratched for Saturday’s game. A player was seen in the background of a few training camp videos wearing a no-contact jersey, and we believe Florentino is that player.
  • Bobby Shea was suspended by the Railers earlier this week, after deciding to pursue a playing opportunity over in China. Since he was signed to a full contract, his suspension means Worcester will hold his ECHL playing rights for the 2019-20 season. If you missed my coverage on that story for The Sin Bin, you should check it out here.
  • Tommy Kelley announced his retirement from hockey on Instagram on Wednesday. Kelley was issued a qualifying offer by the team earlier this summer, though he had already begun working towards a new career. Tommy was a likable guy on and off the ice, and the team will not be the same without him. Wishing all the best to TK in his future endeavors.
  • Railers wore white jerseys, Mariners wore black (practice) jerseys. Both teams wore their blue helmets.
  • For up-to-date news on all things Worcester Hockey, Like us on Facebook at Woo Hockey – Worcester Hockey News, Follow us on Twitter @WooHockeyNews, and join our Facebook Group – Worcester Railers Fan Club.

Railers Lines (Observed by order in which they appeared):

LW C RW
Forward Line 1  M. Schmalz #17  J. Dudek #14  D. Callin #27
Forward Line 2  R. Olsson #9  B. Brauer #15 “C”  H. Samuelsson #10 “A”
Forward Line 3  T. Tsicos #22  C. Payne #8  J. Lavallee #72
Forward Line 4  M. Moran #26  S. Morrissey #37  J. Schiavo #44
LD RD
Defense Line 1  K. McKenzie #5  C. Rygus #21
Defense Line 2  I. Chukarov #13  C. Jones #2
Defense Line 3  N. Lukacevic #11  A. Cortese #72
G
Starting Goaltender  Jakub Skarek #35
Backup Goaltender  Evan Buitenhuis #34

Highlights