GAME REPORTBULLDOGS 1 HOUSTON 2
By John Vessoyan
The Hamilton Bulldogs failed to put away the Houston Aeros after scoring the games first goal in Game 1 of the Calder Cup Final. The Dogs dropped a close 2-1 decision in front of a playoff high crowd of 6,312 at Copps Coliseum. Houston leads the best of seven championship series 1-0.
Jean-Guy Trudel scored the game-winning goal at 7:25 of the third frame.
"We were pretty pleased with most of the game," said Bulldogs head coach Geoff Ward. "Their goalie made a lot of good saves and we missed a few breakaways. But there are positvies we can take out of the game."
The Bulldogs opened the scoring very early in the contest while on the powerplay. Mike Komisarek's wrist shot from the point got through a crowd in front of the net and beat Houston goalie Johan Holmqvist to put the Dogs ahead 1-0.
Houston's Stephane Veilleux tied the game at 18:07 of the first period.
Ty Conklin was at his best in the second period. He made three dandy saves including two on forward Rickard Wallin, one from point blank range.
"I felt good out there," said Conklin. "The guy at the other end made a lot of good saves. So I had to make the saves as well."
Holmqvist was also sharp between the pipes for the visitors. He made an outstanding glove save off the stick of Tony Salmelainen with less than 10 minutes to play in regulation time.
The Bulldogs were outshot 39-36 in Game 1.
The Bulldogs booked there trip to the Calder Cup by defeating the Springfield Falcons, Manitoba Moose and the Binghamton Senators.
It's Houston's first Calder Cup final. They advanced to the championship series by beating the two Admiral teams, Milwaukee and Norfolk, and the Grand Rapids Griffins in 7 games in the Western Conference final.
Both clubs entered tonights contest with 11-5 records in the 2003 playoffs.
The winner of Game 1 has won 50 of the 66 Calder Cups in AHL history.
This year marks the first time in four years that the regular season's Most Valuable Player is participating in the Calder Cup. Hamilton Jason Ward was named league MVP thanks to his outstanding play which consisted of 31 goals and 41 assists in 69 games. Randy Robitaille won the 1999 season MVP award then topped it off with a championship with the Providence Bruins in the same year.
The Dogs will host the Aeros in Game 2 of the Calder Cup Final on Friday, May 30. Game time is 7 p.m. at Copps. Fans can buy their hockey tickets at the Copps Coliseum box office, at all Ticketmaster outlets or by calling Ticketmaster at (905) 527-7666.
Scoring Summary:
First Period
1. HAM - Mike Komisarek (Jason Ward, Benoit Gratton) - 1:58 (pp)
2. HOU - Stephane Veilleux (Kyle Wanvig, Rickard Wallin) - 18:07
Second Period
NO SCORING.
Third Period
3.HOU - Jean-Guy Trudel (Rastislav Pavlikovsky, Hnat Domenichelli) - 7:25
Shots
Hamilton: 13-8-14--36
Houston: 14-10-15--39
Goaltending
Hamilton: Ty Conklin (39 shots, 37 saves)
Houston: Johan Holmqvist (36 shots, 35 saves)
Powerplay
Hamilton: 1 for 4
Houston: 0 for 7
Three Stars
1. HOU - Johan Holmqvist
2. HAM - Ty Conklin
3. HOU- Jean-Guy Trudel
PartSource Sparkplug of the game: Raffi Torres
Attendance: 6,312
