![]() The 17-year-old forward celebrated the occasion by making an Ovechkin-like leap onto the Harbour Station glass.Ī well-placed snap shot off the stick of Ben Duffy gave P.E.I. Saint John native Ryan Tesink then brought to the crowd to their feet a moment later, netting the first goal of his young career at the end of an impressive down-ice rush by the hosts. The Rocket then pulled ahead in the 17th minute of play when Jordan Escott banged home a rebound produced by a Jean-Laurence Beauchemin shot to pick up his first marker of the season. tied things up at one apiece nine minutes later when Travis McIsaac shoveled a loose puck to the back of the home team’s net to bring an abrupt end to a lengthy scramble in Sea Dogs territory. Veteran defenseman Kevin Gagné got Saint John on the scoreboard 5:45 into the match, beating Mosher on a close-range wrist shot after being set up nicely compliments of a nifty backhand pass from playmaker extraordinaire Michael Kirkpatrick. Meanwhile, between the pipes, overage goaltender Karel St-Laurent made 23 saves on 27 shots faced to improve to 3-0 in home openers in his career.Īt the other end of the ice Evan Mosher stopped 28 Saint John shots in a losing effort for the Rocket, while Ben Duffy, Travis McIsaac, Jordan Escott, and Josh Currie each produced goals for the visitors. Tomas Jurco (2), Jonathan Huberdeau, and Kevin Gagné also scored for the Sea Dogs in the dramatic 6-4 win, while star centre Michael Kirkpatrick dished out three assists on the evening. Local minor hockey product Ryan Tesink led the way by tallying 2G-1A-3P in picking up First Star of the Game honours and making his QMJHL debut a memorable affair. Although plans currently remain unknown for both the upcoming AHL and NHL seasons, one guarantee is that Las Vegas will be ready to continue its enthusiasm as a true hockey town.The Saint John Sea Dogs kicked off their 2010-11 season in style on Friday night, emerging victorious from a highly-entertaining match versus their Maritime Division rivals Prince Edward Island in front of 4,522 fans at Harbour Station. The Henderson Silver Knights will be the first hockey team to call Orleans Arena home since the Las Vegas Wranglers did from 2003-2014. The question of could it be done was always there, but so was the enthusiasm.” “With the enthusiasm of the fans at Wranglers games who were very knowledgeable and involved, it makes sense now. “I don’t think we really knew what all Vegas could be capable of,” said Mike McKenna, who spent two seasons with the Wranglers during his career as a goaltender and is now a member of the Golden Knights broadcast team. Looking around Las Vegas today, connections aren’t challenging to find between the sport’s past, present and promising future. We knew that hockey was a good fit for this town.” “There was an extra investment in the team that a lot of places didn’t see,” said Berman. The team appeared in the Kelly Cup twice during their tenure in town, falling just short of a championship in 2008 and again in 2012. ![]() ![]() Out of 11 total seasons played in Las Vegas and Orleans Arena, the Wranglers captivated fans by advancing to the ECHL’s postseason 10 times. You could see from the amount of merchandise, and ancillary stuff that would come along, that the fans were definitely into the product.” “One unique thing we noticed, and we all see it now with the Golden Knights, was when you walk into the arena and 90% of the people in the building always had either a Wranglers jersey or shirt on. “We thought the attendance numbers were overall pretty fantastic for an ECHL team,” said Rex Berman, the Executive Director at Orleans Arena. It didn’t take long for the new team to gather attention locally, making playoffs in the first season led by head coach Glen Gulutzan, now an assistant coach in the NHL for the Edmonton Oilers. ![]() For the Wranglers, the arrival was part of the ECHL’s absorption of the West Coast Hockey League prior to the 2003-04 season. Similar to the Golden Knights, the Wranglers originally arrived in the city of Las Vegas as an expansion franchise. Local fans know that professional hockey was also a mainstay at Orleans Arena since the Las Vegas Wranglers of the ECHL made the venue its home in the fall of 2003.
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