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February 12, 2004

Elich Leads Generals Past Boardwalk Bullies

GREENSBORO - The word of the night in the Greensboro Coliseum was redemption, which is exactly what Matt Elich did, in sending the Generals to a 6-5 victory over the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies. Elich netted a breakaway winner 1:49 deep in overtime to give the Greensboro Generals a two-game home winning streak, defeating the defending Kelly Cup Champions.

Atlantic City (32-11-4) scored the game’s first goal, when at the 4:12 mark, Pierre Luc-Sleigher put the puck back in net following a rebound off the left pad of Generals netminder Jamie Hodson. The Boardwalk Bullies would assume a 2-0 advantage, following a defensive miscue by Greensboro (30-20-1) as Sam Paolini took advantage of a rebound off the stick just four minutes following the opening score.

In the second period Greensboro snapped a five period scoreless streak against the Boardwalk Bullies, when a rebound shot that was lost under the stomach of a face first Joel Irwin, was kicked out to Eric Fortier, sending it past a dazed Bullies goaltender Jake Moreland. The Bullies would answer when Luke Curtin, at the 9:07 mark, was in a one-on-one situation with Hodson, again giving Atlantic City a two goal advantage at 3-1. The Generals would retaliate with two unanswered goals ending second period scoring, as Mike Bayrack and Geno Parrish passed the puck back-and-forth, ending on the stick of Parrish who sent a slap shot from just beyond the blue line for a 3-2 lead at 12:57 of the frame. Bayrack would again find the way, when behind the goal, he would pass to an open Eric Fortier in front of the net, and with just 26 seconds before intermission tie the game at 3-3.

The Generals would carry the momentum of the second period into the third, when Mike Bayrack deflected a Geno Parrish slapshot from the blue line, giving Greensboro a 4-3 lead, their first of the game. Bayrack would again light the lamp, when after winning a face-off, sending the shot past a stoned Moreland for a 5-3 advantage. The Boardwalk Bullies retaliated with a goal of their own, just eight seconds later, when Stefan Rivard took a face-off into the offensive zone and beat Jamie Hodson for a one-on-one, cutting into the lead at 5-4. With Atlantic City pulling Moreland in favor of an extra attacker, combined with a taking advantage of a Generals penalty, allowed Josh Prudden to knot the game at 5-5, sending the game to overtime at 5-5.

In overtime, looking to redeem himself for an earlier penalty, Matt Elich used his speed to defend off the Boardwalk Bullies defenders and net the game winner at the 3:11 mark. The game closed out a two-game homestand for the Generals, with both games extending to overtime, and sends Greensboro on the road to Augusta with a four point difference between themselves and the Columbia Inferno.


Jon Cole
Media Relations Director
Greensboro Generals
(336) 373-7402 (office)