THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 19, 1995 TAG: 9501190502
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HARRY MINIUM, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 79 lines
The Richmond Renegades came to Scope on Wednesday prepared to fight, but they lost to a Hampton Roads Admirals team more interested in winning a hockey game than a boxing match.
The Admirals held off a Richmond power play in the final minutes with an impressive defensive display, then scored a shorthanded, empty-net goal to eke past the Renegades, 3-1.
The victory lifted the Admirals, winners in 11 of their last 12 games, into a second-place tie with Richmond, each with 51 points. Charlotte, a shootout loser at South Carolina, is first with 52 points.
Wednesday's victory was the fifth in a row for Hampton Roads over the Renegades, who vowed to return with an enforcer after a 5-0 loss at Scope two weeks ago punctuated with scuffles.
And that they did. Richmond traded Chris Foy to South Carolina on Tuesday for Trevor Senn, the league's leader in penalty minutes.
Senn had two fights, including one that could have affected the game's outcome - a third-period bout with defenseman Brian Goudie. Goudie, perhaps the Admirals' best defenseman on power plays, was ejected at 2:29 for instigating.
The Admirals led at that point, 2-1, on goals by Rod Taylor and Ron Majic, and for most of the third period managed to keep the puck in the Richmond end.
But Rick Kowalsky was called for roughing at 17:55, giving the Renegades a two-man advantage, as Richmond coach Roy Sommer had pulled goaltender Grant Sjerven.
The Renegades pounded away at Admirals goaltender Corwin Saurdiff, firing six short-range shots within a minute.
``The puck would hit me and our guys would just start swinging sticks,'' said Saurdiff, who had 29 saves. ``There were sticks swinging all over the place, and our guys were knocking their guys all over the ice.''
One Admirals stick hit the puck and knocked it to center ice with a minute left, and the Renegades retreated for one last push. But Taylor slammed into a Renegade, knocking the puck toward the waiting stick of defenseman Chris Phelps.
``I've never seen Rod hit anybody so hard,'' Phelps said.
Phelps then netted the goal at 19:11.
``We kept knocking guys down and pushing them in front of the net,'' Admirals coach John Brophy said. ``We didn't play a great game, but it was a great ending, wasn't it?''
There were only 46 penalty minutes - far fewer than most of the Admirals expected.
Richmond defenseman Daniel Chaput, who played for the Admirals last season, was quoted in Hockey Ink this week as saying his former teammates ``are a bunch of jerks'' who play dirty hockey and ``don't have half the talent'' of the Renegades.
The Admirals read the story Tuesday on the bus back from a game in Greensboro.
Chaput acknowledged that he was quoted accurately, but he added that he made those comments in November, when the Renegades were in first and the Admirals in last.
Goudie was among many Admirals who took exception nonetheless.
``He was a part of our team last year,'' he said. ``I guess that means he was a no talent, too. We didn't want him, we traded him, and now he's ------ off.''
Other than the final defensive stand, the highlight of the game for the Admirals came at 0:46 of the second period when Majic, a seldom-used forward, scored a power-play goal, his first of the season.
Ironically for Richmond, it was the game-winning goal, and came from the Admirals' best fighter, who skated well and had no penalties on a night when the Admirals were for the most part models of decorum.
``And it was no fluke,'' Brophy said. ``It was a great shot.
``People say Ronnie Majic can't play. Well, he showed them, didn't he?'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by D. Kevin Elliott, Staff
Hampton Roads' Brendan Curley tries to get a stick oon a shot by
Richmond's Sean O'Brien.
by CNB