For Immediate Release:
January 28, 2017
RAIL YARD DAWGS BLAST COTTONMOUTHS, 7-1
Roanoke scores seven unanswered goals in victory
COLUMBUS, GA – The Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs scored seven unanswered goals to erase an early 1-0 deficit as they defeated the Columbus Cottonmouths, 7-1, Saturday night at the Columbus Civic Center. Seven goals were the most that Roanoke has totaled in a game this season.
The Cottonmouths got on the board first thanks to some gorgeous tic-tac-toe passing. Craig Simchuk fed Tom Maldonado on the left wing and he quickly directed a pass to the back post. Jonathan Turk was waiting for it and he slammed the puck past Ryan de Melo to put Columbus on top, 1-0.
Roanoke would answer later in the frame on an odd-man rush. Michael Turner fed Daniel Vernace who ripped a wrist shot from the left wing that shot past Curtis Martinu, tying the game at one.
The Rail Yard Dawgs snagged the lead for good in the second period just shy of the halfway point. Colin Murray took the puck on the right wing just shy of the Roanoke blue line and burned in on the attack. He gained the zone, held the puck on his backhand and lofted short short-side through Martinu to give Roanoke a 2-1 advantage.
Later in the second, Massimo Lamacchia fished the puck out of the left wing corner and carried it to the front of Martinu’s net. Lamacchia lifted the puck over Martinu’s glove hand and tucked it under the crossbar, extending the Dawgs lead to 3-1.
The Dawgs padded their advantage in the final minute of the second when Maxim Chegrintsev sped down the right wing and played the puck off the boards behind the net. The puck bounced back to Chegrintsev who fired a shot off Martinu’s pads. Phil Bronner was waiting for the rebound in front of the net and jammed it through to push the lead to 4-1.
Roanoke added three more in the third. Lamacchia beat Martinu short-side from the right wing for his second goal of the game, giving the Rail Yard Dawgs a 5-1 lead early in the period. With just under five minutes to go and the Dawgs working on a 5-on-3 power play, Murray blasted a slap shot to the back of the net to make it 6-1. In the final two minutes, Chegrintsev received a pass in the slot and buried a one-timer for Roanoke’s seventh goal.
Lamacchia finished with two goals and an assist, Murray scored twice, Turner had two assists, Vernace notched a goal and an assist and de Melo recorded 43 saves on 44 shots.
The Rail Yard Dawgs improved to 10-16-5 while the Cottonmouths fell to 8-18-2. Roanoke will now hit the road for the southernmost point in the SPHL to take on the Pensacola Ice Flyers on Sunday. Puck drop in Florida is scheduled for 5:05 PM EST.
POSTGAME NOTES: Maxim Chegrintsev was signed to a second three-game tryout contract prior to the game… six goals was the largest margin of victory this season…Massimo Lamacchia recorded his eighth multi-point game and his third three-point game
2017-18 Rail Yard Dawgs season tickets are on sale now! Seats can be reserved by visiting the Rail Yard Dawgs office inside of the Berglund Center or over the phone at 540-344-3294.
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