Hamilton Bulldogs

Hamilton, ON - The Hamilton Bulldogs defeated the Texas Stars 3-2 in overtime on Friday night at Copps Coliseum. The Bulldogs now lead the Stars 1-0 in the Western Conference Finals. Brock Trotter had two goals including the overtime winner.

The Bulldogs opened the game's scoring at 3:22 of the first period while on the power play. Mike Glumac received the puck from Andre Benoit before firing a shot on net. Texas starting goaltender Matt Climie could not control the rebound, which David Desharnais scooped up and deposited in the back of the net.

The Stars tied the game with a power-play marker of their own at 11:01 of the first frame. Landon Wilson dished a pass to Jamie Benn, who was positioned at the right faceoff dot. Benn snapped a shot that slid between the legs of Hamilton starting goaltender Curtis Sanford.

Brock Trotter gave the 'Dogs a 2-1 lead at 15:23 of the opening stanza. Aaron Palushaj sent a pass to Desharnais, who was stationed in the slot. Desharnais released a shot on net that Trotter tipped past Climie and into the net.

Benn scored his second goal of the game at 18:15 of the second stanza while on the power play. Dan Jancevski fed a pass across the ice to Benn, who was located at the right faceoff circle. Benn one-timed a shot past the glove of Sanford and into the back of the net.

Trotter scored his second goal of the game 14 seconds into overtime to win the game for the Bulldogs. Desharnais sent a shot to the net that was stopped by Climie. The goaltender could not control the rebound, which bounced onto the stick of Trotter, who was stationed at the left side of the net. Trotter tapped the puck past Climie and into the net to win the game.

The Bulldogs will host the Stars in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals on Sunday, May 16^th at 2:00 p.m. The game will be shown on Cable 14. Fans can listen to every 'Dogs playoff game on the flagship station of the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network, TALK 820. Fans can also listen or watch at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com by clicking on the 'AHL Live' or 'TALK 820' icons on the Bulldogs website.

Tickets for Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, any Ticketmaster Outlet, online at www.ticketmaster.ca or through charge-by-phone at 905-527-7666. For more information on 'Dogs season tickets, flex packs, mini packs and group tickets call 905-529-8500 or visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com.

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:
1. HAM - David Desharnais - 7 (Mike Glumac, Andre Benoit) - 3:22 (PP)
2. TEX - Jamie Benn - 9 (Landon Wilson, Perttu Lindgren) - 11:01 (PP)
3. HAM - Brock Trotter - 6 (David Desharnais, Aaron Palushaj) - 15:23

2nd Period:
4. TEX - Jamie Benn - 10 (Dan Jancevski, Maxime Fortunus) - 18:15 (PP)

3rd Period:
No Scoring

Overtime:
5. HAM - Brock Trotter - 7 (David Desharnais, Ryan Russell) - 0:14

Scoring:
Hamilton: 2-0-0-1-3
Texas: 1-1-0-0--2

Shots:
Hamilton: 15-7-15-1--38
Texas: 5-8-7-0--20

Goaltending:
Hamilton: Curtis Sanford (20 shots, 18 saves)
Texas: Matt Climie (38 shots, 35 saves)

Power Play:
Hamilton: 2-for-6
Texas: 2-for-4

Attendance: 2,977

Three Stars:
1. HAM- David Desharnais (1 goal, 2 assists, +1, 5 shots)
2. TEX- Jamie Benn (2 goals, 4 shots)
3. HAM- Brock Trotter (2 goals, +1, 4 shots)

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