Hamilton Bulldogs

Grand Rapids, Michigan – The Grand Rapids Griffins defeated the Hamilton Bulldogs 5-2 at Van Andel Arena on Wednesday evening. Landon Ferraro scored the game-winning goal while Logan Pyett and Tomas Tatar both added two assists. 

The Griffins opened the scoring on an unassisted goal by Brian Lashoff at 15:50 of the first period. Lashoff danced around a Hamilton defender and snapped a shot by Bulldogs starting goaltender Robert Mayer.

The Bulldogs tied the score at 9:50 of the middle frame on a goal by Philip DeSimone. Louis Leblanc centered the puck to DeSimone and he snapped a shot which beat Grand Rapids Griffins starting goaltender Tom McCollum high blocker side. The ‘Dogs took the lead at 14:27 of the second stanza on a shorthanded goal by Brian Willsie. After crossing the blue line, Willsie snapped a shot low glove side past McCollum.

Grand Rapids tied the score on a marker by Garnett Exelby at 0:42 of the third period. Exelby stepped into a shot and hammered the puck over the shoulder of Mayer off the crossbar and in the net. The Griffins took the lead at 5:21 of the third frame on a tally by Ferraro. Fabian Brunnstrom dropped the puck back to Landon Ferraro, who from a sharp angle in the corner, took a shot and the puck floated over the shoulder of Mayer. Grand Rapids grabbed a two-goal lead on a goal by Mitch Callahan at 7:56 of the third stanza. Callahan wired a slap shot from just inside the blue line and the puck hit the far post and went in the net past Mayer.

Francis Pare added an empty net goal at 19:52 of the third period.

The Bulldogs will continue their three-game road trip when they face the Lake Erie Monsters on Friday, November 25th at 7:30 p.m. All Hamilton Bulldogs games can be heard live on AM 820 CHAM or on www.hamiltonbulldogs.com, or seen live on www.ahllive.com beginning with the Pioneer Pre-Game Show 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start time.

Single game tickets for the 2011-2012 season (with exception of the January 21st outdoor game) are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, any Ticketmaster Outlet, online at www.ticketmaster.ca or through charge-by-phone at 1-855-872-5000. 

Visit the official website of the Hamilton Bulldogs at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com
Become a fan of the ‘Dogs on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hamiltonbulldogs
Follow the team on Twitter at www.twitter.com/dogsplaybyplay and www.twitter.com/bulldogsahl

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:
1. GR – Brian Lashoff – 2 – 15:50
 
2nd Period:
2. HAM – Philip DeSimone – 5 – (Louis Leblanc) – 9:50
3. HAM – Brian Willsie – 3 – (Dany Masse) – 14:27 (SH)

3rd period:
4. GR – Garnett Exelby – 1 – (Tomas Tatar, Logan Pyett) – 0:42
5. GR – Landon Ferraro – 2 – (Fabian Brunnstrom, Bryan Rufenach) – 5:21
6. GR – Mitch Callahan – 3 – (Brent Raedeke, Logan Pyett) – 7:56
7. GR – Francis Pare – 2 – (Tomas Tatar, Doug Janik) – 19:52 (EN)

Scoring:
Grand Rapids: 1-0-4—5
Hamilton: 0-2-0—2

Shots:
Grand Rapids: 14-12-9—35
Hamilton: 12-9-4—25

Goaltending:
Grand Rapids: Tom McCollum (25 shots, 23 saves)
Hamilton: Robert Mayer (34 shots, 30 saves)

Power Play:
Grand Rapids: 0-for-6
Hamilton: 0-for-7

Attendance: 3,825

Three Stars:
1. GR- Landon Ferraro (1 goal, +2, 2 shots)
2. GR- Logan Pyett (2 assists, +2, 4 shots)
3. GR- Tom McCollum (23 saves)

Flamboro Downs Workhorse of the Game: Brian Willsie