(Official Release)
Maine Ties St. Cloud State 1-1
Drop a 2-1 decision in a shoot-out to the Huskies

Dec. 28, 2004


ESTERO, Fla. - The Maine men's ice hockey team tied St. Cloud State 1-1,
but were defeated 2-1 in a shoot-out on Tuesday afternoon in the first
game of the Florida College Classic at Germain Arena. Both teams scored in
the second period, with Maine's goal from Billy Ryan. Maine, ranked fifth
in the nation, is now 10-7-3 (6-3-1 Hockey East) and St. Cloud State is
8-9-2 on the season (4-8-0 in WCHA).

"This was a disappointing loss," said head coach Tim Whitehead. "It was a
great game by Jimmy Howard, but their goalie was equal to the task
tonight. Both goalies were very sharp in the shoot-out. We had several
break-away opportunities in the first period, but had troubles solving Tim
Boron. Both teams had plenty of chances and it was a tough one to lose. We
now need to refocus quickly for our next opponent."





Both the Black Bears and Huskies had three power plays each in the first
period, however Maine had one that lasted for four seconds and St. Cloud
State had a two-second advantage. At the end of the first period, Maine
had an eleven to seven advantage on shots.

In the second period, Maine got off to a strong start as Keenan Hopson
(Prince George, British Columbia) had a one-on-one chance less than a
minute into the period. The Black Bears had the first power play of the
period, in which they had three great chances at the net that were saved.
Michel Léveillé (Levis, Quebec) had a chance at the nine minute mark of
the period that was saved by Boron. On the Huskies next power play, an
apparent goal was waved off due to a man in the crease. St. Cloud State
was able to capitalize on the advantage with a goal by Grant Clafton at
13:32 when he put the puck to the left of Howard with assists by Joe
Jensen and Brock Hooten. Maine was able to respond with a four-on-four
goal by Billy Ryan (Milton, Mass.) when he broke free for a one-on-one
chance. He was assisted by Troy Barnes (Pembroke, Ontario) and Mike Lundin
(Apple Valley, Minn.) at 16:01 in the period. Maine had a twelve to ten
advantage on shots in the period.

The Black Bears began the third period with a man advantage, however could
not capitalize. Jimmy Howard (Ogdensburg, N.Y.) made a great glove save of
Peter Szabo early in the period. Both teams had several strong scoring
chances, however the goalies on both ends of the ice continued to make
saves. With the Huskies on the power play with less than a minute
remaining in regulation, Howard made two saves, which was followed by a
short-handed chance by Léveillé with seven seconds remaining from the
front of the net that was saved. The game headed to overtime, with Howard
making three saves in the extra five minutes. Following the overtime, in
which both teams were officially credited with a tie, the game move to a
shoot-out to determine who advanced in the tournament.

In the shoot-out, St. Cloud began with a shot by Matt Hartman that was
saved by Howard. Maine's first shooter was Derek Damon (Bangor, Maine),
whose shot was saved. Shots by Justin Fletcher and Léveillé were also
saved. In the third round, Peter Szabo's shot was saved, but Maine took
the lead when Ryan put a backhanded shot past Boron. Shots in the fourth
round by Andrew Gordon and John Ronan (South Boston, Mass.) were saved. In
the final round, St. Cloud State's Grant Clafton scored, which was not
matched by Barnes for Maine. In the sudden death shoot-out that followed,
shots by Clafton and Ryan were saved. The Huskies scored with a backhanded
shot over Howard's pad by Fletcher. Ronan was next up for Maine, but his
shot was saved, allowing St. Cloud to advance to the championship game.

In goal, Maine's Jimmy Howard (Ogdensburg, N.Y.) had one goal against and
24 saves. For the Huskies, Tim Boron had one goal against and 26 saves.
Maine had 9 penalties for 18 minutes and St. Cloud State had 9 for 18
minutes. On power plays, Maine was 0-5 and St. Cloud State was 1-6. For
the game, Maine outshot St. Cloud State by 27 to 25.

The Black Bears continue play in the Florida College Classic and face
either Cornell or Boston College at 4:00 pm on December 29. For tickets or
more information, please call 207-581-BEAR or visit www.GoBlackBears.com.