(PORT HURON, MI) -- The Border Cats returned home from their longest road trip of the season with a successful 2-1-4 record. The seven games in nine days included five contests that went to an overtime shootout, with the Cats winning one of those contests. They earned eight points in the seven games, and moved past the Fort Wayne Komets into third place in the hotly contested Northwest Division.
LAST WEEK: 1-1-2
THIS WEEK: The Season: The Border Cats are 7-7-4 in 2000-01. Their total of 18 points places them third in the Northwest Division, two points behind Flint for second place, and five points back of the Muskegon Fury for first place. The Generals have played three more games than the Border Cats. Reviewing the Week
Tuesday Game Stats: Carried by a remarkable performance by center Jeff Loder, the Cats earned the shootout point. Loder scored three goals in a span of 13:01 in the second period, giving him nine goals for the season. The last goal came with just nine seconds left in the period. Loder’s natural hat trick was the Border Cats’ first hat trick of the season. The Jackals edged the Cats 1-0 in the shootout to earn the 4-3 decision.
Wednesday Game Stats: Left wing Michel Massie led the way to victory. After assisting on the Cats’ first goal, he put them ahead 2-1 in the second period with his third goal of the season. Then, in the shootout, Massie took the ice as the first Cats’ shooter, despite not having any shootout attempts this season. Massie scored, followed by tallies by Ryan Pawluk and Bobby McKillop to win the shootout by a 3-1 count. Hugo Hamelin made 30 saves in regulation. Jeff Loder scored his 10th goal of the season, his fourth in two games.
Friday Game Stats: The Cats suffered their only outright defeat of the road trip, taking the UHL’s best team down to the wire. Jeff Loder gave the Cats a 1-0 lead with his 11th goal of the season and fifth in three games. Trailing 3-2, the Cats got the first goal of the season from Shayne Tomlinson to tie the game with 14:57 left in regulation, but the Mallards scored the game-winner 6:26 later. Kevin St. Pierre made 35 saves.
Saturday Game Stats: The final game of the road trip produced its most dramatic ending. Jeff Loder was hit in the throat with a puck and laid on the ice for a couple of minutes, before leaving the game with 12:56 left in the third period, and the Cats trailing 2-1. The IceHogs scored with 11:28 left to make it 3-1. Then Loder returned to the lineup, scoring his 12th of the season with 10:11 left, and his 13th with 6:09 remaining to tie the game and force the shootout. Loder also scored in the shootout, which the IceHogs took 4-3. Loder has seven goals in the last four games. David-Alexandre Beauregard added his 10th goal and his 11th assist. Ryan Pawluk tied Beauregard for the team assist lead, getting two in the game. The Week Ahead
Friday The Generals (9-10-2) lead the Cats for second place in the Northwest Division by just two points, having played three more games than the Cats. The Generals have won three straight home games. They are 1-6 at home this season when trailing after the first period. The teams will face each other four times in December. The Cats are 0-2 vs. the Generals this season, losing 4-2 at Flint, Oct. 20, and 5-2 at McMorran Arena, Nov. 5. Center Kahlil Thomas (2-2) and right wing Ross Wilson (1-3) have each totaled four points in the two contests. Wilson was placed on the 10-day injured reserve list last Wednesday. Generals’ center Mike Maurice, a former Border Cat who had 12 points (4-8) in 16 games this season, was called up to Grand Rapids of the IHL last Friday. In two games with the Griffins, he has one assist and a +1 rating.
Saturday The Fury (9-5-5) hold a three-point lead over Flint, five over the Cats, for the Northwest Division lead. The Cats are 1-1 vs. the Fury this season, winning 4-3 in a shootout at McMorran Arena, Oct. 19, and losing 6-5 at Muskegon, Nov. 4. In the Oct. 19 matchup, Kevin St. Pierre stopped all 15 Fury shots until taking a puck to the throat and leaving the game midway through the second period. In the Nov. 4 rematch, the Fury scored three third-period goals to overcome a 5-3 deficit. Bobby McKillop’s second-period goal, giving the Cats the two-goal lead, was the 300th goal of his professional career. Fury center Todd Robinson is second in the UHL in assists (23) and points (30). Cat Scans Road Roundup: With seven rookies in the lineup, the Border Cats went 2-1-4 on the seven-game, nine-day road trip. The Cats scored 25 goals in regulation in the seven contests. The high-scoring line of Jeff Loder, David-Alexandre Beauregard, and Ryan Pawluk scored 16 of the goals, and tallied 13 assists. The two upcoming games this weekend, plus contests at Kalamazoo, Dec. 10, and at Flint, Dec. 13, mean the Cats will have played 13 consecutive road games before hosting the Generals, Sat., Dec. 16. Player of the Week: Center Jeff Loder is the Border Cats’ nominee for the Sher-Wood / UHL Player of the Week. Loder scored seven goals in the team’s four contests, including three in the second period at Elmira last Tuesday. He also had a +2 plus-minus rating. Since his acquisition from the Fort Wayne Komets, Nov. 9, Loder has 10 goals and 4 assists in 9 games. Loder is now second in the UHL with 13 goals this season. Goaltender of the Week: Hugo Hamelin is the Cats’ nominee for UHL Goaltender of the Week. In two contests, Hamelin was 1-0-1, with 60 saves, a 2.50 goals against average, and a .923 save percentage. Polillo Returns: The all-time leading scorer in United Hockey League history, center Paul Polillo, is expected to return to the Border Cats this week, and play his first game since the 1998-99 season Friday at Flint. His return to the home ice at McMorran Arena is set for Saturday, Dec. 16, also vs. the Generals. Polillo, 33, retired after the 1998-99 season, after scoring 107 points in his only season for the Border Cats (28-79). His number 9 was subsequently retired throughout the league, in honor of his many outstanding accomplishments. Polillo holds several all-time league records: most games, most assists, most points, most seasons leading in points, most 100-point seasons, and most consecutive 20+ goal seasons. He is in the top six all-time in plus-minus, power play goals, shorthanded goals, game-winning goals, and shots on goal. Polillo has the three highest single-season point totals in league history. He is a three-time league Most Valuable Player, and a five-time first team All-Star. He is one of the league’s all-time leading playoff scorers, and was a member of the 1992-93 Colonial Cup Champion Brantford Smoke. Streaks: Center Jeff Loder has the longest current goal-scoring streak in the league, having scored in his last four games. Defenseman Mike Bondy, who did not make the seven-game road trip, maintains a three-game goal-scoring streak. Findlay Update: Center Tim Findlay, called up from the Border Cats to Louisville, their AHL affiliate, Oct. 27, has 4 assists in 13 games with the Panthers. Border Cats Live: The weekly player appearance and radio show returns after a one-week absence, Wednesday, Nov. 29, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m., at Garfield’s Restaurant and Pub in the Birchwood Mall. This week’s scheduled guests are center Jeff Loder and left wing Michel Massie. Food and drink specials, and ticket and other prize giveaways are all part of Border Cats Live, which airs on Oldies 1450 and 1590. On the Air: Hear live play-by-play of all Border Cats regular season and playoff games, on Oldies 1450 & 1590, WHLS-AM in Port Huron, and WHLX-AM in Marine City. The broadcasts, as well as Border Cats Live, are also available via a link on the Border Cats’ web site, www.bordercats.com. Ken Jacoby is the announcer.
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