Worcester wasted no time getting started on their opponents, scoring just 1:28 into the first period and again at 3:57 to jump to an early 2-0 lead. Center Craig Darby (#17) beat Providence goalie Rob Tallas for the first time, assisted by #15 left wing Dave Roberts and #22 right wing Patrice Tardif. Veteran IceCat #10 right wing Lindsay Vallis buried the second goal just two and a half minutes later, assisted by 2nd-year defenseman #7 Jason Widmer and Darby. Midway through the period, however, the Bruins converted on a power play, beating IceCat goalie Eric Fichaud with a slapshot from in front of the blueline. Thanks to support from the home crowd, though, Worcester was in no danger of losing their momentum and continued to apply pressure to the Bruin defenders. Aside from the heavy checking and tough play along the boards, the first of many fights broke out between IceCat toughguy #44 defenseman Jason Strudwick and Bruin right wing Marc Potvin. Late in the period Worcester regained a two-goal lead with another goal by Darby, assisted on the power play by veteran defenseman #3 Terry Virtue and again by Roberts. Providence got one more chance, though, scoring another power play goal with less than a minute remaining to play. At the end of the first period, the two teams retired to the locker rooms with 12 shots apiece, Worcester leading 3-2.
The second period was all Worcester, as the IceCats sunk their claws even further into the frustrated Bruins. IceCat Captain, 2nd year defenseman Roy Mitchell (#6) buried a shot from the point past Tallas on a power play (yes, another one) assisted by fellow defenseman Widmer. Just a few minutes later, Roberts scored on a beautiful 5-hole slider (you guessed it...also on another power play) assisted by Virtue, bringing the IceCat's lead to 3 with a score of 5-2. With enough scoring out of the way, the IceCats turned their attention to other, more pressing matters - mainly fighting. By the time the period was over, the Cats had not only succeeded in preventing the P's from mounting any sort of offense, but they also had time for a few brawls, just to keep the crowd happy!
In the third period, the IceCats once again kept the Bruins from scoring and instead filled the period with fights - including a near bench brawl that took several minutes to sort out and resulted in game misconducts on players from both teams. Two of the games three star honors were awarded to Worcester players: 3rd to Dave Roberts (1 goal, 2 assists) and 1st to Craig Darby (2 goals, 1 assist). All in all, the Providence team was pretty much outmatched by the Cats, and that's not just a reporter's biased opinion! This year's IceCats team is good - bigger, faster, more aggressive, and better than last season's Cats, who still deserved better than their last place finish. It has been predicted that the IceCats can go from "worst to first" this season, and, after this game, it's easy to see why! If you didn't get to the Centrum last Saturday night, then you were lost, and should definitely find your way there to catch the IceCats action sometime this season. The Cats hit the road this Friday, traveling to the Bruins home ice at the Providence Civic Center, then down to Hershey, PA to face the Bears, and finally to Baltimore to play the first year Bandits. The IceCats will return to the Centrum on Friday the 20th to face off against the defending Calder Cup Champion Albany River Rats, followed by a game versus MA rivals, the Springfield Falcons on Saturday, the 21st.
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