If you think Newfoundland Growlers’ mascot Buddy the Puffin is in better shape than ever before, it might because of the Growlers’ winning ways.
Buddy is doing end-of-the-night push-ups to match Newfoundland’s home-ice winning streak, which reached 16 games Wednesday night at Mile One Centre, where the Growlers downed the Kansas City Mavericks 7-1.
It was also the 11th consecutive overall victory — home and away — for Newfoundland (29-10-0), which is challenging for first place overall in the ECHL. The Growlers’ 58 points ties them with the Eastern Conference-leading South Carolina Stingrays (who have three games in hand), and puts them three points behind the league-leading Allen Americans, who have played three more games than Newfoundland.
Wednesday night’s margin of victory was the biggest this season for the Growlers, which is especially notable considering they were playing for the fifth time in six days; they had swept a three-game weekend road trip in New England before returning to St. John’s, where they met the Mavericks for the first time on Tuesday, coming away with a 4-1 win.
Whatever gas was at the bottom of Newfoundland’s tank must have been pretty good stuff. The Growlers outshot the Mavericks 13-5 in Wednesday’s opening period, dominating play and taking a 2-0 leas in the process.
Giorgio Estephan had two goals and added an assist for the winners. That gives Estephan, who was the second star Wednesday, a total of 46 points in 37 ECHL games, putting him in the top three scorers in the league. He also has points in 10 of his last 11 games and his 18 goals tie him for the team lead with Marcus Power, who also scored Wednesday.
Zach O’Brien, Matt Bradley and Trey Bradley each had a goal and an assist for the winners, with Trey Bradley earning first-star honours for the third time in Newfoundland’s last five games.
Third star Tommy Panico had the Growlers’ other goal, while rookie forwards Riley Woods and Justin Brazeau each had two assists.
Goaltender Angus Redmond made 23 saves to record his 10th win in as many starts with Newfoundland; only a third-period power-play goal by David Dziurzynski prevented a shutout for Redmond, who had come out on the winning end of a penalty shot early in first minute of the second period. That’s when Kansas City’s C.J. Eick saw his attempt go off the iron.
The Growlers had 21 shots at Tyler Parsons and Nick Schneider who split the night between the pipes for the Mavericks (17-19-2).
Newfoundland now owns the third-longest home-ice winning streak in ECHL history, with only a couple of teams from a quarter-century ago ahead of them on the list
In 1994-95, the Stingrays won 18 in a row on home ice, while the Wheeling Thunderbirds won 17 straight at home during the same season.
Newfoundland won’t get a chance to challenge the Thunderbirds and Stingrays standards until it begins its next homestand at Mile One on Jan. 31. In between, the Growlers have another three games-in-three days road weekend, this time to Reading, Pa. and Brampton, Ont, but that trip doesn’t begin until Jan.24.
That means the Growlers are getting a well-deserved rest period, one that will be welcomed even by a team on such a roll. It includes four mandated days off — no practices — that come with the ECHL’s upcoming all-star break.
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