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Chico & Friends Challenge CHICO'S FRIENDS FILL NETS WITH GOALS HOCKEY - Esche brings NHL players to Mohawk Valley for fund-raiser. posted 11/12/04
The game drew a crowd of almost 3,000 spectators to watch Whitesboro native Esche's white squad come up on the short end of a 13-12 score. Buffalo Sabres goalie Martin Biron made a save on a penalty shot by Jesse Boulerice of the Carolina Hurricanes with 29.2 seconds left on the clock to preserve the win for the blue squad. "The guys played unbelievably well," said Esche, the starting goalie for the Philadelphia Flyers and for Team USA in this summer's World Cup. "Some of the fans might want fighting or more hitting but this is a charity event and we're trying to have a little fun." While fans of physical hockey may have been disappointed, fans looking for offensive excitement certainly got their money's worth. The teams combined to score 25 goals in two 25-minute periods or one goal every other minute. Boston Bruin Tom Fitzgerald scored goals 10 seconds apart in the first period, the first off a breakout pass along the right boards from Esche and the second on a one-timer off a pass into the crease from Todd White of the Ottawa Senators. The scoring in the four-on-four showdown started quickly. Jay Pandolfo of the New Jersey Devils slipped a shot past Esche 30 seconds into the game. Jim McKenzie of the Nashville Predators answered with a goal 66 seconds later to tie the score and the blue team took a 2-1 lead when Buffalo Sabre Eric Boulton scored 31 seconds after that. The teams never went seven minutes without scoring. The white team scored the final three goals of the first half to forge a 6-6 tie heading into the intermission. The blue team had an 12-9 lead midway through the second half but the white squad battled back and tied the score on a goal by Boulerice with 3:43 left to play. Rory Fitzpatrick of the Buffalo Sabres netted the game-winning goal when Boulton stole the puck at his own blue line to start a two-on-rush at Esche in the final minute of play. After the white team got within one goal the players' competitiveness started to show. Pandolfo rode New Jersey teammate John Madden away from the goal when the latter had a chance to tie the score at the 6:30 mark. A hooking call against Devil Jamie Langenbrunner led to Boulerice's last-minute penalty shot. The game was played without traditional penalties. Each of the three penalties called was rewarded with a penalty shot rather than the traditional two-minute power play. Esche was penalized for delay of game when he shot the puck into the stands early in the second half and Atlanta Thrasher Shawn McEachern converted on the penalty shot. Biron faced two penalty shots and stopped both of them. Each of the players was introduced prior to the game with the crowd's loudest cheers saved -- naturally -- for Esche, the final player to take the ice. Eric Weinrich, a former Utica Devil, also received a warm reception, as did Joe Nieuwendyk, a two-time Stanley Cup champion and graduate of Cornell University. Players from the New Jersey Devils, the parent club of the American Hockey League team that left Utica after the 1992-93 season, were greeted by a mixture of cheers and boos. While the Devils left a bitter taste in Utica fans' mouths, their players drew support from fans traveling from Albany where Madden and Pandolfo served their minor league apprenticeships with the River Rats. The game's organizers drew on Utica's professional hockey history for the festivities, bringing back public address announcer Tom Coyne and trumpeter Mike DiMeo who performed the national anthems of the United States and Canada. Former Mohawk Valley Prowlers coach Dave Schultz was the coach of Esche's squad. Both teams donned uniforms with the bull's head logo of Esche's foundation. The uniforms bore a strong resemblance to those worn by the St. Louis Blues with their blue, white and yellow color scheme. The Friday and Saturday games will be played at Clinton Arena with 2,600 tickets available each night for $15 apiece. "It's really tough asking these guys to play three games in three nights," Esche said. "It's a tall order but these guys are all willing to help out." Where the players would normally be more than a month into their regular season, they felt the effects of their relative inactivity on the ice. "We're a ways away from game speed," Esche admitted, "but the guys started getting better and better. The play kept getting crisper. By Saturday it should be a really good game." A ceremony honoring members of the Clinton Comets of the Eastern Hockey League is planned as part of Friday's festivities. Several Comets players from the 1950s and 1960s will be on hand to sign copies of "The Clinton Comets: An EHL Dynasty."
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UTICA -- Mohawk Valley hockey fans got their fix Thursday night. Forced to the sidelines on the National Hockey League owners' lockout, 25 players suited up for the first of three Chico and Friends Challenge games to benefit Robert Esche's Save of the Day Foundation.