Railers Can’t Deliver Birthday Present for TRAX in 4-2 Loss to Newfoundland Growlers

Newfoundland Growlers at Worcester Railers HC

February 9, 2020

DCU Center

Meeting 9 of 9 vs. Newfoundland this season

Railers are 1-7-1-0 vs. the Growlers this season

Railers Can’t Deliver Birthday Present for TRAX in 4-2 Loss to Newfoundland Growlers

Nic Pierog scores team leading 20thgoal of season

Worcester, MA – The Worcester Railers HC(17-30-3-0, 37pts)closed out the weekend falling 4-2 to the top seed Newfoundland Growlers (35-11-0-1, 71pts)in front of 4,791 fansat the DCU Center on Sunday afternoon.The Railers will be on the road for five straight games which starts next Sunday, Feb 16 vs. the Reading Royals at 3pm.

Nic Pierog (1-0-1) and Bo Brauer (1-0-1) each scored goals for Worcester while Evan Buitenhuis made 22 saves in net for the loss. Three second period goals from Colt Conrad (1-1-2), Dylan Vander Esch (1-0-1), and Justin Brazeau (1-0-1) proved to be the difference maker as Maksim Zhukov made 24 saves in net for the victory.

Newfoundland would get on the scoresheet first thanks to Garrett Johnston (3rd) when he fired a wrister from the top of the left circle beating Evan Buitenhuis low glove at 7:36 giving the Growlers a 1-0 lead. In the dying seconds of the first period Nic Pierog (20th) collected a feed from Shane Walsh and snapped it by Maksim Zhukov with just 2.2 seconds remaining in the period to tie it up at 1-1. Despite being outshot 11-5 in the frame the Railers and Growlers were tied 1-1 through 20 minutes of play.

Just 34 seconds into the second frame Colt Conrad was able to find the back of the net for the Growlers handing the away team a 2-1 advantage. Minutes later a point shot from Garrett Johnston would be redirected in front by Dylan Vander Esch (5th) at 5:55 increasing the Newfoundland lead to 3-1. With just three seconds remaining in the period Just Brazeau was able to tuck one past the toe of Buitenhuis giving the Growlers a 4-1 lead which they took into the locker room.

Bo Brauer (6th) scored the only goal of the third period when he received a pass from Connor Doherty in the high slot and from the high slot snapped one by the low glove of Maksim Zhukov cutting the deficit down to 4-2 at 13:58. The goal could not spark the Railers as they fell 4-2 to the Growlers.

Notes: Three Stars: 3rd star: Bo Brauer (1-0-1) 2nd star: Colt Conrad (1-1-2) 1st star: Garrett Johnston (1-1-2, +4) final shots were 26-26 in …. Maksim Zhukov (12-8-1) made 24 saves on 26 shots for Newfoundland…. Evan Buitenhuis (11-18-1) made 22 saves on 26 shots for Worcester while Jakub Skarek served as the backup….Worcester went 0-for-3 on the power play while Newfoundland went 0-for-4…., JD Dudek (IR), Kyle Thomas (IR), Yanick Turcotte (IR), Tanner Pond (IR), Cody Payne (Sick), Dylan Sadowy (IR), Arnaud Durandeau (INJ) and Ian Milosz did not dress for Worcester…. Mike Cornell, David Quenneville, Linus Soderstrom, and are all with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers…. Shane Walsh skated in his 200thprofessional game and recorded an assist…. Dylan Sadowy was placed on the IR Friday…. Nic Pierog has 20+ goals in back to back seasons and is the third Railer to hit 20 goals in a season… Barry Almeida has done it twice while Tyler Barnes had 28 last season…. Connor Doherty, Shane Walsh, Kyle McKenzie all recorded assists for Worcester….The Railers have now lost seven straight games…. Worcester is 0-for-26 in their last seven games on the power-play….Railers are now 13-21-1-0 under GM/Coach Cunniff…. Worcester has 22 games left on the regular season….The Railers are now 4-12-1-0 all-time vs. the Growlers and 3-6-0-0 at the DCU Center.

What’s on tap – Five Straight on the Road!

On Sunday, Feb 16 the Railers will take on the Reading Royals from Reading for a 3pm faceoff. The Railers will then fly out of Philadelphia on Monday in which they will embark on a four-game swing down south which begins in Jacksonville vs. the Icemen on Wednesday, Feb 19 at 7pm.

Bring a group of 10 or more people to the game and save BIG $$$$ off Box Office pricing and receive a Railers hat for everyone in your group! Plus, score a Railers experience…Zamboni rides, High-Five Tunnel, post-game photo on ice, and more!  Call 508-365-1750 for your customized group experience!

Still and Stir located behind the DCU Center provides hockey fans with a great pregame and postgame atmosphere all season long. Watch all road games broadcast live on ECHLTV.com for a small fee. Listen to all Railers games live on 98.9 Nash ICON with coverage beginning 30 minutes before puck drop with Eric Lindquist and Cam McGuire. Full season memberships, mini plans, and group tickets are on sale now by calling the Railers front office at 508-365-1750 or by visiting www.RailersHC.com.

Worcester Railers Hockey….Ride the Train!