Day 63: Johnsson Leaves Ale Punch Drunk

Defenseman Kim Johnsson pumps home one of his three power-play goals on the evening with a booming point shot as the Rovers dump the Wicked Ale 5-1.

Iqaluit, NU (CP)

Kim Johnsson struck for three power-play goals and an assist while Pavol Demitra racked up four helpers as the Rovers kicked back and enjoyed some Wicked Ale to the tune of the 5-1 victory. Alexander Frolov extended his goal-scoring streak to four games as he opened the scoring by one-timing a Glen Murray pass over the glove of Ale netminder Jocelyn Thibault. The Rovers took the 1-0 lead into the second period where the Johnsson show began. With Geoff Sanderson in the box for retaliating to an earlier Olli Jokinen spear on Garnet Exelby (Jokinen was assessed a major penalty on the play), Johnsson took a feed from Demitra in the slot and snapped home his second of the season. Then early in the third period Martin Straka was assessed an interference penalty, and Johnsson one-timed a point shot from the right side past Thibault for his second of the game. After Shaone Morrisonn scored for the Ale, Pierre Turgeon was whistled for tripping and Johnsson completed the hat-trick by taking another Demitra pass and crushing a slapper from the right faceoff dot past a shell-shocked Thibault. Sean Hill capped the scoring on another Demitra setup, his fifth of the season.

The four points have propelled Johnsson to fifth place in Champions conference scoring, a lofty perch for a defenseman. His 28 points in 31 games rank only behind perennial snipers Ilya Kovalchuk, Bill Guerin, Alex Tanguay, and Sergei Fedorov. He leads Funboys star rearguard Scott Niedermayer by four points in defenseman scoring. "Obviously to be mentioned in the same breath as those tremendously skilled forwards is an honour... almost a bit of a joke", Johnsson said when told of his standing. "I really don't pay attention to those things. If we are winning, that's all that matters. Points take care of themselves when you are playing well, and we're playing well".

The Rovers had their way with the last-place Ale all night, outshooting them 44-16 and dominating them in the circles, on the boards, in the corners, and in the possession battle. Baffin were crisp with their passes all night, as highlighted by Chris Pronger's amazing 27 completed passes to only one missed attempt. Martin Gerber got his 13th win with only 15 saves, while a battered Thibault was saddled with the loss. The coaching staff were satisfied with the win. "Kim obviously had a big game for us, and we knew he had the goals in him", Stringer said of his stud defenseman. "Alex scoring again is big for us; we're really pleased by how he has responded to the lineup changes. Now we need to take this effort into Albany to avoid what happened there last time".

The Rovers pack up and head to Albany for their second meeting of the season with the StrapHangers. The first game was stolen by former Rover Ed Belfour, who shutout his old mates 1-0. The Rovers will do their best to reverse that outcome this time around.