Squirrels 9, Nordiques 2

Squirrels Begin A New Era, Continue Dominance

Thursday’s game against the Nordiques marked the beginning of the post-Mike Bronson era for the Screaming Squirrels.   Bronson, who spent 3 seasons with the Squirrels, amassed a whopping 59 goals and 95 points as part of the Gold and Black.  Rumors surfaced earlier in the week that as a gesture of good faith Bronson left the Squirrels a nut before heading to Chicago and presented it to Vice President and General Manager Ben Sumner.  However Sumner, who was vacationing on the West Coast, was not available for comment.

The Squirrels would need no superstar power on this night as they jumped to a multi-goal lead by the 2^nd period and initiated the running clock rule about half-way through the 3^rd.   Chris Wautel, recently called up from the team’s minor league affiliate, struck for 2 goals and 4 points in the first period alone.  Although not managing to put the puck in the net, defenseman Kyle Gassert was effective in using the puck at knocking down and knocking out several Nordiques who already had a short bench.  One Nordique player had to leave the game with a busted finger from a Gassert slapshot.  At the other end of the ice, Squirrels goalie Eric Coulson managed to stop most of the dozen or so shots that trickled his way, however, Nordiques star Hector Rosario managed to sneak one in through the 5 hole and Regan Sweeney put in the 3^rd period’s lone goal past Coulson as well.