Saturday, October 18, 2008

Gerbe guns for two in Pirates win

Returning to the state where he achieved collegiate stardom, Nathan Gerbe scored a pair of goals to earn the game's #1 star as Portland won their second straight, 3-2 over Springfield. The explosive rookie was active throughout, firing a game-high seven shots on goal to lead the attack. Colton Fretter scored the other Portland goal. All three Pirates goals on the evening came with the man advantage. Gerbe closed a passing play with Tim Kennedy to give Portland a 2-0 lead in the first, then later lit the game winner in the mid-second. Marc-Andre Gragnani added a pair of power play assists for the Pirates, while Adam Dennis made 21 saves to get the win. The Rundown: Gerbe: 2 G, 7 SOG Gragnani: 2 A Kennedy: 1 A Butler: 1 A, -2 Kostka: 1 A Mancari: 5 SOG Weber: 4 PIM Hunter: 2 SOG Whitmore: 2 SOG Schutz: -1 Zagrapan: -1 Card: 4 PIM Dennis: W, 21 saves Look for Jhonas Enroth to get his first AHL start on Sunday when the Pirates do battle with Providence.