Friday, February 16, 2007
As they reach the end of their 11-day odyssey through the East Division, the Portland Pirates are closing in on a franchise milestone.
Their next victory will be the 500th in their 14-year history.
Usually fans like to be present when their team reaches a milestone, but the Pirates can't afford to wait until Sunday.
That's when they're scheduled to play their first game at the Cumberland County Civic Center in more than 12 days.
"It obviously shows how many winning teams there have been in Portland, but we can't delay reaching that milestone," Portland center Tim Brent said. "We're going to try to get it in Philadelphia and not wait to do it in front of the home crowd."
Going into tonight's game against the Phantoms, Portland, fifth in the seven-team Atlantic Division, trails Worcester by three points for a playoff spot.
The Pirates are home Sunday against the Worcester Sharks and don't want to fall further behind their division rival before that game arrives.
Portland also wants to maintain its new winning touch on the road.
"We've gotten back to winning hockey on the road, and I think that has to do a lot with spending some time together," Brent said. "There are a lot of guys who are new, and the road trip was a good time for everyone to get to know each other."
After snapping a franchise-record 11 consecutive road losses by eking out a 2-1 victory last Friday night at Wilkes-Barre, the Pirates garnered three of a possible four points with a victory and a shootout loss at Norfolk against the Admirals, the AHL's top team.
"We have more stability in the lineup," Portland Coach Kevin Dineen said.
"Our players know they're going to be here for our next run. We're feeling a little bit better about ourselves. If we continue to play the way we are now, we're going to be something to deal with down the stretch."
Following Sunday's game, Portland goes back on the road next week for games against Providence, Worcester and Albany.
NOTES: After scoring his first two goals in a Pirates uniform against Norfolk on Wednesday night, Mark Hartigan, who came from the Columbus Blue Jackets' organization in a trade three weeks ago, has 21 goals this season, the fourth time in his five AHL seasons he has topped 20 goals.
While finishing up his third week as a Pirate, Joe Motzko, who came with Hartigan in the same trade, has a four-game point-scoring streak.
Portland defenseman Eric Weinrich has a three-game point-scoring streak.
The Pirates have a 7-2-0-1 record against opponents from the East Division.
The Pirates are due to arrive back in Portland at 5 a.m. Saturday.
Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 725-8795 or at:
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