Saturday, January 29, 2000
Hamilton 5, Mighty Ducks 3
7th straight loss at home
BY JOHN P. WISE
Enquirer contributor
Not long ago, the Mighty Ducks only had a problem beating the Louisville Panthers. Nowadays, they can't beat anybody.
Cincinnati fell behind Hamilton 5-0 in the second period, and wound up losing for the 12th time in their last 13 games, 5-3. The seventh straight home loss is a club record.
“We have to stay positive somehow,” said Cincinnati's Frank Banham, who scored a pair of third period goals. “Eventually, we'll break out of this and start ourselves a streak the other way.”
Cincinnati falls farther behind the Mid-Atlantic Division pack. The Ducks, 16-20-6-3, remain stuck on 41 points, at least 12 behind fourth-place Hershey.
Outside of Banham's goals and another by Joel Kwiatkowski, the crowd of 6,198 had little to cheer about. It was a case of too little, too late.
Perhaps the long-awaited debut of bruising wing Chad Wagner was reason for reaction, but he saw only limited action.
Wagner, at 6-foot-3, 225 pounds, is the enforcer the Ducks have lacked all year. NHL parent Anaheim signed Wagner just before the season, but the Calgary native's visa problems delayed his availability until Jan. 6, when he began a brief conditiong stint with ECHL Dayton. In only eight games there, Wagner racked up 107 penalty minutes.
His second-period bout with Hamilton's Chris Hajt (son of former Cincinnati Swords and Buffalo Sabres defensman Bill Hajt) drew about as much applause as the late goals. Hajt earned only a roughing penalty, while Wagner's double-minor for roughing resulted in one of three power-play scores for the visitors.
“Chad came in and did exactly what he's supposed to do for us,” Ducks coach Moe Mantha said. “He kept the game honest.”
Dan Cleary had a goal and three assists for Hamilton, now 15-19-12-3. Matthieu Descoteaux added three assists.
Hamilton ....... 1 4 0—5
Cincinnati ....... 0 0 3—3
First period: Ham, Cleary 12 (Swanson, Sarno) 9:27 (ppg).
Second period: Ham, Riesen 16 (Descoteaux, Cleary) 2:27; Ham, Riesen 17 (Cleary, Descoteaux) 4:43; Ham, Sarno 18 (Cleary, Swanson) 11:17 (ppg); Ham, Vorbiev 9 (Descoteaux, Brown) 19:16 (ppg).
Third period: Cin Banham 12 (Wren, Young) 3:55; Cin Kwiatkowski 3 (Shaw, Young) 17:37; Cin Banham (2) 13 (Kwiatkowski, Wren) 19:54 (ppg).
Shots on goal: Ham 10-11-8=39; Cin 24-8-20=52. Goalies: Ham, Heffler (49 saves); Cin, Naumenko (24). Power plays: Ham 3-for-5; Cin 1-for-4.
Attendance: 6,198.
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