From: Ryan Stanzel
Director of Communications
Sunday, March 4, 2007
713.361.7930 (Direct Line)

Rivermen 4, Aeros 1
Official Box Score

PEORIA, Ill. – Jon DiSalvatore, Jamie Rivers and Peter Ferraro each posted a goal and an assist in Peoria’s four-goal second period, and Chris Beckford-Tseu made 29 saves, as the Rivermen routed the Houston Aeros 4-1 at Carver Arena. Michal Birner also scored for Peoria (31-20-2-4), which is unbeaten in regulation in its last seven games (5-0-0-2) and took over sole possession of fourth place in the West Division.

Bryan Lundbohm scored a goal and Dieter Kochan made 14 saves in two periods for Houston (21-31-3-6), which saw its franchise-record road winless slide stretched to 11 games (0-8-2-1). The Aeros, who have scored just eight goals while going winless in their last seven in a row overall (0-6-0-1), are in Chicago on Wednesday to continue a stretch of nine out of 10 games away from Toyota Center.

Early on, Beckford-Tseu stopped Shawn Belle’s 2-on-1 attempt, and then covered up Belle’s rebound shot.

Kochan made a nice blocker save on Yan Stastny, who broke in 2-on-2.

The slow moving first period featured just three shots on goal in the opening 10 minutes, and only 10 overall in the opening stanza.

DiSalvatore put Peoria up 1-0 just 40 seconds into the second, taking a pass from Stastny low in the right circle and snapping it by Kochan for his 16th goal.

The Aeros then got 34 seconds of a 5-on-3, but Beckford-Tseu stoned Matt Foy from close range off a cross-ice pass from Erik Reitz.

DiSalvatore set up Rivers’ power play goal that made it 2-0 Peoria with 5:52 left in the second. Rivers sent a long shot through traffic from the center point, and it ended up in the net.

Birner’s eighth of the season, with 3:13 left in the second, made it 3-0 Peoria. Birner took a pass from Rivers and beat Kochan five hole from the right circle.

Ferraro, in his first game with Peoria, extended the advantage to 4-0 with 1:53 left in the middle period.

Aeros Winger Aaron Voros, assigned by Minnesota after being acquired from New Jersey this week, fought Stastny in his Aeros debut. Stastny leveled Foy with an open ice hit, and Voros locked up with Stastny to protect his new teammate.

The Aeros got on the board with 9:55 remaining, when Joel Ward forced a turnover in the Rivermen zone and fed Lundbohm, who beat Beckford-Tseu for his sixth goal of the season.

With the Aeros on the power play, rookie Benoit Pouliot didn’t get all of a shot at nearly an open net from low in the right circle in the final minutes. On the same advantage, Beckford-Tseu snared Curtis Murphy’s one-timer from point-blank rage.

Houston finished 0-for-6 on the power play, while Peoria went 1-for-5.

Notes:

Not dressing for the Aeros were Miroslav Kopriva, Mattias Weinhandl, Peter Olvecky, Chris Ovington and Ben Thomson.

The Aeros are 3-16-2-2 this season in games in which goalie Josh Harding doesn’t play. Harding remains on recall to NHL Minnesota.

Murphy still has 199 points (55-144=199) in 301 career games in Houston.

The Aeros fell to 2-22-2-2 when scoring two or fewer goals.

Houston is 1-7-0-0 in its last eight regular season trips to Carver Arena.

The Aeros went winless in nine straight road games (0-7-2-0) from January 31-February 26, 2004.

The Aeros are 0-8-2-1 in their last 11 games in the month of March, dating back to last season.

The Aeros have allowed the game’s first goal in six of their last seven games, and haven’t led after one period in any of those seven games.

Houston’s 11-game road winless slide ties Portland for the longest in the AHL this season.

The Aeros are winless (0-19-1-4) when allowing four goals or more.

Tony Quesada made nine saves in relief of Kochan.