Wings Game #13 (at Portland 4-11-08) and Game #14 (at Minnesota 4-12-08)

By Tom Hoffman

The Philadelphia Wings (8-4) hit the road again for another set of crucial back to back games as they push towards an NLL playoff berth. The trip opens Friday when the Wings make their first ever visit to Portland to face the Lumberjax (5-8) and concludes Saturday evening with a divisional battle against the Minnesota Swarm (8-4). Faceoff Friday is at 10:30 PM, Saturday at 8 PM.

History

The Wings are 0-2 all-time against Portland, both games having been played in Philadelphia. Last season the Lumberjax ruined the Wings home opener with a 14-12 on January 13, 2007. The Wings are 4-5 against the Swarm, including this season’s 17-8 win on February 22. At Xcel Energy Center the Wings are 2-3 all time.

Last Weekend

After trailing 9-3 in the first quarter, the Wings fought back to tie the Chicago Shamrox and force overtime however the night ended just 7 seconds into the extra period as the Wings lost 15-14. Athan Iannucci scored four goals on former teammate Matt Roik, who made 48 saves against his former club. Brandon Miller, recently acquired from Chicago, made 51 saves for the Wings. Sunday the Wings got four more goals from Iannucci and 51 saves from Rob Blasdell as they ended a three game losing skid with an 11-9 win over the Toronto Rock. Portland split a home and home with San Jose, each team winning on the road, while Minnesota defeated New York 12-9.

Milestones (with thanks to the NLL Media Guide)

Athan Iannucci’s third goal in Saturday’s game at Chicago was his 49th of the season which gave him the Wings record for most goals in a season. The previous top mark was set in 2001 when Tom Marechek tallied 48. Iannucci, currently with 54 goals, is on pace to break the NLL’s single season mark of 61, set by Colorado’s Gary Gait in 2003. Marechek set the team record for points in a season with 98 in 2002 and Iannucci, at 76 with four games left, could threaten that record as well. Iannucci also now owns the team record for shots on goal in a season with 200 (old record 192 by Marechek in 2002).

Sunday’s win gave the Wings their seventh win at home this season, eclipsing the previous regular season best of six (2001, 2002 and 2003).

Geoff Snider has 90 minutes in penalties, shattering the previous team high of 72 by Rob Van Beek in 2006. Snider could become the first player in NLL history to go over 100 minutes (previous high was Brian Reese with 98 in 2002 with Washington). Snider can also break the team record for loose ball pickups in a season with 10 more (180 set by Peter Jacobs in 2005 and tied by Snider last season).

Quote (after Sunday's game)

Dave Huntley: “I thought we got back to playing physical lacrosse at both ends of the floor. When we play physical I think we're pretty good. Last night (Saturday in Chicago) we played three real good quarters, seven minutes of a tie and eight minutes of not very good. I think our depth helped us out a litle bit tonight. We were able to throw a lot of fresh bodies on the floor. We had four fresh bodies tonight available to us and we used all four and we'll do the same next weekend."

Next Game

The Wings will play their final regular season home game on April 19 against the New York Titans.

Wings earn split of weekend

By Tom Hoffman

After trailing 9-3 after the first quarter Saturday in Chicago, the Wings chances of a successful weekend were looking quite slim. A comeback that fell just short of victory, coupled with a solid defensive effort Sunday against Toronto would give the Wings (8-4) a split of back to back weekend games while ending a three game losing skid and maintaining a hold on first place in the tight NLL East division.

Saturday's game improved for the Wings after the defensively challenged first quarter. Philadelphia outscored the Shamrox 11-5 in the final three quarters and were ahead with 2:09 remaining when Chicago's Kevin Ross sent the game to overtime, which would live up to the name "sudden death" as the Shamrox Bobby McBride would need just seven seconds to send the Wings to their third loss in a row. The evening's highlight for the Wings was attained 3:28 into the fourth quarter when Athan Iannucci scored his third goal of the game and his 49th of the season to set a new franchise record for goals in a season, breaking Tom Marechek's record of 48 set in 2001.

Sunday was a defensive battle as the Wings and Rock were tied at one after the first quarter, both teams struggling after playing the night before (Toronto had hosted Rochester Saturday night). The Wings found their offense in the middle frames, outscoring the Rock 8-3 and leading 9-4 after three. While Toronto outscored the Wings 5-2 in the fourth, they could only get as close as two goals while Rob Blasdell made some key saves down the stretch to preserve the win.

Iannucci finished the weekend with eight goals and 11 points in the two games to keep the Wings in first place, tied with Minnesota. The Wings and Swarm will meet again Saturday in Minnesota, the back end of another doubleheader weekend that begins Friday in Portland against former Wing Dallas Eliuk and the Lumberjax, looking to secure a playoff spot in the West. The Wings will be looking to put together a road effort similar to their visit to Denver earlier this season, the lone bright spot away from the Wachovia Center. Wins and solid play away from home will be necessary if the Wings want to end their streak of missing the postseason in 2008.