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KEELEY: MARINERS WEEKLY: Four in Five to Finish 2018 

BY: Michael Keeley, Maine Mariners PORTLAND, ME - Dec. 26, 2018 – With the holiday break behind them, the Mariners return to their busy December as they play four games in five days to close out 2018. For the first time all season, they’ve got back to back home games on the 27th and 28th, before playing a pair on the road to finish the month (and year). The Mariners are a season-high four games above .500 at 15-11-0-1 and will try to build on their three-game winning streak coming out of the holiday. The week that was Saturday, Dec. 22nd – MNE: 4, MAN: 3 In their only game of the week, the Mariners traveled to Manchester on Saturday night and grabbed an early 2-0 lead on goals by Scott Savage and Ryan Gropp. Both goals came off of Savage shots from the left point, in his return from an upper-body injury. Alex Kile gave the Mariners a 3-1 lead with his team-leading 13th goal of the season in the second period, while Connor LaCouvee made 18 stops in the frame. After allowing two third period goals to force a 3-3 tie, Gropp got the game-winner with just 1:04 to go, following a successful five-minute penalty kill. LaCouvee made a career-high 45 stops. FULL GAME RECAP Fun Facts -The Mariners are 4-1-0 against Manchester this season, winning the last three -The Mariners PK is up to 2nd in the ECHL at 87.4% -Brandon Halverson has the 5th best SV% in the ECHL (.923) -The Mariners have the 2nd most goals by a defenseman in the ECHL, with 20 (Tulsa, 22) Transactions -F Morgan Adams-Moisan was assigned to Maine from AHL Laval -The Mariners signed F Louis Rowe Coming up (all times Eastern) Thurs, Dec. 27th vs. MAN – 7:00 PM (HOME) Fri, Dec. 28th vs. WOR – 7:15 PM (HOME) Sat, Dec. 29th @ WOR – 7:05 PM (AWAY) Mon, Dec. 31st @ MAN  – 6:00 PM (AWAY) This sequence will finish a string of six straight games against either Manchester or Worcester, two teams who the Mariners play 14 times each in 2017-18. Friday night is “Nickelodeon Takeover” night, featuring specialty Double Dare jerseys, that will be auctioned in-game via a silent auction in the concourse. It’s also First Responders Night and a “1-2-3 Friday”: $1 hot dogs, $2 popcorn, and $ Bud Lights through the start of the 2nd period. Read the full article

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KEELEY: WALLIN RETURNS, GROPP REASSIGNED TO MAINE

Two forwards moved from Hartford to Maine PORTLAND, ME – December 3, 2018 – The Mariners will add two forwards to their roster from the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, as Terrence Wallin was returned from his loan and Ryan Gropp has been reassigned by the New York Rangers. Wallin, 26 years old, was acquired by the Mariners from the Adirondack Thunder in September and was named an Alternate Captain out of camp. He scored three goals along with seven assists in 13 games before being loaned to Hartford on November 19th. Appearing in four games for the Wolf Pack, Wallin did not register a point. It was his second stint in the AHL, having played four games with the Binghamton Devils last season. Gropp, a 22-year-old from Kamloops, British Columbia, is a 2015 2nd round draft pick of the Rangers (41st overall). He signed an entry-level contract in December of that year. The 6’2, 194-pound forward played three years for the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds, where he put up at least 30 goals in each season, increasing his point total from 54 to 70 to 84 – in his final season of 2016-17. That season, he led the Thunderbirds in goals, assists, and points, and to a WHL championship. Gropp spent all of last season with Hartford, playing in 59 games, scoring 14 goals, and adding seven assists. In 19 games for the Wolf Pack this season, he has two goals and three assists. The Mariners are on the road this Wednesday night in Glens Falls to take on the Adirondack Thunder at 7:00 PM. They return home for a pair of weekend games against Adirondack on Friday at 7:15 PM and Worcester on Sunday afternoon at 3:05 PM. Tickets can be purchased online at MarinersOfMaine.com or over the phone through the Trusted Choice Box Office at 207-775-3458. Read the full article