Gladiators checkmated by Checkers

Duluth - The Gwinnett Gladiators scored three goals in the first three minutes and fifteen seconds of play and Craig Kowalski made a career high and Gwinnett record 53 saves, but it was not enough as the Gladiators fell to the Charlotte Checkers by a 5-3 score at the Arena at Gwinnett Center on Tuesday night. With the loss Gwinnett falls to 43-22-2-3 on the season.

Gwinnett also fell into third place in the ECHL's South Division as the South Carolina Stingrays were winners by a 6-0 score against the Augusta Lynx. However, the Gladiators have already clinched a berth in the 2008 Kelly Cup playoffs as well as home ice advantage through the first round.

Brad Schell got the Gladiators on the board first, just 22 seconds into the contest. Jeff Campbell picked up a loose puck in the Gwinnett zone and fired to Schell cutting through the neutral zone. Schell danced through the Charlotte defense and fired a wrist shot that caromed off Charlotte goaltender Mike Ayers' right leg pad and into the back of the net. Campbell picked up the assist on the even strength goal, which gave Gwinnett the early 1-0 lead.

Gwinnett added another goal less than two minutes later with an even-strength marker from Bryson Busniuk at the 2:21 mark of the first period. Busniuk, waiting on the doorstep, took a centering feed from Mike Hamilton and jammed the puck home to give the Gladiators a 2-0 lead. Mike Hamilton and Tomas Pospisil picked up assists on the goal, Busniuk's seventh of the season.

The Gladiators were only getting warmed up as Jeff Campbell got in on the goal-scoring act as well, pushing the Gwinnett lead to thee less than a minute later. This time Schell returned the favor feeding Campbell just as he crossed the blue line into the Charlotte zone. Campbell ripped a shot from the right wing slot that found its way past Ayers for the Gladiators goal. Schell picked up the helper on the goal, Campbell's twenty-fifth of the season.

The Checkers then came charging back with five unanswered goals. Charlotte answered at the 6:41 mark with an unassisted goal from Garrett Peters. Peters picked off a Gwinnett pass in the Charlotte end and skated the length of the ice, pulling up at the top of the slot in the Gwinnett zone and ripping a slap shot past Gwinnett goalie Craig Kowalski's right arm for the even-strength marker.

Charlotte pulled within one before the end of the period on an even-strength goal from Matt Waddell at the 15:32 mark. Waddell, on the leading edge of a Charlotte charge down the ice, fired a shot from the blue line that threaded its way though the Gwinnett defense and slipped past Kowalski for the marker. Waddell's goal was unassisted and pulled the Checkers to within a 3-2 margin in the contest.

Less than two minutes into the second period, Charlotte took advantage of a 5-on-3 power play as Chris Capraro evened the contest for the Checkers. As Kowalski followed the puck to the left side of his net, Capraro waited at the right-hand corner of the crease and when a centering feed from Bruce Graham came his way, he flicked the puck into the open net. Graham and Blake Bellefuille got assists on the power play goal as Charlotte tied the game at 3 goals apiece.

Charlotte took the lead at the 13:53 mark of the third period on an even-strength goal from Bellefuille. Tied up in traffic in front of the Gwinnett net, Bellefuille flicked a shot past Kowalski's glove hand to give the Checkers the 4-3 lead. Michael Busto and Chris Capraro picked up assists on the goal.

The Gladiators pulled goaltender Craig Kowalski in favor of an extra attacker, but it was not enough as Charlotte added an empty net goal with just over a second to play to ice the game. It was Mark Lee with an assist from Kirk DeWaele on the empty net goal at the 19:59 point of the third period.

Craig Kowalski set a new career high and a new Gladiators' team record with 53 saves in the contest, but still got the loss as his record falls to 29-10-0-2 on the season.

The Gladiators continue their fifth anniversary season on Friday, April 4th as they travel to Columbia, SC to take on the Inferno at the Carolina Coliseum at 7:05 p.m. Catch all the play-by-play action in Friday's game online via AccessNorthGa.com Audio Streaming Channel 3.

Celebrating its 20th Anniversary as the Premier 'AA' Hockey League in 2007-08, the ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in three states and has grown to be a coast-to-coast league that has 25 teams in 17 states and British Columbia in 2007-08. The 25 teams includes the Mississippi (Biloxi) Sea Wolves, who return after missing two seasons in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and the expansion Elmira (N.Y.) Jackals. The ECHL will play 900 games beginning Oct. 18 and concluding Apr. 5.

The Gwinnett Gladiators continue their fifth season as a proud member of the ECHL - season ticket packages are on sale now. In addition, the Gladiators offer several unique multi-game ticket packages as well as discounted group rates, suite rentals, and birthday parties. For more information call 770-497-5100 or log on to gwinnettgladiators.com

The Gladiators are the AA affiliate of the Atlanta Thrashers and play all home games at the spectacular 11,355-seat Arena at Gwinnett Center, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth, where parking is always free.