Gwinnett took an early 1-0 lead on the Inferno just 49 seconds into the contest. Jamie Milam posted his 10th goal of the season for the Gladiators ripping a slap shot past Inferno netminder Todd Ford just inside the Columbia blue line for the marker. Jeff Campbell slipped by two Inferno defenders and danced into the Columbia zone before dropping the puck off to Milam to set up the marker.
The Gladiators and the Inferno skated to a scoreless tie in the second period. Columbia outshot the Gladiators in the middle stanza by a 12-9 margin. Both Gwinnett netminder Craig Kowalski and Ford turned aside all the shots they faced in the second period keeping Gwinnett on top by 1-0 score after two periods.
Lou Dickenson pushed the Gladiators lead to 2-0 with his 28th goal of the season. Dickenson ripped a slap shot to the near post from the right wing cirlce past Ford for the marker at 5:29 of the third period. Campbell and Brad Schell collected the assists on the goal for the Gladiators. With the marker, Dickenson extended his point scoring streak to 17 consecutive games while tying the Gladiators all time team record for most consecutive games with at least one goal at six straight games.
In addition to a perfect second period, Kowalski finished with his first shoutout of the season for the Gladiators making 26 saves in the win. It was Kowalski's first shutout since he blanked the Columbia Inferno last season while with the Florida Everblades in a 1-0 shutout win on March 23, 2007.
Gwinnett went 0-for-5 on the power play in the win. Gwinnett was not whistled for a minor penalty in the victory as Columbia did not get a single power play chance in the contest.
The Gladiators continue their fifth anniversary season on Saturday, March 1st as they host the Texas Wildcatters at the Arena at Gwinnett Center at 7:35 p.m. Catch all the play-by-play action in Saturday's game online via accessnorthga.com.
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.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2008/2/207522