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Philadelphia, PA - The Troy Bruins, one night removed from a fatigue-driven loss to the Philadelphia Thunder, got down to basics in Sunday afternoon's rematch to take away the 7-5 victory in the final regular season meeting between the two clubs.

Still faced with a shortage of top players in the active lineup, the Bruins skated onto the ice in Philadelphia on Sunday afternoon for one final time this season to rematch the Thunder club who wore them down for their first win against Troy less than 24 hours prior. Right off the opening faceoff, it would seem that history would repeat itself, with the Thunder catching a sluggish Bruins team off guard for two quick goals less than five minutes into the game to take the early 2-0 lead. For Bruins forward Gleb Luchnikov, a native of Serov, Russia, the hockey instinct that he has had since childhood would take over, allowing him to rush into the Thunder zone at the 13:51 mark and roof a shot past the goalie's shoulder to put the Bruins on the board and spark his teammates looking on. Like a cold engine needing to warm up, the Bruins offense machinery seemingly sprung to life, if only running on fumes, to tie the game less than a minute later at 12:41 thanks to the efforts of Derek McPherson and assisted by Leonid Kovalev on an even strength goal. For the second night in a row, Philadelphia's depth on the bench would prove to be the greatest challenge to the Bruins, striking the Thunder's go-ahead goal at 10:30 to recapture the lead at 3-2 off a rebound bounce in front of Bruins starting netminder Allan Dowler. Again coming to the rescue would be Luchnikov with an unassisted slick stick-handling goal from the slot just :67 seconds later to even the score at 3-3 before Luchnikov would feed veteran forward Lee McClure with a crisp centering pass in front of the crease to take an earned 4-3 lead into the dressing room after twenty minutes of play. Despite trailing on the scoreboard, Philadelphia would outshoot the Bruins in the first 20-14.

On Saturday night, the second period would prove to the the eventual downfall of the Bruins, yet head coach Shane Hicke and General Manager Rick Szabo would rally their players to prevent a similar outcome on Sunday. Not only did it keep the Thunder from scoring during the middle period, but the Bruins would actually muster enough offense throughout the twenty minute stanza to extend their lead by two. First for Troy would be Luchnikov's third goal of the game at 13:43, earning him a "hat trick" to take a 5-3 lead, before Lee McClure would bounce in his second goal of the night with less than three minutes remaining, an unassisted goal at 2:48 to make it a three point game heading into the second intermission leading the home Thunder 6-3.

Yet, for the Thunder, their regular season finale would be worth fighting for in the third period, making it an exciting third period for Philly and Troy fans alike. Keeping Dowler occupied throughout the final period would eventually lead to a Thunder goal with 4:17 to go in regulation, signaling Philadelphia's charge to get back into the game. Approaching two minutes remaining in the period, the Thunder pulled their goalie for the extra attacker, eventually setting up a shot from the far point that screamed its way past Dowler with 1:42 showing on the scoreboard, slicing the Bruins lead down to one headed towards the final horn. While Dowler would stand his ground in the Bruins defensive end, McClure would utilize every ounce of his effort to create a breakout into neutral ice and eventually towards the empty Philadelphia net for the cushion goal, and his second consecutive "hat trick" of the weekend. By the time the horn blew to end regulation, the Bruins had withstood the Thunder for a hard fought 7-5 victory, ending the season for the last-place Thunder on their home ice. Despite the Thunder having nearly double the players in uniform, Bruins President & General Manager commended his players, simply stating that "talent made the difference tonight". Final shots on goal through sixty minutes favored Philadelphia 39-22.

With the win, the Bruins improve their record to 30-13-1, earning the franchise's thirtieth win of the season and remain in clinched second place in the NJHL headed into their regular season finale next weekend at home. The Bruins host in-state rival Findlay Grrrowl this Saturday, March 13 at 8pm and Sunday, March 14 at 1:30pm inside the historic Hobart Arena. This weekend's series will be a tribute to the fans and sponsors who made the return of the Troy Bruins possible during the 2009-2010 season, with special prizes, giveaways and contests planned both days to say "thank you". For more information, call the Bruins at 985-PUCK or visit www.TroyBruins.com.
 


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