"MIRACLE IN MIAMI NETS RAINIERS CUP" MIAMI (AP) - The greatest in-game comeback in Farley Cup Finals history? Possibly. At this point, the Seattle Rainiers don't care about those sorts of comparisons. For the first fifty-one minutes of tonight's Game Five showdown between the Rainiers and the Florida Hellcats, it appeared as if the Hellcats would win their must-win battle and send the series back to Seattle for a sixth game. Really, to say that Florida dominated the first two-and-a-half periods of Game Five would be the understatement of the playoffs. After holding off the Hellcats for the first period, Seattle's Jean-Sebastien Giguere finally allowed a Petr Sykora goal to get past him at 5:07 of the second period. Giguere, who had been alternating with rookie Vesa Toskala throughout the playoffs, was clearly shaken by the Sykora goal since, barely two minutes later, he allowed Shane Doan's rebound goal on the power play to give Florida a 2-0 advantage. >From that point forward, it appeared as though both the Rainiers and Hellcats were content to complete the game to a 2-0 finish and proceed to Seattle for the next match. In fact, when Ulf Dahlen converted at 10:35 of the third period to make the score 3-0 Florida, it almost seemed like a coronation from the Miami faithful in the stands, who actually drowned out the PA announcement of the goal. Just over one minute later, it barely registered on the radar when Seattle's Andy McDonald - injured for much of the season - tallied past Hellcat netminder Dwayne Roloson, who had been steady for the entire playoff run. Even the reaction from the Rainier bench was subdued - after all, it was still a two-goal deficit, and there was just 8:04 remaining. Remarked Seattle coach Doug Norris: "I turned to [Brian Skrudland], and joked that it was too little, too late." The mood changed a bit when Dany Heatley - a persistant thorn in the side of the Hedgehogs, Hawks, Scarecrows, and now the Hellcats - put home his league-leading twentieth goal of the Farley Cup playoffs with 4:45 left. Heatley took a centering pass from fellow playoff hero Chris Drury in the low slot and deposited a hard wrister past Roloson. Norris called a time out with four minutes remaining, and kept one player on the bench as play resumed - Giguere. Said Norris: "He was the only reason we were even in this game to begin with, but unless he can score goals, too, I had to take a risk." The risk paid off when Jaroslav Spacek's hard feed from the left point was tipped in by McDonald, who doubled his career playoff output in the span of less than six minutes. According to McDonald, "it was like a dream. Just being on the ice in that situation is an honour itself, but to score a couple too...it took me a few weeks [after the Week 19/20 concussion] before I felt right with myself. Now I feel pretty good! The final third period damage? Despite garnering just seven shots on net in the third period, the Rainiers managed to put three pucks past Roloson. "We've been streaky this way all season," said Norris. "We certainly didn't leave much room for error tonight." In the end, the battle between Florida and Seattle - already starting late in the evening for the ABC television broadcast - was headed to overtime. After witnessing a total of four goals in the last ten minutes of the third period, fans couldn't help but expect this one to be settled quickly. However, Roloson and Giguere continued to stymie the opposition at every turn, despite each team having ample power play time in the first overtime. The first opportunity came to Florida, who went on their ninth man advantage of the game when Dany Heatley clipped Petr Sykora with his stick. Fortunately for the Rainiers, Sykora exhibited no blood, and the Seattle penalty-killers - brilliant all evening - were able to escape unscathed. Next was Seattle's chance with the power play, when Nathan Dempsey compensated for a lack of defensive acumen by hauling down Mark Parrish on a near-breakaway. Referee Bill McCreary wasn't about to award a penalty shot, and Florida killed things off. Right before the end of the first overtime, Ulf Dahlen was whistled for interference, to be matched by Jaroslav Spacek's crosschecking call early in the fifth period. Surprisingly, neither club could convert, and the two fantastic power play squads went a combined one-for-fifteen with the man advantage. Then, less than a minute after Jaroslav Spacek was released from the penalty box, Heatley sprung trade-deadline-acquisition Alex Tanguay on a breakaway. Tanguay rolled a "3" on his Rebound/Breakaway column (Goal 1-15), sneaking a puck between an outstretched Roloson and the far post, before being mobbed by his teammates in the far corner of the Florida rink. It was just Tanguay's second goal of the postseason, and he had not scored since Seattle's first playoff game against the Hedgehogs, way back on March 10. "It had been awhile," said Tanguay, who was picked up in the Marc Savard deal, after the game. "I'd never been this far in the postseason before, and it's a lot of pressure. I'm just happy that I could finally get one at that point." Tanguay's goal ended eight seasons of playoff frustration for the Rainiers organization. After making the Farley Cup Finals in 1998, the club took one step backwards each season, losing in the conference finals in 1999, the semifinals in 2000, and the first round in 2001. The 2001-02 saw the Rainiers not make the playoffs for the first time in their history. Last spring, the club took home their second division title only to be upset in the first round by Drayton Valley. Before a disappointed but enthusiastic Miami crowd, NSHL vice-commissioner Eric Goodman first presented the Jean Beliveau Trophy (postseason most valuable player) to Seattle right wing Dany Heatley. The sophomore gunner led all playoff scoring by a country mile, with twenty goals and sixteen assists in twenty-four games. Heatley's five game-winners included the game-winning goals in Game One, Game Three and Game Four of the Farley Cup Finals (all one-goal wins by the Rainiers). Then, without further ado, Goodman presented the Farley Cup to Rainiers captain Chris Drury. For fifteen minutes, the Cup was passed from Rainier to Rainier. Highlights included Kirk Maltby - the first player in NSHL history to win three Cups - nearly dropping the trophy onto the ice. "It's a heavy Cup," joked Maltby," but it's even heavier after two overtimes." Norris' postgame remarks were very congratulatory to the home club in the series. "Florida played great; you've got to tip your hat to them. The series might have only gone five games, but Florida scored as many goals as we did. They've always been, and always will be, a force in this league, and it's an honour and a privilege to play them for the Farley Cup. I'd like to thank Robert Ryan and the Hellcats organization for being tough opponents and gracious hosts during the series." THREE STARS OF THE GAME: 1. Andy McDonald, Seattle - two goals late in third period 2. Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Seattle - forty-five saves, 12/15 GR 3. Shane Doan, Florida - goal, assist The following names are all Seattle Rainier personnel who qualify for having their name on the 2004 Farley Cup (using Stanley Cup criteria - either 41 regular-season game, or appearing in at least one playoff game). All names are subject to protest by other league officials. 2004 SEATTLE RAINIERS: Doug Norris (owner/head coach), Jacques Cloutier (coach), Brian Skrudland (coach), Ian Young (coach), Chris Drury (captain), Ed Jovanovski (alternate), Patrick Marleau (alternate), Nick Boynton, Andrew Brunette, Ivan Ciernik, Mike Fisher, Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Dany Heatley, Mike Keane, Viktor Kozlov, Vladimir Malakhov, Kirk Maltby, Andy McDonald, Ladislav Nagy, Mark Parrish, Marcus Ragnarsson, Oleg Saprykin, Jaroslav Spacek, Jamie Storr, Alex Tanguay, Vesa Toskala, Vitali Vishnevski, Jason Woolley, Tyler Wright. Seattle Rainiers at Florida Hellcats DATE : 04/29/2004 GOALS 1 2 3 OT F Seattle Rainiers 0 0 3 1 4 Florida Hellcats 0 2 1 0 3 SHOTS 1 2 3 OT F Seattle Rainiers 13 6 7 12 38 Florida Hellcats 12 17 12 6 47 G O A L S U M M A R Y 1. FLO. PETR SYKORA(10)( MIKE MODANO, VACLAV PROSPAL ): 2nd 5:07 2. FLO. SHANE DOAN(6)( ROBERT SVEHLA, NICLAS HAVELID ) (PP) : 2nd 7:21 3. FLO. ULF DAHLEN(5)( SERGEI ZUBOV, SHANE DOAN ): 3rd 10:35 4. SEA. ANDY McDONALD(3)( VIKTOR KOZLOV, LADISLAV NAGY ): 3rd 11:56 5. SEA. DANY HEATLEY(17)( CHRIS DRURY, ED JOVANOVSKI ): 3rd 15:15 6. SEA. ANDY McDONALD(4)( JAROSLAV SPACEK, VIKTOR KOZLOV ): 3rd 17:21 7. SEA. ALEX TANGUAY(2)( DANY HEATLEY ): 2OT 4:27 P E N A L T I E S S U M M A R Y 1. SEA. NICK BOYNTON - 2 Minutes: 1st 2:02 2. SEA. MIKE FISHER - 4 Minutes: 1st 6:35 3. FLO. CHRIS GRATTON - 4 Minutes: 1st 6:35 4. FLO. NICLAS HAVELID - 2 Minutes: 1st 7:25 5. FLO. ROBERT REICHEL - 2 Minutes: 1st 10:12 6. SEA. CHRIS DRURY - 2 Minutes: 1st 16:57 7. SEA. CHRIS DRURY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 1:07 8. SEA. JAROSLAV SPACEK - 2 Minutes: 2nd 6:36 9. SEA. CHRIS DRURY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 7:47 10. SEA. DANY HEATLEY - 2 Minutes: 2nd 10:41 11. SEA. MARK PARRISH - 2 Minutes: 2nd 12:59 12. FLO. SHANE DOAN - 2 Minutes: 2nd 12:59 13. FLO. HAL GILL - 2 Minutes: 2nd 18:11 14. SEA. ANDY McDONALD - 2 Minutes: 3rd 2:04 15. SEA. LADISLAV NAGY - 2 Minutes: 3rd 7:56 16. SEA. DANY HEATLEY - 2 Minutes: OT 3:16 17. FLO. NATHAN DEMPSEY - 2 Minutes: OT 11:23 18. FLO. ULF DAHLEN - 2 Minutes: OT 19:15 19. SEA. JAROSLAV SPACEK - 2 Minutes: 2OT 1:40 I N J U R I E S NONE Player Stats For Seattle Rainiers PLAYER +/- SOG G A PIM PP SH FO-W AC IT TA AS NICK BOYNTON -1 2 0 0 2 0 0 0-0 42 40:17 1 3 ANDREW BRUNETTE 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1-1 14 8:17 0 0 CHRIS DRURY 1 2 0 1 6 0 0 16-9 56 46:11 1 3 MIKE FISHER 0 3 0 0 4 0 0 10-2 51 27:36 0 0 DANY HEATLEY 0 5 1 1 4 0 0 0-0 63 51:26 1 4 ED JOVANOVSKI 3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0-0 60 32:39 1 1 VIKTOR KOZLOV 1 5 0 2 0 0 0 1-1 41 24:31 0 2 KIRK MALTBY 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 51 29:05 0 0 PATRICK MARLEAU 0 7 0 0 0 0 0 2-1 43 23:52 1 3 ANDY McDONALD 1 3 2 0 2 0 0 4-2 21 13:11 1 2 LADISLAV NAGY 1 4 0 1 2 0 0 0-0 30 16:04 0 2 MARK PARRISH 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 0-0 14 8:17 0 0 MARCUS RAGNARSSON -1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 42 40:17 0 0 JAROSLAV SPACEK 3 0 0 1 4 0 0 0-0 61 33:25 2 3 ALEX TANGUAY 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 1-0 39 37:44 0 1 GWG VITALY VISHNEVSKI 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 34 21:29 0 0 JASON WOOLLEY 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 31 20:13 0 0 TYLER WRIGHT 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1-0 17 10:16 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOTAL 10 40 4 7 26 0 0 36-16 8 24 Player Stats For Florida Hellcats PLAYER +/- SOG G A PIM PP SH FO-W AC IT TA AS SHAWN BATES -1 4 0 0 0 0 0 1-0 43 39:11 0 1 ULF DAHLEN 0 3 1 0 2 0 0 0-0 34 20:01 1 1 NATHAN DEMPSEY 1 2 0 0 2 0 0 0-0 47 26:48 0 1 SHANE DOAN 0 6 1 1 2 1 0 5-3 34 20:28 2 3 TIE DOMI -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 13 7:59 0 1 HAL GILL -2 3 0 0 2 0 0 0-0 54 29:17 2 1 CHRIS GRATTON 0 2 0 0 4 0 0 2-2 14 8:52 0 1 NICLAS HAVELID -1 2 0 1 2 0 0 0-0 47 43:55 0 2 JASON KROG 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2-0 18 10:54 2 0 MIKE MODANO -1 5 0 1 0 0 0 21-12 64 34:16 1 3 GLEN MURRAY -1 5 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 42 39:36 0 3 VACLAV PROSPAL 0 3 0 1 0 0 0 0-0 51 29:04 1 1 ROBERT REICHEL -1 0 0 0 2 0 0 2-2 32 34:22 0 0 MIKE RICCI 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3-1 28 17:16 0 0 ROBERT SVEHLA -2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0-0 64 34:31 0 1 PETR SYKORA -1 6 1 0 0 0 0 0-0 53 29:27 1 2 LUBOMIR VISNOVSKY 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 27 17:07 0 0 SERGEI ZUBOV -1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0-0 57 48:22 1 1 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOTAL -10 48 3 6 16 1 0 36-20 11 22 Goalie Stats For Seattle Rainiers PLAYER MIN SHOTS GA ENG GR GRS J-S GIGUERE 83 48 3 0 15 12 146 WIN JAMIE STORR 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Goalie Stats For Florida Hellcats PLAYER MIN SHOTS GA ENG GR GRS DWAYNE ROLOSON 84 40 4 0 12 9 148 LOSS MARTY TURCO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 POWER PLAY OPP GOALS Seattle Rainiers 5 0 Florida Hellcats 10 1