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To extend a nine-season playoff appearance streak to 10, the Utah Grizzlies must make up ground fast.
And they answered the call on Wednesday night, scoring the final four goals of the game and beating the Alaska Aces 5-3 at the Maverik Center in ECHL action to draw within four points of the Aces for fourth in the Mountain Division.
"We got down 3-1 for a reason. We weren't working hard. But once we got in a rhythm and understood that if we work hard good things will happen, things started to turn around for us," Grizzlies head coach Tim Branham said. "Our destiny is in our hands, and we just need to keep winning games."
Trailing 3-2 as the third period began, Utah exploded out of the gates with a pair of goals three minutes into the period.
Erik Higby fired a slap shot that blew by Aces goalie Kevin Carr and tied the game. Utah then claimed the lead at 4-3 as Mathieu Aubin scored the Grizzlies' third power-play goal of the night. In the blink of an eye, Utah found itself in the lead. And with Alaska pulling Carr late in the period, Michael Pelech launched a shot from center ice to complete the comeback.
"We stuck together and started working hard, and it fueled our energy," Aubin said. "We need to take it one game at a time but we won't be happy unless we get the six points this weekend."
Utah's first power play of the night proved successful as the Grizzlies' leading scorer, Ralph Cuddemi, converted for a 1-0 lead. However, the Grizzlies would be silenced offensively until late in the second period as the Aces registered a trio of goals by Daniel Moynihan, Tim Wallace and former Grizzlie Brad Navin.
Utah's power play was on point as addition Zac Larraza, recently assigned to Utah from the Anaheim Ducks' AHL affiliate in San Diego, fired a slap shot that escaped the pads of Carr to give Utah life as the second period drew to a close and make the score 3-2.
ECHL standings
EASTERN CONFERENCE
North GP W L OL SL Pts GF GA
Brampton 55 32 16 3 4 71 200 189
Manchester 56 30 16 6 4 70 213 196
Adirondack 54 29 15 6 4 68 195 170
Reading 55 32 20 1 2 67 202 163
Wheeling 54 27 21 6 0 60 184 173
Elmira 56 11 37 7 1 30 122 212
South GP W L OL SOL Pts GF GA
Florida 53 36 12 2 3 77 193 153
Greenville 56 31 20 4 1 67 191 188
Orlando 56 28 19 6 3 65 207 200
South Carolina 57 30 24 2 1 63 173 168
Cincinnati 58 29 25 4 0 62 162 172
Atlanta 54 21 25 6 2 50 179 208
Norfolk 54 20 30 4 0 44 153 201
Western Conference
Central GP W L OL SOL Pts GF GA
Toledo 55 39 13 2 1 81 231 153
Fort Wayne 55 33 15 5 2 73 205 165
Quad City 56 31 22 1 2 65 173 169
Kalamazoo 56 28 24 1 3 60 161 177
Tulsa 58 25 28 5 0 55 163 187
Wichita 53 16 33 3 1 36 145 209
Indy 55 15 36 2 2 34 136 220
Mountain GP W L OL SOL Pts GF GA
Colorado 57 39 14 1 3 82 223 162
Allen 57 35 17 3 2 75 228 167
Idaho 56 31 18 5 2 69 188 174
Alaska 54 27 19 2 6 62 176 176
Missouri 54 26 21 2 5 59 178 181
Utah 56 26 24 4 2 58 175 196
Rapid City 56 21 27 8 0 50 177 204
Wednesday's games
Elmira 2, Manchester 1
Kalamazoo 3, Quad City 2, OT
Idaho 1, Rapid City 0
Utah 5, Alaska 3
Colorado 7, South Carolina 2
Thursday's games
Greenville at Orlando, 5 p.m.
Adirondack at Cincinnati, 5:35 p.m.