Wrangler’s rise from sickbed impressive

Too sick to participate in the morning skate, Wranglers right wing Matt Beaudoin conserved his energy for Friday night's game against Utah.

With Las Vegas locked in a close game, Beaudoin dug deep and delivered the decisive blow, scoring on a power play with 2:21 remaining to seal a 3-1 victory over the Grizzlies at the Orleans Arena.

"That third goal was huge for us," Las Vegas coach Glen Gulutzan said. "We've got a bit of the flu here, and I thought some guys who didn't skate this morning came in and sucked it up and played hard. That was impressive."

Beaudoin, who took a pass in the high slot from Adam Miller and lifted a backhander into the top of the net, was sent home from the morning skate to rest -- and to safeguard his teammates.

"They didn't want me to get the other guys sick," Beaudoin said. "I slept all day. It was a bad day for me, but I regrouped all day in my bed and was ready for the game.

"We were short on players, so you've got to suck it up a little bit."

Miller had scored the go-ahead goal 5:11 into the third. He took a pass from Kelly Czuy in front of the net, put a nice move on Utah goalie Mike Mole, then scored on a backhander for a 2-1 lead.

"I could have shot (right away), but I deked and had an open net," Miller said.

Utah (11-13-5) went 0-for-6 on the power play and wasted a four-minute man advantage to begin the third period.

Rookie left wing Mick Lawrence scored 3:09 into the game for the Wranglers (14-14-2). He also fought Grizzlies defenseman Jon Gleed in the third period.

"Mick Lawrence has the whole package," Gulutzan said. "Once he gets into better condition, you might see him get an opportunity in the American (Hockey) League."

Utah forward Tom May tied the game on a hard drive to the net with 1:20 remaining in the first period.

Las Vegas goalie Kevin Lalande stopped 31 of 32 shots.

The teams will meet again at 7:30 tonight at the Orleans Arena as the Wranglers wrap up their eight-game homestand. They've gone 4-3.

Las Vegas, which has won four of five to improve to 10-6-0 at home, will be going for its first three-game winning streak of the season.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354.