Wranglers aiming to put Grizzlies in 3-0 hole

In 20 years of ECHL hockey, no team has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series.

That's the position Las Vegas will try to put Utah in when the National Conference finals resume at 6:05 p.m. today at the E-Center in West Valley City, Utah.

The top-seeded Wranglers won the first two games of the series over the sixth-seeded Grizzlies in a pair of tightly contested games at home, and Las Vegas coach Glen Gulutzan expects another close game tonight.

"It's going to be another hard-fought battle, that's all it's going to be," he said. "We'll be prepared for another 60 minutes up there, and we're certainly going to have to have our intensity 'A' game. ... We'll be ready. We're coming to play."

The Wranglers have won 12 of 13 meetings against the Grizzlies this season, including all five games on the road, but Utah remains confident.

"We've faced adversity all year, but we're not down. We're keeping our heads up," said Grizzlies left wing Michael Haley, who has three of Utah's five goals in the series. "(We're down) 2-0 now, but that's why they play a best-of-7 series. Now it's our turn to have the fans on our side and give us some momentum.

"We can't take any time off. They've got some skilled guys who can put the puck in the net, and they capitalize on their chances. We've got to get a couple bounces, match their intensity and capitalize on our chances."

Six players have scored for Las Vegas in the series, with right wing Adam Cracknell leading the way with three goals.

"The games just keep getting stronger and stronger. Everybody's getting their legs under them," Cracknell said. "They're a great team. They've proven they can play with the best. They beat two of the top teams in their division (No. 2 seed Victoria and No. 3 seed Fresno).

"It's going to be tough going up to their home rink, but we've been playing well on the road, and hopefully we'll come out with a couple wins."

Utah had a better record on the road (17-15-4) than at home (15-15-6) in the regular season and is 4-2 at home in the playoffs. Las Vegas was 23-7-6 on the road in the regular season and is 4-2 in the playoffs, winning two of three road games in each of the first two rounds.

"It's tough to come back from a 3-0 deficit," said Wranglers goalie Kevin Lalande, who has stopped 53 of 58 shots in the series. "They've had a couple days to think about this one (Tuesday's 4-3 overtime loss). They'll be coming out hard, but we'll be ready for that."

* NOTES -- The last time the Utah Grizzlies advanced to the conference finals, in 1996, they beat the now-defunct Las Vegas Thunder in six games when both teams played in the International Hockey League. Utah then swept Orlando in the Turner Cup Finals. ... In the American Conference finals, host South Carolina beat Cincinnati 5-4 in overtime Wednesday to cut its series deficit to 2-1.