Page 154 - South Mississippi Living - June, 2019

SPORTS & OUTDOORS remember when
WHO SCORED THE WINNING GOAL?
story and photos by
A.J. Giardina and photos courtesy of WLOX
It was an electrifying experience for the 9,150 fans packed inside the Mississippi Coast Coliseum on May 30, 1999, game seven of the ECHL Kelly Cup finals between the Richmond Renegades and Mississippi Sea Wolves. Trailing 3-1, Sea Wolves head coach Bruce Boudreau, known as Gabby to his players, rallied his troops. Kelly Hurd skated around and through Renegade defenders and scored at 4:45 of the third period. Bob Woods slammed home the tying goal with only 2:23 remaining and forced overtime.
Emotions were running high, especially for goalie Travis Scott. He made numerous saves that kept the Sea Wolves in the hunt. Finally, at 10:31 of the second overtime, Kevin Hilton delivered the game winning goal... or did he?
“Hilton took the shot and Chris Schmidt tipped it in, but there
was so much commotion in the aftermath that no one cared to change it, “said Boudreau from his office in Minneapolis. Boudreau just completed his third year as head coach of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild.
In April, defenseman Patrick “Paddy” Rochon recalled the inspirational feeling of winning the Kelly Cup. “It was pure joy and I was only 23-years-old, sitting on top of the mountain.” He added, “Gabby provided the energy to propel the team to the championship.” That energy was on display during the playoffs. The Sea Wolves won 14 of
18 games, seven of those victories in overtime, two in triple overtime.
Boudreau said trades played a key role that season. “We acquired Bob Woods who sparked our power play. We traded for Kevin Hilton and he was a perfect fit for our second line and getting Chris Schmidt in the
last five games before the playoffs had a major impact during the championship run.”
Boudreau loves the Mississippi Gulf Coast and said.
“Winning the Kelly Cup
is one of the best
highlights in my
entire coaching
career. It helped
me to achieve my
goal of coaching in
the NHL.” Boudreau
became the second
fastest coach in NHL history to record 500 wins.
154 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • June 2019 FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net