Bullfrogs Frustrate Blades

This one had an all-too-familiar ring to it, playoff game or not.

Bullfrogs give up a cheap goal in the first minute.

Bullfrogs dominate the next 2 1/2 quarters with crisp checking and deft puck-handling for a three-goal lead.

Bullfrogs tighten up, squander their advantage, but pull out a victory.

After 28 regular-season games, you’d think the script would change. But it was business as usual Monday night at the Pond, where the Bullfrogs opened their Roller Hockey International Pacific Division championship series with a 7-5 victory over the Blades in front of a surprisingly small announced crowd of 6,147.

The best-of-three series moves tonight to the Forum, where a Bullfrogs victory would put them in the Western Division final against either Vancouver or Oakland. That Northwestern Division series will be decided Wednesday in Canada, with the series tied at one.

The Blades again were frustrated trying to figure out how to beat their archrivals. They certainly had chances, closing the gap to 4-3 on back-to-back goals by Steve Beadle and Shawn Penn in the final minutes of the third quarter. After fourth-quarter goals by Bullfrogs Savo Mitrovic and defenseman Darren Perkins gave the Bullfrogs a 6-3 lead, the Blades’ Brad Haelzle and Steve Wilson made it 6-5.

Perkins’ empty-net goal with 47 seconds remaining left the Blades on the verge of elimination from the playoffs. The Blades’ 5-4 victory in Inglewood a couple of weeks ago was only their third in 17 games over four seasons against the Bullfrogs, who lead the all-time playoff series, 6-1.

“I can’t say it is a hex, only that what happens between us and the Bullfrogs is just part of the game,” said Blades forward Bobby McKillop, one of three former Bullfrogs playing for L.A.

“When I was on the other side with the Bullfrogs we always worked good and hard to beat the Blades and to score goals,” McKillop said. “Now I’m here and I think we work hard to beat the Bullfrogs and they just seem to get the goals.”

Said first-year Coach Mark Hardy: “There penalty killing absolutely stoned us. We’ll have to figure out a way to stop that at our place. they’re just so good, if we can cut down on that 50% we’ll be fine.”

The Bullfrogs were one for five on the power play, but scored two goals just as power plays ended.

Bullfrog Coach Grant Sonier said the club was rusty after a week off.

“We frustrated ourselves,” he said. “Our lack of power-play production early in the third quarter put us in a panic, instead of us just going out and taking it to them.”

Victor Gervais had five assists, Perkins had two goals and two assists and Todd Wetzel, last year’s team rookie of the year who has had a season-long sophomore jinx, picked up two goals and an assist.

“This is the playoffs and any win is big and this was big,” Mitrovic said. “We wanted to get out to a good start and we’ve done that.”