Published: November 29, 2009 12:18 am      

Marshall, Chiefs getting back on track

JOHNSTOWN — Bryan Marshall is starting to settle in with the Johnstown Chiefs.

That’s a positive development for a team working its way out of the ECHL East Division basement.

The second-year forward who spent most of last season in the American Hockey League had two goals and three points in Saturday’s 6-3 victory over the division-leading Reading Royals.

Marshall’s short-handed goal 5:40 into the second period came after he skated nearly the length of the ice and worked through four defenders in the offensive zone before beating goalie Matt Dalton.

“I’m finally starting to feel a little bit better out there,” said Marshall, acquired by the Chiefs in the Nov. 10 trade involving Ryan Del Monte. “I’m getting a little more comfortable

and I’m starting to get my legs a little bit. It’s been a month since I signed with Cincy and then came here. It takes a little bit of time to get going and get comfortable with the speed of the game.”

Marshall has three goals in his past four games.

On Saturday, he had plenty of company, as reliable Mike Bartlett added two goals and an assist, Sean Berkstresser put in another blue-collar effort while scoring once, and high-scoring rookie Connor Shields netted his 10th goal of the season.

That offensive output complemented goaltender Kris Mayotte’s 33-save night. The former all-star is 4-5-2-0 and a big reason why the Chiefs are 6-9-3-0 with 15 points after opening the season 0-6-1-0.

“They executed very well,” Chiefs coach Jeff Flanagan said. “The stuff that the coaches have been asking them to do, like taking pucks wide and getting to the net and shooting and being in good, defensive position, works. This is a testament to that. That’s what we talked about after the game. The plan works. As long as we stick with it and work hard, that’s important.”

Shields gave the Chiefs a one-goal lead 4:32 into the game, but Reading’s Ryan Cruthers answered 36 seconds later. Berkstresser’s power-play tally at 9:58 reestablished the lead, but once again the Royals evened the score on Ben Gordon’s goal at 14:56.

Bartlett’s power-play goal with only 1:04 left in the first period provided Johnstown a boost, and Marshall built on the momentum by maneuvering through multiple Reading defenders before netting his short-handed goal.

“Mayo made a good save, and it came off his pad,” Marshall said. “It was bouncing. I got it and turned and took a quick look. There was nobody there. What I was thinking was to get it to the red line and chip it. I think they thought I was going to do that, too.

“They were waiting for me to bring it up and chip it. Nobody came at me. Next thing you know, I’m in a position where I can beat one guy and get to the net. He thought I was going to go wide. As soon as he made a step, I got it and threw it under his stick. Fortunately, I got around him and put it in there.”

Marshall played 50 games with Lake Erie and one in Johnstown last season. He was in an AHL training camp with Adirondack this season, then went to camp with Kalamazoo in the ECHL before signing with Cincinnati. The Cyclones dealt him to the Chiefs. After a slow start that included an eight-game goal drought dating to his time in Cincinnati, Marshall has come on strong.

The Chiefs have done the same. After a one-sided 5-1 setback to conference-leading South Carolina on Friday at home, the team had a big effort.

“It shows the resilience of our players and the way they think about preparation,” Flanagan said. “We had a bad game, and everybody does. It’s how you come back the next day. We watched a lot of video (Saturday) morning of (Friday) night’s game. We hit on the negatives from that game, but we also showed some really good shifts that we did. The message was, ‘Look what you can do, but when you don’t work or follow the plan, here’s what happens.’ They came out and did everything we asked.”

The Chiefs and Royals will meet at 5 p.m. today at the Sovereign Center.

“It’s a huge game,” Flanagan said. “It’s our fourth game in five days. Guys are going to be tired. It will be real important to keep things simple and not take any risks.”

Notes: Chiefs forward Jim McKenzie was recalled by Lake Erie. … The Chiefs signed Carter Lee, who was cut by Flanagan during the exhibition season, and Chase Wallace, who played for Wheeling this year and Augusta the previous two seasons. … Johnstown waived Matt Robinson a second time on Saturday. Robinson initially was waived on Nov. 18 and claimed by Cincinnati the next day. But based on ECHL Rule 74A Robinson was returned to the Chiefs after the Cyclones medical staff reviewed his MRI results, Chiefs GM Bill Bredin said.