Busby sparks Gades

-- Welcome back Dan Vandermeer. Good to have you on the ice again, too, Dennis Sicard.

Oh, yeah. It's always nice to pencil you into the lineup, Ryan Busby.

With the Richmond Renegades celebrating the return of Vandermeer and Sicard last night, it was Busby who did most of the heavy lifting, posting a natural hat trick and an assist in a 4-1 victory over Fayetteville before 1,641 at the Coliseum.

Goaltender Ryan Scott almost stole the show, making 47 saves and keeping the FireAntz off the board until 5:47 remained in the Southern Professional Hockey League game.

"It was a big plus, getting those two back," Richmond coach Brian Goudie said of Vandermeer and Sicard, who "brings a lot of energy."

Vandermeer, who had a goal and an assist, played for the first time since breaking a bone in his right forearm Oct. 31.

"It's been a long time," said Vandermeer. "It was nice to get out there. I was a little rusty, but the boys got the job done. Playing with Pricer [Jason Price] made it easy for me."

Change of position: Goudie moved Busby from center to the wing because "[Justin] Joy is better down low."

Busby, who had six goals in the first 31 games, took advantage of the move, scoring on the power play, short-handed and at even strength.

"We fed off each other," Busby said of Joy, who assisted on two of the goals. "It helped that we weren't in our end too much. A couple of the goals were good team play. I was in the right spot at the right time."

Busby's third goal of the evening gave the Renegades (17-14-1) a 3-0 bulge 5:16 into the third period, and he set up Vandermeer for a short-handed score 42 seconds later.

Stellar between the posts: Scott improved to 7-4-1 and nearly registered Richmond's first shutout of the season.

Defenseman Corey Hessler broke it up with a deflected shot from the point during a power play. Up to that point, Scott was all over the crease, blocking shots and kicking out rebounds.

"Most of the shots were from outside," Goudie said. "Whatever he can see, he's going to stop."

Special Renegades: After a scoreless first period, Richmond notched a pair of goals in the second, thanks to the special teams.

The Renegades needed a two-man advantage to get on the scoreboard at 6:15. Busby gathered in a loose puck just outside the crease and slid it into a partially open net for a 1-0 lead.

Later in the period, after Scott stoned Rob Sich from point-blank range, Busby struck again with a short-handed goal. Defenseman Arthur Kiyaga sent a pass to the little center in the neutral zone, and he skated in alone to beat goalie Chad Collins with a backhander.

Since the Renegades are 11-0-1 when leading after two periods, it looked very good for the home team at that point.

Off the ice: Forwards Brett Needham and Josh Coyle were healthy scratches last night. After the game, Needham was traded to Fayetteville for the rights to forward Mike Tuomi and cash considerations.

Sicard was added to the roster under a three-game tryout contract, so another move will be necessary after this weekend. Richmond has more players (20) on the roster than it has since training camp.

Fayetteville ------------------------- 0 0 1 -- 1
Richmond ------------------------- 0 2 2 -- 4

First Period -- None. Penalty -- Withers, Rich (charging), 13:33.

Second Period -- 1, Richmond, Busby 7 (Joy, Vandermeer), 6:15 (pp). 2, Richmond, Busby 8 (Kiyaga), 15:19 (sh). Penalties -- Hessler, Fay (high-sticking), 4:42; Snyder, Fay (delay of game), 5:00; Leveille, Fay (delay of game), 8:20; Vandermeer, Rich (hooking), 14:25.

Third Period -- 3, Richmond, Busby 9 (Joy, Lyke), 5:16. 4, Vandermeer 5 (Busby, Sicard), 5:58 (sh). 5, Fayetteville, Hessler 4 (Geerlinks, Leveille), 14:13 (pp). Penalties -- Joy, Rich (tripping), 5:33; Joy, Rich (interference), 13:01.

Shots on goal -- Fayetteville 13-15-20 -- 48. Richmond 6-13-9 -- 28. Power-play opportunities -- Fayetteville 1 of 4, Richmond 1 of 3. Goalies -- Fayetteville, Collins 8-10-2 (28 shots-24 saves). Richmond, Scott 7-4-1 (48-47). Referee -- Nick Krebsbach. A -- 1,641.