Magliarditi signs deal to stay in LV

Nick Christensen

Friday, July 2, 2004 | 9:44 a.m.

Marc Magliarditi was working four jobs this summer, not counting being a full-time father.

Now add a fifth.

The popular Wranglers goalie, who last season went 29-14 with a 2.35 goals-against-average and a .927 save percentage, re-signed with the ECHL team this week, after making the decision to stay in Las Vegas during the offseason.

"I was happy being here, happy playing for (coach Glen Gulutzan)," Magliarditi said. "I thought all the guys on the team were a great bunch of guys. The only other place I played for a few years was Fort Myers, and I was a big part of the community, but only temporarily.

"I always wanted to be somewhere that I was going to be there year-round. ... Any time I can be involved in it, involved in the community, it's a good feeling."

Gulutzan said re-signing Magliarditi was an easy choice.

"Marc was one of the guys I wanted to come back," he said. "He was a guy I felt won us six or seven games single-handedly last year. He's a professional guy in the locker room and he's committed to winning."

Gulutzan expects at least one goaltending prospect to join the team next season.

The deal also solidifies Magliarditi's local standing. He moved here last year after learning about Las Vegas from family that lived here.

He is working as a blackjack dealer at the Orleans, and as a bellhop at the J.W. Marriott in Summerlin. He also is involved in a credit card processing company and is in real estate school, and during a phone interview Thursday, was trying to entertain and quiet his young daughter, Arianna.

There's still one thing professionally Magliarditi hasn't been able to get -- besides his real estate license -- and that's a playoff series victory.

It looked like it was going to happen last year, when Las Vegas was up 2-0 in a best-of-five series against the Idaho Steelheads. But the Wranglers lost three consecutive times, including a decisive Game 5 at home with Magliarditi in goal. The Steelheads went on to win the Kelly Cup championship.

Magliarditi's playoff record is something that Gulutzan considered when making his decision to bring back the veteran goalkeeper.

"I've talked openly with Marc about that. We didn't lose the series because of goaltending in my mind, and I felt definitely that Marc's a guy that wants to shake that reputation he's acquired. I have full confidence in Marc Magliarditi."

The surprises on the list were Ask, who may end up in Europe next season, and O'Flaherty, who refused to be traded last season and was summarily suspended for the remainder of the season by the Wranglers.

"Kevin O'Flaherty is a guy I can protect and a guy I'm going to talk to here on what his hockey plans are," Gulutzan said. "I wasn't just going to let him go free.

"Morten's intentions are to play back in Europe. Until he decides, we're just going to play it by ear."