By Tim Campbell

DREW MACINTYRE'S first AHL all-star experience started as a dud but finished with a flourish.

The Manitoba Moose's No. 1 goalie was the sharpest netminder of all in Monday night's annual showcase game before a sellout of 4,710 in Binghamton, N.Y., stopping 15 of 16 shots in the third period and then four of five in the shootout as he sparked Team Canada to a come-from-behind 9-8 victory over Team Planet/USA.

MacIntyre entered the game with his team down 7-5 through 40 minutes and gave up just one goal, that to Portland's Brian Salcido.

In the shootout, he allowed an initial goal by Springfield's Rob Schremp but then stopped three in a row, and finished it off with a clever pokecheck of Syracuse's Joakim Lindstrom. That save spared Team Canada from having to take another shot, as it was already ahead 2-1 in the penalty-shot contest.

"I had a lot of fun," the all-star game's winning goalie said via phone from Binghamton on Monday. "To be out there and go through one of these events, that's all pretty cool."

Sunday, the 24-year-old native of P.E.I. didn't start off having a whole lot of fun. His first event of the skills competition saw Team Planet/USA score four goals on 10 shots in the rapid-fire competition.

But things got considerably better after that, as MacIntyre stopped all three skate-pass-and-score shots, then five of six in the breakaway relay to end with a respectable 14 saves in 19 shots.

"I was kind of ripping on myself after the first (event), but I had fun with it after that," he said. "Rapid fire, that was a little tough but I did all right after that."

Things were a whole lot different than your average AHL game, MacIntyre said.

"There's lots of chatter, but I guess for the goalies, it's lonely a little bit," he laughed. "We're just kind of sitting around and then you get thrown into it. At least the goalies are together chit-chatting and we were all loose enough to go in there.

"Luckily nobody got hurt."

That will be the biggest bonus for the Moose, who have gotten plenty of mileage of out MacIntyre's 2.30 goals-against average and .923 save percentage so far this season. His record is 16-11-1 as the team sits in second place in the AHL's North Division.

MacIntyre's father Herbie was able to make it from P.E.I. to attend the event, as were his in-laws. But any celebrating was likely cut short on Monday night.

MacIntyre had a 4 a.m. wakeup call today, the start of his long journey to Vancouver, where he is recalled to the NHL's Canucks for tonight's game against the Dallas Stars. He'll likely serve as backup for the Canucks' Curtis Sanford.

The netminder will take a 70-minute ride north from Binghamton to Syracuse Hancock International Airport, where he expected to catch a 7:10 a.m. ET flight to get him to the West Coast by lunchtime.

After a weeklong holiday, Canucks starter Roberto Luongo is expected to rejoin the team later this week when Vancouver's road trip begins in Tampa on Thursday, likely clearing the way for MacIntyre's return to the Moose.

Due to the AHL all-star break, Manitoba isn't back on the ice until Wednesday and doesn't resume its schedule until Friday night at the MTS Centre, when the Hamilton Bulldogs are the visitors.

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca