Ahl News

Friday’s Boxscores

PHILADELPHIA 5, HERSHEY 2
Philadelphia scripted a fitting regular-season farewell to the Wachovia Spectrum on Friday, clinching a playoff spot with a 5-2 win over arch-rival Hershey before a sellout crowd of 17,380 fans, an AHL season high.

Rob Sirianni netted a hat trick for the Phantoms, who overcame a 12-point deficit in mid-March to beat out Binghamton for the East Division’s fourth and final postseason entry.

The Phantoms started quick out of the gate, scoring three times in the first period. Jonathan Matsumoto netted his 29th goal of the season at 7:44, and Sirianni followed with consecutive power play markers at 16:11 and 18:43, with First Team AHL All-Star defenseman Danny Syvret assisting on both

The teams then traded goals in the second and third frames. Jonathon Kalinski netted a second-period goal for the Phantoms, and Sirianni completed his hat trick with an empty-netter late in the third.

Andrew Joudrey and American Hockey League MVP Alexandre Giroux netted goals for the Bears. Giroux now shows a league-leading 58 tallies for the campaign.

Jared Ross joined Syvret in posting a pair of helpers for the Phantoms, and goaltender Scott Munroe earned the win with 20 saves on 22 shots, improving to 31-19-4 on the season.

Philadelphia will return to the playoffs for the second straight season and awaits the East Division champion in the division semifinals.
PORTLAND 6, PROVIDENCE 5
Portland clinched the fourth and final playoff spot in the Atlantic Division with a wild 6-5 win over visiting Providence before 7,167 fans at the Cumberland County Civic Center. The Pirates will return to the postseason for the third time in the last four years.

Mathieu Darche netted a pair of goals for the Pirates, including the eventual game-winner on the power play 5:58 into the third period.

AHL rookie of the year Nathan Gerbe also scored for Portland, as did Mark Mancari, Colin Murphy, and Colton Fretter. The Pirates erased a 4-2 deficit over the second half of the game to take the victory.

Tim Kennedy, Marek Zagrapan, Felix Schutz, and Mike Kostka all posted two assists in the win. The Pirates now hold a one-point lead on Worcester for third place in the Atlantic heading into the final games for both teams on Saturday.

Jeremy Reich scored twice for the Bruins, while Martin St. Pierre and rookie Brad Marchand each posted a goal and two helpers. Providence will finish second in the Atlantic Division.
TORONTO 4, MANITOBA 3 (OT)
Bates Battaglia scored 2:16 into overtime to send Toronto into the playoffs with a 4-3 win over Manitoba on Friday at Ricoh Coliseum.

The Marlies and North Division champion Moose will clash in the opening round of the Calder Cup Playoffs beginning next week.

Battaglia and Tim Stapleton each finished with a goal and two assists for the Marlies, and Jeremy Williams also found the back of the net.

Toronto goaltender Justin Pogge stopped 23 of 26 shots in the win, which was the Marlies’ sixth in a row over Manitoba.

Michael Grabner tallied a goal and a helper for the Moose, and Jason Jaffray and Raymond Sawada also scored. Manitoba dropped to 0-3-1-0 in its last four contests.
ROCKFORD 2, PEORIA 1 (SO)
Rockford clinched a playoff spot with a 2-1 shootout win over visiting Peoria on Friday before a sellout crowd of 5,938 fans at the MetroCentre. The IceHogs will return to postseason play for the second time in as many AHL campaigns.

Akim Aliu and Evan Brophey netted shootout goals for the IceHogs, who were assured of a postseason berth once the game extended beyond regulation.

IceHogs goaltender Corey Crawford stopped 32 of 33 shots through the first 65 minutes before denying four of Peoria’s five shootout tries.

Rockford’s Pete MacArthur netted a power play goal at 13:06 of the second period, but Peoria’s Aaron Palushaj responded with his first professional tally, also on the power play, at 19:10.

With the point earned in the shootout loss, the Rivermen clinched second place in the West Division and will hold home-ice advantage in the division semifinal round of the postseason.
SAN ANTONIO 3, HOUSTON 2 (OT)
Houston clinched a playoff spot on Friday but dropped a 3-2 overtime decision to San Antonio in front of 11,391 fans at the Toyota Center.

Krys Kolanos scored both goals for the Aeros, including the game-tying marker at 19:09 of the third period. Houston needed at least one point to ensure itself a postseason berth.

Rampage rookie Chad Kolarik tallied his second goal of the night 1:46 into overtime for the gamer-winner. Sean Zimmerman also scored for San Antonio, which captured its sixth consecutive victory.

San Antonio goaltender Karl Goehring earned the victory with 34 saves on 36 shots.
QUAD CITY 3, IOWA 2 (SO)
Quad City continued its remarkable late-season playoff push with a 3-2 shootout win over Iowa at the I Wireless Center, but the Flames saw their postseason hopes dashed when both Rockford and Houston extended their games to overtime.

The Flames went 3-for-3 in the shootout, receiving scores from David Van der Gulik, Dustin Boyd, and Kris Chucko. Goaltender Leland Irving denied all three tries from Iowa, which fell to 1-10 in shootouts this season.

Boyd and Peter Vandermeer registered regulation goals for the Flames, while Petteri Wirtanen and defenseman Brian Salcido scored for the Chops. Quad City improved to 7-1-0-1 in its last nine contests.

The teams will conclude their respective seasons on Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena in the back end of a home-and-home set.
BRIDGEPORT 4, SPRINGFIELD 3
Bridgeport grabbed a share of the East Division lead on Friday with a 4-3 win over visiting Springfield at the Arena at Harbor Yard.

Jesse Joensuu posted a goal and an assist for the Sound Tigers, who also received markers from Michael Haley, Jon Sim, and Junior Lessard. A three-goal second period proved to be the difference for Bridgeport.

Sound Tigers goaltender Nathan Lawson earned the victory with 26 saves. Bridgeport and Hershey are deadlocked with 104 points and 48 wins apiece. The Sound Tigers conclude their regular season tomorrow vs. Lowell, while the Bears host Philadelphia on Saturday and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton – also vying for the division crown – on Sunday.

Ryan Potulny scored his team-leading 36th and 37th goals for the Falcons, and Ryan Stone assisted on all three Springfield tallies.
LOWELL 3, HARTFORD 2 (SO)
Hartford dropped a 3-2 shootout decision to Lowell but still clinched its first division title since 2004 by virtue of Providence’s 6-5 loss to Portland.

Defenseman Tyler Eckford scored a pair of shootout goals for the Devils, including the decisive tally in the seventh round. Patrick Davis and Matt Halischuk netted regulation markers, and Brad Mills assisted on both.

Lowell goaltender Jeff Frazee earned the victory, stopping 32 of 34 shots through regulation and overtime, and five of seven in the shootout.

The Wolf Pack received regulation tallies from Brodie Dupont and Bobby Sanguinetti, and Sanguinetti also scored in the shootout.
HAMILTON 3, GRAND RAPIDS 2
Hamilton clinched second place in the North Division with a 3-2 road win over Grand Rapids on Friday before a sellout crowd of 10,834 at Van Andel Arena.

The Bulldogs trailed 2-1 entering the third period, but Mike Glumac tied it just 44 seconds into the frame and rookie David Desharnais tallied the game-winner with 4:02 to play. Defenseman Mathieu Carle assisted on both markers.

Rookie Ben Maxwell also scored and Marc Denis made 24 saves for the Bulldogs, who have won four straight games and 13 of their last 19 (13-4-2-0). Hamilton will have home-ice advantage against Grand Rapids in the teams’ upcoming first-round playoff series.

Jakub Kindl and Francis Lemieux netted goals for the Griffins.
NORFOLK 6, BINGHAMTON 1
Brandon Segal netted a hat trick to lead Norfolk to a 6-1 road win over Binghamton at the Broome County Arena.

Segal scored twice in the first period and once in the second, and he registered goals at even strength, on the power play, and shorthanded.

Justin Keller registered a pair of markers for the Admirals and Mason Graddock also scored, helping Norfolk to its highest goal output since a 7-2 win over Philadelphia on Dec. 27.

Admirals goaltender Craig Kowalski stopped 29 of 30 shots in the winning effort.

Zack Smith netted a shorthanded goal for the Senators, who were eliminated from playoff contention with the loss combined with Philadelphia’s win over Hershey.
WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 4, ALBANY 2
A three-goal first period paced Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to a 4-2 win over visiting Albany before 7,338 fans at the Wachovia Arena on Friday.

Paul Bissonnette, Connor James, and Mark Letestu netted first-period goals for the Penguins, and Joe Vitale added his first professional goal in the middle frame.

Jean-Michel Daoust added a pair of helpers in the win, and goaltender John Curry made 22 saves to improve to 33-15-1 for the campaign.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (48-24-3-3, 102 points) is now two points back of Hershey and Bridgeport for the East Division title with two games to play, including a date with the Bears on Sunday evening.

Rookies Nick Dodge and Ryan Weston scored for the River Rats.
MANCHESTER 3, WORCESTER 1
Manchester did its part to stay alive in the Atlantic Division playoff race by posting a 3-1 road win over Worcester at the DCU Center on Friday.

But Portland’s 6-5 win over Providence ensured that the Monarchs will miss the postseason for the first time since joining the AHL in 2001-02.

The Monarchs scored once in each period, receiving markers from Scott Parse, Trevor Lewis (shorthanded), and Matt Moulson, his 20th of the season. Manchester goaltender Jonathan Bernier stopped 28 of 29 shots in the victory.

Lukas Kaspar scored the Sharks’ lone goal on the power play in the second period. Worcester, which saw its five-game winning streak come to an end, is now a point back of Portland for the Atlantic Division’s third seed in the playoffs.
ROCHESTER 2, SYRACUSE 0
Rochester played the role of spoiler on Saturday, eliminating arch-rival Syracuse from playoff contention with a 2-0 win over the Crunch before 6,968 fans at Blue Cross Arena. It marked the Amerks’ season finale at home.

Americans forward Drew Larman broke a scoreless deadlock at 14:37 of the second period, and Randall Gelech added an empty-net tally in the game’s closing minute.

Rochester goaltender David Shantz stopped all 30 shots he faced to secure his first shutout with the Amerks this season.

The Crunch’s playoff hopes were dashed with the loss combined with Toronto’s overtime victory against Manitoba.
MILWAUKEE 3, CHICAGO 1
Hugh Jessiman scored a power play to break a 1-1 tie with 2:11 left in regulation, and Milwaukee went on to post a 3-1 win over visiting Chicago in its regular-season finale at the Bradley Center.

Ryan Maki netted a pair of goals for the Admirals, giving them a 1-0 lead late in the second stanza and adding an empty-net marker in the game’s closing seconds. Milwaukee goaltender Drew MacIntyre earned the victory with 31 saves on 32 shots.

Milwaukee finishes the regular season at 49-22-3-6 for 107 points. The Admirals are one of three teams still alive for the overall AHL regular-season points title, but they will have to wait out results from the campaign’s final two days.

Jordan LaVallee netted the Wolves’ lone goal just 16 seconds into the third period.

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