Weekly Wrap-Up - Atlantic Division (Week 8)
Editor's Note: Julie takes a look around last week's AHL Atlantic Division action, and outlines the week ahead for all eight teams.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Record Last Week: 1-2-0
The Penguins defeated in-state rival Lehigh Valley 4-2 Wednesday evening at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre. Ryan Haggerty opened the scoring with a goal just 31 seconds into the contest, but Lehigh Valley rallied for a pair of goals just minutes later. Jean-Sebastien Dea tied the game and Colin Smith got the eventual game winner in the second. Haggerty added this second of the night in the third for insurance. Casey DeSmith went the distance in goal stopping 31 of 33 shots.
The Penguins scored a pair of goals in Syracuse Friday night, but it wasn’t enough as the Crunch jumped out to a 3-0 lead and then added a pair of insurance goals in the third to hand Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a 5-2 loss in Syracuse. Smith scored the lone goal in the second for the Penguins and Dominik Simon made things interesting midway through the third, but Wilkes-Barre/Scranton lost on the road. DeSmith made 25 saves on 28 shots.
In the rematch Saturday in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the Crunch once again dealt the Atlantic Division leader a loss. Freddie Tiffels and Teddy Blueger gave the Penguins a 2-1 lead in the first, but the Crunch rallied for three unanswered goals before Frank Corrado scored in the third to make it interesting, but the Crunch held on for a 4-3 victory. DeSmith was once again in net for the Penguins, making 21 saves on 25 shots.
Lehigh Valley Phantoms
Record Last Week: 2-1-0
Recalls may have hurt the Phantoms in their 4-2 loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Wednesday night. Early on though, it seemed as if the Phantoms would be okay as they notched a pair of goals just 1:26 apart in the first period when Corban Knight tied the game and Greg Carey put Lehigh Valley on top, but the Penguins rallied for three goals to secure the victory on home ice. Alex Lyon stopped 34 of 37 shots.
On Friday, the Phantoms came from behind to defeat the Springfield Thunderbirds, 6-3. Carey scored a pair of goals, while Phil Varone, Alt, and Oskar Lindblom also scored. But James de Haas’s first goal of the season proved to be the game winner early in the third. Dustin Tokarski earned the win in goal for the Phantoms, stopping 21 of 24 shots.
Saturday night in Lehigh Valley was so much fun it went to overtime before the Phantoms emerged with a 5-4 victory over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Carey, Mark Alt, and Nicolas Aube-Kubel all scored goals to tie the game, but Will O’Neill provided the excitement as his first goal game Lehigh Valley their first lead of the game. With just ten second left, Bridgeport tied the game paving the way for O’Neill’s game winner in OT. Lyon was busy between the pipes for the Phantoms, stopping 35 of 39 shots in the victory.
The Phantoms host Binghamton Wednesday night to close out their November schedule.
Providence Bruins
Record Last Week: 2-1-0
The Providence Bruins had to go to overtime to dispatch of the Binghamton Devils Wednesday night. After Binghamton scored midway through the first, Chris Porter notched his first goal of the season in the second to tie the game. Colton Hargrove finally broke the tie in overtime to give the Bruins the 2-1 win, which moved them into second place in the Atlantic Division behind the Penguins. Zane McIntyre was once again solid in net for the Bruins stopping 27 of 28 shots.
Things did not go well Saturday in Charlotte as the Checkers handed the Bruins an 8-2 loss. Ryan Fitzgerald scored first for Providence, but the Checkers went on a tear, scoring eight unanswered goals before Kenny Agostino added Providence’s second goal late in the third. McIntyre was in net for Providence. He stopped 35 of 43 shots. The Bruins managed just 17 shots in the loss.
Sunday in Charlotte, the Bruins secured a victory in the fifth round of a shootout, 2-1. Hargrove tied the game late in the first period for Providence. After battling the remainder of the way tied at 1-1, Colby Cave and Fitzgerald connected in the fourth and fifth rounds of the shootout respectively for the victory. Jordan Binnington stopped 18 of 19 shots.
Bridgeport Sound Tigers
Record Last Week: 2-0-1
On Friday, the Sound Tigers had a lot to be thankful for as seven different players scored goals en route to a 7-3 victory over the WolfPack. Seth Helgeson and Scott Eansor scored in the first. Ben and Josh Holmstrom each notched goals in the second. In the third, Sebastian Aho, Travis St. Denis, and Casey Bailey all recorded goals. Christopher Gibson stopped 18 of 21 shots in the win.
On Saturday in Lehigh Valley, the Sound Tigers tied the game with just ten seconds left to play, but it wasn’t enough as the Phantoms earned a 5-4 victory in overtime. Tanner Fritz gave the visitors an early lead in the first. Michael Dal Colle and Stephen Gionta each scored in the second before St. Denis was able to tie the game late in the third to force overtime. Kristers Gudlevskis stopped 19 of just 24 shots in net for Bridgeport.
Sunday night, the Sound Tigers traveled to Hershey for Ryan Bourque’s first game back in Giant Center against brother Chris’s Bears. After Chris scored a pair in the first, younger brother, Ryan, notched his second of the season in the first and third of the season with just 35 seconds left in the game to send it to overtime. Neither team was able to score in the extra frame, so it went to a shootout where Fritz and Bailey both scored for the 3-2 victory. Gibson earned the victory with a 33-save performance.
Charlotte Checkers
Record Last Week: 2-1-1
The Charlotte Checkers split a Tuesday/Wednesday home series with the Belleville Senators. The Checkers came from two goals down to take Tuesday’s game 4-2 with goals from Brenden Kichton, Janne Kuokkanen, and a pair from Aleksi Saarela. Alex Nedeljkovic went the distance between the pipes, stopping 21 of 23 shots.
Wednesday’s game once again saw the Senators take the early lead, but Roland McKeown tied the game late in the first. After a pair of Belleville goals to start the second, Mike Ferrantino scored his second goal of the season, but the Senators added two more goals in the third for the victory. Jeremy Smith stopped 18 of 22 shots in net for the Checkers.
On Saturday, the Checkers left no doubt that they will be a team to be reckoned with as they scored eight straight goals against the Providence Bruins. Saarela, Patrick Brown, Julien Gauthier, Andrew Miller, Warren Foegele, Nick Schilkey, Philip Samuelsson, and Sergey Tolchinsky all notched goals. Nedeljkovic once again earned the victory in net, stopping 15 of 17 shots.
In the rematch on Sunday, extra time wasn’t enough and the game went to a shootout. Nicolas Roy scored in the first for Charlotte, but Providence quickly tied it. The teams then battled scoreless the remainder of the way. Saarela provided the lone Charlotte goal in the five-round shootout in the 2-1 loss. Smith stopped 40 of 41 shots heading into the shootout.
Hershey Bears
Record Last Week: 1-1-1
The Hershey Bears dropped a home game Thanksgiving Eve to the Springfield Thunderbirds, 4-2. It marked the first time that Springfield, as the Thunderbirds, has defeated the Bears and it was their first road win of the season. The Thunderbirds took the lead in the second period, but Hershey’s Dustin Gazley tied the game early in the final period. Pheonix Copley stopped 25 of 27 shots for the Bears. Prior to the game, World Series Champ and local Cedar Crest HS alum, Derek Fisher delighted the fans at Giant Center and dropped the ceremonial puck for the game.
The Bears responded with a post-Thanksgiving victory in Hartford following Wednesday night’s loss. Hershey got out to an early 4-0 lead and Vitek Vanecek was mere minutes from a shutout, but Hartford finally got a goal that unleashed the stuffed animals for Teddy Bear Toss Night. Mathias Bau and Riley Barber each scored in the first for Hershey. Then in the second, Zach Sill and Mason Mitchell each scored their first goals of the season. Sill’s, a shorty, came as the Bears were on the PK. Mitchell’s unassisted goal was his first career AHL goal. Vanecek’s shutout bid came to an end with just 2:47 left to play, but he earned the game’s #3 star with a 27-save performance.
Sunday night marked the return of Ryan Bourque to Giant Center as the Bridgeport Sound Tigers were in town for the evening. Chris scored a pair of goals in the first period, but younger brother, Ryan, a former Hershey Bear, scored two goals to send it to overtime. The Bears had a 4-on-3 advantage in the extra frame, but they were unable to connect. In the shootout, Chris scored, but the Sound Tigers got a pair past Copley to earn the 3-2 victory. Copley stopped 30 of 32.
Hartford Wolf Pack
Record Last Week: 0-3-0
The Wolf Pack got off to a rocky start in Bridgeport Friday night as the Sound Tigers scored early and often en route to a 7-3 victory. Adan Cracknell scored a pair and Steven Fogarty added a goal, but it wasn’t enough for the Pack. Alexandar Georgiev stopped 30 of 37 shots.
Saturday, they returned home to host Hershey and had to wait until the waning minutes of the game for the goal that allowed the crowd of 4,571 to unleash their teddy bears on Teddy Bear Toss Night as Hershey bounced back from their Wednesday night loss at home with a 4-1 victory on the road. Adam Tambellini provided Hartford’s lone goal. Following Hershey’s fourth goal, Chris Nell (18 saves on 22 shots) was lifted in favor of Georgiev who stopped all of Hershey’s final eight shots.
On Sunday in Springfield, the Wolf Pack were dealt their third loss of the week, 4-2. Scott Kosmachuk and Ryan Gropp provided Hartford’s goals. Georgiev stopped 35 of 38 shots.
Hartford hosts Springfield Wednesday night to close out the month for both teams.
Springfield Thunderbirds
Record Last Week: 2-1-0
The Thunderbirds secured their first road victory of the season in Hershey Wednesday night. Anthony Greco put Springfield on top in the second period and Thomas Schemitsch recorded the game-winning goal just past the midway point of the third after the Bears had tied the game earlier in the final frame. Harri Sateri stopped 28 of 29 shots for Springfield.
After securing their first victory on the road Wednesday in Hershey, the Thunderbirds returned home and put up a fight for half of the game, but eventually fell to Lehigh Valley 6-3 Friday night in Springfield. Greco and Alexandre Grenier scored in the first and Tony Turgeon’s second period goal put the Thunderbirds in front for eight minutes before the Phantoms took control of the game and earned the victory on the road, doubling up Springfield by a score of 6-3.
Sunday, the Thunderbirds played host to Hartford and emerged with a 4-2 victory on home ice. Francois Beauchemin and Blaine Byron provided goals in the second while Schemitsch and Denis Malgin each notched goals in the third. Sateri stopped 27 of 29 shots for the victory.
Hartford and Springfield square off Wednesday night in Hartford to close out the month for both teams.
Atlantic Division Standings as of November 27th, 2017
W-B/Scranton: 17 GP, 12-4-0-1, 25 points, .735 pct Lehigh Valley: 20 GP, 12-6-0-2, 26 points, .650 pct Providence: 18 GP, 10-6-2-0, 22 points, .611 pct Bridgeport: 19 GP, 11-7-1-0, 23 points, .605 pct Charlotte: 21 GP, 12-8-0-1, 25 points, .595 pct Hershey: 21 GP, 9-9-0-3, 21 points, .500 pct Hartford: 21 GP, 7-11-2-1, 17 points, .405 pct Springfield: 22 GP, 8-13-1-0, 17 points, .386 pct
This Week’s Atlantic Division Schedule:
Wednesday, November 29th
Springfield @ Hartford, 7:00 PM Binghamton @ Lehigh Valley, 7:05 PM
Friday, December 1st
Bridgeport @ Utica, 7:00 PM Hershey @ Lehigh Valley, 7:05 PM Binghamton @ Providence, 7:05 PM Hartford @ Rochester, 7:05 PM Milwaukee @ W-B/Scranton, 7:15 PM Springfield @ Charlotte, 7:15 PM
Saturday, December 2nd
Hartford @ Toronto, 4:05 PM Utica @ Bridgeport, 7:00 PM Milwaukee @ Hershey, 7:00 PM Laval @ Lehigh Valley, 7:05 PM Binghamton @ Providence, 7:05 PM Rochester @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7:05 PM
Sunday, December 3rd
Springfield @ Charlotte, 1:00 PM Providence @ Bridgeport, 3:00 PM W-B/Scranton @ Hershey, 5:00 PM
