River Rats Struggle In Norfolk, Rally In Philadelphia

Published on February 2, 2009 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany River Rats News Release


Albany had to battle adversity early in the week as they had All-Star left wing Michael Ryan and defenseman Bryan Rodney called up to Carolina before their three-game road trip and the Rats hit a bump in the road as they dropped two straight games in Norfolk. After the River Rats took an early 2-0 lead, the Admirals rallied to tie the game at 2-2 after one period Thursday night. It was 3-3 after forty minutes, but Norfolk pulled away with two goals in a span of 42 seconds of the third period and the Rats fell short 5-4. Friday night Albany and Norfolk battled in a very hard-hitting, physical exchange that saw the Rats set 2008-09 season highs in penalty minutes (50) and combined minutes (102), but they again came up empty-handed in a 4-1 loss; their record at Scope Arena is 0-4-0-0 this season. But the River Rats rallied on Saturday night in Philadelphia, out-playing the Phantoms all night long and scoring two third period goals to earn a 2-1 win. The goals came from two unlikely sources: left wing Brad Herauf scored his first career AHL to tie the game and rookie Ryan Weston tallied the game winner with just under five minutes remaining; it was their first win at Wachovia Spectrum since November 3, 2006.

Week 18 Preview:

Albany has their lightest game schedule of the season this week as they have just one game on the calendar, a 5:00 pm face off against the Portland Pirates on Saturday, February 7th at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Saturday will be the Rats' second of four home games played in Glens Falls this season and the first of two straight games against Portland. With the Carolina Hurricanes on a west coast trip to Vancouver, San Jose and Phoenix this week, the River Rats may not get Michael Ryan or Bryan Rodney back this week, but center Bobby Hughes is inching closer to returning to the lineup; he has currently missed 31 straight games due to injury this season. The River Rats' light schedule this week is really a false front, as they will play a stretch of five games in seven days beginning on Tuesday, February 10th when they face the Pirates in Buffalo at HSBC Arena.

Week 18 Schedule:

(All games are broadcast LIVE on 104.5 FM "The Team" ESPN Radio, are streamed free over the Internet at www.albanyriverrats.com and can be watched via internet pay-per-view video on www.ahllive.com)

Saturday, February 7 - 5:00 pm - Glens Falls Civic Center - Glens Falls, NY

vs. Portland Pirates (25-19-1-2, 53 pts)

Fourth Place, Atlantic Division

The Pirates have won three of their last four games, but are just 5-5-0-0 in their last ten. Over that ten-game span they have out-scored their opponents 23-22. Rookie goalie Jhonas Enroth has been the iron-lung of the team, making eight straight starts and appearing in 21 of Portland's last 22 games; his record is 10-10-0 over that stretch. The Pirates have been without the services of defensemen Marc-Andre Gragnani (Jan. 26) and Chris Butler (Dec. 26) and center Matt Ellis (Dec. 26), who have all been recalled to Buffalo. Portland's blue line has been decimated by injuries: Mike Weber returned to the lineup last weekend after missing nine games with a knee injury, but Mike Card has missed five games (concussion), Paul Baier has missed the last seven games (broken jaw) and Mike Funk has been out for 25 games (concussion). Rookie center Nathan Gerbe has missed the last six games and was forced to miss the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic with an illness, but could make his return this weekend. Leading Scorer: Mark Mancari (RW) - 43 points (18 goals, 25 assists) in 40 games played. Leading Goaltender: Jhonas Enroth (G) - 2.45 GAA, 0.921 save pct., 18-12-2 record in 35 GP. Who's Hot: Colton Fretter (C) - 4 points (2 goals, 2 assists) and a +3 rating in last five games played. Tim Kennedy (LW) - 4 assists in last five games played. Derek Whitmore (LW) - 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist) and a +3 rating in last five games played. Week 17 Game Results:

January 29, 2009 Albany 4 @ Norfolk 5

January 30, 2009 Albany 1 @ Norfolk 4

January 31, 2009 Albany 2 @ Philadelphia 1

River Rats Player of the Week: (Week 17)

Ryan Weston - RW - #18 3 GP, 2 Points (2 goals, 0 assists), +2, 0 PIMs

Rookie right wing Ryan Weston had one of his most productive weeks of the season as he scored two goals and was tied for the team lead with a +2 plus/minus rating. Weston began the week by scoring his fourth goal of the year on Thursday night in Norfolk, cutting the Admirals lead to 5-4 with eight minutes left in the game. Friday night Weston was held scoreless, but was one of only three River Rats skaters to not have a minus rating. Saturday was Weston's big night as the Henniker, New Hampshire native scored the game-winning goal with 4:40 left in the third period to beat Philadelphia 2-1; it was his fifth goal of the year and gave Albany their first win at Wachovia Spectrum in two years. On the season Weston has seven points (5 goals, 2 assists) and 39 penalty minutes along with a -2 rating in 37 games played.

River Rats Player of the Month: (January)

Michael Ryan - LW - #21 11 GP, 15 Points (13 goals, 2 assists), +2, 3 GWG

Left wing Michael Ryan had an outstanding month of January as he scored 13 goals and two assists (15 points) to lead Albany in scoring. He did this in just 11 games played; missing the River Rats final three games of the month while making his second trip to the NHL with Carolina. Ryan recorded two Hat Tricks in January, tying Steve Sullivan's single-season franchise record and set new team records for fastest consecutive hat tricks (11 days - 4 games) and fastest three hat tricks (33 days - 15 games). Before being recalled by the Hurricanes, the Boston, Massachusetts native represented the River Rats in the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic in Worcester and scored three points (2 goals, 1 assist); he tied two AHL All-Star records for most shots on goal (9) and most shots in one period (5). Ryan currently leads Albany in goals (23) and points (36) and is tied for fourth in the AHL in goals.

River Rats Goaltender of the Month: (January)

Justin Peters - G - #35 9 GP, 2.36 GAA, 0.933 Sv%, 4-5-0, 291 saves, 1 SO

Justin Peters continues to be the River Rats workhorse, playing in nine of their 14 games in January. The Blyth, Ontario native posted a 2.36 goals-against average and a 0.933 save percentage, along with a 4-5-0 record and his second shutout of the season on January 24th vs. Rochester. Peters strong play in January dropped his goals-against average to 2.59 in 29 games played this season and he ranks tied for 10th in the AHL in save percentage (0.919).

River Rats Rookie of the Month: (January)

Nick Dodge - C - #8 14 GP, 9 Points (1 goal, 8 assists), +1, 10 PIMs, 1 GWG

Rookie center Nick Dodge has been a rock in the River Rats lineup this season, one of only three players to appear in all 48 games so far this year. Dodge upped his offensive output as he tallied nine points (1 goal, 8 assists) and a +1 rating in January, leading all Albany rookies in scoring. The Oakville, Ontario native had a three-point game (1 goal, 2 assists) on January 10th at Hershey, scoring the game-winning goal and sparking a four-game point streak (1-5-6). Overall this season Dodge ranks third on the team in assists (16), seventh in points (21) and leads Albany with two short-handed assists.

Rat Bites:

- HURRICANES REINFORCEMENTS - Carolina, the River Rats NHL affiliate, has enjoyed a solid run of health over the last two months, allowing the River Rats to keep their lineup fairly consistent. But this past week the 'Canes came calling for All-Star left wing Michael Ryan and defenseman Bryan Rodney. Both were called up for the second this season and they played in each of Carolina's two games after being recalled to the NHL.

- BREAKING THE TREND - Albany had struggled mightily against the Philadelphia Phantoms at the Spectrum over the last two seasons. With a 2-1 comeback win on Saturday night, the River Rats won their first game in that building since November 3, 2006, snapping a six-game losing streak at the Spectrum. It was also the largest goal total put up on Phantoms goalie Scott Munroe, who had held the River Rats to one goal or less in his previous five starts.

- AHL FIRST - Left wing Brad Herauf scored his first career AHL goal on Saturday in Philly, sparking a two-goal third period come-from-behind victory over the Phantoms. Herauf's goal was also his first career AHL point, coming in his 14th career AHL game.

- NEW YEAR IMPROVEMENT - The first month of 2009 was much friendlier for the River Rats, who posted their first above-0.500 month of the 2008-09 season. Albany went 8-6-0-0 in 14 games in January and posted 16 points moving out of the cellar into sixth place in the East Division. The Rats still remain 11 points behind Binghamton for the final playoff spot with 32 games remaining.

- MORE PHILLY NOTES - Albany's win in Philadelphia on Saturday snapped a four-game River Rats road losing streak. The third period comeback win was their fourth this season (4-16-0-1 when training after two periods). It was also their fifth win when allowing the first goal (5-15-0-2).

- MILESTONES - River Rats captain Tim Conboy played in his 300th career AHL game on Thursday at Norfolk; he has 54 points (16 goals, 38 assists) and 715 PIMs in 302 career AHL appearances. Left wing Joe Jensen played in his 100th career AHL game on Thursday in Norfolk, while defenseman Josef Melichar reached his 150th career AHL game on Friday at Norfolk and defenseman Mark Flood played in his 200th career Pro and 150th career AHL game on Saturday in Philadelphia. Center Mike Angelidis is one game away from his 150th career AHL game and right wing Pat Dwyer needs two games for his 250th career AHL game.

- FIRST LOSS? - Albany dropped their first game when scoring four or more goals on Thursday night in a 5-4 defeat in Norfolk; they are 9-1-0-0 this season in games where they have tallied 4+ goals. The River Rats are 10-6-3-2 this season in one-goal games (games decided by a one goal margin).

River Rats Recent Transactions

February 2 - DELETE Matt Auffrey (RW) - Released from PTO, returned to Florida (ECHL).

January 30 - ADD Matt Auffrey (RW) - Signed PTO, called up from Florida (ECHL).

January 29 - DELETE Bryan Rodney (D) - Recalled from loan by Carolina (NHL).

January 28 - DELETE Michael Ryan (LW) - Recalled from loan by Carolina (NHL).

Albany River Rats Team Leaders:

Games Played: Mike Angelidis, Nicolas Blanchard & Nick Dodge (48)

Goals: Michael Ryan (23)

Assists: Jakub Petruzalek (22)

Points: Michael Ryan (36)

Plus/Minus: Josef Melichar (+7)

Penalty Minutes: Trevor Gillies (125)

Power Play Goals: Michael Ryan (8)

Short Handed Goals: Pat Dwyer, Mark Flood & Dwight Helminen (1)

Game-Winning Goals: Michael Ryan (4)

Shots: Jerome Samson (127)

Shooting Percentage: Michael Ryan (21.9%)

Saves: Justin Peters (839)

Wins: Daniel Manzato (11)

GAA: Justin Peters (2.59)

Save Percentage: Justin Peters (0.919)

####

Albany just one game on the schedule this week, as they host the Portland Pirates on Saturday, February 7th for a 5:00 pm face off at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

River Rats flex ticket packages and individual game tickets are on sale now at the River Rats office and the Times Union Center Box Office. For more information please contact the Albany River Rats at (518) 487-2244 or online at www.albanyriverrats.com.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 2, 2009


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