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Albany Devils Weekly

December 11, 2012 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany Devils News Release


FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THIS WEEK

The Albany Devils will play three games in four days, beginning with a Wednesday contest against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at Times Union Center.

Albany then travels Friday to take on the Connecticut Whale at XL Center and returns home Saturday for an outing against the Providence Bruins. All three games are slated for 7 pm. The Devils are fifth in the Northeast Division and 15th in the Eastern Conference with a 7-8-0-5 record (19 pts.). The team is 3-5-0-3 at home and 4-3-0-2 on the road.

The Devils have won three consecutive games for the first time since a stretch between Feb. 10 and Feb. 12, 2012. During their latest run, Albany has allowed just three goals, while scoring seven.

Albany will try and maintain its success against divisional opponents when they travel to Connecticut Friday. The Devils are 5-2-0-1 against Northeast rivals.

The Penguins are tied for second in the East Division and tied for fourth in the conference with a 13-7-1-1 mark (28 pts.), including a 5-4-0-0 road record. The Whale are third in the Northeast Division and 12th in the conference with a 10- 11-2-0 showing (22 pts.), including a 4-6-1-0 home mark. The Bruins are second in the Atlantic Division and sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 13-5-1-1 record (26 pts.), including a 6-4-0-0 road record.

Saturday's game will feature the annual "Teddy Bear Toss." Fans are encouraged to bring new or slightly used Teddy Bears or stuffed animals to the game. An announcement will be made and fans can throw the stuffed animals onto the ice. They will be collected and distributed to the Albany Boys and Girls Club and the Albany Police Athletic League (P.A.L.).

DEVILS NOTABLES

- The Devils are 7-3-0-3 when scoring first, 5-2-0-1 when leading after the first period and 6-0-0-1 when leading after the second.

- Albany ranks sixth in the AHL with a 2.65 goals-against average.

- Keith Kinkaid allowed just one goal in a pair of wins this past weekend. He came within 2:07 of a shutout Saturday against Bridgeport and followed with a 30-save shutout performance at Connecticut Sunday. Like the team, he is on a three game winning streak, posting a 1.00 goals-against average and a .970 save percentage. For the season, Kinkaid is 4-5-3 and ranks eighth in the AHL with a 2.30 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage.

- Jeff Frazee, who is 3-3-2, is sixth in the AHL with a 2.22 goals-against average. He is first all-time for the AHL Devils with a 2.70 career goals-against average.

- After posting two goals and an assist this weekend, Joe Whitney is now third on the team with 10 points, including four goals and six assists. He is on a three game scoring streak with three goals and an assist. In the last 12 games, he has posted four goals and five assists.

- Bobby Butler is on a three game point streak, posting a goal and two assists. Additionally, he is a plus-3 during that span. On the year, he is tied for fifth on the club with eight points with four goals and four assists. He is tied with Jacob Josefson for first with two power-play goals.

- Adam Larsson has seven points in the last 10 games, producing two goals and five assists. He ranks second on the team with 11 points, including a team-best nine assists.

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Sat., Dec. 8; Bridgeport Sound Tigers 1 at Albany 3 (Times Union Center)

Joe Whitney, Bobby Butler and Chad Wiseman each scored as the Albany Devils knocked off the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, 3-1, Saturday at Times Union Center. Goaltender Keith Kinkaid earned his third win of the season by turning aside 22 shots. His shutout bid was spoiled with just 2:07 remaining when Bridgeport's Nino Niederreiter found an opening.

Albany led for the majority of the game. Whitney scored at 12:37 of the first and Butler and Wiseman followed with second period tallies at 4:42 and 11:31.

Albany out shot Bridgeport, 25-23, and went 1-for-5 on the power play. The Sound Tigers man-advantage unit was stymied, 0-for-4.

Sun., Dec. 9; Albany 1 at Connecticut 0 (Times Union Center)

Joe Whitney's second period tally was all the Albany Devils needed to earn their third consecutive victory. Keith Kinkaid stopped 30 shots as the Devils defeated the Connecticut Whale, 1-0, Sunday at XL Center.

Kinkaid was perfect in his second shutout of the season and fifth of his two-year career. He made 12 stops in the first, six in the second and 12 in the third to improve to 4-5-3.

Offensively, Whitney registered his third goal in as many games when he worked a 2-on-1 with Bobby Butler. Whitney looked off a defender and then sent a wrister far side from the left face-off dot at 6:48 of the second period.

1st Period- No Scoring.

2nd Period-1, Albany, Whitney 4 (Butler), 6:48.

3rd Period- No Scoring.

Shots on Goal-Albany 6-15-6-27. Connecticut 12-6-12-30.

Power Play Opportunities-Albany 0 / 3; Connecticut 0 / 4.

Goalies-Albany, Kinkaid 4-5-3 (30 shots-30 saves). Connecticut, Talbot 8-8-0 (27 shots-26 saves).

THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS

Wed., Dec. 12 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (Times Union Center)

The Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins went 0-0-1-1 during their two games last weekend, losing 5-4 in overtime against the Hershey Bears Friday and 4-3 in a shootout against the Portland Pirates Saturday. The Penguins have at least one point in seven straight outings, going 5-0-1-1.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is led by rookie Beau Bennett with 19 points on five goals and a team-leading 14 assists. Eric Tangradi is the leading goal scorer with 10 goals, including six power-play tallies.

The Penguins have relied on Brad Thiessen and Jeff Zatkoff in net this season. In his third full season, Thiessen is 3-2-1 with a 3.17 goals-against average and a .899 save percentage. Zatkoff is 10-6-0 with a 2.00 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage. His 10 wins ranks tied for second in the league.

Fri., Dec. 14 at Connecticut Whale (XL Center)

Connecticut went 1-2-0-0 last week with a 4-2 win against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Wednesday, at 9-2 setback at the Manchester Monarchs Saturday and a 1-0 loss against the Devils Sunday. The Whale are 1-4-0-1 in their last six contests.

The Whale are led by Kris Newbury with 21 points, including seven goals and 14 assists. Chad Kolarik leads the squad with eight goals and he is second with 17 points.

Between the pipes, Cam Talbot is 8-8-0 with a 2.85 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage.

Sat., Dec. 15 vs. Providence Bruins (Times Union Center)

The Providence Bruins are on a three game winning streak. They claimed a 3-2 win against the Manchester Monarchs Friday, a 3-2 shootout victory at the Worcester Sharks Saturday and a 3-2 overtime win against the Adirondack Phantoms Sunday.

The Bruins are led by Chris Bourque and Ryan Spooner. Bourque has 18 points with two goals and a team leading 16 assists, while Spooner has 15 points with 5 goals and 10 assists.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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