Albany Devils Weekly

Published on March 22, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany Devils News Release


THE WEEK THAT WAS:

Wednesday, Devils 6 at Syracuse 1

The Devils erupted for five unanswered goals, skating away with a 6-1 victory against Syracuse at War Memorial at OnCenter. Chad Wiseman had a goal and two assists, while Adam Henrique and Steve Zalewski each had a goal and an assist. Stephen Gionta became the club ‚¬â„¢s all-time leading scorer with an assist for his 116th point in a Devils uniform. Henrique ‚¬â„¢s goal was his 22nd of the season ‚¬" the most ever by a Devils AHL rookie. The win was the fifth straight for the team, tying a franchise record for longest winning streak.

Friday, Devils 1 at Norfolk 4

A 4-1 setback to the Admirals halted the Devils push for a franchise-record six-straight victories. The Admirals jumped out to a pair of goals in the first nine minutes at Norfolk Scope Arena. Adam Henrique scored for the Devils while shorthanded ‚¬" the team ‚¬â„¢s 10th man-down tally ‚¬" at 1:05 of the second period. Tim Sestito and Olivier Magnan had the assists. Dave Caruso had 24 saves, while Cedrick Desjardins made 22 saves for the win. Norfolk received goals from Tim Marks, James Wright, Matt Fornataro and Stefano Giliati.

Saturday, Devils 6 at Norfolk 5 (Shootout)

A game filled with offensive outbursts was eventually won by goaltending as Mike McKenna, who had 40 saves, made all five saves during the shootout to lead the Devils to a 6-5 victory at Norfolk. Steve Zalewski scored the lone goal in the shootout. Albany carried a 3-0 lead into the first intermission and a 4-2 advantage into the second. Two quick goals by the Admirals made it 4-4 only 3:16 into the third. The Devils responded with a goal by Matt Anderson at 3:50, but Norfolk ‚¬â„¢s Vladimir Mihalik tied it at 7:34.

NOTABLES:

-- Albany has found success during the month of March, going 8-3-0-0 and outscoring opponents, 37-26. The Devils also tied a franchise record with five-consecutive wins between Mar. 9-16. The team ‚¬â„¢s five-game run matched a mark previously set during the 2008-09 season between Nov. 21-29, and during the 2009-10 season between Nov. 7-14.

-- Stephen Gionta became the Devils all-time leading AHL scorer with his 116th point during the Mar. 16 game at Syracuse. Gionta passed Patrick Davis, who previously set the record on Dec. 1, 2010. Gionta has played 300 games for the Devils, posting 50 goals and 67 assists.

-- Chad Wiseman continues to roll with six points (2g-4a) in three games this past week. In the last seven games, he has produced 12 points with eight goals and four assists. For the season, Wiseman registered 38 points with 14 goals and 24 assists in 40 games.

-- Mike McKenna extended his winning streak between the pipes to six games with a pair of wins this past week. He made 26 saves in a 6-1 win at Syracuse on Wednesday and stopped 40 shots ‚¬" not including all five in a shootout ‚¬" in a 6-5 victory at Norfolk on Saturday. During his last six outings, he has posted a 2.30 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage.

-- The NHL Devils signed Mike Hoeffel and Joe Sova to entry-level contracts on Saturday. Hoeffel just finished a four-year collegiate career at the University of Minnesota (WCHA). He totaled 87 points with 48 goals and 39 assists. Hoeffel represented Team USA at the 2009 World Junior Championships, while spending time with the United States Development Program in 2006-07. Sova joins the Devils after three seasons at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks (CCHA). He had 13 goals and 45 assists for 58 points and 132 penalty minutes in 115 appearances, finishing first in scoring among Nanooks ‚¬â„¢ defensemen each season (tie in 2008-09).

-- The Devils are tied for fourth in the AHL with 10 shorthanded tallies, which is a club record. Previously, the team posted four shorthanded goals in 2009-10, 4 in 2008-09 and 4 in 2006-07. Brad Mills is the Devils active leader with two man-down goals.

LEADERS FOR ALBANY:

Goals: Adam Henrique (23)

Assists: Matt Anderson (29)

Points: Matt Anderson (50)

PIM: Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (254)

+/-: Dan Kelly (+9)

Wins: Mike McKenna (14)

GAA: Jeff Frazee (2.70)

Save %: Jeff Frazee (.908)

NEXT UP:

Wednesday, Devils at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (7:05 p.m.)

The Penguins are the only team to clinch a playoff spot and they ‚¬â„¢ve done so with a 50-18-0-1 record (101 pts.). They have earned at least one point in six straight (5-0-0-1) and eight of their last 10 games (7-2-0-1). Brett Sterling ‚¬â„¢s 45 points are tied for the team lead with Pittsburgh-recall Dustin Jeffrey. Sterling has produced a team-best 23 goals to go along with 22 assists. He is a plus-14 in 57 games.

Friday, Devils at Syracuse (7:30 p.m.)

After back-to-back losses to the Devils on Sunday and Wednesday, the Crunch have won three-straight with wins against Toronto (1-0), against Charlotte (6-2) and at Hershey (5-2). The team is seventh in the East Division with a 27-35-3-4 mark (61 pts.), including a 7-3-0-0 record in its last 10 outings. Rookie Kyle Palmieri is the reigning Reebok/AHL Player of the Week after posting six goals and an assist in four games. For the season, he his second on the club with 38 points, including a team-best 20 goals.

Saturday, Devils at Hershey (7:00 p.m.)

The Bears are battling for playoff positioning as they are third in the Eastern Conference and second in the East Division with a 42-23-2-5 record (91 pts.). They are riding a two-game losing streak into the week and have gone 4-3-1-2 in their last 10 games. Brian Willsie is first on the team with 64 points and a plus-24 rating. In 71 games, he has 28 goals and 36 assists. He is tied for first for goals and second for assists.

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American Hockey League Stories from March 22, 2011


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