Albany Devils Weekly

Published on February 26, 2013 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany Devils News Release


FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THIS WEEK

After back-to-back wins last weekend, the Albany Devils will travel for three games in three days this weekend. They will face the Syracuse Crunch Friday at 7:30 pm, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Saturday at 7:05 pm and the Adirondack Phantoms Sunday at 3 pm. As of Tuesday, the Devils are four points behind the Hershey Bears for seventh and three points behind the Connecticut Whale for eighth in the Eastern Conference. The Devils have played three fewer games than the Bears and four fewer than the Whale.

The Devils scored a combined 11 goals during their wins at Binghamton (5-3) Saturday and against Hershey (6-4) Sunday. The offensive output was the most in consecutive games for Albany this season. Additionally, the team's six goals Sunday tied a season-high, which was also accomplished against Wilkes- Barre/Scranton on Dec. 12.

Albany is third in the Northeast Division and tied for 10th in the Eastern Conference at 22-19-1-9 (54 pts.), including a 13-9-1-3 road record. Syracuse is first in the East Division and first in the conference at 33-14-2-4 (72 pts.) with a 13-8-2-2 home mark. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is third in the East Division and sixth in the conference at 29-22-2-1 (61 pts.), including a 15-10-2-1 home showing. Adirondack is fifth in the Northeast Division and 15th in the conference at 21-27-2-1 (45 pts.) with a 12-13-0-1 home record.

Six Devils enter the weekend games with point streaks: Steve Zalewski (4gms, 3g-4a), Matt Anderson (3gms, 1g-5a), Phil DeSimone (3gms, 1g-5a), Mike Sislo (3gms, 4g-1a), Harri Pesonen (2gms, 2a), Joe Whitney (2gms, 4g).

DEVILS NOTABLES

- Twenty of the Devils 22 wins have come when scoring three or more goals. Albany is 20-4- 0-3 when scoring three or more times, 17-2-0-2 when scoring four-plus goals, 4-0-0-0 when registering five or more tallies and 2-0-0-0 when potting six goals.

- Steve Zalewski, who has three goals and four assists in the last four games, is tied for second on the team with 31 points. Zalewski has registered 10 goals and 21 assists in 49 contests.

- With four goals in the last two outings, Joe Whitney has surpassed his 2011-12 goal total of 15, which he accomplished in 72 games. This year, he has 16 goals and 15 assists in 41 games. He ranks tied for first for goals and tied for second for assists. Additionally, Whitney has a team-high plus-15 rating, which is tied for 16th in the AHL.

- In the last nine contests, Matt Anderson has produced four goals and nine assists. He leads the team for points (34) and assists (23) and is third for goals (11). He is two points away from reaching 200 career AHL points. In 324 games, he has totaled 74 goals and 124 assists for 198 points.

- Phil DeSimone has posted three goals and five assists in his last five outings. For the season, he has amassed six goals and seven assists for 13 points in 22 games.

- Mike Sislo has led all Devils goal scorers during the last three games with four tallies, including a pair against Hershey Sunday. For the season, Sislo is eighth among active Devils with 14 points, including six goals and eight assists.

- This past weekend, the defensive pairing of Eric Gelinas and Dan Kelly combined for a plus- 11 rating. Gelinas was a plus-2 Saturday and a career-high plus-4 Sunday, while Kelly was a plus-1 and a career-best plus-4.

- Jean-Sebastien Berube and Kelly Zajac have rejoined Albany after playing three games this past weekend with Trenton. Berube registered two goals, an assist and a plus-4 rating. Zajac posted two goals and five helpers.

- New Jersey prospect and current Sarnia (OHL) left-winger Reid Boucher is a goal away from tying Steven Stamkos' team record of 58 goals. Sarnia's next game is Friday when the Sting visits the London Knights.

Albany's roster has been impacted by several transactions early in the week. On Monday, New Jersey returned Jacob Josefson on loan to Albany and reassigned Jean-Sebastien Berube to Albany from Trenton (ECHL). Additionally, Albany recalled Kelly Zajac from Trenton. On Tuesday, New Jersey recalled Keith Kinkaid from Albany.

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Sat., Feb. 23: Albany 5 at Binghamton 3 (Broome County Veterans Memorial)

Teams 1 2 3 F

Albany 1 3 1 5

Binghamton 2 1 0 3

Three second period tallies helped the Devils erase a two-goal deficit to defeat the Senators, 5-3, Saturday at Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena. Joe Whitney led the way with a pair of goals and Jeff Frazee made 36 saves.

Trailing 3-1 after the first 21:12, the Devils strung together four straight tallies, starting with Steve Zalewski from Dan Kelly at 5:52. Mike Sislo followed with a redirect off a Harri Pesonen pass at 10:41. Before the end of the period, Whitney was fed in the slot by Zalewski at 19:37 to give the Devils the advantage. Phil DeSimone moved the score to 5-3 with the help of Raman Hrabarenka and Sislo at 10:15 of the third.

Whitney opened the scoring for the Devils at 5:44 in response to the Senators first goal by Mark Borowiecki at 4:51. The Senators other tallies came off the sticks of Jean-Gabriel Pageau at 10:45 of the first and Shane Prince at 1:12 of the second.

1st Period-1, Binghamton, Borowiecki 3 4:51 (PP). 2, Albany, Whitney 13 (Anderson, DeSimone), 5:44. 3, Binghamton, Pageau 4 (Wideman, Lebda), 10:45 (PP).

2nd Period-4, Binghamton, Prince 11 (Da Costa), 1:12. 5, Albany, Zalewski 10 (Kelly), 5:52. 6, Albany, Sislo 4 (Pesonen), 10:41. 7, Albany, Whitney 14 (Zalewski, Anderson), 19:37 (PP).

3rd Period-8, Albany, DeSimone 6 (Hrabarenka, Sislo), 10:15.

Shots on Goal-Albany 10-20-5-35. Binghamton 10-12-17-39.

Power Play Opportunities-Albany 1 / 4; Binghamton 2 / 7.

Goalies-Albany, Frazee 5-9-4 (39 shots-36 saves). Binghamton, Cheverie 2-3-0 (35 shots-30 saves).

Sun., Feb. 24: Albany 6 vs. Hershey 4 (Boardwalk Hall)

Teams 1 2 3 F

Herhsey 0 2 2 4

Albany 2 2 2 6

Five Devils registered multiple point games, including Matt Anderson and Phil DeSimone, who each had three points, in a 6-4 victory against the Hershey Bears Sunday at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall. Anderson posted a goal and two assists, while DeSimone registered a season-high three helpers.

Mike Sislo and Joe Whitney both chipped in two goals and Steve Zalewski had a pair of assists. Mike Hoeffel was Albany's other goal scorer and Keith Kinkaid made 22 saves. Albany jumped out to a three-goal lead with first period tallies from Hoeffel at 9:55 and Whitney at 12:54. Sislo began the second with a breakaway goal only nine seconds into the period. The Bears answered with Ryan Potulny's power-play tally 44 seconds later and Casey Wellman's goal at 6:43. Before the intermission, Whitney struck again this time on the power-play at 18:41.

In the third, Sislo extended Albany's lead to 5-2 at 3:35 before Wellman pulled the Bears back within two at 4:35. Hershey's Ryan Stoa made the score 5-4 with a man-advantage tally at 7:24. Anderson sealed the win for the Devils at 13:07 of the third.

1st Period-1, Albany, Hoeffel 3 (Zajac), 9:55. 2, Albany, Whitney 15 (DeSimone, Anderson), 12:54.

2nd Period-3, Albany, Sislo 5 (McPherson, Zalewski), 0:09. 4, Hershey, Potulny 10 (DiSalvatore, McNeill), 0:53 (PP). 5, Hershey, Wellman 9 (LeBlanc), 6:43. 6, Albany, Whitney 16 (DeSimone, Anderson), 18:41 (PP).

3rd Period-7, Albany, Sislo 6 (Zalewski, Pesonen), 3:35. 8, Hershey, Wellman 10 (Kane, Potulny), 4:35. 9, Hershey, Stoa 10 (Wellman, Taffe), 7:24 (PP). 10, Albany, Anderson 11 (Gelinas, DeSimone), 13:07.

Shots on Goal-Hershey 6-6-14-26. Albany 8-11-11-30.

Power Play Opportunities-Hershey 2 / 5; Albany 1 / 2.

Goalies-Hershey, Grubauer 6-4-1 (30 shots-24 saves). Albany, Kinkaid 17-11-5 (26 shots-22 saves).

Current Streaks

Steve Zalewski - 4 game point streak (3g-4a)

Matt Anderson - 3 game point streak (1g-5a)

Phil DeSimone - 3 game point streak (1g-5a)

Mike Sislo - 3 game goal & point streak (4g-1a)

Harri Pesonen - 2 game point streak (2a)

Joe Whitney - 2 game goal streak (4g)

Upcoming Milestones

Matt Anderson - 2 away from 200 career AHL points

Brandon Burlon - 8 away from 100 career AHL games

Phil DeSimone - 2 away from 100 career AHL games

Jeff Frazee - 1 away from 10 career AHL shutouts

Mike Hoeffel - 7 away from 100 career AHL games

Jay Leach - 22 away from 500 career AHL games

Chris McKelvie - 8 away from 100 career AHL games

Mike Sislo - 2 away from 100 career AHL games

Chad Wiseman - 7 away from 600 career AHL games

Recent Milestones

Eric Gelinas - 100th career AHL game; at CT (Feb. 5)

Joe Whitney - 100th career AHL game; vs. ADK (Jan. 20)

THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS

Fri., Mar. 1 at Syracuse Crunch (War Memorial at OnCenter)

The Crunch have won seven consecutive games, including four last week. They posted a 5-3 win at Albany Monday, a 4-3 shootout victory against Toronto Wednesday, a 3-0 win against Springfield Saturday and a 4-0 victory against Connecticut Sunday. Syracuse is 8-2-0-0 in its last 10 contests.

Tyler Johnson, who is a plus-23, leads the Crunch with 51 points, backed by 28 goals and 23 assists, while Bret Connolly is second with 48 points, including 22 goals and 26 assists. Mark Barberio leads all Syracuse defensemen with 35 points with eight goals and 27 helpers.

Cedrick Desjardins, who was acquired by Tampa Bay from Montreal on Feb. 14, has played 25 AHL games this season, posting a 10-13-2 record with a 2.70 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. While with the Crunch, he is 3-0-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .963 save percentage.

Sat., Mar. 2 at WBS Penguins (Mohegan Sun Arena)

The Penguins are on a three game winning streak thanks to a 2-1 victory at Adirondack Friday, a 2-1 overtime win against Connecticut Saturday and a 2-1 shootout victory at Bridgeport Sunday. Wilkes-Barre/ Scranton is 6-4-0-0 in its last 10 outings.

Chad Kolarik, who was acquired by Pittsburgh from New York on Feb. 24, has totaled 44 points (20g-24a) in the AHL this year. In 14 games with Wilkes-Barre/ Scranton, he has amassed four goals and five assists for nine points. Trevor Smith and Riley Holzapfel are behind him with 35 and 33 points respectively. Smith has 16 goals and 19 helpers, while Holzapfel has 16 goals and 17 assists. Brian Dumoulin leads the defenseman with four goals and 13 assists for 17 points.

Jeff Zatkoff and Brad Thiessen have shared the load in goal. Zatkoff is 17-15-0 with a 1.98 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage. Thiessen is 12-9-1 with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage.

Sun., Mar. 3 at Adirondack Phantoms (Glens Falls Civic Center)

Sunday's game will be the 10th installment of the Time Warner Cable Cup, best-of-12 series between these Northway Rivals. Albany has clinched the Cup already with a 6-2-0-1 record. The Phantoms are coming off a 1-2-0-0 record last week. They lost, 2-1, against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Friday and, 3-0, at Hershey Saturday. They won, 2-1, against Binghamton Sunday. Adirondack is 4-6-0-0 in its last 10.

Jason Akeson is the Phantoms active leader with 27 points, including seven goals and 20 assists. Defenseman Danny Syvret is next with 26 points, backed by four goals and 22 assists.

Cal Heeter and Scott Munroe are the Phantoms two active netminders. Heeter is 8-12-1 with a 2.79 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage, while Munroe is 11- 13-0 with a 2.59 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 26, 2013


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