Early Goals Lead River Rats To 3-2 Win

Published on March 22, 2008 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany River Rats News Release


WORCESTER, MA - Marc Cavosie had a goal and an assist and Justin Peters made 21 saves as the Albany River Rats won their third straight game, beating the Worcester Sharks 3-2 Saturday night at the DCU Center.

Fresh off their 3-0 shutout in Wilkes-Barre on Friday night, the River Rats were looking to jump ahead early against a Worcester team that was desperate for points to keep their playoff hopes alive. Albany did just that in the first five minutes of the game as Pat Dwyer took a pass from Marc Cavosie in the slot and blasted a slap shot up into the top left corner of the net for a power play goal at 4:48. It only took Albany 43 seconds after the start of the power play for Dwyer to cash in with his 13th goal of the season, with the assists going to Cavosie and Steve Ward. Play went back and forth through the period until the final minute where Dwyer was again involved in the offense. Kiel McLeod sent Dwyer and Cavosie off on a two-on-one rush and with 0.9 seconds remaining in the period, Cavosie took Dwyer's perfect feed and lifted the puck over goaltender Thomas Greiss for a 2-0 lead at 19:59.

Worcester struck back in the second period, capitalizing on the River Rats failure to clear the puck. Two defensemen fanned on the puck above the crease and goaltender Justin Peters' poke check went directly to Sharks forward Dennis Packard, who cranked a one-timer into the top of the net at 7:24, cutting Albany's lead in half. But the River Rats answered later in the period, as Jakub Petruzalek followed up a rebound from a Casey Borer shot, driving the puck into the net at 14:52 to grab a 3-1 lead.

The River Rats looked very comfortable in the first ten minutes of the third period, defending their two goal lead. That comfort level evaporated at 12:12 when Ashton Rome poked in a loose puck to cut the Albany lead to one. Worcester pulled Greiss for the final 90 seconds, but the River Rats held strong for a 3-2 win, taking the four-game season series (3-1-0-0).

Justin Peters stopped 21-of-23 shots to record his sixth win of the season for Albany, helping the River Rats improve to 40-26-2-4 and within two points of first place Philadelphia in the East Division standings. Thomas Greiss blocked 24-of-27 shots in goal for Worcester, who fell to 27-31-5-6 on the year. Albany was 1-for-3 on the power play, while the Sharks were 0-for-2 on the man advantage.

The River Rats continue their stretch of road games next Friday, March 28th as they roll west on I-90 to face their intrastate rival Syracuse Crunch at 7:30 pm at the War Memorial at Oncenter. Albany's next home game is on Wednesday, April 9th against the Norfolk Admirals; a 7:00 pm face off at the Times Union Center.

River Rats playoff ticket packages for the 2008 Calder Cup Playoffs are on sale now, with special pricing available for children and seniors. For more information please contact the Albany River Rats at (518) 487-2244 or online at www.albanyriverrats.com.

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from March 22, 2008


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.

OurSports Central