Falcons Blank Whale 2-0 - Move to Within 3 Points of Playoff Spot
Published on February 25, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Falcons News Release
The Springfield Falcons won their second straight game this weekend as they blanked the Connecticut Whale 2-0 in front of 5,003 at the MassMutual Center on Saturday night. Paul Dainton recorded his first AHL shutout stopping all 30 Connecticut shots, while Dane Byers and Maksim Mayorov scored for the Birds. The Falcons improved their record to 26-25-2-2 and moved to within three points of the 8th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
This was probably the most exciting game of the Falcons' 2011-12 season as both teams played a hard-fought contest that featured goals, great saves and some usual chippy play between these two great rivals.
The two teams exchanged power play chances in the first period and it was Byers who gave the Falcons a 1-0 lead at 12:15 of the opening frame when he tapped home a Mayorov rebound just at the end of a man advantage getting the home town fans into the game.
In the second period, Mayorov gave Springfield a 2-0 lead when he scored his sixth goal of the year at 5:10 of the middle frame.
Later in the second period, the game started to take a real physical tone as Matt Calvert ended up dropping the gloves with Jared Nightingale and Calvert scored the knockdown in his first fighting major of the season.
In the third period, Dainton continued to hold down the fort as Connecticut applied some pressure with multiple scoring chances, but the first year netminder kept his shutout throughout the frame.
In the game's final minute, bad blood between these two teams boiled over again as Greg Amadio and Andre Deveaux were in the middle of a huge scrum to conclude this heated contest.
The Falcons penalty killers were outstanding again tonight keeping the Whale 0-5 on the man advantage. The Falcons have won four of their last five home games and 5-1-1-0 in their last seven contests at The Nest. Dainton's shutout was the first by a Falcons goaltender this year.
The Falcons will now head to Portland, Maine for a 4 pm matinee against the Pirates on Sunday. Byers now has a team leading five goals against the Whale.
American Hockey League Stories from February 25, 2012
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- Markstrom Makes 40 Saves to Lead Rampage Past Rivermen, 2-1 - San Antonio Rampage
- Ads Fall to Rockford in Shoot-Out - Milwaukee Admirals
- Leighton Outduels McKenna in Wild Shootout Win - Adirondack Phantoms
- Checkers Fall in Shootout - Charlotte Checkers
- Sound Tigers Erase Three-Goal Deficit, Beat Bruins 5-4 - Bridgeport Islanders
- Falcons Blank Whale 2-0 - Move to Within 3 Points of Playoff Spot - Springfield Falcons
- Wolves Can't Take Heat in Front of 10,955 - Chicago Wolves
- Monarchs drop fifth straight home contest - Manchester Monarchs
- Wolves Can't Take Heat in Front of 10,955 at Allstate - Chicago Wolves
- 'Canes Reassign Mike Murphy to Charlotte - Charlotte Checkers
- Heat burns Wolves - Abbotsford Heat
- Whale defeated by Springfield - Connecticut Whale
- Phantoms Edge B-Sens in Shootout, 2-1 - Binghamton Senators
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- Crunch Edge Penguins 2-1 - Syracuse Crunch
- Devils on the Rise in the Eastern Conference - Albany Devils
- Defense Leads Griffins to Third Straight Win - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Panthers Return Matsumoto to Rampage - San Antonio Rampage
- Panthers Acquire Wojtek Wolski from Ny Rangers - San Antonio Rampage
- Edmonton Assigns Anton Lander to Oklahoma City - Oklahoma City Barons
- Hogs Open Weekend Homestand Tonight in Front of Sold out BMO - Rockford IceHogs
- Aeros Game Day, February 25: Aeros at Stars - Houston Aeros
- Rangers Acquire Third Round Pick in 2013, Defenseman Michael Vernace - Connecticut Whale
- Gameday Preview - Houston at Texas - Texas Stars
- Panthers Return Repik to Rampage - San Antonio Rampage
- Falcons Host Whale Tonight - Springfield Falcons
- Blue Jackets Assign Defenseman David Savard to AHL's Springfield Falcons - Springfield Falcons
- Heat at Wolves Game Preview - Abbotsford Heat
- Blake Parlett Reassigned to ECHL Greenville - Connecticut Whale
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