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Falcons Drop 5-3 Decision to Pirates

January 2, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Falcons News Release


Portland, Maine - The Springfield Falcons opened 2015 with a 5-3 loss to the Portland Pirates tonight at the Cross Insurance Arena.

The loss moves the Falcons to 22-10-2-0 on the season, but keeps the team on top of the Northeast Division with 46 points. The Pirates continue on a three-game winning streak, advancing to 18-15-1-0 and taking a 1-0-0-0 lead in the four-game season series against the Falcons.

Falcons goaltender Anton Forsberg turned away 27 of 32 shots, while moving to 15-4-0. Pirates goaltender Mike McKenna stopped 23 of 26 shots in victory. Springfield was able to notch two goals on five power play opportunities, while shutting down seven of a season-high nine opponent man-advantages.

The Pirates came out strong and built up a three goal lead over the Falcons in the first period. With Mike Hoeffel in the box for interference, Alexandre Bolduc opened scoring for Portland with a power-play tally halfway through the frame. Justin Hodgman and Henrik Samuelsson earned credit for the helpers.

The Pirates extended their lead with two goals in 18 seconds. Corey Trivino won the face-off in the right circle and passed out to Eric Selleck. A feed to Dylan Reese set him up to backhand a shot past Forsberg from the slot. Jordan Martinook gave Portland a 3-0 lead to close out the opening period. Assists went to Reese and Samuelsson.

The Falcons rallied during the second twenty minutes to come within one, but the Pirates were able to pull away and close out the second period with a 4-2 lead. While killing off a high-sticking penalty on Thomas Larkin, Frederic St. Denis found an opening in the slot. He let off a shot that was stopped by McKenna, but pushed across the goal line by Lukas Sedlak to get the Falcons on the board at the 2:08 mark. Hoeffel picked up a point for the secondary assist.

Springfield continued its comeback attempt ten minutes later. While on a 5-on-3 power play, St. Denis fired a shot from the left point to cut the Pirates' lead to one. Austin Madaisky and T.J. Tynan earned points for assisting on St. Denis's second goal of the season.

Despite the Falcons' momentum, the Pirates responded and took back a two-goal lead with Jordan Szwarz lighting the lamp at the 14:05 mark. Hodgman and Lucas Lessio recorded points for the assists.

One power-play goal each by both the Pirates and the Falcons in the third period secured a 5-3 victory for Portland. Just 4:54 into the final frame, Lessio fired off a shot that slipped under Forsberg's pads and took back a three-goal lead. Hodgman earned his third assist of the game, while Jordon Southorn grabbed the secondary assist.

The Falcons tried to initiate a comeback when Madaisky blasted a shot from the right point that was tipped past McKenna by Dana Tyrell at the 6:13 mark, but the Falcons fell short. Luke Adam registered a point for the secondary assist.

The Springfield Falcons return to the MassMutual Center host the Worcester Sharks for "Social Media Night" on Jan. 3 at 7 p.m.

Ticket packages are on sale now. To reserve your seats, call (413) 739-GOAL (4625) or visit the team office inside the MassMutual Center Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For all the latest Falcons information and updates, follow the back-to-back Northeast Division Champions at www.falconsahl.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/falconsahl and on Twitter (@TheFalconsAHL) using #SPRFalcons!



American Hockey League Stories from January 2, 2015


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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