Falcons Host Norfolk Wednesday in First of Three at Nest this Week
February 22, 2005 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Falcons News Release
Springfield, Mass. â In the first Springfield meeting between the clubs this season, the Falcons host the Norfolk Admirals at the Civic Center on Wednesday evening. Game time is 7:05 p.m. The contest is the first of two match-ups against Norfolk this week as the team's will face-off again at The Nest on Saturday. As previously announced, the start time of Saturday's game has been moved back to a 7:35 p.m. Springfield will also host the Lowell Lock Monsters on Friday.
The Admirals, who are the top affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks, currently share third place in the AHL's East Division. The two games this week will complete the season series between the clubs. Norfolk claimed a pair of two-goal wins when the Falcons visited the team on Jan. 28 and 29.
The Lock Monsters - the third-place team in the Atlantic Division â has three of the top 15 scorers in the AHL in linemates C Eric Staal, RW Chuck Kobasew, and LW Colin Forbes. All three linemates are among the top five in the AHL in plus/minus. Friday marks the sixth of ten meetings between the teams.
Team Notes: Falcons D Brian Chapman played in his 1,200th pro game on Sunday against the Providence Bruins.... C Craig Darby played in his 600th AHL game on Sunday.... G Brian Eklund stopped all four shootout attempts by the Portland Pirates in the Falcons' 3-2 win on Friday. Eklund has stopped 15 of 16 shootout attempts this season. His .938 shootout percentage is the best among AHL goaltenders that have faced more than five shootout tries.... The Falcons are 4-3 in shootouts this season.... Saturday's crowd of 5,643 to see the Falcons play Hartford Wolf Pack was the team's largest at the Springfield Civic Center since March 29, 2003 when 6,487 witnessed a 2-2 tie with the Albany River Rats.
Roster Update: The Falcons signed LW Mike Bayrack to a professional tryout agreement on Thursday. Bayrack, 26, led the Danbury Trashers of the United Hockey League (UHL) with 29 goals among 57 points at the time of his joining the Falcons.... C Jason Jaspers has missed the last 11 games and 13 of the last 14 contests with an injury.... An injury has kept Falcons leading scorer RW Shane Willis out of the lineup for the last four games.... RW Darren Reid missed three games last week with an injury suffered in practice.... LW Derek Bekar missed Sunday's game after being injured on Saturday versus Hartford.... LW Steve McLaren sat out three games last week with the flu.... D Mike Egener received a two-game suspension from the AHL for accumulation of instigator penalties after being issued one on Saturday against Hartford. He will complete the suspension by sitting out Wednesday's game.
Upcoming Opponents:
Falcons vs. Norfolk Admirals
Springfield Civic Center
Wednesday, Feb. 23
Saturday, Feb. 26
The Falcons host the Norfolk (30-19-1-4, 65 pts) in the Admirals' two Civic Center appearances of the season this week.... The Falcons are winless in two games versus Norfolk after dropping back-to-back match-ups on Jan. 28 and
29.... The Falcons are 4-6-0-0 all-time against Norfolk.... The Admirals are 4-3-0-0 since last meeting the Falcons in Virginia.... Wednesday's game is the third contest of a 10-game road trip for the Admirals.... Rookie left wing Rene Bourque won the CCM Vector Hardest Shot competition at the AHL All-Star Classic in Manchester on Feb. 13 with a blast of 99.8 mph.... Bourque leads the Admirals and is tied for second among AHL rookies in both goals (22) and points (40).... Norfolk goaltender Michael Leighton ranks eighth in the league with a goals against average of 2.10 this season.... LW Matt Ellison has paced the Admirals over the last 10 games with 11 points (3g, 8a) and a +8 in plus/minus.... The Admirals carry a 6-4-0-2 record versus Atlantic Division teams this season which includes a 2-0 win over the Hartford Wolf Pack on Sunday.... Norfolk is tied for second in the AHL in penalty killing (88.7%).... The Admirals have outshot opponents, 1797-1415, this season. The team has allowed the fewest shots against in the AHL.
Falcons vs. Lowell Lock Monsters
Springfield Civic Center
Friday, Feb. 25
The Falcons take on the Lock Monsters (30-16-1-5, 66 pts) at The Nest on Friday.... The Falcons are 1-4-0-0 versus Lowell this season and 20-25-4 in the all-time series.... Falcons C Ryan Craig has scored four goals in five contests against the Lock Monsters this season.... Staal, the second overall selection in the 2003 NHL Draft, has recorded 10 points (2g, 8a) versus Springfield this season.... Lowell had a six-game winning streak against the Eastern Conference-leading Manchester Monarchs snapped with a 2-1 shootout loss on Sunday.... Goaltender Cam Ward leads the AHL with a .936 save percentage.... Ward is 2-1-1, with a 1.30 goals against average and .961 save percentage over his last five appearances.... Lowell has scored 12 shorthanded goals, including four by Staal, this season to rank third in the AHL.... The Lock Monsters have scored an average of 3.13 goals per game this season â tied for fourth best in the league..... Lowell is 5-5 in shootouts this season.... The Lock Monsters are 20-1-0-1 when leading after the second period this campaign.... The Monsters are 1-3-0-0 over their last four road games.
Upcoming Promotions:
Team Poster Night and Post-Game Autograph Session â Saturday, Feb. 26: Fans in attendance at Saturday's contest versus Norfolk will receive a free team poster. Falcons players will sign autographs after the game.
Radio Broadcasts: Tune into The ZONE â Sports Radio 640 to hear each Falcons' game this week. The Voice of the Falcons, Marc Shelanski, calls the action. The pre-game show begins 30 minutes prior to the opening face-off. Fans can also listen via the Internet by clicking on the MassLive.com Cybercast icon on the Falcons' official web site, www.falconsahl.com.
Tickets: Tickets for all Falcons' home games can be ordered in person or by phone through the Springfield Civic Center box office located along East Court Street. To order by phone, please call (413) 787-6600 or (800) 639-8602. Tickets can also be ordered online by visiting the Falcons' official web site, www.falconsahl.com. Groups of 15 or more can receive discount savings by contacting the Falcons' team office at (413) 739-3344. Group tickets must be ordered in advance.
This Weekend's Game Schedule:
Wed., Feb. 23 Falcons vs. Norfolk Admirals 7:05 PM Springfield Civic Center The ZONE
Fri., Feb. 25 Falcons vs. Lowell Lock Monsters 7:35 PM Springfield Civic Center The ZONE
Sat., Feb. 26 Falcons vs. Norfolk Admirals 7:35 PM Springfield Civic Center The ZONE
American Hockey League Stories from February 22, 2005
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