Falcons Host the Whale Tonight
Published on December 3, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Falcons News Release
The Springfield Falcons and Connecticut Whale meet for the fourth time this season when they battle on Saturday night at the MassMutual Center. The Falcons are 0-3 against the Whale this season with two of three games decided by one goal or less. These two divisional rivals met last Saturday night at The Nest with Connecticut scoring twice in the third period to skate away with a 3-2 win.
The Falcons enter tonight's contest having gone 0-3-1-0 in their last four games after earning a point on the road last night dropping a 4-3 decision in overtime at Worcester. Wade MacLeod, Cam Atkinson and Ryan Russell scored for the Falcons last night, while goaltender Manny Legace was once again solid stopping 36 of 40 shots on goal. Springfield currently has a record of 10-10-1-0 good for 21 points and fifth place in a very competitive Northeast Division. The Falcons will continue their weekend on Sunday as they host the Portland Pirates at the MassMutual Center starting at 3 pm.
Connecticut enters tonight's contest having won three straight games after beating the Providence Bruins 4-1 Friday night in Providence, RI. The Whale received goals from Tommy Grant, Kris Newbury, Scott Tanski and Mats Zuccarello in the win, while goaltender Chad Johnson was steady stopping 28 of 29 shots on goal. The Whale remain in first place in the Northeast Division with a record of 13-5-1-2 good for 29 points. Connecticut has won six of their last seven contests and they will conclude their weekend on home ice on Sunday against the Binghamton Senators.
FALCONS PLAYER NOTES
Falcons center Martin St. Pierre returned to the Falcons lineup Friday after missing two games due to injury. St. Pierre collected one assist last night and he is now 9th in the AHL in scoring with five goals and 17 assists for 22 points in 19 games. St. Pierre is 5th in the league in assists this year.
Maksim Mayorov also returned to Springfield's lineup Friday after missing nine games due to injury.
Cam Atkinson has taken over the team lead in goals with 10 on the season. He currently ranks 13th in the AHL in goals this year. Atkinson is 7th in the AHL in rookie scoring with 10 goals and six assists for 16 points in 19 games. Atkinson has collected at least a point in 10 of his last 12 games posting nine goals and four assists for 13 points in that span.
The Falcons announced a few roster moves this week heading into the weekend. The Columbus Blue Jackets assigned goaltender Allen York to the Falcons on Sunday. Springfield in turn released goaltender Danny Taylor from his PTO contract on Tuesday. The Columbus Blue Jackets also reassigned forward Oliver Gabriel to Portland of the Western Hockey League.
WHALE TEAM NOTES
Jonathan Audy-Marchessault leads Connecticut in scoring in the season series against Springfield with two goals and four assists for six points in three games played. He is also 5th in the league in rookie scoring with seven goals and 12 assists for 19 points in 21 games. He is currently on a five-game scoring streak collecting two goals and five assists in that span.
Kris Newbury returned to the Whale lineup last night after serving a four-game AHL suspension and he tallied his sixth goal of the year. Andre Deveaux also returned to Connecticut's lineup after missing 11 games due to a recall to the NY Rangers.
Pavel Valentenko has two goals in his last three games. Mats Zuccarello has goals in back-to-back games entering tonight. Jordan Owens has four assists in his last two games.
American Hockey League Stories from December 3, 2011
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- Griffins Claim Third Straight Win, 5-4 in OT Over Chicago - Grand Rapids Griffins
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- Rampage Edge Barons, 2-1 - San Antonio Rampage
- Crunch Dominate Penguins for 5-2 Win - Syracuse Crunch
- Sharks Slip Past B-Sens, 2-1 - Binghamton Senators
- Falcons Fall Short to Whale - Springfield Falcons
- Poulin Backstops Sound Tigers to 3-1 Win Over Devils - Bridgeport Islanders
- Whale Win Big on the Road - Connecticut Whale
- Stars End Checkers' Streak - Charlotte Checkers
- Ads Take 3-2 Win Over Peoria - Milwaukee Admirals
- Johnson's Buzzer-Beater Beats Phantoms - Norfolk Admirals
- Bears Rout Pirates for Second Consecutive Win - Hershey Bears
- Late Norfolk Comeback Ends Phantoms Win Streak - Adirondack Phantoms
- Bulldogs Sneak Past Amerks for 3-2 Win - Rochester Americans
- Recap: Crunch Top Penguins, 5-2 - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Mancari's Hat Trick Not Enough as Wolves Fall 5-4 in Overtime - Chicago Wolves
- Devils Split with Sound Tigers - Albany Devils
- Bulldogs Snap Winless Streak with 3-2 Win Over Americans - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Balanced Scoring Helps Stars Double up Checkers 4-2 - Texas Stars
- Sharks Score Late, Sexsmith Holds On - Worcester Sharks
- P-Bruins Earn Point in Shootout - Providence Bruins
- Pirates Clawed by Bears - Portland Pirates
- Marlies Blank Aeros 4-0 - Houston Aeros
- Wolves Send Friesen and Testwuide to Missouri - Chicago Wolves
- Mueller Recalled by Nashville - Milwaukee Admirals
- J.F. Jacques Recalled to Anaheim - Syracuse Crunch
- Aeros Broadcast Alert - Houston Aeros
- Brett Sterling and Cade Fairchild Return to Rivermen - Peoria Rivermen
- Barons Game Notes - December 3 - Oklahoma City Barons
- Gameday Preview - Texas Stars at Charlotte Checkers - Texas Stars
- Admirals Recall Forward Philip-Michael Devos from ECHL's Florida Everblades - Norfolk Admirals
- Falcons Host the Whale Tonight - Springfield Falcons
- Tickets for AHL Outdoor Classic on Sale Now - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Red Wings Assign Brunnstrom to Grand Rapids - Grand Rapids Griffins
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