Sports stats

Falcons Weekly Preview

February 20, 2003 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Falcons News Release


THIS WEEK'S GAME CAPSULES

---FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2003 VS. WORCESTER ICECATS---

The Springfield Falcons will face the IceCats for the sixth time this year as they try to record their first win against Worcester this year after going 0-4-1-0 in the previous five contests. The IceCats won the last battle 1-0 at the Centrum in Worcester on January 15th, as goalie Curtis Sanford recorded the shutout. Sanford has shutout the Falcons in two of the last three games between these two teams and Sanford has a 0.32 goals against average and .988 save percentage in three games this season against Springfield.

Jason Bonsignore leads Springfield in scoring against Worcester with three goals and one assist in five games. Jeff Panzer leads the IceCats in scoring against the Falcons with one goal and four assists for five points in five games. Greenfield, MA native Chris Corrinet has played in seven games with the IceCats collecting one goal and four assists for five points and a +4 rating.

Worcester is currently 8th in the AHL in power play percentages, as they have scored on 18.1 % of their attempts. The IceCats are also 19th in the AHL in penalty killing, as they have killed 82.1 % of their shorthand situations. LW Sergei Varlamov leads Worcester with 30 assists and overall points with 49. He is also second on the team with 19 goals. RW Eric Nickulas, who scored the game winner against the Falcons on January 15th , scored another four goals in his next four games before being recalled by the St. Louis Blues.

---SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2003 VS. BRIDGEPORT SOUND TIGERS---

The Falcons will face Bridgeport for the fifth time this season. The Falcons are 0-4-0-0 against Bridgeport this season. The two teams met last week as the Sound Tigers defeated the Falcons 2-1on February 15th. Sound Tigers goalies have combined for a 2.00 GAA along with a .936 save percentage against the Falcons. Rick DiPietro, who is currently on recall to the N.Y. Islanders, is 2-0-0 with a 1.50 goals against average against Springfield. Goaltender Scott Stirling was the game's first star with 35 saves last Saturday in Bridgeport's 2-1 win over Springfield.

All-Star Trent Hunter leads Bridgeport in scoring with 19 goals and 23 assists for 42 points in 49 games played. Hunter is tied with teammate Eric Manlow for the Sound Tigers lead in assists with 23. Alan Letang leads Bridgeport in scoring against the Falcons with one goal and four assists for five points in four games played.

The Sound Tigers have outscored the Falcons 6-0 in the first period this season and they are 2nd in the AHL in penalty killing, killing 88.3% of their shorthand situations. Bridgeport is in first place in the East Division with a record of 28-18-9-2 good for 68 points, two points ahead if Binghamton. The Sound Tigers are 8-1-0-1 in their last 10 games.

---SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2003 AT PROVIDENCE BRUINS---

The Falcons will play the Bruins for the eighth time this season going 4-3-0-0 in the previous seven meetings. The home team has won every game in this season series, with Springfield posting a record of 4-0-0 against the Bruins at "The Nest."

Shane Willis leads the Falcons with three goals and three assists for six points in seven games against the Bruins this year. Matt Herr leads the Bruins in scoring against the Falcons with eight points (4g,4a) in seven games.

Providence leads the AHL with a home record of 22-3-4-1. The Bruins are led by Matt Herr who is 6th in the AHL in scoring with 26 goals and 31 assists for a combined 57 points in 55 games and he leads the AHL in game-winning goals with 11. Keith Aucoin is also 14th in the AHL in scoring with 53 points and he also leads Providence with 37 assists. Andrew Raycroft is tied for third in wins among all AHL goalies with 19.

Providence is 11th in the AHL in power play attempts, scoring on 16.9% of their opportunities. The Bruins are also 12th in the AHL in penalty killing attempts, killing 84.9% of their short hand situations.

PLAYER/TEAM NOTABLES:

Evgeny Konstantinov made 25 saves in a 3-1 victory over Albany on February 17th in his second straight start. Konstantinov has a 2.20 goals against average and .928 save percentage in his last five starts.

Jason Jaspers was the game's 2nd star on Monday, February 17th with two assists.

Rob Murray has played in the last three games and is now only four games shy of 1,000 for his AHL career.

TRANSACTIONS:

February 15, 2003 – Phoenix Coyotes recall goaltender Jean-Marc Pelletier from the Springfield Falcons.

February 15, 2003 –Springfield Falcons recall Colin Zulianello from Augusta of the East Coast Hockey League.

February 16, 2003 –Tampa Bay Lighting reassign forward Dimitry Afanasenkov to Switzerland.

NEXT THREE HOME GAMES:

Friday February 21, 2003 vs. Worcester 7:35 PM

Saturday February 22, 2003 vs. Bridgeport 7:35 PM

Friday February 28, 2003 vs. Hartford 7:35 PM

WEEK IN REVIEW (2-1-0-0):

FEBRUARY 14 Springfield-5 vs. Lowell-1

FEBRUARY 15 Springfield-1 vs. Bridgeport-2

FEBRUARY 17 Springfield-3 at Albany-1

THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE

FEBRUARY 21 Springfield vs. Worcester Springfield Civic Center 7:35PM

FEBRUARY 22 Springfield vs. Bridgeport Springfield Civic Center 7:35PM

FEBRUARY 23 Springfield at Providence Dunkin' Donuts Center 4:05PM



American Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2003


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.

Other Recent Springfield Falcons Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central