Sports stats



Flames Lose 5-4 In Rochester

October 24, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Abbotsford Heat News Release


In their only visit to Rochester during the 2008-09 regular season, the Amerks handed the Flames a 5-4 defeat. After a scoreless first period, the teams combined for four goals in the second and a quartet of tallies in the third. In the loss, Adam Cracknell, David Van der Gulik, Kris Chucko and Dan Spang scored for Quad City.

The teams skated scoreless through the first period thanks to excellent penalty killing and goaltending. The first great save of the game came during a Flames power play when Rochester's Janis Sprukts broke in for a breakaway. Leland Irving came up big as he denied Sprukts to keep the game scoreless. The Flames went 0-2 on the power play in the early part of the opening frame before Rochester failed to convert on three straight man advantages including 50 seconds of 5-on-3 time.

The teams traded goals in an exciting second period. The action began at 7:55 of the frame when Adam Cracknell sent a shot from the slot past Rochester's Chris Beckford-Tseu for a power-play goal. The man advantage marker was assisted by Ander Eriksson and Dan Spang. Both rearguards recorded their first points as Flames on the tally. The Amerks struck back just 1:07 later when Shawn Matthias lifted a backhander into the Quad City net. Rochester capitalized on the momentum shift by scoring again just 20 seconds later. Drew Larman scored on the rebound following a shot by Tanner Glass. The tally gave Rochester a lead on home ice for the first time this season. The Americans held the lead for 4:02 before the Flames tied the game. Jamie Lundmark knocked down Amerks defenseman Keaton Ellerby to force a turnover. The veteran center found David Van der Gulik in front. The Flames winger tipped the puck home to tie the game at two.

The scoring didn't slow down in the third period as the teams combined for five goals. Michael Duco put Rochester in front at 8:44 of the closing period when he scored his first goal of the season on a wraparound. The feisty winger's tally put the Amerks in front at 3-2. Kris Chucko potted his team-leading fourth goal of the season by jamming a rebound past Beckford-Tseu at 12:14 of the third. The even strength tally tied the game at three. Rochester re-took the lead on a goal by Kendal McArdle just 28 seconds after Chucko's tally. McArdle tipped a shot off the stick of Drew Larman past Irving for his first goal of the year. Karl Stewart extended the lead by scoring a power-play goal on a blast from the slot with just 2:54 remaining. The Flames threatened late and scored once with the sixth attacker as Dan Spang netted his first goal following a cross-ice feed from Kris Chucko. Despite Spang's tally, the Flames could not overcome the late deficit as Rochester earned their first win of the season.

The Flames continue their excursion through the North Division on Saturday afternoon in Toronto. Quad City faces the Marlies at 3:00 p.m. central time. The Hayman's Ace Hardware Pre-Game Show begins at 2:35 p.m. on 93.9 FM WYEC. The game can be seen at ahllive.com on a pay-per-view basis.

Tickets for all Flames home games, including match-ups with Manitoba on October 29th and November 1st, are on sale now at the i wireless Center Box Office, via phone at (563) 326-1111 or on-line at ticketmaster.com. Group tickets and mini-plan packages are available via the Flames Ticket Office at (309) 764-7825.

• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...

American Hockey League Stories from October 24, 2008


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 Abbotsford Heat Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central