IceCaps Win Franchise-Record Seventh Straight

Published on March 7, 2014 under American Hockey League (AHL)
St. John's IceCaps News Release


ST. JOHN'S, NL - Blair Riley scored the game-winning goal and Julian Melchiori notched his first of the season, as the St. John's IceCaps downed the Bridgeport Sound Tigers 3-2 Friday night at Mile One Centre to set a franchise-record with seven consecutive victories.

Jerome Samson also scored for St. John's, which now has points in eight straight, tying a club record. Michael Hutchinson was strong between the pipes, stopping 22-of-24, while Jason Jaffray pitched in with two assists.

Samson got the IceCaps on the board first 16:19 into the opening frame, when he notched his team-leading nineteenth of the season on the man advantage. After Jaffray dished it to Samson in the circle, Samson turned and pulled the trigger, firing it low past Poulin to make it 1-0.

In the second period, Melchiori scored his first of the season at 14:25 to extend the IceCaps' lead to two. Pinching into the Bridgeport zone, Melchiori sent a wrister from the top of the circle that eluded Poulin on the blocker side.

St. John's picked up where it left off in the second, jumping out to a 3-0 lead just over a minute into the final frame. Breaking into the Sound Tigers' zone on the rush, MacKinnon picked up the puck from Riley and shovelled it on goal, before Riley stayed with the play and got a touch on the trickling puck and sneaking it past Poulin.

Less than two minutes later, however, Johan Sundstrom scored to draw Bridgeport within two, when he launched a wrister from the point through traffic that was deflected past Hutchinson to the blocker side.

Then, with 2:10 remaining in the third, Joey Martin cut the Sound Tigers' deficit to one, when he pounced on the rebound in front of the goal and fired it past Hutchinson to make it 3-2. That's as close as Bridgeport came, however, as the IceCaps finished strong to earn their franchise-record seventh straight.

The IceCaps are in action again Saturday night (7:30 PM NT), when they wrap up their two-game series with the Sound Tigers at Mile One. Catch all the action with broadcaster Brian Rogers on Rogers TV, www.stjohnsicecaps.com and 930 AM, or watch online at www.ahllive.com. Pregame show gets underway at 7:00.

Notes: Not dressed for the IceCaps: Kris Fredheim, Josh Lunden, Austen Brassard, Eddie Pasquale, Ryan Schnell... The IceCaps outshot the Sound Tigers 24-4 in the opening period - a new record for shots in a period - and 39-24 overall... Kael Mouillierat's point streak came to end at eight games... St. John's went 1-for-9 on the power play and killed off all five shorthanded situations... Molson Canadian Three Stars: 1. Julian Melchiori 2. Kevin Poulin 3. Blair Riley... Mary Brown's Hardest Working Player: Patrice Cormier.

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American Hockey League Stories from March 7, 2014


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