Kalinski OT Winner Thrills Packed House

Published on November 26, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


Although it didn't come easy, the Phantoms' 4-3 overtime win over the Devils couldn't have come in more dramatic fashion. After Albany erased a two-goal Adirondack lead late in the third period, Jon Kalinski scored 1:01 into overtime to lift the Phantoms to the win in front of a jam-packed crowd of 4,746 at the Glens Falls Civic Center. The Standing Room Only turnout was the largest for a Phantoms home game in two years and created an electric atmosphere inside the building.

Defensemen Cullen Eddy and Dan Jancevski started the sequence which led to Kalinski's goal. After taking a pass from Jancevski, Eddy carried the puck behind the net and sent a pass into the slot which Kalinski rifled through Keith Kinkaid for the game-winner.

The goal was one of two for Kalinski. His first goal came on a shorthanded breakaway, which gave the Phantoms a 2-1 lead early in the third period.

"He (Kalinski) blocked a lot of shots and played a good team game. It was nice to see him get rewarded, offensively," said Phantoms Head Coach Joe Paterson.

In addition to getting a shorthanded goal, the Phantoms penalty-killing unit killed off all eight of the Devils' chances.

"I thought our penalty killers did a great job. It was a big reason we won the game tonight. His (Kalinski) shorthanded goal was just the icing on the cake," added Paterson.

Brayden Schenn used a laser beam of a wrist shot to score over Keith Kincaid's shoulder three minutes after Kalinski's shorthanded goal, giving Adirondack a 3-1 lead early in the third period.

Schenn, who returned to the lineup on Thursday after missing a month with a broken foot, now has six goals and six assists over seven games in a Phantoms uniform.

However, Joe Whitney and Nick Palmieri each scored in the third period's final six minutes, pushing the game into overtime and earning the Devils a valuable standings point. The point helped the Devils maintain a slight edge in the Time Warner Cable Cup series. Albany used a 5-2 win on October 22 to take the lead in the series. The Phantoms and Devils are due to meet eight more times this season, with the season-series champion to be awarded with the annual trophy. The Phantoms took the trophy last season by narrowly edging out the Devils, 14 head-to-head points to 13.

The Devils' comeback was their second of the night. Garrett Roe scored the game's first goal less than a minute into the first period, giving the Phantoms an early 1-0 advantage.

Stephane Veilleux knotted the score for Albany by using a deflection to score past Leighton, 39 seconds into the second period.

Although the Devils twice erased deficits; Michael Leighton was absolutely spectacular for the second straight night. Leighton stopped 32-of-35 Devils shots on Saturday, a night after making a season-high 43 saves against the Falcons.

Rookie Keith Kinkaid out of Union College allowed four goals on 30 shots and was the losing goalie.

"They put on a lot of pressure, especially late in the game. It was our third game in three nights and Leighton was good for us yet again," said Paterson.

Improving his personal record to 8-5-0, Leighton boosted the Phantoms' overall record to 11-7-1. Adirondack is 6-2-1 at home and an incredible 17-3-5 at the Glens Falls Civic Center since last February.

"It was a good weekend for us. It didn't start good for us in Binghamton, but coming back and getting two wins made it a great weekend for us," said Joe Paterson.

By virtue of their 2-0 weekend homestand, the Phantoms sit second in the Norheast Division with 23 points, just two behind first place Connecticut. Dropping to 9-7-3, the Devils use their point jump into fourth in the Northast Division. Adirondack finishes its three-game homestand by hosting the Syracuse Crunch on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m.

The Devils had a 35-30 shots advantage. Adirondack was 0-of-5 on the power play and scored a shorthanded goal. Albany was 0-of-8.

The Phantoms' scratches were Johan Backlund, Luke Pither and Eric Wellwood. Kevin Marshall was also not in the lineup, after getting called up to the Flyers late on Friday. Marshall played 7:40 for Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

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American Hockey League Stories from November 26, 2011


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