AHL Manchester Monarchs

Monarchs Extend Unbeaten Streak To Four Games

February 23, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Manchester Monarchs News Release


MANCHESTER, NH – The Manchester Monarchs had to wait a bit longer than expected, but the wait was worth it as they moved into sole possession of second place in the AHL's Atlantic Division with a 2-0 win over the Binghamton Senators in their first home game in 15 days.

With the win, the Monarchs (28-21-5-3, 64 points) pushed their unbeaten streak to four games (3-0-1-0) and jumped two points ahead of the third place Portland Pirates. After 57 games, the Monarchs trail the division-leading Hartford Wolf Pack (31-16-9-1, 72 points) by eight points.

The loss was the second straight for the Senators (26-24-6-2, 60 points), who remained in fifth place in the AHL's East Division.

The patient Monday night crowd of 7,623 roared its approval as Monarchs left wings Jeff Giuliano and Noah Clarke beat goaltender Ray Emery with third period goals.

Giuliano swept home right wing Sam Ftorek's blocked shot from the right circle at 7:26 to give the Monarchs the only goal they would need. Defenseman Bryan Muir also assisted on Giuliano's sixth of the year.

Clarke, who earlier in the day was honored as the AHL Sher-Wood Player of the Week, added some insurance with his fifth goal in four games at 11:11. Right wing Pavel Rosa collected the only assist, helping Clarke become the first Monarchs rookie to score 20 goals in a season. With the marker, Clarke extended his goal streak to four games and his scoring streak to seven games (6-3=9).

The two-goal third period turned out to be more than enough for goaltender Adam Hauser (13-11-5) who pieced together 22 saves while earning the Monarchs ninth shutout of the season. Hauser, who closed the game with 12 saves in the third, is tied with goaltender Mathieu Chouinard (currently on recall with the Los Angeles Kings) for the team lead in shutouts this season. Each has four.

The third period was delayed about 25 minutes after the operations crew was unable to reposition the safety netting on the West side of the arena. The netting had been lowered during the second period intermission, allowing for fans to participate in the popular chuck-a-puck promotion. Fans in sections 104 through 123 and the club lounge were moved into safe areas before play resumed.

The Monarchs dominated play in the scoreless opening period, firing 14 shots at Emery while holding the Senators to a season-low two shots on goal.

Center Yanick Lehoux was involved in two of the best scoring chances in the period. The second-year pro nearly sliced his shot through the pads of Emery after taking Rosa's blue line pass at 11:11. He also setup left wing Chris Schmidt's one-timer from the slot five minutes later with a nifty backdoor feed. Emery, however, held the game scoreless with an outstanding skate save on the play.

The Monarchs continued to pressure for the lead in the scoreless middle period and outshot the Senators 12-8.

Emery (18-15-5) took the loss and finished with 32 saves for the Senators, who were skating in their fourth game in six days.

The Monarchs return to action on Wednesday, February 25 at 7:05 p.m. when they host the Atlantic Division's Portland Pirates at the Verizon Wireless Arena. Wednesday's game will be the second of four straight for the Monarchs on home ice.

Monarchs Ticket Availability as of Monday, February 23, 2004

Wed., Feb. 25 vs. Portland: 1,650 seats remain.



American Hockey League Stories from February 23, 2004


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