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AHL Cleveland Monsters

Monsters Win Sixth Straight, Top Rockford 4-2

December 12, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Monsters News Release


Sami Aittokallio's 32 saves led the Lake Erie Monsters (12-8-2-2) to a 4-2 victory Friday night over the Midwest Division-leading Rockford IceHogs (17-7-2-1) before a crowd of 8,320 fans at Quicken Loans Arena. The victory stretches the Monsters winning streak to six games, and their point streak now stands at eight games. Max Noreau had a goal and an assist to lead the way for the Monsters offensively, while Troy Bourke, Stefan Elliott, and Colin Smith also scored for the Monsters. The Monsters and Rockford play again Saturday night at 7:00 p.m.

T.J. Brennan scored on a slap shot from the center of the blue line to give Rockford a 1-0 lead 27 seconds into the game. The Monsters battled back as the period wore on, and tied the score at the 15:45 mark of the frame on Max Noreau's sixth goal of the season, a power play tally on a slap shot from the top of the right circle. Markus Lauridsen had the lone assist on the goal, which gives Noreau a goal in three straight games.

The Monsters tacked on a pair of goals in the second period to take a 3-1 lead. After some hard work in the corner, Kenny Ryan centered a pass to Troy Bourke in the slot, and Bourke one-timed a shot past Michael Leighton to give the Monsters a 2-1 lead with his third goal of the season at the 7:21 mark of the middle frame. With 47 seconds left in the period, Stefan Elliott walked in from the point and ripped a low shot from the slot that beat Leighton to give the Monsters a 3-1 lead. The unassisted goal was the sixth of the season for Elliott.

Just 56 seconds into the third period, Joey Hishon found an open Colin Smith on a back-door pass from the bottom of the right circle, and Smith tapped the puck in for his team-leading seventh goal of the season to give the Monsters a 4-2 lead. The goal stretched Smith's point streak to five games since his return from the National Hockey League's Colorado Avalanche. Noreau also assisted on Smith's goal.

Phil Danault added a goal for Rockford during a four-on-four sequence at 8:36 of the third period to pull the IceHogs to within 4-2, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Monsters on Friday.

Aittokallio stopped 32 of 34 shots to improve to 5-1-1 on the season. Leighton is 7-5-2 after stopping 23 of 27 shots in the loss for Rockford.

The Monsters host the IceHogs Saturday at 7:00 p.m. The game airs live on AM 1420 "˜The Answer'.

NOTES: Smith has five points in his last five games... Hishon has seven points in his last seven games... Bourke is plus-six over his last eight games played... Elliott led the Monsters with five shots on net... The Monsters are 7-3-0-1 on home ice this season... The Monsters are 2-1-1-0 against Rockford this season... The Monsters are 8-1-1-1 over their last 11 contests... The Monsters were 1-4 on the power play and 4-4 on the penalty kill... The Monsters are 22-23 on the penalty kill over the last six games... Follow the Monsters on Twitter @monstershockey, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lakeeriemonsters, and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/monstershockey .

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