Rats Stumble, Remain In Second

March 23, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany River Rats News Release


Albany went 1-3-0-0 last week and saw its lead over the third-place Norfolk Admirals shrink to six points. The River Rats earned their lone win of the week on Wednesday night against Worcester, as Jerome Samson logged a four-point night (1-3-4) en route to a 5-3 home victory. Albany then traveled to Hershey on Friday night where Jonathan Paiement scored Albany's only two goals, as the Bears extended their home winning streak to 24 games with an 8-2 victory. The River Rats dropped the front-end of the home-and-home series in Binghamton on Saturday night, as Jonathan Cheechoo scored the short-handed game-winner in the second period for a 2-1 final. The B-Sens downed Albany by another one-goal margin on Sunday, when Geoff Kinrade broke a 2-2 tie midway through the third period for a 3-2 win.

Week 26 Preview:

Albany plays three road games this week, beginning with Game 10 of the Time Warner Cable Cup series against the Adirondack Phantoms on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. in Glens Falls. After a rare Friday off, the River Rats head to Syracuse on Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. start against the Crunch, and then travel to Springfield on Sunday for a 3:00 p.m. faceoff against the Falcons.

Week 26 Rats Game Schedule:

(All games are broadcast LIVE on WKLI 590 "Magic" AM, are streamed free over the Internet at www.wkli.com and can be watched via internet pay-per-view video on www.ahllive.com)

Wednesday, March 24th - 7:00 pm - Glens Falls Civic Center - Glens Falls, NY

vs. Adirondack Phantoms (31-34-3-3, 68 pts)

6th Place, East Division

- The Phantoms went 1-2-0-1 last week and sit two points out of last place in the East, just 10 points out of the Division's final guaranteed playoff spot. Adirondack opened its week at home on Wednesday night and suffered a 6-5 shootout loss to the Hamilton Bulldogs. The Phantoms then dropped consecutive games in Norfolk, 8-4 on Friday and 3-1 on Saturday, before turning in an impressive 4-3 road victory over Hershey. Adirondack scored three third period goals to end the Bears' 24-game home winning streak. Albany is 7-1-1-0 through the first nine games of the 12-game Time Warner Cable Cup series and the River Rats have out-scored the Phantoms 23-16. The clubs next meet on April 3rd in Albany's home season finale, and they close-out the series in the regular season finale on April 10th in Glens Falls.

- Leading Scorer: Jon Matsumoto (C) - 53 points (24 goals, 29 assists) in 71 GP.

- Leading Goaltender: Johan Backlund (G) - 2.79 GAA, .906 save pct., 21-17-2 in 41 GP.

- Who's Hot: Mika Pyorala (LW) has eight points (4-4-8) with a plus-5 rating in his last six games. Jared Ross (C) has eight points (4-4-8) with a plus-4 rating in his last six games. Joonas Lehtivuori (D) has three points (1-2-3) in his last two games.

Saturday, March 27th - 7:30 pm - Onandaga County War Memorial at Oncenter - Syracuse, NY

vs. Syracuse Crunch (30-34-3-3, 66 pts)

7th Place, East Division

- Syracuse went 1-2-0-0 in three home games last week to fall into last place in the East Division. Goaltender Kevin Lalande posted a 33 save shutout on Wednesday night against Manchester to halt Syracuse's three-game losing streak with their only win of the week. The Crunch then welcomed Bridgeport on Friday, when a pair of Jeremy Reich goals lifted the Sound Tigers to a 3-2 victory. Syracuse finished the week with a 6-2 loss to Hershey. Albany is 4-2-0-1 against Syracuse this season and has outscored the Crunch 26-22. Saturday will be the eighth and final meeting this season between the River Rats and Syracuse.

- Leading Scorer: Brendan Bell (D) - 49 points (14 goals, 35 assists) in 66 GP.

- Leading Goaltender: Kevin Lalande (G) - 2.82 GAA, .910 save pct., 22-21-2 in 49 GP.

- Who's Hot: Chad Kolarik (RW) has 10 points (6-4-10) in just nine games with the Crunch. Dan Fritsche (C) is on a three-game assist streak (0-3-3). Tomas Kana (C) has two points in his last two games (1-1-2).

Sunday, March 28th - 3:00 pm - Mass Mutual Center - Springfield, MA

vs. Springfield Falcons (24-34-11-3, 62 pts)

8th Place, East Division

- The Falcons dropped three straight road decisions last week, but earned two points in overtime losses as they fell seven points behind seventh-place Hartford in the Atlantic Division basement. Springfield led Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 4-1 on Friday night, but the Penguins scored three goals in the third period and Deryk Engelland added the overtime winner to complete the Baby-Pens comeback. The Falcons were in another close game on Saturday night in Hartford, where Brodie Dupont's go-ahead tally with 4:07 remaining lifted the Wolf Pack to a 4-3 win. Springfield then fell in overtime again on Sunday afternoon in Bridgeport, as Mike Radja netted the winner for a 2-1 Sound Tigers victory. Albany is 1-1-0-1 against the Falcons this season and has been outscored 16-12. Sunday will be the fourth and final meeting of the season between the River Rats and Falcons.

- Leading Scorer: Charles Linglet (LW) - 72 points (19 goals, 54 assists) in 72 GP.

- Leading Goaltender: Jean-Phillippe Levasseur (G) - 3.57 GAA, .896 save pct., 8-15-0 in 23 GP.

- Who's Hot: Charles Linglet (LW) has six points (1-5-6) with a plus-4 rating in his last five games. Chad Wiseman (C) has eight points (5-2-7) with a plus-3 rating in his last eight games. Jordan Eberle (C) has six points (3-3-6) in just three games with the Falcons.

River Rats Player of the Week: (Week 25)

Nick Dodge - C - #8

Day Opponent G A Pts. Notable

Wed vs. Worcester 0 1 1

Fri @ Hershey 0 1 1

Sat @ Binghamton 0 1 1

Sun vs. Binghamton 0 1 1

Totals 4 Games 0 4 4 Four Game Assist Streak

Center Nick Dodge recorded an assist in each of Albany's four games last week to earn his club's Player Of The Week nomination. The Oakville, Ontario native is one of three players on the River Rats to have played in all 73 games this season, and his four-game assist-streak is one game shy of Albany's 2009-10 season record. Carolina's 6th round selection (183rd overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft was also the only Albany skater to play in all 80 games in 2008-09 during his rookie campaign. Dodge is currently tied for eighth on the team in scoring with 34 points, including a career-best 15 goals.

Rat Bites:

- DALPE DEBUTS - Forward Zac Dalpe made his professional debut with the River Rats on Saturday night in Binghamton. Carolina's 2nd round pick (45th overall) in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft inked a two-year deal with the 'Canes after completing his sophomore campaign at Ohio State.

- EAST DIVISION FAR FROM SET - The second place River Rats have a six point lead over Norfolk and a seven point lead over Wilkes-Barre, but if those team win each of their games "in-hand" on Albany, the River Rats' lead shrinks to just one point over the Penguins and two points over the Admirals.

- ROOKIE SCORERS - Albany boasts four of the AHL's top 15 rookie goal scorers. Chris Terry and Jamie McBain are tied for ninth in the league with 40 points a piece, while Stefan Chaput is in 13th place with 37 points and Zach Boychuk is tied for 14th with 36 points. Boychuk also ranks second among rookie scorers with five game winning goals, and McBain's 20 power play points rank 5th, while his four shootout goals are tied for third.

- LEAGUE LEADERS - Jerome Samson is tied for seventh in the AHL scoring race with 68 points, including an AHL third-best 34 goals. Samson also leads the league in shots, with 306. Zach FitzGerald tops the circuit with 275 penalty minutes, including a league-high 69 minor penalties. Nicolas Blanchard's 23 major penalties rank fourth in the AHL.

River Rats Recent Transactions

March 2010 March 19 DELETE - Bryan Rodney (D) - Recalled from loan by Carolina (NHL)

ADD - Elgin Reid (D) - Recalled from loan from Florida (ECHL)

March 18 ADD - Zac Dalpe (F) - Signed ATO

March 17 ADD - Parker Van Buskirk (G) - Signed PTO

March 16 DELETE - Jamie McBain (D) - Recalled from loan by Carolina (NHL)

March 14 ADD - Jerome Samson (RW) - Returned on loan by Carolina (NHL)

Promotional Information

Fan Appreciation Weekend

Date: Friday April 3rd vs. Norfolk Admirals and Saturday, April 4th vs. Adirondack Phantoms

Time: 7:00 p.m. at Times Union Center

Promotions: Commemorative Prizes, Give-Aways and Post Game Autograph Session**

**Autograph Session Is Saturday Only

Ticket Info: Tickets can be purchased by calling the Times Union Center box office at 487-2000, by visiting or calling www.tickets.com at 1-800-30-EVENT, or by visiting select Price Chopper Outlets.

Albany River Rats Team Leaders:

Games Played: Chaput, Dodge & Terry (73)

Goals: Jerome Samson (34)

Assists: Jerome Samson (34)

Points: Jerome Samson (68)

Plus/Minus: Nick Dodge (+14)

Penalty Minutes: Zack FitzGerald (275)

Power Play Goals: Jerome Samson (10)

Short Handed Goals: Pat Dwyer (2)

Game-Winning Goals: Jerome Samson & Zach Boychuk (5)

Shots: Jerome Samson (306)

Shooting Percentage: Jacob Micflikier (0.216%)

Saves: Justin Peters (1,120)

Wins: Justin Peters (22)

GAA: Justin Pogge (2.55)

Save Percentage: Justin Pogge (0.921)

####

River Rats 2010 Calder Cup playoff packages are now on sale at the River Rats executive offices at the Times Union Center, by calling (518) 487-2244 or by logging onto www.albanyriverrats.com.



American Hockey League Stories from March 23, 2010


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.

OurSports Central