River Rats Hockey New Year Begins At Home

Published on January 3, 2006 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany River Rats News Release


The Week Ahead:

The Albany River Rats kick off 2006 with the first of 10 home games during January on Wednesday night in a 7:00pm face-off against the Springfield Falcons at Pepsi Arena, (6:45pm WABY 1160AM & WVKZ 1240AM; B2 Networks @ www.albanyriverrats.com ). The Falcons (14-15-2-3, 5th Atlantic) dropped a 5-4 overtime decision to the Portland Pirates on the road Saturday. C's Jason Jaspers (14-19) and Ryan Vesce (10-23) are tied for tops on the AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning and rank 17th in the American Hockey League with 33 points this season. The River Rats hold a 27-24-9-3 record in the regular season series against Falcons, including a 15-10-6 record at home. Albany sports a 1-2 record against Springfield this season following a 6-2 road victory on December 4th. The teams will meet another four times during the 2005-06 season series. Albany then hosts the Syracuse Crunch on Radio Disney's Family Fun Friday at 7:00pm (6:45pm WVKZ 1240AM; B2 Networks @ www.albanyriverrats.com ). Get 4 tickets, 4 hot dogs, 4 sodas and a family portrait for just $44! The Crunch (19-11-2-1, 3rd North) are coming off a 4-1 road loss to the Binghamton Senators on Saturday and visit the Hartford Wolf*Pack on Wednesday night. RW Joe Motzko has seven (2-5) points over the last five games and leads current Crunch skaters with 26 (8-18) points in 27 games for the AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets. The River Rats have a 36-32-9-8 record in the all-time regular season series against the Crunch, which includes a 21-15-2-4 record on home ice. Albany shows a 1-2 record against the Syracuse this season, after recording a 4-3 road overtime win back on December 23rd.

River Rats Practice Schedule: * The schedule is subject to change, so please verify with the Communications Staff Mon., January 2, 2006 - 10:00am practice @ Pepsi Arena Tues., January 3, 2006 - 10:00am practice @ Pepsi Arena Wed., January 4, 2006 - 10:00am Game Day Skate @ Pepsi Arena; Springfield Falcons @ RIVER RATS, 7:00pm Thurs., January 5, 2006 - 10:00am practice @ Bethlehem YMCA Fri., January 6, 2006 - 10:00am Game Day Skate @ Pepsi Arena; Syracuse Crunch @ RIVER RATS, 7:00pm Sat., January 7, 2006 - TBD Sun., January 8, 2006 - 10:00am practice @ Bethlehem YMCA Mon., January 9, 2006 - 10:00am practice @ Bethlehem YMCA

Story Ideas Ivan Khomutov - The second year pivot has been centering the club's top line and his numbers have risen with the expanded role. He is one of the young River Rats that will be counted upon in the coming weeks, months and years for the Devils. Bryan Miller - The defender skated on a forward line for the last couple of games and netted two goals on Saturday. He is a classic puck-moving blueliner and has steadily improved over the first half of his first full season. Rat Bites: * RW Aleksander Suglobov notched four points last week to up his team-leading totals to 13 goals and 25 points along with six power play tallies this season. * LW Mike Sgroi recorded his first pro hat trick against Portland on Tuesday after scoring just six goals in his previous 135 AHL match-ups. * G Chris Terreri started for the River Rats in goal on Wednesday in Hershey and made 27 saves. It was the two-time Stanley Cup winner's first action since the 2000-01 campaign when he skated with the New York Islanders. * G Frank Doyle leads the league with 783 saves and ranks third with 1,467 minutes played in a team-high 25 games for Albany this season. * D Bryan Miller posted his first multi-goal game on Saturday with a pair of goals. He is tied for the team lead among defensemen with 15 (3-12) points.

River Rats Rewind: Week 13 - December 26, 2005 (1-3-0-0, 2pts) December 26 - ALB 2 @ BNG 4 - C Ivan Khomutov and RW Barry Tallackson scored power play goals in the third period, but the club fell to Binghamton for the third time this season. RW David Clarkson, D Brad Ference & C Petr Vrana each added assists, while G Frank Doyle stopped 35 shots on goal. December 27 - POR 6 @ ALB 7 F/OT - LW Mike Sgroi notched his first pro hat trick and C Ivan Khomutov netted two goals including the game-winner 2:14 into overtime. 12 different players figured in on the Albany scoring and G Frank Doyle stopped 38 shots to pick up his eighth win of the season. December 28 - ALB 2 @ HER 4 - G Chris Terreri stopped 27 shots in his first action since playing with the New York Islanders during the 2000-01 campaign. RW Aleksander Suglobov scored both Albany goals and C Ivan Khomutov chipped in two assists, while RW Barry Tallackson picked up a point for the fourth consecutive game. December 31 - ALB 3 @ MCH 4 - D Bryan Miller turned in his first multi-goal game with two scores and RW Aaron Voros added a power play goal. D Dan McGillis made his River Rats debut in a game that saw the opposition held to a season-low 17 shots on goal.

Upcoming Promotions:

Wednesday, January 4, 2005 @ 7:00pm - Kids In Free Wednesday! All Children 12 & Under Get In FREE With A Paid Adult!

Friday, January 6, 2005 @ 7:00pm - Family Fun Friday! Radio Disney Games, Fun & Prizes! Get 4 Tickets, 4 Hot Dogs, 4 Sodas and a Family Portrait for Just $44!

Wednesday, January 11, 2005 @ 7:00pm - Kids In Free Wednesday! All Children 12 & Under Get In FREE With A Paid Adult!

Saturday, January 14, 2005 @ 7:00pm - Win $1,000 At Our 1,000th Game! Celebrate a Major Milestone In River Rats History With a Chance To Win Cold Hard Cash!

For further information on 2005-06 season and flex ticket packages contact (518) 487-2244 or visit www.albanyriverrats.com.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 3, 2006


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