River Rats home for two-game weekend

Published on January 10, 2005 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany River Rats News Release


The Albany River Rats host the Hartford Wolf*Pack for the only time this season in a 7:00pm contest on Friday night at Pepsi Arena. Fans could win NY Lottery Winter Windfall tickets or lunch for 10 people courtesy of Panera! The Wolf*Pack (26-9-1-2, 2nd Atlantic) defeated the Manchester Monarchs 3-2 in overtime at home on Sunday and host the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Wednesday night. C Alexandre Giroux has scored in three straight games and leads the top affiliate of the New York Rangers with 16 goals, while C Jeff Hamilton has picked up a point in each of the last seven games. G Jason LaBarbera is at it again leading the league with 19 victories, a 1.61 goals against average and a .940 save percentage for the top defensive club on the circuit. Albany holds a 10-14-3-3 record in the all-time regular season series against Hartford, which includes a 4-6-2-3 record at Pepsi Arena. The River Rats and Wolf*Pack close out the two-game 2004-05 season series in a 7:05pm face-off on April 15th at the Hartford Civic Center.

The River Rats then face-off against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at home on Saturday night at 7:30pm. Former New Jersey Devils defenseman Ken Daneyko will sign autographs at intermission, plus one lucky fan will WIN a trip to New York City for lunch and to see a taping of the Conan O'Brien show at NBC Studios in Rockefeller Center! The Penguins (18-11-4-4, T-3rd East) dropped a 7-2 decision to the Syracuse Crunch on Sunday night and visit Binghamton on Friday. RW Michel Ouellet leads the American Hockey League with 27 goals and ranks third with a 24.8 shooting percentage in 37 games this season. C Kris Beech leads the top affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins with 33 assists and 42 points, while Troy native Matt Murley tops the circuit with a plus 25 rating. Albany shows an 11-16-5 record in the all-time regular season series against Wilkes-Barre, including a 7-5-3 mark on home ice. The River Rats and Penguins have split the first four games of the 2004-05 season series, with Wilkes-Barre holding a 15-12 scoring advantage. The East Division rivals close out the season series in a 7:00pm face-off on April 1st at Pepsi Arena.

River Rats this week: * Practice times are subject to change, please call the River Rats office to confirm dates and times.

Tuesday - OFF DAY

Wednesday - Practice at Bethlehem Area YMCA, 10:00am

Thursday - Practice at Pepsi Arena, 10:00am

Friday - Game Day Skate at Pepsi Arena, 10:00am; Hartford Wolf*Pack @ RIVER RATS, 7:00pm

Saturday - Game Day Skate at Pepsi Arena, TBD; Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins @ RIVER RATS, 7:30pm

Sunday - Practice at Pepsi Arena, 10:00am

Monday - Practice at Bethlehem Area YMCA, 10:00am

Rat Bites: * LW Rob Skrlac matched a team/season-high by picking up 29 penalty minutes in Philadelphia on Sunday. That moved him past D Geordie Kinnear into first place on the franchise penalty minute list. The 28-year-old has accumulated 1,116 penalty minutes in 295 games in an Albany uniform since the beginning of the 1997-98 season.

* C Zach Parise scored in back-to-back games last week to snap a 14-game, goal-scoring drought dating back to November 27th. The Minneapolis, MN native continues to lead all AHL rookies with 21 assists and 28 points, while ranking third with 104 shots on goal.

* RW Aleksander Suglobov has three (1-2) points in the last five games and is tied for tops on the club with 12 goals during the 2004-05 campaign. The Russian winger ranks third on the roster with 24 (12-12) points in 34 games this year.

Over the Air:

Fri., Jan. 14th vs. Hartford Wolf*Pack, 7:00pm (6:45pm Capitaland Motors GMC Pre-Game Show, AM 1160 WABY)

Sat., Jan. 15th @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, 7:30pm (7:15pm Capitaland Motors GMC Pre-Game Show, AM 1160 WABY)

** Hear all the action LIVE at www.albanyriverrats.com**

Community Outreach Appearances:

Tues., January 11th @ 6:00pm - Two River Rat Players will attend at North Adams Youth Hockey Practice from 6:00-7:30pm to help young players develop their hockey skills. The practice is scheduled to take place at Vietnam Veterans Memorial Rink at 375 Church Street in North Adams, Massachusetts.

River Rats Rewind: Week 13 - January 3, 2005 (0-3-0-0, 0pts)

January 5th - HER 5 @ ALB 3 - LW Ryan Murphy scored a shorthanded goal and set up C Zach Parise's first period marker as the River Rats remained winless against Hershey during the 2004-05 campaign. RW Aleksander Suglobov added his 12th goal during the third period and G Ari Ahonen stopped 33 shots in the second of a three-game homestand

January 7th - HER 2 @ ALB 1 - C Zach Parise scored for the second straight game, but the Bears erased a 1-0 deficit to sweep the season series at Pepsi Arena (4-0). Hershey C Andre Savage & LW Mathieu Darche scored third period goals to spoil River Rat G Scott Clemmensen's 37-save performance.

January 9th - ALB 0 @ PHI 3 - Former R.P.I. Engineer G Neil Little stopped 27 shots for his first shutout of the season. Phantoms LW Jon Sim scored two third period goals in a game that saw Albany LW Rob Skrlac become the franchise's all-time penalty minute king (1,l16).

Upcoming Promotions:

Fri., January 14th vs. Hartford Wolf*Pack @ 7:00pm - Devils-Rangers AHL Style!

Lucky fans will win NY Lottery Winter Windfall scratch-off tickets!

Win Lunch For 10 of Your Closest Friends from Panera!

Sat., January 15th vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins @ 7:30pm - Meet Former New Jersey Devil Ken Daneyko!

Former New Jersey Devil & Three-time Stanley Cup Champion Ken Daneyko at the game!

Win a trip to NYC for lunch & a live taping of the Conan O'Brien show @ NBC Studios courtesy of Amtrak & Newchannel 13 WNYT!

Wed., January 19th vs. Rochester Americans @ 7:00pm - $10 Wednesday!

All Seats are Just $10!

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American Hockey League Stories from January 10, 2005


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