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River Rats Weekly

February 1, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Albany River Rats News Release


Albany went 2-1-0-0 in three road games last week to maintain an eight point lead over the third place Norfolk Admirals in the East Division standings. Drayson Bowman and Bryan Rodney scored shootout goals and goaltender Justin Peters stopped all four Sound Tigers attempts to give the River Rats a 2-1 victory over Bridgeport Tuesday night. The River Rats extended their winning streak to three games on Friday with a 4-3 win in Rochester, as Brett Bellemore's first career AHL goal proved to be the eventual game-winner. Hershey spoiled Albany's run on Saturday night, handing the River Rats a rattling 8-3 defeat.

Week 19 Preview:

The River Rats begin the week on Wednesday when the East Division's Syracuse Crunch visit Albany for a 7:00 p.m. faceoff. The River Rats then travel to Binghamton on Friday for a 7:05 p.m. match-up with the Senators, before retuning to the Times Union Center on Saturday night for a 5:00 p.m. tilt against the Atlantic Division's Springfield Falcons.

Week 19 Game Schedule:

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

Wednesday, February 3rd - 7:00 pm -Times Union Center - Albany, NY

vs. Syracuse Crunch (19-23-3-3, 44 pts)

6th Place, East Division

- The Crunch went 2-0 in a pair of home games last week to stay within striking distance of an East Division playoff berth, just five points behind the third-place Norfolk Admirals. Syracuse opened its week with a 5-4 shootout win over San Antonio on Friday, and hung another five goals on Saturday in a 5-1 victory over Binghamton. Wednesday will be the sixth of eight meetings this season between Albany and Syracuse. The River Rats are 3-1-0-1 against the Crunch this season and have out-scored Syracuse 20-16. The Crunch earned their first regulation win of the season-series on January 2nd, with a 6-3 decision. Game Seven is set for March 14th in Albany, with the series concluding on March 27th in Syracuse.

- Leading Scorer: Brendan Bell (D) - 30 points (8 goals, 22 assists) in 45 GP.

- Leading Goaltender: Kevin Lalande (G) - 2.98 GAA, .908 save pct., 13-11-2 in 29 GP.

- Who's Hot: Derek Mackenzie (C) is on an eight game point streak with six goals and six assists (12 points) over that stretch. Tomas Kana (C) is on a three game point streak with two goals and three assists (five points) to go with a plus-3 rating during that span. Jared Aulin (C) had three points (1-2-3) and a plus-2 rating in his last game.

Friday, February 5th - 7:05 pm - Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena - Binghamton, NY

vs. Binghamton Senators (19-22-3-1, 42 pts)

7th Place, East Division

- Binghamton managed just one goal in each of three road losses last week, as the Senators losing streak reached four games. The B-Sens lost 2-1 Friday night at Adirondack, 5-1 Saturday night in Syracuse, and 6-1 on Sunday in Hershey. Friday night will be just the third of eight meetings this season between Albany and Binghamton. The Senators are 2-0 against the River Rats this season and have out-scored Albany 6-1. The teams meet again in Binghamton on February 10th and then faceoff in Albany on February 13th.

- Leading Scorer: Ryan Keller (RW) - 39 points (21 goals, 18 assists) in 38 GP.

- Leading Goaltender: Chris Holt (G) - 2.95 GAA, .906 save pct., 8-7-0 in 16 GP.

- Who's Hot: Ryan Keller (RW) has 12 points (8-4-12) in his last nine games. Kaspars Daugavins (LW) has seven points (1-6-7) in his last six games.

Saturday, February 6th - 5:00 pm - Times Union Center - Albany, NY

vs. Springfield Falcons (16-26-8-2, 42 pts)

8th Place, Atlantic Division

- The Falcons went 1-2 last week and remain in the Atlantic Division's basement, seven points behind the seventh place Providence Bruins. Liam Reddox scored the overtime winner against Norfolk to give Springfield a 3-2 home win on Friday, but the Falcons went on to drop a pair of games to the Providence Bruins in a home-and-home affair. The P-Bruins earned an 8-2 decision Saturday night in Providence and shut-out the Falcons 6-0 the following afternoon in Springfield. Saturday night will be the third of four games this season between the Falcons and River Rats. Albany is 0-1-0-1 against Springfield this season and has been out-scored 10-5. The final game of the season series will be played on March 28th in Springfield.

- Leading Scorer: Charles Linglet (LW) - 49 points (11-38-49) in 52 GP.

- Leading Goaltender: Jean-Phillippe Levasseur (G) - 3.36 GAA, .897 save pct., 5-11-0 in 16 GP.

- Who's Hot: Colton Fretter (RW) has three goals in his last three games. Vlacheslav Trukhno (LW) has three assists in his last three games.

River Rats Player of the Week: (Week 18)

Nick Dodge - C - #8

Day Opponent G A Pts. Notable

Tue @ Bridgeport 0 0 0

Fri @.Rochester 0 2 2 Two point night with a plus-1 rating

Sat @ Hershey 0 2 2 Second straight two point night

Totals 3 Games 0 4 4 Recorded his second and third multi-point games of the season

Second year forward Nick Dodge led the River Rats in scoring with four points (0-4-4) in three games last week to earn his club's Player Of The Week nomination. Dodge notched his second multi-point night of the season on Friday with a pair of assists in Albany's 4-3 road win over Rochester. Carolina's 6th round selection (183rd overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft put on a repeat performance the following night in Hershey, collecting a pair of helpers in Albany's 8-3 loss to the Bears. The Oakville, Ontario native is tied for fifth place in the River Rats scoring race with 19 points (9-10-19) this season, and Dodge is one of just three Albany players who's skated in all 48 games this season.

River Rats Player of the Month: (January)

Jerome Samson - RW - #17

GP G A Pts.

Totals 10 5 5 10

Jerome Samson led all River Rats in scoring last month with 10 points (5-5-10) in 10 games to earn his club's Player Of The Month nomination. The third-year forward recorded a team season-high seven-game scoring streak from January 2nd to January 23rd, and totaled nine points (5-4-9) over that stretch. Samson's month also featured his first career NHL call-up, which saw the Montreal, Quebec native score an assist in his NHL debut. The undrafted forward is leading the River Rats in scoring for the second straight year, with 37 points (16-21-37) through 46 games.

River Rats Rookie of the Month: (January)

Chris Terry - C - #25

GP G A Pts.

Totals 12 3 4 7

Chris Terry led all first-year River Rats in scoring last month with seven points (3-4-7) in 12 games to earn his club's Rookie Of The Month nomination. Carolina's 5th round pick (132nd overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft ranks fourth on the team in scoring with 22 points (10-12-22) and is one of just three River Rats to have played in all 48 games this season.

River Rats Goaltender of the Month: (January)

Justin Peters - G - #35

GP GAA SV% W-L-SOL

Totals 11 3.19 .894 7-3-0

River Rats goaltender Justin Peters started a season-high eleven straight games in January and went 7-3-0 to earn his club's Goaltender Of The Month nomination. Peters allowed two goals or fewer six times last month and strung together winning streaks of four and three games, respectively. Carolina's 5th round selection (132nd overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft shows a 2.47 GAA with a .918 save percentage and an 18-12-2-1 record through 33 games this season.

Rat Bites:

- HERSHEY TAX - Albany's last two games against the Hershey Bears have tacked on 0.34 points to starting goaltender Justin Peters' goals against average and has knocked his save percentage down .011 percent. Had Peters not played in those contests, his 2.47 GAA would drop to 2.13 and his .918 save percentage would jump to .929.

- BORER'S FIRST POINTS - Defenseman Casey Borer notched two assists Saturday night in Hershey, marking his first points since returning from an injury suffered in the River Rats team bus accident last season. Borer missed a total of 69 games with a broken vertebrae (25 last season, 44 this season) suffered in the February 19, 2009 crash.

- PP HEATING UP - Albany's power play went 12-for-59 in January for a 20% conversion rate, lifting the unit to 23rd in the league with a 13.9% (30-for-216) rate this season.

- FIRST GOAL - The River Rats show a 21-1-1-1 record when scoring the game's first goal.

- LEAGUE LEADERS - Jerome Samson continues to lead the league in shots with 212, 40 more then the AHL's next highest single-player total. Zach FitzGerald's 42 minor penalties also top the circuit, while his 164 penalty minutes are fourth in the league. Goalie Justin Peters' 912 saves and 1969 minutes both rank fifth in the league. Zach Boychuk is tied for 16th among the league's rookie scorers with 26 points (12-14-26) and Stefan Chaput is tied for 18th with 25 points (7-18-25).

River Rats Recent Transactions

January 2010 January 25 ADD - Justin Peters (G) - Returned from loan by Carolina (NHL)

January 24 DELETE - Justin Peters (G) - Recalled from loan by Carolina (NHL)

January 22 ADD - Casey Borer (D) - Loaned by Carolina (NHL)

January 21 ADD - Jacob Micfllikier (LW) - Recalled from loan to Florida (ECHL)

January 20 DELETE - Tom Zanoski (LW) - Released from PTO

January 19 DELETE - Jacob Micflikier (LW) - Returned on loan to Florida (ECHL)

January 18 ADD- Drayson Bowman (LW) - Returned on loan by Carolina (NHL)

January 17 ADD - Zach Boychuk (C) - Returned on loan by Carolina (NHL)

January 16 ADD - Mike Morrison (G) - Recalled from loan to Florida (ECHL)

January 15 DELETE - Drayson Bowman (LW) - Recalled from loan by Carolina (NHL)

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

ADD - Tom Zanoski (LW) - Signed PTO

Promotional Information

RONALD MCDONALD CHARITY JERSEY AUCTION & SPONGEBOB APPEARANCE

Date: Saturday, February 6, 2010 vs. Springfield Falcons

Time: 5:00 p.m. at Times Union Center

SpongeBob: Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants will be on-hand for pictures and fun.

Jersey Auction: Albany hosts its annual post-game jersey auction. The team will where special Ronald McDonald House uniforms, which will be auctioned "off of the players backs" at the conclusion of the game.

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 (48)

Goals: Jerome Samson (16), Zach Boychuk (12)

Assists: Jerome Samson (21), Stefan Chaput (18)

Points: Jerome Samson (37), Zach Boychuk (26)

Plus/Minus: Jonathan Paiement (+10), Nick Dodge & Stefan Chaput (+7)

Penalty Minutes: Zack FitzGerald (164), Nicolas Blanchard (116)

Power Play Goals: Jerome Samson & Drayson Bowman (4)

Short Handed Goals: Pat Dwyer (2)

Game-Winning Goals: Zach Boychuk (5), Jerome Samson (3)

Shots: Jerome Samson (212)

Shooting Percentage: Jacob Micflikier (0.227%)

Saves: Justin Peters (912)

Wins: Justin Peters (18)

GAA: Justin Peters (2.47)

Save Percentage: Mike Murphy (0.923)

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River Rats 2009-10 pro-rated season and flexible ticket 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 February 1, 2010


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