AHL Bridgeport Islanders

Sound Tigers Beat Aeros in Shootout

January 7, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Bridgeport Islanders News Release


Bridgeport, Conn. - The Sound Tigers have come from behind to win six games when trailing after the second period but tonight, it was the Houston Aeros who mounted their own comeback. Within a two-minute span late in the third period, Houston scored three unanswered goals, tying the score a 3-3 to send the game into a shootout where Mike Iggulden and Andrew MacDonald capitalized on their chances, salvaging a 4-3 win for the Sound Tigers over the Aeros. Kurtis McLean scored twice and Ben Walter scored his sixth goal of the season for the Sound Tigers. Yann Danis was in net for the Sound Tigers, stopping 27 of the 30 shots he faced to earn his seventh victory of the season and improving the team's record to 23-9-2-2 giving them a total of 50 points, three behind the first place Hershey Bears in the East Division.

McLean opened the scoring in the first period when he drove to the net and peaked over his shoulder just in time to redirect a Mike Iggulden slap-shot past the glove of Aeros' starting goalie, Nolan Schaefer for the 1-0 lead. Jack Hillen also had an assist on McLean's tenth goal of the season, coming 6:21 into the opening stanza.

Earlier today, Sound Tigers' forward, Vladimir Nikiforov was called up from the team's ECHL affiliate, the Utah Grizzlies and because of his hard work in the right corner, the Sound Tigers were able to take a 2-0 lead. The puck was played deep into the Houston zone where Nikiforov beat an Aero defenseman into the corner and was able to chip the puck along the boards to Sean Bentivoglio. The second-year winger took the puck and centered it to Walter in the high slot where he wristed a shot that snuck through Schaeffer just over five minutes into the second, doubling the Sound Tigers' lead.

In the third, the Sound Tigers wasted little time taking a commanding three-goal lead on Houston when McLean would tally his second marker of the game. Dustin Kohn played the puck to Iggulden along the right-wing board where the recently selected Canadian All-Star snapped a quick shot towards the net the McLean redirected under Schaeffer's right pad for his 11th goal this year. The game looked locked up in favor of the Sound Tigers, but Houston would not go away and scored three quick goals in the final three minutes of play. Marco Rosa broke Danis' shutout bid 17:07 into the period with his ninth goal of the season and Ryan Hamilton would follow that up with his sixth tally of the year 40 seconds later. Corey Locke would knot the game at 3-3, scoring his team leading 14th marker of the season with only a minute and 31 seconds left in regulation time, sending the game to overtime and the eventual shootout.

Danis stopped all four Houston shooters and MacDonald and Iggulden were able to notch goals to help the Sound Tigers earn the extra point in a 4-3 victory.

Schaeffer suffered the shootout loss, making 25 saves. The Sound Tigers were 0-for-4 on the man-advantage tonight and 4-for-7 on the penalty-kill.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 7, 2009


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