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March 12, 2012 - American Hockey League (AHL)
St. John's IceCaps News Release


The St. John's IceCaps finished off their seven-game road trip and opened up their six-game home stand in style, coming away with three wins and marching closer to a playoff berth.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Tuesday, March 6 - St John's IceCaps 5 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 2 Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA St John's Goals Albert (6), Klingberg (15), DeSantis (10), Kulda (5), Sawada (7) WBS Goals: Despres (4), Gibbons (10) Goaltending: STJ - Eddie Pasquale (W - 30 shots, 28 saves) / WBS - Scott Munroe (L - 3 shots, 0 saves), Patrick Killeen (16 shots, 14 saves) Power Play: STJ 1-3 / WBS 0-6 Three Stars: 1) STJ - Arturs Kulda 2) STJ - Ray Sawada 3) STJ - Jason DeSantis Mary Brown's HWP Garth Murray Attendance: 6,997

Capping off a seven-game road trip with a stop in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, St.

John's used a three-goal first period to propel itself to a 5-2 victory over the Penguins. John Albert, Carl Klingberg and Jason DeSantis scored in the opening frame, and despite the Penguins' best efforts to make it a game by closing the gap to 3-2 after 40 minutes, the IceCaps pulled away in the third.

Arturs Kulda scored a beautiful shorthanded goal on a two-on-one rush just 2:47 into the frame, and Ray Sawada notched his first goal as an IceCap just minutes later to lock up the win, the 20th of the season for the IceCaps on the road. Eddie Pasquale made 28 saves for his second straight win.

Friday, March 9 - St John's IceCaps 6 Hershey Bears 1 Mile One Centre - St. John's, NL St John's Goals Cormier (12, 13, 14), Jaffray (17), Clark (10), Machacek (14) Hershey Goals: Greentree (6) Goaltending: STJ - Eddie Pasquale (W - 20 shots, 19 saves) / HER - Braden Holtby (L - 29 shots, 24 saves), Dany Sabourin (4 shots, 3 saves) Power Play: STJ 0-2 / HER 1-3 Three Stars: 1) STJ - Patrice Cormier 2) STJ - Kevin Clark 3) STJ - John Albert Mary Brown's HWP Arturs Kulda Attendance: 6,287

Friday's homecoming against the visiting Hershey Bears was all about Patrice Cormier The Moncton native recorded his first professional hat trick (an added an assist) in a 6-1 romp over the Bears. The IceCaps torched Hershey goaltender Braden Holtby for five goals on 29 shots (Dany Sabourin allowed the other in relief) and Pasquale was once again on his game, turning aside 19 shots in a relatively easy victory.

Despite a 1-1 tie after 20 minutes, an IceCaps win was never in doubt. Jason Jaffray scored his 17th of the season on a beautiful solo effort early in the second, and after Cormier picked up his second goal of the game just 1:43 later, Kevin Clark converted his 10th on a nice setup from Ben Maxwell to make it 4-1 through two periods. Cormier completed the hat trick early in the third with his second breakaway goal of the night, and Spencer Machacek added his 14th of the season for good measure near the end of the game, with Cormier drawing the assist Cormier's four points were a single-game high for an IceCaps player this season.

Saturday, March 10 - St John's IceCaps 3 Hershey Bears 2 Mile One Centre - St. John's, NL St John's Goals Paul Postma (13), Jason King (17, SO winner) Hershey Goals: Ryan Potulny (23), Matt Pope (7) Goaltending: STJ - Eddie Pasquale (W - 30 shots, 28 saves) / HER - Dany Sabourin (L - 31 shots, 29 saves) Power Play: STJ 1-6 / HER 1-4 Three Stars: 1) STJ - Jason King 2) HER - Dany Sabourin 3) STJ - Eddie Pasquale Mary Brown's HWP Travis Ramsey Attendance: 6,287

Saturday's rematch with the Bears was a tighter checking affair St John's outshot Hershey 15-4 in the first but was unable to get on the board, as goaltender Dany Sabourin kept the visitors in it. The teams traded goals in the second period - Paul Postma netted his 13th of the season, tying him with three other players for the AHL lead among defencemen - and headed into the final 20 minutes knotted at one.

Jason King appeared to be the hero at 8:55 of the third when he batted home a loose puck to give the IceCaps a 2-1 lead, but Matt Pope silenced the crowd with 2:41 to go in regulation when a point shot deflected to him in front of the net. Pope cashed in to tie the game at two and send it to overtime. With neither team able to find the twine in the extra frame, a shootout was necessary to settle the score King reclaimed his hero status by scoring the shootout's only goal, beating Sabourin blocker side with a well-placed shot and earning the game's first star honours Pasquale was brilliant between the pipes once again, making 28 saves and denying all five shooters in the shootout.

The IceCaps continue their six-game home stand with a pair of contests against the Hamilton Bulldogs Tuesday and Wednesday, as well as a two-game set versus the Manchester Monarchs Saturday and Sunday.

St John's has dropped its last two against the Bulldogs, both on the road. In their last meeting on Feb. 24, the Bulldogs rallied to win 3-2 in a shootout in front of 11,300 fans at the Bell Centre in Montreal Hamilton's only visit to St John's came back on Oct. 14 and 15, when the IceCaps dropped their home opener 4-0 but rebounded to post a 6-2 victory the following night.

The IceCaps and Monarchs have met five times this season, with St John's posting a perfect 5-0-0-0 record against their division rival. Their last meeting came on Jan. 27, when the IceCaps edged the Monarchs 3-2 at the Verizon Wireless Arena. The IceCaps entertained the Monarchs on Jan. 6 and 7, with the home team sweeping the two game series.

ICECAPS NOTES:

Home Sweet Home: After struggling to find consistency at home early on, the IceCaps have found their groove at Mile One Centre. The club has won six straight games at home, improving their record to 17-10-3-0.

On the Plus Side: D Arturs Kulda was a plus-5 in this weekend's series vs. Hershey, boosting his team-high rating to plus-19 for the season and ranking him second overall among AHL defencemen, behind Peoria's Cade Fairchild (plus-29).

Sellout Streak Continues: The IceCaps consecutive sellout streak reached the 30-game plateau with Saturday's contest at Mile One Centre. The club has eight regular season games remaining on the home portion of its schedule.

Pasquale Honoured: Prior to Friday's game, G Eddie Pasquale was honoured for his Reebok/ HL Player of the Week award for the week of Feb. 6. IceCaps President and CEO Danny Williams presented Pasquale with his award as well as a framed portrait done by local artist Ray Abbott.

Wide Margin: Friday's 6-1 win marked the largest margin of victory (five goals) for the IceCaps this season. Their previous high was four, achieved four times, most recently a Dec. 2 4-0 win in Hamilton against the Bulldogs.

NEXT HOME ACTION

Tuesday, March 13 (7:30 p.m.) St John's IceCaps vs Hamilton Bulldogs

Wednesday, March 14 (7:30 p.m.) St John's IceCaps vs Hamilton Bulldogs

Saturday, March 17 (7:30 p.m.) St John's IceCaps vs Manchester Monarchs

Sunday, March 18 (4:00 p.m.) St John's IceCaps vs Manchester Monarchs

LISTEN TO EVERY ICECAPS GAME LIVE

Fans can listen to every IceCaps game this season online at www.stjohnsicecaps.com by clicking the 'Listen Live' link on the homepage. Play-by-play broadcaster Brian Rogers brings you all the action on the ice, including a pregame show that starts 30 minutes before the drop of the puck.

'SHIRTS OFF OUR BACKS'

The IceCaps will wear special St Patrick's Day jerseys during their March 17 game against the Manchester Monarchs.

Buy a 50/50 ticket during the next three home games and you'll be entered for a chance to win a special edition St. Patrick's Day IceCaps jersey straight off a player's back on March 17th! Winners will be invited to the game to receive their jerseys!

Stay tuned to our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter (@IceCapsAHL) for updates on which jerseys will be drawn for during each game.

For more information, read the official announcement online.

Fans can purchase official St John's IceCaps merchandise during all home games at IceCaps Alley, located just inside Gate 2 at Mile One Centre. IceCaps fans can purchase jerseys, hoodies, hats, foam fingers and other paraphernalia to show their support of the newest team in the American Hockey League. Store hours are 12 noon to 4 PM on game days.

Get your green on and spread some St. Patrick's Day luck with the Republic of NL IceCaps hat and Limited Edition Paddy's Day T-Shirt, available at IceCaps Alley!

Season ticket holders are entitled to a 15% discount on merchandise at IceCaps Alley. To receive this discount, bring the season ticket holder discount card along with proof of identification.

CHUCK A PUCK AND WIN!

Play 'Chuck a Puck' Wednesday night for a chance at an autographed stick or an IceCaps lley prize pack! Pucks are $2.00 each or three for $5.00. Closest puck to the centre bullseye and one randomly selected puck win prizes!

Get your Chuck a Pucks on the concourse behind sections 112 and 121 before the first intermission! All proceeds benefit the IceCaps Care Foundation.

BID NOW ON GAME-WORN ALL-STAR JERSEYS

Visit AHL Authentic on eBay to bid now on game-worn jerseys, pucks, gloves, helmets and other AHL memorabilia! AHL Authentic is the only source for game- worn AHL All-Star Classic jerseys. Follow the link below to bid now!

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UPCOMING SPECIAL EVENT NIGHTS

ROGERS SPECIAL EVENT NIGHT

Tuesday, March 13 @ 7:30 PM: IceCaps vs. Bulldogs

-One lucky winner will walk away with a PVR/HD prize package during the intermission

-Thundersticks and coupon giveaways at the main entrance

-T-shirt toss

M RY BROWN'S SPECI L EVENT NIGHT Sunday, March 18 @ 4:00 PM: IceCaps vs. Monarchs

-MaryTimer Catch & Release Shootout

-Chicken Dance Win a $50 Mary Brown's gift card

-Giveaways and coupons

ICECAPS DONATE TO SPECIAL OLYMPICS FUNDRAISING DRIVE

The St John's IceCaps helped Special Olympics kick off their 2012 fundraising drive Sunday with a $20,000 donation.

IceCaps President and CEO Danny Williams made the announcement during a special luncheon at the Convention Centre Sunday afternoon that also featured Newfoundland and Labrador Special Olympics chairman Kevin Dunphy. Mr.

Williams was joined at the event by the entire St John's IceCaps team, including coach Keith McCambridge.

Newfoundland and Labrador Special Olympics team participated in the 2012 Special Olympic National Winter Games in St. Albert, Alberta from February 28-March 3. The team performed extremely well, bringing home 21 medals.

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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.

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