AHL Morning Skate: Game 7 in Winnipeg


AHL Quick Hits is now the Morning Skate… Every morning, take a spin around the AHL ice with recaps and previews, news and notes, facts and figures, and the top headlines from around the American Hockey League.


MONDAY’S SCORES:
No games scheduled

SUNDAY’S SCORES:
Game 6 – W-B/SCRANTON 3, Norfolk 2 (WBS wins, 4-2)
Game 7 – Providence 5, HARTFORD 4 (PRO wins, 4-3)
Game 6 – MANITOBA 2, Grand Rapids 1 (Series tied, 3-3)


SUNDAY’S THREE STARS:
1. Ben Walter scores three times to lead Providence to a Game 7 victory in Hartford.

2. Drew MacIntyre makes 21 saves for Manitoba, forcing a Game 7 tonight against Grand Rapids.

3. Robert Nilsson gets the series-winning goal as Wilkes-Barre/Scranton ousts Norfolk.


TUESDAY’S SCHEDULE (all times ET):
Game 1 – Providence at Manchester, 7:05
Game 7 – Grand Rapids at Manitoba, 8:30 (Series tied, 3-3)


2007 CALDER CUP PLAYOFFS:
Atlantic Division Final – Series "I" (best-of-7)
A1-Manchester Monarchs vs. A3-Providence Bruins

Game 1 – Tue., May 1 – Providence at Manchester, 7:05
Game 2 – Wed., May 2 – Providence at Manchester, 7:05
Game 3 – Tue., May 8 – Manchester at Providence, 7:05
Game 4 – Wed., May 9 – Manchester at Providence, 7:05
*Game 5 – Sat., May 12 – Providence at Manchester, 7:35
*Game 6 – Mon., May 14 – Manchester at Providence, 7:05
*Game 7 – Wed., May 16 – Providence at Manchester, 7:05

East Division Final – Series "J" (best-of-7)
E1-Hershey Bears vs. E2-W-B/Scranton Penguins

Game 1 – Wed., May 2 – W-B/Scranton at Hershey, 7:00
Game 2 – Fri., May 4 – W-B/Scranton at Hershey, 7:00
Game 3 – Sat., May 5 – Hershey at W-B/Scranton, 7:05
Game 4 – Wed., May 9 – Hershey at W-B/Scranton, 7:05
*Game 5 – Fri., May 11 – W-B/Scranton at Hershey, 7:00
*Game 6 – Sat., May 12 – Hershey at W-B/Scranton, 7:05
*Game 7 – Mon., May 14 – W-B/Scranton at Hershey, 7:00

North Division Final – Series "K" (best-of-7)
MTB/GRA winner vs. N3-Hamilton Bulldogs

West Division Final – Series "L" (best-of-7)
W2-Chicago Wolves vs. W4-Iowa Stars

Game 1 – Wed., May 2 – Iowa at Chicago, 8:00
Game 2 – Fri., May 4 – Iowa at Chicago, 8:30
Game 3 – Sun., May 6 – Chicago at Iowa, 6:05
Game 4 – Tue., May 8 – Chicago at Iowa, 8:05
*Game 5 – Thu., May 10 – Chicago at Iowa, 8:05
*Game 6 – Sat., May 12 – Iowa at Chicago, 8:00
*Game 7 – Mon., May 14 – Iowa at Chicago, 8:00


Atlantic Division Semifinal — Series "A" (best-of-7)
A1-Manchester Monarchs vs. A4-Worcester Sharks || Preview
Game 1 – Wed., Apr. 18 – MANCHESTER 5, Worcester 2
Game 2 – Fri., Apr. 20 – MANCHESTER 4, Worcester 3 (2OT)
Game 3 – Sat., Apr. 21 – Manchester 5, WORCESTER 0
Game 4 – Wed., Apr. 25 – WORCESTER 3, Manchester 2
Game 5 – Fri., Apr. 27 – Worcester 4, MANCHESTER 1
Game 6 – Sat., Apr. 28 – Manchester 3, WORCESTER 2 (2OT)

Atlantic Division Semifinal — Series "B" (best-of-7)
A2-Hartford Wolf Pack vs. A3-Providence Bruins || Preview
Game 1 – Wed., Apr. 18 – HARTFORD 5, Providence 1
Game 2 – Fri., Apr. 20 – Providence 4, HARTFORD 2
Game 3 – Sat., Apr. 21 – Hartford 5, PROVIDENCE 2
Game 4 – Tue., Apr. 24 – PROVIDENCE 5, Hartford 1
Game 5 – Thu., Apr. 26 – Hartford 1, PROVIDENCE 0
Game 6 – Sat., Apr. 28 – Providence 5, HARTFORD 2
Game 7 – Sun., Apr. 29 – Providence 5, HARTFORD 4

East Division Semifinal — Series "C" (best-of-7)
E1-Hershey Bears vs. E4-Albany River Rats || Preview
Game 1 – Wed., Apr. 18 – HERSHEY 3, Albany 2
Game 2 – Thu., Apr. 19 – Albany 3, HERSHEY 2 (OT)
Game 3 – Sun., Apr. 22 – Hershey 6, ALBANY 5 (GF)
Game 4 – Mon., Apr. 23 – Hershey 3, ALBANY 1 (GF)
Game 5 – Wed., Apr. 25 – Hershey 4, ALBANY 2 (GF)

East Division Semifinal — Series "D" (best-of-7)
E2-W-B/Scranton Penguins vs. E3-Norfolk Admirals || Preview
Game 1 – Fri., Apr. 20 – Norfolk 5, W-B/SCRANTON 2
Game 2 – Sat., Apr. 21 – W-B/SCRANTON 5, Norfolk 2
Game 3 – Mon., Apr. 23 – W-B/Scranton 3, NORFOLK 2 (OT)
Game 4 – Wed., Apr. 25 – NORFOLK 4, W-B/Scranton 1
Game 5 – Fri., Apr. 27 – W-B/Scranton 8, NORFOLK 1
Game 6 – Sun., Apr. 29 – W-B/SCRANTON 3, Norfolk 2

North Division Semifinal — Series "E" (best-of-7)
N1-Manitoba Moose vs. N4-Grand Rapids Griffins || Preview
Game 1 – Thu., Apr. 19 – MANITOBA 1, Grand Rapids 0
Game 2 – Sat., Apr. 21 – Grand Rapids 4, MANITOBA 1
Game 3 – Mon., Apr. 23 – GRAND RAPIDS 2, Manitoba 1 (OT)
Game 4 – Wed., Apr. 25 – Manitoba 4, GRAND RAPIDS 1
Game 5 – Fri., Apr. 27 – GRAND RAPIDS 4, Manitoba 3 (OT)
Game 6 – Sun., Apr. 29 – MANITOBA 2, Grand Rapids 1
Game 7 – Tue., May 1 – Grand Rapids at Manitoba, 8:30

 

North Division Semifinal — Series "F" (best-of-7)
N2-Rochester Americans vs. N3-Hamilton Bulldogs || Preview
Game 1 – Thu., Apr. 19 – Hamilton 2, ROCHESTER 0
Game 2 – Sat., Apr. 21 – ROCHESTER 3, Hamilton 1
Game 3 – Sun., Apr. 22 – HAMILTON 5, Rochester 4 (2OT)
Game 4 – Tue., Apr. 24 – Rochester 4, HAMILTON 3
Game 5 – Thu., Apr. 26 – Hamilton 4, ROCHESTER 2
Game 6 – Sat., Apr. 28 – HAMILTON 6, Rochester 2

 

West Division Semifinal — Series "G" (best-of-7)
W1-Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights vs. W4-Iowa Stars || Preview
Game 1 – Fri., Apr. 20 – OMAHA 4, Iowa 2
Game 2 – Sat., Apr. 21 – Iowa 2, OMAHA 1 (OT)
Game 3 – Mon., Apr. 23 – IOWA 2, Omaha 1
Game 4 – Wed., Apr. 25 – IOWA 3, Omaha 2
Game 5 – Fri., Apr. 27 – OMAHA 3, Iowa 2 (OT)
Game 6 – Sat., Apr. 28 – IOWA 5, Omaha 2

West Division Semifinal — Series "H" (best-of-7)
W2-Chicago Wolves vs. W3-Milwaukee Admirals || Preview
Game 1 – Fri., Apr. 20 – CHICAGO 3, Milwaukee 2
Game 2 – Sun., Apr. 22 – CHICAGO 4, Milwaukee 1
Game 3 – Tue., Apr. 24 – Chicago 3, MILWAUKEE 2
Game 4 – Wed., Apr. 25 – Chicago 3, MILWAUKEE 2 (OT)

*if necessary… All times Eastern
(GF) at Glens Falls, N.Y.


GAME NOTES (all times ET):
Game 1 – Providence at Manchester, 7:05
Manchester advanced to the Atlantic Division Finals with a 3-2 double-overtime win over Worcester in Game 6 on Saturday night; Providence needed a Ben Walter hat trick and 40 saves from Hannu Toivonen in a Game 7 win in Hartford on Sunday to move on… Oleg Tverdovsky, a two-time Stanley Cup champion, led the Monarchs with six assists and seven points in the first round… Bruins rookie David Krejci leads the AHL with nine postseason assists… Jason LaBarbera had a 1.96 GAA and a .935 save percentage in five starts in the opening round for Manchester… The B’s defeated Manchester in six games in their only previous postseason meeting (2005)… Providence scored just three goals in four games at the Verizon Wireless Arena during the regular season.

Game 7 – Grand Rapids at Manitoba, 8:30 (Series tied, 3-3)
This is the 67th Game 7 in Calder Cup Playoff history, and just the third time that two teams have played each other in a Game 7 in consecutive seasons… The Griffins rallied from three goals down to win last year’s ultimate meeting, 5-4, on a Darryl Bootland goal with 2:06 remaining… Current Moose goaltender Drew MacIntyre got the win in net for Grand Rapids that night, stopping the only shot he faced in 22 minutes of work in relief of Jimmy Howard (4 GA on 23 shots)… MacIntyre and Howard both have 1.76 GAA’s in this series… Manitoba is 0-2 in Game 7’s in the AHL; the Griffins are 1-1… Jason Jaffray, Brad Moran and Lee Goren lead the Moose with five points apiece in the series… Matt Ellis is still the Griffins’ scoring leader with four goals and six points… Manitoba has allowed three power-play goals in 75 chances vs. Grand Rapids (96.0 percent) in 14 games this season… Tonight’s winner advances to meet Hamilton in the North Division final, beginning Thursday (if Grand Rapids) or Saturday (if Manitoba).


MORNING HEADLINES:

GAME 7 A RARITY IN ‘PEG
Paul Friesen, Winnipeg Sun

I’ve never been one to tell Manitoba sports fans what to do. But heading to the corner of Portage and Hargrave tonight might not be such a bad idea. If you do, you’ll see something that’s only been visible one other time in our city’s modern-day, pro hockey history. It’s called Game 7. Incredibly, tonight’s Manitoba Moose/Grand Rapids affair marks just the second time a deciding game has been staged here in the history of the Moose and Winnipeg Jets. You have to go back 30 years — Apr. 24, 1977, to be exact — to find the last Game 7 in River City. The only one. Until tonight. … Link

EDLER’S NOW PLAYING IN NHL PLAYOFFS
Jim Morris, Canadian Press

You could call Alexander Edler an overachiever. At the start of the season the Swedish defenseman’s goal was to earn a job with the the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League. Now the 21-year-old from Ostersund is taking a regular shift for the Vancouver Canucks in the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs. "I didn’t have any expectations of playing in the NHL coming into this season," the soft spoken Edler said prior to the Canucks playing the Anaheim Ducks in Sunday’s Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinal. "My first goal was taking a spot with the Moose. I got called up and played pretty good. Here I am in the playoffs. It’s great." … Link

KEY KIDS
Darren Eliot, SI.com
With the four series all heating up over the weekend, the number of young players contributing in prominent roles for their respective teams caught my attention. Some of them are guys we’ve heard about and who had high expectations associated with them, while others just sort of appeared. Take Dan Girardi of the Rangers, for instance. He’s an undrafted and unheralded defenseman who spent most of the season in the AHL. Yet, here he is playing over 20 minutes a night against the NHL’s highest-scoring team, the Sabres. The Rangers signed Girardi, 23, after noticing him while scouting junior teammate Ryan Callahan, 22 — another young player who is performing well in the playoffs. … Link

TEAM FACES BEAR OF A PLAYOFF FOE
Kevin Provencher, The Union-Leader
Having put five years of frustration behind them by winning their first-ever playoff series, the Monarchs had two days to prepare to make more history. This second-round series is going to be way too close to call. Tonight at 7:05 the Monarchs host the Providence Bruins in the opener of the best-of-seven Atlantic Division championship. The Monarchs have the emotional lift of overcoming history. Providence carries its own momentum since the Bruins became just the third team in AHL playoff history to win Games 6 and 7 of a series on the road when they closed out their semifinal series in Hartford Sunday. The only certainty to the match-up is that this series is going to be tight. … Link


FROM CALDER TO STANLEY:
Ray Emery made 25 saves to lead Ottawa to a 2-0 win over New Jersey in Game 3 last night… Emery had two shutouts for the Binghamton Senators during the 2003 Calder Cup Playoffs.

Ryane Clowe
had a goal and an assist and 2001 AHL All-Star Jonathan Cheechoo scored the game-winner with 6:41 left in regulation as San Jose defeated Detroit in Game 3, 2-1… Clowe had four points (3g, 1a) in eight games as a rookie during the 2004 Calder Cup Playoffs.


BY THE NUMBERS:
5
– Assists by current Detroit Red Wings forward Jiri Hudler in Grand Rapids’ 5-4 Game 7 win over Manitoba in last year’s North Division final.


ON THIS DATE:
May 1, 2005
Ilya Bryzgalov makes 23 saves and Mark Popovic scores with 13 seconds left in regulation as Cincinnati stuns defending champion Milwaukee, 4-3, in Game 7 of their first-round series at the Bradley Center, capping a comeback from a 3-1 series deficit.

May 1, 2004Jason Pominville has a goal and an assist and Norm Milley nets the game-winner 17:53 into overtime as Rochester defeats Syracuse, 4-3, in Game 7 of their North Division semifinal.

May 1, 2001Jeremy Brown‘s goal 12:09 into overtime gives Providence a Game 7 win at Worcester, 3-2.

May 1, 1999Chris Ferraro scores at 17:55 of the second overtime period, giving Hamilton a 3-2 win over Albany in the winner-take-all Game 5 of their conference quarterfinal series.

May 1, 1971 – The Springfield Kings wrap up the Calder Cup championship with a 5-3 win over the Providence Reds in Game 4.

May 1, 1963 – In the first AHL game every played in the month of May, the Buffalo Bisons defeat Hershey, 6-2, in Game 7 of the Calder Cup Final at the Aud.


ON THE AIR:
B2 Networks brings AHL action to your computer, web-enabled cell phone or PDA throughout the Calder Cup Playoffs with live video webcasts of nearly every AHL game… Visit caldercup.com for details.