Ferraros to go head-to-head Friday

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … Friday night could be a historic one in the American Hockey League when the Peoria Rivermen visit the San Antonio Rampage at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.

The game could mark the fifth meeting between Peter Ferraro of Peoria and Chris Ferraro of San Antonio, who are believed to be the only twin brothers ever to go head-to-head in the AHL. Their previous four meetings all came in 2000-01, when Peter played for the Providence Bruins and Chris was with the Albany River Rats.

Peter, who joined the Rivermen last week after beginning the season with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, ranks 38th all-time in goals (249) and 44th all-time in points (588) in 610 career AHL games. He is a three-time AHL All-Star and was the most valuable player of the 1999 Calder Cup Playoffs, leading Providence to the championship.

ferraro-c_200.jpgChris, one minute older than Peter, has 183 goals and 460 points in 493 career AHL contests, including 23 points in 36 games this season between Hartford and San Antonio. He has also played in three AHL All-Star Classics, and was a 2003 winner of the Fred T. Hunt Award for sportsmanship, determination and dedication to hockey.

Combined, their 1,048 career AHL points rank second only to Fred and Howie Glover (1,676) among brothers in league history.

The Ferraros have been AHL teammates for parts of eight seasons in five different cities: Binghamton, Providence, Portland, Springfield and Syracuse. They have also played together in the National Hockey League with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals.

Peoria and San Antonio are scheduled to meet again on March 31 and April 1.

In all, there have been 10 brother combinations to play in the American Hockey League this season:

Now in its 71st season of play, the AHL continues to serve as the top development league for all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 83 percent of today’s NHL players are American Hockey League graduates, and more than 6.3 million fans have attended AHL games across North America in each of the past five seasons.

Chris and Peter Ferraro have gone head-to-head four times previously in their AHL careers:
February 11, 2001
Albany 7 at Providence 4

Chris (ALB): 1 assist, +1
Peter (PRO): 0 points, -1
December 8, 2000
Providence 1 at Albany 1 (OT)
Chris (ALB): 1 assist
Peter (PRO): 1 goal (GTG, 2:28 left in regulation)
December 3, 2000
Albany 1 at Providence 3
Chris (ALB): 1 assist
Peter (PRO): 1 goal, 1 assist
December 2, 2000
Providence 1 at Albany 2
Chris (ALB): 1 assist
Peter (PRO): 0 points