HAMILTON 4, ADIRONDACK 0
Red-hot goaltender Cedrick Desjardins made 26 saves for his league-leading fifth shutout of the season as Hamilton opened a busy road weekend with a 4-0 win over Adirondack on Friday at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
Desjardins (9-4-1) extended his latest shutout streak to 125:14 and collected his fourth whitewash in his last five contests.
Greg Stewart’s first goal of the season 48 seconds into the game proved to be all the offense Hamilton would need. Brock Trotter extended the lead to 2-0 with a shorthanded marker at the 19:47 mark, his ninth goal of the season.
After a scoreless second period, David Desharnais tallied his team-leading 10th goal of the campaign 14:09 into the third frame, and Ben Maxwell capped the night with an unassisted marker at 14:30.
Trotter and Desharnais each finished with a goal and a helper on the night for the Bulldogs, who moved to 6-1-1-0 in their last eight contests. Hamilton visits Hartford on Saturday before concluding the weekend at North Division-leading Rochester on Sunday.
The Phantoms were shut out for the fourth time this season and saw their modest two-game winning streak come to an end.
PORTLAND 2, SPRINGFIELD 0
Portland continued Springfield’s misery with a 2-0 shutout win over the visiting Falcons on Friday at the Cumberland County Civic Center.
Felix Schutz and Mark Mancari notched goals for the Pirates, and goaltender Jhonas Enroth (10-9-1) made 24 saves to pick up his second shutout of the season.
Schutz beat ex-Pirates goaltender Jean-Philippe Levasseur just 15 seconds after the opening face-off to give Portland a 1-0 lead, with rookie Philip Gogulla and Marc-Andre Gragnani earning assists.
Mancari’s team-leading 12th goal of the campaign provided insurance for the Pirates 9:13 into the second period. Tyler Ennis and Brad Larsen earned the helpers.
The Falcons, who were shut out for the second time this season, are now winless in their last 11 contests (0-9-1-1).
HARTFORD 6, TORONTO 1
Hartford jumped out to a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes and cruised to a 6-1 win over visiting Toronto on Friday at the XL Center.
Dane Byers notched his first two-goal game of the season to pace the Wolf Pack’s offense. Defensemen Mike Hoffman and Corey Potter also netted goals for Hartford, while forwards Jordan Owens and Derek Couture rounded out the offense.
Corey Locke (0-3-3) and Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau (0-2-2) each chipped in multiple assists for the Wolf Pack, who registered their highest offensive output since a 7-0 win over Providence on Oct. 31.
Hartford goaltender Steve Valiquette earned the victory in net with 23 saves on 24 shots.
Defenseman Brendan Mikkelson notched the lone goal for the Marlies, who are winless in three straight games (0-2-1-0).
LOWELL 3, ALBANY 2
Alexander Vasyunov tallied the game-winning goal in the third period and added an assist as Lowell halted Albany’s seven-game winning streak with a 3-2 win over the visiting River Rats at Tsongas Arena.
Vasyunov, who tallied his first AHL hat trick on Tuesday vs. Springfield, broke a 2-2 deadlock at 11:43 of the third period. Defensemen Matt Taormina and Cory Murphy earned the assists.
Rookie Nick Palmieri and Ben Walter also scored for the Devils, who captured their third consecutive victory.
Devils goaltender Mike McKenna, who has been between the pipes for all three wins during that stretch, earned the victory with 34 saves on Friday.
Rookies Zach Boychuk and Jamie McBain found twine for the River Rats, who lost in regulation for the first time since a 4-1 setback at Binghamton on Nov. 21.
HERSHEY 3, ROCHESTER 1
Hershey tallied a goal in each period and collected a 3-1 road win over Rochester in the front end of a home-and-home on Friday at the Blue Cross Arena.
Oskar Osala, Jay Beagle, and Keith Aucoin netted goals for the Bears, who poured a game total of 40 shots on Amerks goaltender Alexander Salak, including 20 in the second period alone.
Beagle added an assist for a multiple-point night, as Hershey improved to 2-0-0-0 against Rochester this season heading into Saturday’s rematch at the Giant Center.
Bears rookie goaltender Braden Holtby (4-1-1) earned the victory with 26 saves on 27 shots between the pipes.
Ernie Hartlieb notched the Americans’ lone goal of the night. Rochester dropped to 2-5-0-0 in its last seven contests.
BRIDGEPORT 3, PROVIDENCE 1
Bridgeport used special teams to rally from a 1-0 deficit and earn a 3-1 road win over Providence on Friday at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
The Sound Tigers faced a 1-0 deficit heading into the second period, but Tyler Haskins tied it with a shorthanded goal just 1:07 in.
Ex-Bruin Jeremy Reich then tallied a power play goal – his first marker of the season – 1:29 into the third period to put Bridgeport on top for good. Matt Martin sealed the win with an empty-netter in the closing seconds.
Bridgeport goaltender Scott Munroe earned the victory with 41 saves on 42 shots between the pipes, and he stopped all 30 shots over the final two periods.
The Bruins initially took a 1-0 lead when Zach Hamill converted on a power play 7:04 into the contest. Providence fell to a modest 7-7-0-0 this season when scoring the game’s first goal.
WORCESTER 3, MANCHESTER 1
Worcester captain Ryan Vesce tallied the game-winning goal and added an assist as the Sharks took a 3-1 win over visiting Manchester at the DCU Center on Friday.
Vesce’s power play goal at 4:52 of the second period snapped a 1-1 deadlock, and Steven Zalewski provided insurance for Worcester at 12:05 of the third period.
John McCarthy also lit the lamp for the Sharks, and rookie forward Logan Couture chipped in two assists in the winning effort.
Sharks rookie goaltender Alex Stalock earned the win with 24 saves in net, as Worcester improved to 2-0-0-0 on home ice against the division-leading Monarchs. The Sharks, however, are 0-2-0-1 thus far at the Verizon Wireless Arena.
Bud Holloway netted an unassisted shorthanded goal for the Monarchs, who have lost two of their last three games.
NORFOLK 3, BINGHAMTON 1
Adam Hall netted a pair of goals as Norfolk opened a two-game set against Binghamton with a 3-1 win over the visiting Senators on Friday at the Scope.
Hall notched his fifth and sixth goals of the season for the Admirals, the second one into an empty net in the game’s closing minute. Martins Karsums earned an assist on both of Hall’s markers.
Juraj Simek also netted a goal for Norfolk, which extended its winning streak to three games and moved to 15-15-1-0 (31 points) on the season, good for third place in the East Division.
Admirals rookie goaltender Dustin Tokarski earned the victory with 25 saves on 26 shots between the pipes.
Defenseman Drew Bannister notched the Senators’ lone goal of the night, as Binghamton fell to 0-3-1-0 in its last four road tilts.
WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 5, SYRACUSE 2
A three-goal third period lifted Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to a 5-2 road win over Syracuse on Friday at the Onondaga County War Memorial.
The Penguins got out to a strong start, as Nick Johnson (power play) and Dustin Jeffrey (shorthanded) netted special teams goals just 55 seconds apart in the first period.
But Derek MacKenzie brought the Crunch within 2-1 before the period was out, and Tomas Kana tied it 14:18 into the middle frame.
Jeffrey put the Pens back on top only 38 seconds into the third frame, Johnson added insurance at 8:15, and Luca Caputi’s team-leading 12th goal of the season came unassisted at 17:05 to seal the win.
Mark Letestu racked up three assists on the night, and goaltender John Curry made 24 saves in the winning effort. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton snapped a three-game losing skid in the process.
SAN ANTONIO 4, GRAND RAPIDS 2
San Antonio brought a halt to its five-game winless skid (0-4-1-0) on Friday with a 4-2 win over visiting Grand Rapids at the AT&T Center.
MacGregor Sharp led the way with a goal and an assist for the Rampage, who also received tallies from Colin Long, Kevin Porter, and Matt Watkins. Porter’s goal marked his 10th of the season.
Stefan Meyer chipped in two assists in the victory, and goaltender Josh Tordjman earned the win with 26 saves on 28 shots in net.
The Rampage collected their first win since a 3-2 overtime triumph over Houston on Dec. 4 and improved to 3-1-0-0 against Grand Rapids this season.
Jeremy Williams netted his team-leading 12th and 13th goals of the season for the Griffins, who dropped to 1-2-0-1 in their last four contests.
ROCKFORD 3, CHICAGO 2
Bracken Kearns’s goal at 19:21 of the second period snapped a 2-2 tie and proved to be the game-winner as Rockford edged visiting Chicago by a 3-2 count at the MetroCentre.
Kearns and Jack Skille each posted a goal and an assist on the night, while Matt Keith also beat Wolves goaltender Drew MacIntyre. Defenseman Richard Petiot chipped in two assists for Rockford, which improved to 4-0-0-0 against Chicago at home this season.
IceHogs goaltender Joe Fallon earned the victory with 36 saves on 38 shots between the pipes.
Riley Holzapfel tallied his first goal of the season for the Wolves, and defenseman Arturs Kulda also found the back of the net. Chicago fell to 2-6-0-1 in its last nine contests.
MANITOBA 1, LAKE ERIE 0
Guillaume Desbiens scored the game’s only goal at 7:22 of the second period, and Manitoba held on for a 1-0 win over visiting Lake Erie on Friday before 7,388 fans at the MTS Centre.
Defenseman Travis Ramsey picked up the lone assist on Desbiens’ goal, which was his fourth of the season and first game-winner.
Moose goaltender Cory Schneider (14-7-0) stopped all 27 shots sent his way to record his second shutout of the season, as Manitoba improved to 12-2-1-0 all-time against the Monsters.
The Monsters were blanked just one game after posting a 7-3 win over Chicago on Sunday, but Lake Erie will have a chance for revenge when the teams square off for a rematch in Winnipeg on Saturday.
TEXAS 5, HOUSTON 2
Perttu Lindgren broke a 2-2 tie at 5:33 of the third period, and Texas rolled on to a 5-2 road win over Houston on Friday at the Toyota Center.
Brad Lukowich and Aaron Gagnon added empty-net goals for the West Division-leading Stars, who snapped their first losing skid of the season at two games.
Texas also received tallies from Luke Gazdic and Warren Peters on the night, and goaltender Matt Climie (9-7-2) bounced back from a nasty outing against Houston on Tuesday to make 27 saves on 29 shots in the winning effort.
Jon DiSalvatore and defenseman Ryan Gunderson (1-1-2) netted goals for the Aeros, whose three-game winning streak came to an end.
