HARTFORD 8, LOWELL 2
Rookie Mike Ouellette notched his first career AHL hat trick, part of a season-high eight-goal explosion by Hartford in an 8-2 win over Lowell on Wednesday at the Tsongas Arena.
Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau had a goal and an assist for the Wolf Pack, and four other skaters scored goals. Hartford moved to 6-1-0-1 in its last eight contests.
Greg Moore and Ouellette each lit the lamp to give the Wolf Pack a 2-0 lead just 1:40 after the opening face-off. But Lowell came back to even the score by the end of the period on goals by Erik Rasmussen and Olli Malmivaara.
Hartford then netted six unanswered goals the rest of the way. Andrew Hutchinson, Hugh Jessiman, and Jordan Owens joined Ouellette and Parenteau in the offensive attack.
Ivan Baranka and Thomas Pock chipped in a pair of helpers apiece for the Wolf Pack, and goaltender David LeNeveu made 28 saves in the win.
The eight goals marked the most by Hartford since the team scored nine in a 9-3 triumph over San Antonio on Nov. 11, 2006.
SYRACUSE 3, TORONTO 2 (SO)
Nate DiCasmirro and David Cullen scored shootout goals to give Syracuse its sixth consecutive victory, a 3-2 decision over division-rival Toronto at the Onondaga County War Memorial.
The Crunch moved to 11-0-0-3 in their last 14 games and 15-1-0-5 since Feb. 2, while the Marlies saw their five-game winning streak come to a halt.
Syracuse’s Derick Brassard and Mark Rycroft exchanged regulation goals with Toronto’s Jay Harrison and Alex Foster. Foster’s power play goal in the third period forced overtime.
Crunch goaltender Karl Goehring earned the victory, stopping 39 shots through the first 65 minutes and denying four of five in the shootout.
The Marlies, who held a 41-20 shots advantage for the game, received their lone shootout goal from Brent Aubin.
MANCHESTER 2, PORTLAND 0
Rookie goaltender Daniel Taylor made 31 saves for his fourth shutout of the season as Manchester dropped Portland by a 2-0 count in front of 6,038 fans at the Verizon Wireless Arena.
Brady Murray and Matt Moulson netted goals for the Monarchs, scoring in the second and third periods, respectively.
Manchester captured its third straight win and moved three points up on idle Springfield for the Atlantic Division’s fourth and final playoff spot. Both teams have nine games left to play.
The shutout was Taylor’s first since posting three straight whitewashes from Jan. 18-25.
HERSHEY 4, NORFOLK 1
Kyle Wilson scored a pair of goals to lead Hershey to a 4-1 road win over Norfolk at the Scope.
Wilson’s power play goal at 4:53 of the first period gave the Bears a 1-0 lead. Radek Smolenak tied it for Norfolk at 16:30 of the second, but Andrew Joudrey regained the Hershey lead just 39 seconds later.
Wilson and Jonathan Paiement added third-period power play goals for the Bears, as Hershey finished 3-for-5 on the man-advantage.
Hershey goaltender Frederic Cassivi made 24 saves in the winning effort, pushing his season record above .500 at 18-17-3.
BINGHAMTON 6, HAMILTON 1
Rookie Alexander Nikulin netted a pair of goals and added an assist as Binghamton took a 6-1 win over visiting Hamilton at the Broome County Arena.
The Senators improved to 6-0-3-0 in their last nine outings and stayed two points back of Hershey for the East Division’s final playoff spot.
Niko Dimitrakos and Nick Foligno each posted a goal and a helper in the winning effort, while Josh Hennessy, Matt Kinch, and Denis Hamel also lit the lamp for Binghamton.
B-Sens rookie goaltender Brian Elliott picked up the win with 39 saves, his most since stopping 46 shots against Portland on Jan. 16.
Bulldogs leading scorer Corey Locke had the visitors’ lone goal, as Hamilton dropped to 0-9-1-0 in its last 10 outings.
BRIDGEPORT 3, WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 2
Bridgeport kept pace in the East Division playoff race with a 3-2 road win over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton at the Wachovia Arena.
Rookie Colton Fretter broke a 2-2 tie at 4:24 of the third period for the Sound Tigers, and the goal held up as the game-winner. Fretter now has six goals over his last five games.
Ben Walter and Matt Keith also scored for Bridgeport, and goaltender Mike Morrison (22-13-1) secured the victory with 34 saves on 36 shots.
The Sound Tigers remained five points back of Hershey for a playoff spot in the East.
Mark Ardelan and Nathan Smith lit the lamp for the Penguins in a losing effort.
MANITOBA 4, ROCHESTER 1
Manitoba scored four straight goals after allowing the game’s first marker on its way to a 4-1 road win over Rochester at the Blue Cross Arena.
The Moose set a new AHL season high by capturing their 10th straight victory overall, and they added to their franchise record by winning an eighth consecutive road contest.
Shaun Heshka and rookie Michael Grabner each notched a goal and an assist, while Greg Classen and Jannik Hansen potted a goal apiece.
2008 AHL All-Star goaltender Drew MacIntyre stopped 23 of 24 shots and secured his 25th triumph of the season (25-16-2).
Tanner Glass initially gave the Americans a 1-0 lead at 3:16 of the first period.
GRAND RAPIDS 6, LAKE ERIE 1
Grand Rapids took a 3-0 lead after the first period and cruised to a 6-1 win over visiting Lake Erie at Van Andel Arena.
Darren Helm scored twice and added an assist, and 2008 AHL All-Star Jonathan Ericsson posted a goal and a helper for the Griffins.
Mark O’Leary, Evan McGrath, and Randall Gelech rounded out the offense. Three of Grand Rapids’ six goals came on the power play.
2008 AHL All-Star goaltender Jimmy Howard earned the win for the Griffins, making 25 saves on 26 shots.
Chris Stewart scored the Monsters’ only goal on the power play midway through the second period.
