MANCHESTER 5, BRIDGEPORT 1
Manchester rookie defenseman Brian Boyle scored three power play goals to help the Monarchs to a 5-1 road victory over Bridgeport on Saturday at the Arena at Harbor Yard.
The hat trick gave Boyle four goals in his last two games, and he has now registered a point in four straight contests (4-3-7) and seven of his last eight (5-6-11).
The first-year pro out of Boston College leads all AHL defensemen with 13 goals and ranks third with 28 points in 30 games this season.
Boyle scored a man-advantage goal in each period for the Monarchs, who finished 3-for-4 on the power play in the game.
Paul Crosty and David Meckler also scored for Manchester, while Matt Moulson and Teddy Purcell chipped in with a pair of assists each.
Starting his fourth straight game in net, goaltender Erik Ersberg stopped 35 of 36 shots, improving his season record to 7-5-0.
Drew Fata scored for the Sound Tigers, who had a four-game winning streak snapped.
LOWELL 3, PROVIDENCE 1
Lowell snapped a season-high eight game winless skid (0-6-1-1) with a 3-1 win over Providence at the Tsongas Arena.
It also marked the Devils’ first win in six tries this season against the league-leading Bruins, who had a five-game winning streak snapped.
Patrick Davis, Stephen Gionta, and Petr Vrana netted goals for the Devils, and goaltender Frank Doyle made 38 saves in the win. Lowell was outshot in the contest, 39-21.
Providence leading scorer Pascal Pelletier scored the visitors’ lone goal on the night.
SYRACUSE 4, HARTFORD 3
Joakim Lindstrom tallied two goals and added an assist as Syracuse defeated host Hartford by a 4-3 final at the XL Center.
Lindstrom’s power play goal at 4:49 of the third period proved to be the difference, helping the Crunch move to 5-2-0-0 in their last seven games.
Derek MacKenzie also had three points (1-2-3), Andrew Murray had a goal and an assist, and goaltender Karl Goehring picked up the win with 31 saves.
Thomas Pock led the Wolf Pack with a pair of goals.
HERSHEY 4, NORFOLK 1
Kyle Wilson scored twice to lead Hershey past visiting Norfolk by a 4-1 final in front of 8,094 fans at the Giant Center.
Grant Potulny and Andrew Joudrey also scored for the Bears, and goaltender Daren Machesney made 35 saves in the win.
The Admirals received their lone goal from Adam Henrich, who scored for the second straight night.
Norfolk goaltender Jonathan Boutin made 35 saves in net, but his club still dropped its season-high fifth straight game.
BINGHAMTON 3, ROCHESTER 1
Josh Hennessy’s power play goal at 14:12 of the third period led Binghamton to a 3-1 win over visiting Rochester at the Broome County Arena.
Hennessy added a pair of assists in the game, giving him four points over his last two games (2-2-4).
Lawrence Nycholat scored in the first period for the B-Sens, and Greg Mauldin added an empty-net goal in the closing minute.
Binghamton goaltender Brian Elliott secured the win with 31 saves on 32 shots.
Stefan Meyer scored for the Americans, who lost their ninth consecutive game.
WORCESTER 4, PORTLAND 3 (OT)
Defenseman Dan Spang scored at 2:40 of overtime to lift Worcester to a 4-3 road win over Portland and a split of the teams’ two-game set in Maine.
It marked Worcester’s first win at the Cumberland County Civic Center since their inaugural visit on Oct. 6, 2006, a 4-3 shootout victory. The Sharks had gone 0-5-1-1 in the building since.
Patrick Traverse tallied a goal and an assist in regulation for the Sharks, who also received goals from Nate Raduns and Mike Iggulden.
Brian Salcido factored into all three goals for the Pirates, scoring one and adding two assists. Petteri Wirtanen and Geoff Platt also scored.
CHICAGO 4, GRAND RAPIDS 3 (OT)
Second-year pro Brett Sterling scored his league-leading 18th goal of the season (18-9-27) at 4:39 of overtime to give Chicago a 4-3 win over host Grand Rapids at the Van Andel Arena.
After a scoreless first period, the Wolves took a 2-0 lead on second-period goals by Steve Martins and Kevin Doell.
But Brett Engelhardt and Ryan Oulahen tallied goals for the Griffins, tying the game. The teams then exchanged late third period goals to send the contest to overtime.
Chicago goaltender Ondrej Pavelec picked up the victory, making 27 saves on 30 shots.
WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 4, ALBANY 3
Kurtis McLean broke a 3-3 tie at 13:46 of the third period to lift Wilkes-Barre/Scranton past visiting Albany by a 4-3 count at the Wachovia Arena.
Alex Goligoski tallied a pair of goals for the Penguins, and Ryan Stone also lit the lamp.
Goaltender David Brown made 24 saves, helping the Penguins to their season-high fourth straight victory.
Yannick Tifu tallied a goal and two assists for the River Rats, the first points of his AHL career.
QUAD CITY 2, IOWA 1
Brett Sutter scored midway through the third period and Quad City held on for a 2-1 win over Iowa at the I Wireless Center.
It marked Sutter’s fourth goal of the season, with Derek Couture and Gord Baldwin picking up assists.
The Stars initially took a 1-0 lead when Toby Petersen tallied his team-leading 14th goal of the season (14-17-31) on the power play midway through the second period.
Warren Peters tied it for Quad City with a man-advantage goal of his own later that period, setting the stage for Sutter’s game winner in the third.
Flames goaltender Kevin Lalande made 30 saves and picked up the win in his first decision since Nov. 2.
ROCKFORD 4, MILWAUKEE 2
Rockford scored twice in the first period and added two more in the third to take a 4-2 win over visiting Milwaukee at the MetroCentre. The IceHogs moved to 9-0-0-4 in their last 13 games.
Kris Versteeg led the IceHogs with a goal and two assists. He now has a goal in three straight games (3-3-6) and a point in 12 of his last 13 contests (7-10-17).
Bryan Bickell, Martin St. Pierre, and Colin Fraser also scored for Rockford, and goaltender Corey Crawford earned the win with 26 saves.
Cal O’Reilly and Matt Ellison netted goals for the Admirals, who had a four-game winning streak snapped.
PEORIA 3, LAKE ERIE 2 (SO)
Peoria erased a two-goal deficit in regulation and scored on all three of its shootout attempts to take a 3-2 road win over Lake Erie at the Quicken Loans Arena.
The Monsters took a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes on goals by defenseman Ray Macias and forward Brent Kelly.
But Peoria’s Julian Talbot made it 2-1 midway through the second period, and Yan Stastny tallied the equalizer at 9:25 of the third period.
Jean-Guy Trudel, Nikolay Lemtyugov, and Nicholas Drazenovic all scored in the shootout for Peoria, which improved to 5-1-0-0 in its last six outings.
HOUSTON 2, SPRINGFIELD 0
Petr Kalus tallied a pair goals and Nolan Schaefer pitched a 21-save shutout as Houston downed Springfield, 2-0, at the Toyota Center.
The Aeros, playing their first home game since Dec. 1, snapped a three-game winless skid (0-2-0-1) and avenged a 4-3 shootout loss to the Falcons in Massachusetts on Dec. 14.
Maxim Noreau and Steve Kelly each picked up an assist for Houston, and Schaefer earned his second shutout of the season, both at home.
The Falcons went 0-2-0-0 in their first-ever visit to Texas and dropped to 0-3-1-0 in their last four games overall.
MANITOBA 3, HAMILTON 2 (OT)
Defenseman Nathan McIver scored at 4:37 of overtime to give Manitoba a 3-2 win over Hamilton in front of 7,333 fans at the MTS Centre.
The win gave the Moose a split of their two-game set with Bulldogs, and they finished a six-game homestand at 2-3-0-1.
Milan Gajic and Zack FitzGerald scored in regulation for the Moose, and Ryan Shannon picked up a pair of assists.
Manitoba goaltender Drew MacIntyre made 30 saves on 32 shots in the victory.
Hamilton winger Duncan Milroy scored for the second straight night, and Daniel Corso tallied a goal in his first AHL game of the season.
