CALDER CUP UPDATE:
Game 3 in the North Division Finals pits Grand Rapids against Manitoba tonight (7:30 CT) with the series all square… Jiri Hudler and Valtteri Filppula recorded a goal and an assist each in the Griffins’ 3-2 victory on Saturday night… Jimmy Howard, who made 28 saves for Grand Rapids in Game 2, has not won back-to-back starts since his 12-game winning streak ended on Mar. 31… Mike Keane scored for Manitoba in Saturday’s game, his first Calder Cup Playoff goal since 1988… The Moose are 9-2 in playoff games at the MTS Centre since the arena opened in 2004; the Griffins won three of four in Winnipeg in the regular season, and are 3-0 on the road this postseason… Manitoba is scoreless over its last 23 power-play opportunities; Grand Rapids snapped an 0-for-21 slide with three PPG in Game 2… The Moose have scored first in seven straight games since a 1-0 loss to Syracuse in Game 1 last round.
Houston’s season is on the line tonight as well as the Aeros host Milwaukee in Game 4 of the West Division Finals (7:35 CT)… The Admirals got six special-teams goals, including three shorthanded markers, in its 7-4 win on Sunday… Simon Gamache led the way with four points in Game 3, including his 26th career Calder Cup Playoff goal (T-23rd all-time)… Darren Haydar added a goal and two assists, giving him 56 career AHL playoff points (T-31st)… In four games (all wins) since getting Jordin Tootoo back from Nashville, Milwaukee has outscored its opponents 23-9, with Tootoo scoring six times… Houston’s Josh Harding, who has lost three straight decisions for the first time this season, owns a 6.38 GAA and .802 save percentage in the series… Patrick O’Sullivan’s goal for the Aeros in Game 3 was his 50th since opening night… The Admirals are 1-5 over the last two postseasons with a chance to wrap up a series.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, which began the season on a remarkable 20-0-2-1 run, faces elimination as it visits Hershey for Game 4 of the East Division Finals tonight (7:00 ET)… The Penguins, down 0-3 in the series, have not lost four straight games all year… Hershey has won nine in a row dating back to the regular season, and can become the first AHL team to sweep consecutive best-of-seven playoff series since the 1988 Bears, who broke out the broom three times en route to a perfect 12-0 postseason record… Jakub Cutta, who has six goals in 295 career regular-season games in the AHL, scored his third goal in 17 career Calder Cup Playoff contests on Sunday, the game-winner… Jeff Schultz, a first-round draft pick by Washington in 2004, scored a goal in his pro debut in Game 3… Penguins rookie Ryan Stone notched his team-best 11th point of the postseason with an assist on Sunday… Hershey is 7-for-26 on the power play (26.9 percent) in the series against Wilkes-Barre, which had the best penalty-killing efficiency in the AHL in the regular season.
Atlantic Division — Series "I" (best-of-7)
A1-Portland Pirates vs. A2-Hartford Wolf Pack
Game 1 – Tue., May 2 – Portland 6, HARTFORD 2
Game 2 – Thu., May 4 – HARTFORD 3, Portland 2 (OT)
Game 3 – Sat., May 6 – PORTLAND 4, Hartford 3 (OT)
Game 4 – Sun., May 7 – Hartford 4, PORTLAND 2
Game 5 – Thu., May 11 – at Portland, 7:05
Game 6 – Sun., May 14 – at Portland, 7:05
*Game 7 – Wed., May 17 – at Hartford, 7:00
East Division — Series "J" (best-of-7)
E1-Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins vs. E2-Hershey Bears
Game 1 – Thu., May 4 – Hershey 5, WILKES-BARRE 4
Game 2 – Sat., May 6 – Hershey 5, WILKES-BARRE 0
Game 3 – Sun., May 7 – HERSHEY 4, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 1
Game 4 – Tue., May 9 – at Hershey, 7:00
*Game 5 – Fri., May 12 – at Wilkes-Barre, 7:05
*Game 6 – Sun., May 14 – at Hershey, 7:30
*Game 7 – Tue., May 16 – at Wilkes-Barre, 7:05
North Division — Series "K" (best-of-7)
N1-Grand Rapids Griffins vs. N3-Manitoba Moose
Game 1 – Fri., May 5 – Manitoba 3, GRAND RAPIDS 1
Game 2 – Sat., May 6 – GRAND RAPIDS 3, Manitoba 2
Game 3 – Tue., May 9 – at Manitoba, 8:30
Game 4 – Thu., May 11 – at Manitoba, 8:30
Game 5 – Sat., May 13 – at Manitoba, 8:30
*Game 6 – Mon., May 15 – at Grand Rapids, 7:00
*Game 7 – Tue., May 16 – at Grand Rapids, 7:00
West Division — Series "L" (best-of-7)
W1-Milwaukee Admirals vs. W2-Houston Aeros
Game 1 – Thu., May 4 – MILWAUKEE 5, Houston 4
Game 2 – Sat., May 6 – MILWAUKEE 7, Houston 0
Game 3 – Sun., May 7 – Milwaukee 7, HOUSTON 4
Game 4 – Tue., May 9 – at Houston, 8:35
*Game 5 – Wed., May 10 – at Houston, 8:35
*Game 6 – Sat., May 13 – at Milwaukee, 8:00
*Game 7 – Mon., May 15 – at Milwaukee, 8:00
*if necessary… All times Eastern
ALUMNI WATCH:
In Stanley Cup Playoff action on Monday, two-time AHL All-Star Ryan Miller, winner of the Baz Bastien Award as the AHL’s outstanding goalie in 2004-05, stopped 43 shots as Buffalo defeated Ottawa, 2-1… Carolina beat New Jersey, 3-2 in overtime, as 2005 AHL All-Rookie goalie Cam Ward made 21 saves for his sixth straight win, tying the NHL record for consecutive wins at the start of a playoff career… Vesa Toskala’s 24 saves helped San Jose edge Edmonton, 2-1.
BY THE NUMBERS:
20-7 — Combined record this NHL postseason of Anaheim’s Ilya Bryzgalov, Ottawa’s Ray Emery, Buffalo’s Ryan Miller and Carolina’s Cam Ward, who all have their teams in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs after playing in the American Hockey League in 2004-05.
AHL ON B2 NETWORKS:
B2 Networks brings all the action of the 2006 Calder Cup Playoffs to your computer with live video webcasts of every game… Click here for details.
