ROCKFORD 3, SAN ANTONIO 0
Rockford ended a four-game winless skid (0-3-0-1) on Friday with a 3-0 road win over San Antonio at the AT&T Center.
Goaltender Corey Crawford made 43 saves to earn his second shutout and 20th win of the campaign (20-15-3) for the IceHogs, who pulled within one point of Houston for second place in the West Division.
Tim Brent, back from an NHL stint with the Blackhawks, netted a shorthanded goal and added an assist for Rockford. The goal was Brent’s 20th of the campaign, the first time in his five-year AHL career he has reached that plateau.
Rookie Pete MacArthur and Rob Klinkhammer also scored in the victory, Klinkhammer’s goal going into an empty net in the closing seconds.
Rockford (33-27-0-6, 72 points) will be the lone AHL team with Saturday off before it travels to Houston on Sunday in what could be a battle for second place.
The Rampage fell to 1-4-0-1 in their last six contests.
PROVIDENCE 4, PORTLAND 3
Rookie Mikko Lehtonen’s team-leading 24th goal of the season broke a 3-3 tie in the third period and sent Providence to a 4-3 win over Portland before 7,660 fans at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
Lehtonen’s game-winning goal came just 1:20 after AHL All-Star Mark Mancari had tied it for the Pirates.
Vladimir Sobotka registered three points (1-2-3) for the Bruins, Martin St. Pierre posted a goal and an assist, and captain Jeremy Reich also lit the lamp. B’s goaltender Tuukka Rask earned the victory with 25 saves.
Providence (36-24-3-3) remained in a first-place tie with Hartford in the Atlantic Division.
Mathieu Darche netted a pair of goals for the Pirates, who stayed two points up on Worcester for the division’s final postseason berth.
LOWELL 3, MANCHESTER 1
Lowell snapped out of a five-game winless skid (0-4-0-1) with a 3-1 triumph in Manchester on Friday.
Nicklas Bergfors netted a pair of goals and Jay Leach posted a goal and an assist for the Devils, who scored once in each period.
Lowell goaltender Jeff Frazee stopped 33 of 34 shots in the win, which was the Devils’ first since Feb. 27 at Springfield. Lowell pulled within one point of Worcester for fifth place and three back of Portland for third in the Atlantic Division.
Scott Parse initially gave the Monarchs a 1-0 lead with a first-period power play goal, but Manchester saw its six-game winning streak come to an end.
HARTFORD 4, WORCESTER 2
Hartford coughed up a 2-0 lead in the third period but rebounded to post a 4-2 road win over Worcester at the DCU Center.
Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau snapped a 2-2 tie with 5:14 to go in regulation, and Greg Moore scored in an empty net – his second goal of the night – in the closing seconds.
Artem Anisimov also lit the lamp for the Wolf Pack, while Patrick Rissmiller and defenseman Michael Sauer each chipped in a pair of assists.
Goaltender Miika Wiikman made 32 saves in net for Hartford, which won for the ninth time in 11 games (9-1-1-0) and kept pace with Providence atop the Atlantic Division.
Patrick Traverse and Riley Armstrong scored for the Sharks, who have lost three in a row.
BRIDGEPORT 3, SPRINGFIELD 2 (SO)
Junior Lessard scored in regulation before tallying the decisive shootout goal as conference-leading Bridgeport eked out a 3-2 road win over last-place Springfield at the MassMutual Center.
The Sound Tigers trailed 1-0 before Lessard netted a power play goal at 12:38 of the second period, and Jon Sim gave Bridgeport the lead early in the third with his sixth goal in five games since joining the team.
Falcons forward Charles Linglet scored twice in regulation, including the game-tying tally with 8:34 to go in the third frame.
Trevor Smith also scored in the shootout for Bridgeport, and goaltender Kris Mayotte stopped four of Springfield’s five tries after making 26 saves through the first 65 minutes.
Bridgeport captured its fifth straight win and improved its Eastern Conference-leading mark overall to 41-18-3-5 (90 points).
BINGHAMTON 6, NORFOLK 2
Binghamton scored four times in a 5:13 span during the second period and cruised to a 6-2 win over Norfolk in the opener of a two-game set at the Broome County Arena.
Six different Senators found the back of the net in the victory. Aaron Slattengren, Greg Mauldin, and captain Denis Hamel led the way with a goal and an assist. Matt Pope, Mark Bombersback, and Zack Smith added scores.
B-Sens goaltender Jeff Glass secured the victory with 30 saves on 32 shots. Binghamton matched a season high with its fourth straight win and moved 12 points up on Philadelphia for the East Division’s final playoff spot.
Chris Lawrence and Brock Hooton netted third-period goals for the Admirals, who will seek revenge when the teams clash again on Saturday.
WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 4, ALBANY 1
Rookie Dustin Jeffrey scored twice and Janne Pesonen put up a game-high three points (1-2-3) to lead Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to a 4-1 win at Albany.
Jean-Michel Daoust posted a goal and an assist to round out the Penguins’ scoring, and goaltender Adam Berkhoel made 20 saves to pick up his first victory since Feb. 11.
The two-goal effort was Jeffrey’s first of the season, while Pesonen’s showing gives him eight points (2-6-8) in his last two games.
Jerome Samson netted the River Rats’ lone goal of the night.
SYRACUSE 3, LAKE ERIE 1
Syracuse rookie Nikita Filatov scored his second straight game-winning goal to lead the Crunch past Lake Erie by a 3-1 count at the Onondaga County War Memorial.
Filatov, who missed the previous seven games, now shows 11 goals and 22 points in 30 AHL contests for the season.
Maksim Mayorov and captain Dan Smith also netted goals for the Crunch, who moved to 5-2-1-0 in their last eight games and remained three points back of Toronto for a playoff spot in the North Division.
Crunch goaltender Kevin Lalande earned the victory with 31 saves to improve to 2-1-0 in a Syracuse uniform this season.
Rookie T.J. Galiardi extended his scoring streak to five games (3-5-8) with Lake Erie’s lone goal, as the Monsters’ three-game winning streak was snapped.
TORONTO 4, ROCHESTER 2
Toronto quickly overcame a 1-0 deficit and went on to double up host Rochester by a 4-2 count at the Blue Cross Arena.
Rookie Michael Duco gave the Amerks the early lead with a power play goal at 15:27 of the fist period, but the newly acquired Jay Rosehill tied it for the Marlies just 13 seconds later.
Bates Battaglia and Andrew Martens (first in the AHL) then scored to give Toronto a 4-1 lead. Rochester’s Karl Stewart and Toronto’s Alex Foster exchanged third-period markers, the latter going into an empty net.
Marlies goaltender Justin Pogge stopped 24 of 26 shots in the winning effort, as Toronto stayed three points up on Syracuse for fourth place in the North Division race.
MANITOBA 4, HAMILTON 3
Manitoba edged Hamilton by a 4-3 count on Friday in the opener of the teams’ two-game set at Copps Coliseum.
Jason Krog, Michael Grabner, and Guillaume Desbiens each posted a goal and an assist for the league-leading Moose, and captain Mike Keane netted an unassisted marker in the second period.
Moose goaltender Cory Schneider earned the victory with 31 saves, helping Manitoba claim its sixth straight win.
Yannick Weber, Mike Glumac, and Brock Trotter all scored for the Bulldogs, who will host the Moose again on Saturday night.
GRAND RAPIDS 4, PEORIA 1
Grand Rapids cooled off Peoria with a 4-1 win over the visiting Rivermen before 8,759 fans at Van Andel Arena. The teams will square off for a rematch on Saturday night.
The Griffins grabbed a 3-0 lead after two periods on the strength of goals from Garrett Stafford (power play), Aaron Gagnon (shorthanded), and Darren McCarty (even strength).
Grand Rapids rookie Justin Abdelkader and Peoria defenseman Jonas Junland traded goals in the third period. Junland’s goal was his fourth against the Griffins this season; he has seven against the rest of the league.
Griffins goaltender Jimmy Howard earned the victory with 24 saves, as the Rivermen’s season-high winning streak came to an end at four games.
CHICAGO 7, IOWA 4
Chicago’s offense came to life as the Wolves snapped a four-game skid with a 7-4 win over visiting Iowa at Allstate Arena on Friday.
The seven goals marked a season high for the Wolves, who totaled six scores during their four-game losing streak. Chicago moved three points up on Peoria for the West Division’s final guaranteed playoff spot.
Brett Sterling led the way with two goals and two helpers, and Joey Crabb also scored twice. Rookies Spencer Machacek and Matt Anderson each registered a goal and an assist, and Steve Martins rounded out Chicago’s offense.
Defensemen Clay Wilson (0-3-3) and Alex Brooks (0-2-2) chipped in multiple assists, and goaltender Ondrej Pavelec made 20 saves in the victory.
Troy Bodie and Ajay Baines paced the Chops with a goal and an assist apiece.
QUAD CITY 6, HOUSTON 3
Quad City scored twice in each period and doubled up Houston by a 6-3 count on Saturday at the Toyota Center.
Rookie Justin Bowers, who entered the game with two goals in 17 career AHL contests, netted a hat trick to pace thee Flames. Defensemen Brandon Roach and Brad Farynuk added their first career AHL goals, and rookie John Armstrong also lit the lamp.
The Flames received multiple helpers from David Van der Gulik (0-3-3) and Adam Cracknell (0-2-2), while goaltender Leland Irving stopped all 17 shots he faced in relief.
Benoit Pouliot, Jesse Schultz, and Morten Madsen notched goals for the Aeros, who lost for just the third time in their last 13 games (10-3-0-0).
