LOWELL 2, PORTLAND 1
AHL All-Star goaltender Jeff Frazee made 33 saves on 34 shots to help Lowell edge visiting Portland by a 2-1 count on Wednesday at Tsongas Arena.
Frazee came within 7:37 of a shutout but still picked up the 15th victory of his rookie season (15-8-2). Jon DiSalvatore and Patrick Davis scored for the Devils, both goals coming in the opening period.
DiSalvatore lit the lamp at the 7:13 mark, with assists going to Nicklas Bergfors and Anssi Salmela. DiSalvatore and Tyler Eckford then picked up helpers on Patrick Davis’s power play goal at 16:58.
After a scoreless middle period, the Pirates finally got on the board at 12:23 of the third when Derek Whitmore beat Frazee for his seventh goal of the campaign.
Portland could not get the equalizer, though, and have now dropped three straight games in regulation.
The Devils snapped a three-game losing skid of their own with the victory.
BRIDGEPORT 4, ALBANY 2
Bridgeport scored twice in the first period and added two more in the third en route to a 4-2 road win over Albany at the Times Union Center.
Mike Iggulden, James Sixsmith, Trevor Smith, and Jason Pitton all scored for the Sound Tigers. Sixsmith’s goal was his first in the AHL this season, and Pitton’s came shorthanded.
Bridgeport goaltender Nathan Lawson made 21 saves in the victory.
Pat Dwyer and defenseman Bryan Rodney lit the lamp for the River Rats.
GRAND RAPIDS 3, TORONTO 2 (OT)
Rookie Justin Abdelkader’s second power play goal of the night came 3:03 into overtime and lifted Grand Rapids over visiting Toronto by a 3-2 final at Van Andel Arena.
Abdelkader also started the game’s scoring at 3:35 of the opening stanza and registered his first multiple-point game since tallying a hat trick on Oct. 26 vs. Norfolk.
Francis Pare gave the Griffins a 2-0 lead at 6:44 of the first period, and neither side scored in the second.
The Marlies rallied to a draw in the third, receiving goals from Mark Bell at 5:06 and Bates Battaglia at 15:55, which sent the game to overtime. Toronto is now 2-2-2-2 on its nine-game road swing, and five of the first eight contests have extended beyond regulation.
Grand Rapids goaltender Jimmy Howard earned the victory with 24 saves on 26 shots.
BINGHAMTON 3, PHILADELPHIA 0
Goaltender Martin Gerber posted a 32-save shutout to pace Binghamton to a 3-0 win over visiting Philadelphia at the Broome County Arena.
With the victory, the Senators moved two points up on the Phantoms for fourth place in the East Division race. Philadelphia’s four-game winning streak came to an end.
Marc Cavosie registered a goal and an assist for the Senators, while Tomas Kudelka and rookie Zack Smith also lit the lamp. Ryan Shannon added two assists for Binghamton, which scored once in each period.
Gerber improved to 2-1-0 in a Binghamton uniform this season.
WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 4, MANCHESTER 1
Reassigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton earlier in the day, Bill Thomas netted a pair of goals to help the Penguins past Manchester, 4-1, at the Wachovia Arena.
Connor James had a game-high three points (1-2-3) for the Penguins, and Mark Letestu posted a goal and an assist.
Ben Lovejoy and Luca Caputi each chipped in a pair of assists, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goaltender John Curry stopped 29 of 30 shots in the winning effort.
Matt Moulson potted a power play goal for the Monarchs, who fell to 1-4-0-0 in their last five games.
HERSHEY 6, NORFOLK 2
Hershey scored three goals in a 3:21 span late in the first period and never looked back en route to a 6-2 road win over Norfolk at the Scope.
Graham Mink broke a scoreless tie at 16:37 of the opening stanza, Patrick McNeill followed at 17:24, and Kyle Wilson made it a 3-0 game at the 19:58 mark.
Wilson finished with two goals and an assist on the night, Keith Aucoin and McNeill each had a goal and a helper, and Chris Bourque also lit the lamp.
Defenseman Dene Arsene (0-3-3) and Quintin Laing (0-2-2) posted multiple assists on the night, and goaltender Daren Machesney posted a 45-save effort to pick up the win.
Grant Potulny and Blair Jones each had a goal and an assist for the Admirals, who are winless in three straight games (0-1-1-1).
MANITOBA 4, HAMILTON 3
AHL All-Star Jason Krog scored twice, including the game-winner with 1:42 left in regulation, as Manitoba edged host Hamilton by a 4-3 count at Copps Coliseum.
Shaun Heshka and Jason Jaffray netted first-period goals for the Moose, but Hamilton tied it with late second-period markers off the sticks of Brock Trotter and Olivier Latendresse.
Krog put the Moose back on top with a power play tally 13:33 into the second, and the 3-2 lead held until the Bulldogs’ tied it with 3:54 to play in regulation. That set the stage for Krog’s game-winner.
Manitoba finished 3-for-5 on the power play, and AHL All-Star goaltender Cory Schneider picked up the win with 33 saves.
LAKE ERIE 5, SAN ANTONIO 1
After totaling one goal in losing its last three games, Lake Erie scored five times to take a 5-1 road win over San Antonio on Wednesday at the AT&T Center.
Matt Hendricks posted game-high three points (1-2-3) for the Monsters, and Philippe Dupuis and Chris Mueller each had a goal and an assist.
Bryan Marshall and Tom Fritsche rounded out the Lake Erie offense, and goaltenders Jason Bacashihua and Tyler Weiman combined to make 51 saves on 52 shots.
The Rampage got on the board when Wyatt Smith tallied a power play goal at 16:12 of the third period.
