SAN ANTONIO 3, HERSHEY 0
Red-hot goaltender Josh Tordjman pitched a 41-save shutout as the suddenly surging San Antonio Rampage took a 3-0 win over league-leading Hershey on Thursday at the AT&T Center in the teams’ first-ever meeting.
It marked San Antonio’s fifth straight win, and Tordjman is 5-0-0 with three shutouts over the five contests. The Bears’ 11-game winning streak came to an end with the loss.
The teams played scoreless hockey through the first two periods, but Rampage rookie Chad Kolarik broke the deadlock at 1:36 of the third.
Brett MacLean made it 2-0 just 22 seconds later, and Derek Nesbitt added a power play goal midway through the stanza.
Hershey’s league-leading offense could not break Tordjman – the reigning Reebok/AHL Player of the Week – and the Bears suffered just their second shutout loss of the campaign. It marked the Bears’ first loss of any kind since a 4-1 setback at Bridgeport on Nov. 9
The Rampage’s five-game winning streak comes on the heels of a stretch that saw them go 0-16-0-1 in their previous 17 contests.
PEORIA 2, HAMILTON 1
Peoria scored once each in the first two periods and held on for a 2-1 road win over Hamilton at Copps Coliseum.
Julian Talbot netted his 10th goal of the season on the power play at 6:35 of the opening period, with Steve Wagner and Steve Regier picking up the assists.
Josh Soares made it a 2-0 game just 1:05 into the middle stanza, assisted by Nicholas Drazenovic and Jonas Junland.
The Bulldogs finally got on the board at 18:05 of the third period, as Greg Stewart lit the lamp. That spoiled the shutout bid of Peoria goaltender Chris Holt, who finished with 24 saves in the winning effort.
HOUSTON 4, QUAD CITY 1
Houston netted two goals in the first period and two more in the second en route to a 4-2 win over visiting Quad City on Thursday at the Toyota Center. The Aeros improved to 3-1-0-2 on their seven-game homestand with one to play.
Maxim Noreau and John Scott scored in the first period to send Houston into intermission with a 2-0 advantage. Peter Olvecky extended the lead to 3-0 just 20 seconds into the second period
The Flames’ Warren Peters put his team on the board at 14:44 of the second, tallying his eighth goal of the season.
Corey Locke upped Houston’s lead to 4-1 at the 18:40 mark, and neither side scored in the third period.
Aeros goaltender Barry Brust earned the victory with 33 saves on 34 shots.
ROCKFORD 2, IOWA 1
Rockford ended division-leading Iowa’s four-game winning streak with a 2-1 win over the visiting Chops at the MetroCentre.
Jack Skille and Tim Brent lit the lamp for the IceHogs, with Brent’s goal at 14:51 of the second period holding up as the game-winner.
IceHogs goaltender Corey Crawford made 25 saves in the victory, which moved Rockford into a third-place tie with Chicago, one point back of Peoria and two shy of Iowa.
Andrew Ebbett scored for the Chops, who return home to face Chicago on Friday.
