Ross’s hat trick helps Phantoms take bite out of Sharks


Wednesday’s Boxscores

PHILADELPHIA 7, WORCESTER 1
Philadelphia forward Jared Ross broke out of a nine-game goal-scoring drought by tallying his first hat trick of the season and adding an assist to lead the Phantoms to a 7-1 win over visiting Worcester on Wednesday at the Wachovia Spectrum.

Danny Briere, on a conditioning assignment from the parent Flyers, had a goal and a helper in the victory. Briere was an AHL All-Star and rookie of the year for Springfield in 1997-98 and had not appeared in the league since the 2000-01 campaign.

Jonathan Matsumoto and rookie Patrick Maroon each added a goal and an assist for the Phantoms, while defenseman Sean Curry also lit the lamp.

Andreas Nodl (0-3-3), David Laliberte (0-2-2), and AHL All-Star defenseman Danny Syvret (0-2-2) each chipped in multiple assists on the night.

The Phantoms, who had been shut out in each of their previous two games, jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the first period and extended the advantage to 6-0 before Lukas Kaspar finally put the Sharks on the board at 13:31 of the second period.

Ross then completed his hat trick with 1:15 to go in the period, and neither side scored in the third.

Philadelphia goaltender Scott Munroe stopped 42 of 43 shots in the winning effort.


ALBANY 7, HERSHEY 2
AHL All-Star Michael Ryan tallied his third hat trick of the season to lead Albany over host Hershey by a 7-2 count before 10,751 fans at the Giant Center.

It marked the River Rats’ second straight high-scoring road victory over the league-leading Bears, as they took a 6-4 decision on Saturday. Hershey has now lost three straight games overall for the first time all season.

Jerome Samson netted a pair of goals for Albany, while Jakub Petruzalek and defenseman Josef Melichar each posted a goal and a helper. Rats goaltender Justin Peters stopped 36 of 38 shots in the win.

Ryan became the first River Rat to rack up three hat tricks in the same season since Steve Sullivan did so during the 1995-96 campaign.

Alexandre Giroux extended his goal-scoring streak to 12 games (17-7-24) for the Bears, and Keith Aucoin also lit the lamp.


HARTFORD 4, BRIDGEPORT 2
Hartford netted two goals in the third period to take a 4-2 win over visiting Bridgeport on Wednesday at the XL Center.

The Wolf Pack’s Jordan Owens broke a 2-2 deadlock at 2:48 of the final frame, and Tommy Pyatt provided insurance at the 14:22 mark.

Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau posted a goal and an assist earlier in the game for Hartford, and Artem Anisimov tallied his team-leading 19th goal of the season.

Wolf Pack goaltender made 24 saves in the victory, which improved Hartford to 13-6-0-2 on home ice.


LOWELL 3, PROVIDENCE 2
Lowell staged a third-period rally to edge visiting Providence by a 3-2 count at Tsongas Arena on Wednesday.

Michael Swift scored twice for the Devils, giving him team a 1-0 lead in the second period and then tying the tilt at 2-2 with a goal 5:53 into the third.

In between, the Bruins received a power play tally from Adam McQuaid late in the second and an even-strength marker from Jeremy Reich just 32 seconds into the third.

The Devils’ Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond snapped the tie at 8:08 of the third period, and AHL All-Star goaltender Jeff Frazee made it stand, finishing with 29 saves in the victory.

Lowell improved to 8-2-0-0 in its last 10 games and captured its third straight win over the P-Bruins since a 3-0 loss on Dec. 12.


BINGHAMTON 4, ROCHESTER 1
Four different players scored as Binghamton dropped visiting Rochester by a 4-1 count at the Broome County Arena.

Greg Mauldin and defenseman Tomas Kudelka netted power play goals for the Senators, Matt Carkner scored at even strength, and captain Denis Hamel added a shorthanded, empty-net goal late in the third period.

Ryan Shannon posted three assists in the win, and goaltender Jeff Glass made 36 saves between the pipes.

Rookie Michael Duco netted the lone goal for the Americans, who are now 4-2-0-0 in their last six games, with both setbacks coming at the hands of Binghamton.


LAKE ERIE 3, QUAD CITY 0
Lake Erie goaltender Tyler Weiman moved into a tie for the league lead with his fifth shutout of the season, stopping all 32 shots he faced as the Monsters took a 3-0 win over visiting Quad City at Quicken Loans Arena.

It was the second straight shutout for Weiman, who made 31 saves in a 3-0 win over Philadelphia on Sunday. Weiman improved his season record to 11-8-2.

Captain Nathan Smith netted a pair of goals for Lake Erie, and defenseman Nigel Williams also lit the lamp.

The Flames, in the opener of a nine-game road trip, were denied what would have been a season-high third straight victory.


GRAND RAPIDS 3, HAMILTON 1
Grand Rapids spoiled Hamilton’s 1,000th game in franchise history by taking a 3-1 road win over the Bulldogs at Copps Coliseum.

Mattias Ritola, Evan McGrath, and Jamie Tardif netted goals for the Griffins, with the first two coming on the power play.

Darren Haydar chipped in two assists, and goaltender Jimmy Howard stopped 32 of 33 shots in the winning effort. Grand Rapids is now 4-0-1-0 in its last five games.

Ryan Flinn tallied his first goal of the season for the Bulldogs.


CHICAGO 3, TORONTO 2 (SO)
Chicago scored on three of five shootout tries to edge visiting Toronto by a 3-2 count on Wednesday at Allstate Arena.

Brett Skinner netted a shootout goal in his Wolves debut, and Jeff Hamilton and Jeff Motzko also beat Marlies goaltender Adam Munro.

Chicago’s Jordan LaVallee sent the game to overtime by scoring shorthanded with 3:17 left in regulation, tying the contest at 2-2. Colin Stuart also scored in regulation for the Wolves.

Goaltender Robert Gherson made 23 saves through regulation and overtime and stopped three of four in the shootout for Chicago, which snapped a seven-game winless skid (0-6-1-0).

Darryl Boyce and Mark Bell scored in regulation for the Marlies, and Bates Battaglia had their lone shootout score.


MANITOBA 4, MILWAUKEE 0
AHL All-Star goaltender Cory Schneider made 34 saves for his second shutout of the season as Manitoba took a 4-0 win over Milwaukee on Wednesday, earning a split of the teams’ two-game set at the MTS Centre.

Schneider improved his season record to 14-2-0 in 17 appearances.

Michael Grabner scored twice for the Moose, giving him seven goals in his last five games. Michel Ouellet and Raymond Sawada also found the back of the net, and Mark Cullen chipped in three assists.

The Admirals, who were blanked for the third time this season, saw their 12-game points streak (9-0-2-1) come to an end.