CONNECTICUT 7, WORCESTER 2
Defenseman Wade Redden scored twice, Dale Weise put up a goal and two assists, and Brodie Dupont dished out four helpers as Connecticut moved into third place in the Atlantic Division with a 7-2 road win over Worcester on Sunday at the DCU Center.
With their third straight win, the Whale (30-24-2-6) moved two points up on the Sharks for the division’s final guaranteed playoff spot. Both teams have 17 games remaining.
Connecticut put seven goals on the board despite mustering only 19 shots. The visitors were outshot 10-7 in the opening period but came away with a 2-0 lead off strikes by John Mitchell and Pavel Valentenko.
Evgeny Grachev made it 3-0 early in the second period, but the Sharks then closed to within 3-2 courtesy of goals from Cory Quirk and Brandon Mashinter. The Whale took control from there, though, as Weise scored just 42 seconds after Mashinter, Redden registered a pair in the third period, and Oren Eizenman added a goal.
Dupont recorded a season high with his four assists, and the fourth-year pro has found the scoresheet in three straight games (0-6-6) and eight of his last 11 outings (4-9-13).
Whale rookie goaltender Cameron Talbot turned aside 32 of Worcester’s 34 shots and improved to 9-3-2 in 14 AHL appearances this season.
HAMILTON 3, TORONTO 2 (OT)
Rookie forward Brendon Nash scored 2:21 into overtime to lift Hamilton past Toronto by a 3-2 count on Sunday afternoon in a nationally-televised contest at Ricoh Coliseum.
The Bulldogs bounced back from a 2-0 loss to the Marlies on Saturday and improved to 6-2-0-1 in their last nine contests. Hamilton also moved back into a tie atop the North Division with Manitoba, which suffered a 3-2 loss in Chicago.
Nash, who scored two goals in each of his four seasons at Cornell University, recorded his fifth goal of the current campaign and was assisted on the play by fellow rookie Gabriel Dumont and defenseman Mathieu Carle.
Olivier Fortier and Aaron Palushaj scored in the first and second periods, respectively, to give the Bulldogs a 2-0 advantage, but the Marlies came back to tie it on goals by Matt Caruana and Joe Colborne.
Hamilton goaltender Drew MacIntyre (14-6-1) earned the win in net with 32 saves, his most in three games since joining the Bulldogs.
ADIRONDACK 4, ALBANY 3
Denis Hamel potted a pair of power play goals less than three minutes apart in the third period, erasing a 3-2 deficit and sending Adirondack to a 4-3 win over visiting Albany on Sunday at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
Hamel scored at 4:56 and 7:51 of the third period and picked up his 19th and 20th goals of the season, marking the ninth time in his AHL career that he’s reached the 20-goal plateau.
Ben Holmstrom also scored twice for the Phantoms, while Michael Ryan (0-3-3) and defenseman Danny Syvret (0-2-2) each chipped in with multiple assists. Goaltender Johan Backlund stopped 26 of 29 shots between the pipes.
Pierre-Luc Letouneau-Leblond and rookie Adam Henrique netted goals for the Devils, who had collected a 5-2 win over Adirondack on Saturday. The teams will meet again on Friday in Glens Falls.
CHARLOTTE 3, MANCHESTER 2
Former first-round draft pick Zach Boychuk netted the game-winning goal with just 47 seconds left in regulation, sending Charlotte to a 3-2 road win over Manchester on Sunday in its third game in as many nights.
The Checkers entered the third period in a 2-1 hole before Nicholas Blanchard tied it up just 1:58 in. That set the stage for Boychuk’s late winner, which was assisted by defenseman Brett Bellemore and rookie forward Riley Nash.
Jacob Micflikier scored a first-period power play goal for the Checkers, who salvaged one victory out of their weekend after losing in Providence and Worcester to begin it.
Charlotte goaltender Justin Pogge earned the win with 33 saves between the pipes, helping his club move three points up on Norfolk for second place in the East Division and to within four points of second-place Hershey.
Tom Kaunisto and Bud Holloway registered goals for the Monarchs, who are now just two points ahead of Portland for first place in the Atlantic Division and have played four more games than the Pirates.
PORTLAND 6, SPRINGFIELD 1
Mark Parrish buried two goals and assisted on a pair of others as Portland cruised past visiting Springfield by a 6-1 final at the Cumberland County Civic Center on Sunday afternoon.
It marked the second consecutive four-point effort for Parrish, who recorded four assists in Saturday’s 8-3 win over Bridgeport. He now shows 35 points (11-24-35) in 42 games for the season.
Mark Voakes registered a goal and an assist in his AHL debut after recording 55 points in 60 ECHL contests this year, and the Pirates also got scores from Igor Gongalsky, Maxime Legault, and Jacob Lagace.
Luke Adam and Marc-Andre Gragnani posted two assists apiece, and Portland goaltender David Leggio ran his season record to an impressive 17-4-0 with 35 stops in net.
The Pirates, who have outscored opponents by a whopping 20-6 margin during their current three-game winning streak, pulled to within two points of first-place Manchester in the Atlantic Division.
Captain Ben Guite netted the lone goal for the Falcons, who are now winless in four straight games (0-3-1-0) and fell five points back of Connecticut for the Atlantic’s final guaranteed playoff spot.
CHICAGO 3, MANITOBA 2
Chicago grabbed a 3-0 lead by late in the second period and then held on for a 3-2 win over visiting Manitoba on Sunday in front of 9,644 fans at Allstate Arena.
Darren Haydar, Tim Miller, and Jason Krog tallied goals for the Wolves, and Haydar added an assist for a multiple-point afternoon. Andre Deveaux picked up a pair of assists.
Forward Garth Murray put Manitoba on the board with an unassisted shorthanded goal in the second period’s closing minute, and defenseman Yann Sauve made it 3-2 at 4:45 of the third frame. But the Moose were unable to get the equalizer and saw their three-game winning streak come to an end.
Manitoba is now 4-3-0-0 on its 11-game road trip, which continues on Tuesday in Oklahoma City, and fell back into a tie with Hamilton for first place in the North Division.
Goaltender Edward Pasquale made 29 saves in net for the Wolves, earning his first AHL victory since Nov. 5. The victory vaulted Chicago (33-25-3-5, 74 points) into fifth place in the West Division, one point up on San Antonio and Oklahoma City.
PROVIDENCE 6, BRIDGEPORT 0
Trent Whitfield concluded an impressive weekend by posting two goals and two assists as Providence collected a 6-0 win over reeling Bridgeport on Sunday afternoon before 7,067 fans at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
Whitfield, who recorded two goals and a helper in Friday’s 4-2 win over Charlotte after going scoreless in his previous five games, has now totaled 18 points (9-9-18) in 29 games this season after returning to the lineup from injury.
Jordan LaVallee-Smotherman and rookie Maxime Sauve each notched a goal and an assist for the Bruins, while David Laliberte and Zach Hamill added goals in the winning effort.
Defenseman Alain Goulet chipped in with three assists, and recent acquisition Anton Khudobin (21-12-1) made 20 saves to earn his first shutout in a Providence uniform and second overall on the season.
The P-Bruins improved to 5-2-0-1 in their last eight contests and remained nine points back of Connecticut for the Atlantic Divisions’ final guaranteed postseason entry.
Bridgeport dropped its fifth straight game.
WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 4, HERSHEY 1
Team captain Ryan Craig scored twice and added an assist as Wilkes-Barre/Scranton continued its season-long mastery of Hershey with a 4-1 road win over the Bears on Sunday before a sellout crowd of 10,737 fans at the Giant Center.
The Penguins, who were 2-9-0-1 against the Bears in 2009-10, moved to 6-1-0-0 in this year’s season series and assured themselves of a winning record vs. their in-state rivals.
With their ninth victory in 12 games overall (9-3-0-0), the league-leading Penguins (45-17-0-0, 90 points) moved eight points up on Hershey for first place in the East Division.
Geoff Walker (1-1-2) and defenseman Joey Mormina netted the other goals for the Pens, and goaltender Brad Thiessen (27-6-0) earned the win despite having to make only 15 saves in net.
Boyd Kane scored for the Bears, who will begin a four-game road trip on Tuesday in Portland.
BINGHAMTON 4, NORFOLK 1
Kaspars Daugavins tallied a pair of goals to help Binghamton get back on track with a 4-1 win over visiting Norfolk on Sunday at the Broome County Arena.
The Senators were in the odd situation of having both Friday and Saturday off, leaving them extra time to stew over a three-game winless skid (0-2-0-1) which had followed eight straight victories.
But Andrew Sweetland put the Senators on top to stay with a power play goal midway through the second period, Daugavins scored once apiece in the second and third frames, and rookie Colin Greening added a late goal after Paul Szczechura had put the Admirals on the board.
Greening was coming off a nine-game NHL stint with Ottawa that saw him record a goal and two assists.
Goaltender Barry Brust (24-13-1) made 32 saves in net for the Senators, who closed to within two points of the fourth-place Admirals in the East Division race.
Norfolk dropped its second straight game and will host the Senators on both Wednesday and Friday this week.
ABBOTSFORD 5, HOUSTON 4
Ales Kotalik’s power play goal with 46 seconds left in regulation lifted Abbotsford to a 5-4 road triumph over Houston on Sunday at the Toyota Center.
The Heat battled back from a pair of third-period deficits to tie it before Kotalik struck for his fourth goal and 18th point in 16 games since joining Abbotsford from parent-club Calgary. Kotalik also posted an assist on Sunday.
Rookie defenseman T.J. Brodie joined Kotalik with a goal and an assist on the evening, and Cam Cunning, Gaelan Patterson, and captain Quintin Laing rounded out the Heat’s offense.
Jon Rheault and defenseman Gord Baldwin each contributed a pair of assists, and Abbotsford goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux secured the victory with a season-high 31 saves between the pipes.
The Heat (31-25-4-5, 71 points) closed to within two points of Toronto for the North Division’s third and final guaranteed playoff spot.
Aeros captain Jon DiSalvatore scored twice in the losing effort to assure himself of an eighth consecutive 20-goal season. Jarod Palmer and Chad Rau also found the back of the net for Houston, which was playing the opener of a five-game homestand.
