PORTLAND 5, HARTFORD 4 (OT)
Geoff Platt tallied four points (1-3-4) and Andrew Ebbett (pictured) notched the game-winner 33 seconds into overtime as Portland stayed hot with a 5-4 road win over Hartford on Saturday at the XL Center.
Ebbett took a share of the league lead with his third overtime goal of the season for the Pirates, who moved to 11-1-1-2 in their last 15 games.
Hartford took a 2-0 lead after the first period on goals by Dane Byers and Ryan Callahan, but Platt and Bobby Ryan evened the score with second-period goals for Portland.
Wolf Pack winger Lauri Korpikoski scored late in the second stanza, giving Hartford a 3-2 advantage entering the final 20 minutes.
Portland’s Jason King and Petteri Wirtanen each tallied power play markers in the third period to put the Pirates on top 4-3.
Defenseman Andrew Hutchinson tied it for the Wolf Pack at 9:39 with a power play goal of his own, and the game remained knotted for the remainder of regulation.
Platt completed his four-point night with the primary assist on Ebbett’s overtime tally.
Portland goaltender Mike McKenna picked up the victory with 24 saves on 28 shots.
HERSHEY 5, SPRINGFIELD 1
Second-year pro Kyle Wilson notched his second career hat trick and added an assist as Hershey downed visiting Springfield by a 5-1 count before 9,234 fans at the Giant Center.
Wilson tallied the Bears’ first three goals of the game, giving him 13 markers on the season.
Scott Barney and Grant Potulny also scored for Hershey, and goaltender Frederic Cassivi secured the victory with 24 saves.
Wilson’s other hat trick came on Mar. 18, 2007, against Binghamton. He also had an assist in that game for a four-point showing.
Marc Pouliot scored the Falcons’ lone goal on the power play just 38 seconds into the second period.
CHICAGO 5, MANCHESTER 2
Chicago netted five straight goals on its way to a 5-2 win over visiting Manchester before a crowd of 12,022 at the Allstate Arena.
Jason Krog scored twice for the Wolves, while Brian Fahey and Steve Martins each had a goal and an assist.
Nathan Oystrick also lit the lamp for Chicago, and goaltender Robert Gherson made 29 saves in the victory.
Brian Boyle notched both goals for the Monarchs and leads all AHL rookies with 19 tallies on the season (19-19-38).
PROVIDENCE 4, WORCESTER 3
Four different skaters notched goals as Providence edged host Worcester, 4-3, before a crowd of 7,230 at the DCU Center.
Matt Lashoff, Nate Thompson, Jeff Hoggan, and Martins Karsums scored for the Bruins. Karsums’ goal at 17:42 of the second period turned out to be the game-winner.
Bruins goaltender Jordan Sigalet picked up the win with 29 saves on 32 shots.
Tom Cavanagh, Tomas Plihal, and Ashton Rome lit the lamp for the Sharks, who dropped to 0-3-0-1 in their last four outings.
ALBANY 4, BRIDGEPORT 3
Brandon Nolan scored twice and added an assist to lead Albany to a 4-3 win over visiting Bridgeport at the Times Union Center.
The teams traded the game’s first four goals. Jakub Petruzalek and Pat Dwyer scored for the River Rats, and Trevor Smith and Drew Fata answered for the Sound Tigers.
Nolan tallied his 17th of the season at 16:13 of the second period and added number 18 early in the third.
Bridgeport’s Frans Nielsen within a goal in the third period, but the Sound Tigers couldn’t get the equalizer.
Albany goaltender John Grahame turned in a 42-save performance for the victory.
BINGHAMTON 5, PHILADELPHIA 3
Justin Mapletoft had two goals and an assist as Binghamton took a 5-3 win over visiting Philadelphia at the Broome County Arena.
Mapletoft and Denis Hamel each had a shorthanded goal for the Senators, and Ilya Zubov and Shawn Weller scored in the third period to break a 3-3 tie.
Ryan Potulny factored into all three goals for the Phantoms, scoring twice and posting an assist. Philadelphia is now winless in a season-high four consecutive games (0-3-0-1).
Senators goaltender Jeff Glass picked up the win with 34 saves on 37 shots.
NORFOLK 4, WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 0
Four different skaters scored and goaltender Jonathan Boutin pitched a 24-save shutout as Norfolk blanked Wilkes-Barre/Scranton by a 4-0 count at the Scope.
Jay Rosehill, Junior Lessard, Karl Stewart, and David Schneider netted goals for the Admirals.
Radek Smolenak chipped in with a pair of assists.
The victory snapped Norfolk’s five-game losing skid and earned the Admirals a split of their two-game home set against the Penguins.
LAKE ERIE 3, SYRACUSE 2 (OT)
Chris Stewart scored a power play goal 43 seconds into overtime to give Lake Erie a 3-2 win over host Syracuse at the Onondaga County War Memorial.
Lake Erie’s Dan DaSilva sent the game to overtime with an unassisted goal at 14:40 of the third period, and defenseman Mitch Love tallied his first marker of the season.
Monsters goaltender Tyler Weiman earned the win with 25 saves.
Joakim Lindstrom posted a goal and an assist for the Crunch, and Zenon Konopka also scored.
ROCKFORD 4, IOWA 2
A pair of third-period goals gave Rockford a 4-2 road win over Iowa at the Wells Fargo Arena.
Colin Fraser broke a 2-2 tie at 11:45 of the final stanza, and Petri Kontiola scored his second of the game at 17:39.
Kontiola also scored in the opening stanza for the IceHogs, and Michael Blunden netted a second-period goal.
Rockford goaltender Corey Crawford picked up the win with 34 saves, helping the IceHogs to their season-high sixth straight win.
Marius Holtet and Konstantin Pushkarev notched goals for the Stars in the losing effort.
