Wolves drop Bruins, pull into tie atop overall standings


Sunday’s Boxscores

CHICAGO 4, PROVIDENCE 1
Jesse Schultz notched a pair of third-period goals to propel Chicago past Providence by a 4-1 final before 6,102 fans at the Allstate Arena.

The victory moved the Wolves even with the Bruins atop the AHL’s overall standings. Both clubs have identical records of 42-14-2-1, good for 87 points with 21 games remaining.

Chicago’s Brett Sterling netted his league-leading 31st goal of the season at 7:15 of the first period. But the B’s answered just 29 seconds later on a goal from Byron Bitz.

The game remained tied at 1-1 until Schultz notched his 19th of the campaign 1:44 into the final stanza. He added an insurance goal at 11:16, and Darren Haydar scored into an empty net at 18:30.

Two-time AHL All-Star Joe Motzko chipped in a pair of helpers, giving him five assists in his first three games with the Wolves. Defenseman Brian Fahey also posted two assists in the victory.

Wolves goaltender Ondrej Pavelec secured the win with 34 saves on 35 shots. Pavelec is now 24-9-1 in his rookie season.


SYRACUSE 4, HAMILTON 2
Joakim Lindstrom, a 2008 AHL All-Star, tallied the game-winning goal and assisted on two others as Syracuse doubled up Hamilton by a 4-2 count on Sunday at Copps Coliseum.

Crunch goaltender Karl Goehring stopped 38 of 40 shots in the victory, which moved Syracuse two points behind the Bulldogs for the North Division’s final guaranteed playoff spot.

Syracuse’s Adam Pineault opened the game’s scoring at 10:36 of the first period with his 19th goal of the season and second in as many games.

The Bulldogs then scored twice in the second period to take a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes. Brett Engelhardt and Kyle Chipchura lit the lamp for Hamilton.

Zenon Konopka tallied the equalizer on the power play for Syracuse 2:50 into the third period, and Lindstrom’s game-winner came at 4:45. Trevor Frischmon added an empty-netter in the closing seconds.

The game-winner was Lindstrom’s second in as many nights for the Crunch, who won their third straight game and moved to 8-1-0-4 in their last 13 outings.


MANITOBA 2, QUAD CITY 1
Jannik Hansen broke a 1-1 tie with 2:47 left in regulation to give Manitoba a 2-1 victory over visiting Quad City before 7,796 fans at the MTS Centre. The victory avenged a 3-2 shootout loss to the Flames on Friday night.

Nathan McIver notched a second-period goal for the Moose. Jason Jaffray and Brad Moran picked up assists on both of Manitoba’s markers.

Hansen (3-5-8) and Jaffray (4-6-10) each have a point in five straight games.

Moose rookie goaltender Cory Schneider earned the victory with 26 saves on 27 shots.

David Van der Gulik scored the Flames’ lone goal at 12:37 of the third period, at the time making it a 1-1 contest.


GRAND RAPIDS 6, LAKE ERIE 4
Carl Corazzini and Mark Cullen each tallied a goal and three assists as Grand Rapids rallied past visiting Lake Erie, 6-4, before 7,846 fans at the Van Andel Arena.

Garrett Stafford and Matias Ritola added a goal and a helper apiece for the Griffins, while Darren Helm and Jamie Tardif also lit the lamp.

With the victory, Grand Rapids improved to 5-1-0-1 against the Monsters this season.

Lake Erie initially jumped to a 3-1 lead after the first period on goals by Dan DaSilva, T.J. Hensick, and Eric Healey.


TORONTO 6, HERSHEY 1
Toronto netted five unanswered goals on its way to a 6-1 victory over visiting Hershey at Ricoh Coliseum.

Michel Leveille netted a pair of goals and an assist in the win, while Brent Aubin and Jay Harrison each tallied a goal and a helper. Aubin’s goal came shorthanded.

Marlies goaltender Justin Pogge made 22 saves in the victory. The second-year netminder has still yet to lose back-to-back starts all season and sits at 21-6-4 for the campaign.

Alexandre Giroux scored for the Bears, giving him three goals and four points in four games since returning to the Bears last week.


BRIDGEPORT 3, LOWELL 1
Tim Jackman netted a pair of goals to lead Bridgeport to a 3-1 road victory over Lowell at the Tsongas Arena.

Justin Bourne scored the eventual game-winner in the second period for the Sound Tigers, who completed a perfect 3-0-0-0 weekend.

Bridgeport goaltender Mike Morrison made 33 saves in the win, upping his season record to 19-10-1.

Nicklas Bergfors potted the Devils’ lone goal with a minute to go in the second period.


MANCHESTER 5, SPRINGFIELD 2
Manchester inched closer to Springfield for the Atlantic Division’s final playoff spot with a 5-2 win over the visiting Falcons before 7,225 fans at the Verizon Wireless Arena.

2008 AHL All-Star Gabe Gauthier paced the Monarchs with two goals and an assist. Brady Murray, Matt Ryan, and Matt Moulson also netted markers in the winning effort.

A total of 11 Manchester skaters recorded at least one point, and goaltender Jonathan Quick picked up the win with 22 saves on 24 shots.

The Monarchs are two points back of Springfield for fourth place and hold one game in hand.

Rob Schremp and Viacheslav Trukhno lit the lamp for the Falcons.


PORTLAND 3, HARTFORD 0
Portland notched a goal in each period on its way to a 3-0 blanking of visiting Hartford at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

Jason King, Darryl Bootland, and Drew Miller proved the Pirates’ offense, and Joe Callahan chipped in a pair of assists.

Pirates goaltender Jean-Sebastien Aubin earned the shutout, stopping all 38 shots sent his way. He withstood a 17-4 shots disadvantage in the third period alone.

The Wolf Pack have suffered back-to-back regulation losses for the first time since Jan. 4-5.


WORCESTER 5, NORFOLK 4
2008 AHL All-Star Mike Iggulden notched his third career hat trick and added an assist, and Worcester had to hold on for a 5-4 home win over Norfolk at the DCU Center.

Iggulden notched an unassisted goal in the first period and added a pair of second-period markers. Brennan Evans and Riley Armstrong assisted on both of his goals in the middle stanza.

Iggulden’s last hat trick came on Mar. 31, 2007, and he also recorded one on Feb. 15, 2006. Oddly, both of those efforts came against Houston.

Nate Raduns and Graham Mink also scored for the Sharks, and goaltender Thomas Greiss finished with 22 saves in the win.

Worcester built a 5-1 lead, but the Admirals scored three times in the third period to make it close. Adam Henrich and Bracken Kearns paced Norfolk with a goal and an assist apiece.


ALBANY 2, PHILADELPHIA 1
Jeff Hamilton notched his first AHL goal of the season with just 1:06 left in regulation to lift Albany past visiting Philadelphia by a 2-1 final at the Times Union Center.

Casey Borer also scored in the third period for the surging River Rats, who won their seventh straight game and pulled within seven points of the Phantoms for the East Division lead.

Albany goaltender Michael Leighton secured the victory with 29 saves on 30 shots.

Boyd Kane opened the game’s scoring for Philadelphia at 11:58 of the first period. That 1-0 lead would stand until Borer tied it for Albany at 3:51 of the third.


WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON 4, BINGHAMTON 2
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton netted three goals in the third period on its way to a 4-2 come-from-behind victory over host Binghamton at the Broome County Arena.

The B-Sens took a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Denis Hamel and Danny Bois. Hamel assisted on Bois’ goal for a multiple-point effort.

The Penguins’ Ned Havern cut the lead in half midway through the second period, and it remained 2-1 entering the final 20 minutes.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton defenseman Alain Nasreddine tallied the equalizer at 6:47 of the third period, and Tim Brent notched the game-winner at 13:22.

Ryan Stone added a late empty-net goal to seal the win. Goaltender John Curry made 25 saves in the victory, which kept the Penguins one point up on Bridgeport for the East Division’s final playoff spot.


PEORIA 4, ROCKFORD 3
Peoria took a 3-1 lead after two periods and held on for a 4-3 road win over Rockford at the MetroCentre.

Julian Talbot notched his 20th goal of the season for Peoria, which also received markers from Mike Glumac, Nikolay Lemtyugov, and Jean-Guy Trudel.

Rivermen goaltender Marek Schwarz picked up the victory with 28 saves on 31 shots. Peoria has now won two straight games after going 1-9-0-1 in its previous 10.

Derek Nesbitt notched a goal for the IceHogs, extending his goal-scoring streak to three games (4-3-7). Defenseman Justin Fletcher scored his first goal in a Rockford uniform, and Michael Blunden also lit the lamp.


ROCHESTER 5, IOWA 3
Dylan Hunter and Marc-Andre Gragnani each tallied two goals and two assists as Rochester posted a 5-3 win over visiting Iowa at the Blue Cross Arena.

Stefan Meyer rounded out the Americans’ scoring and added a pair of assists for a three-point night. Goaltender Tyler Plante made 31 saves in the winning effort and picked up his first victory since Jan. 12.

The victory marked the 300th of Rochester head coach Randy Cunneyworth’s career. Cunneyworth, in his eighth season as the Amerks’ bench boss, is 300-261-61 since taking over for the 2000-01 campaign.

Toby Petersen, Konstantin Pushkarev, and Perttu Lindgren notched goals for Iowa in the losing effort. The Stars finished 2-1-0-0 on their weekend of road tilts against North Division foes.

Iowa’s six-game road swing concludes with divisional games next weekend at Chicago and Rockford.