By Wil Goldsholl

Hartford, CT, January 26, 2013 – The Connecticut Whale are glad to be home. After playing six straight on the road in mid-January, Connecticut returned to Hartford and won their third in a row Saturday against the division-rival Springfield Falcons by a count of 3-2. In addition to a goal from Andrew Yogan, the Whale got scores from blueliners Blake Parlett and Mike Vernace, and 26 saves from Cam Talbot.

Springfield took a while to get their game together in the early minutes. It took all of six seconds for the Falcons to earn their first penalty, when Tomas Kubalik was called for roughing.

The first power play unit applied early pressure and word on the Falcons’ penalty kill unit, and Yogan scored his second of the year just two seconds after the penalty expired. Logan Pyett fired a shot from the point and Micheal Haley was lurking in the slot. He managed to redirect the puck and hit the post, and Yogan was standing at the ready. Scoring first proved valuable to the Whale, who had lost the previous two at home to Springfield by an aggregate score of 15-2. 

Dalton Prout tied up Jason Wilson at the crease after Brandon Segal and Brandon Mashinter connected on a break-in and, while he managed to keep Wilson from burying the puck in the back of the net, he would sit for interference. By the time the Whale’s second power play expired they had a 10-0 shot advantage.

Near the midway mark of the period, Kelsey Tessier hit the pipe after faking a slapshot and then shooting from the dot, and after setting up in the zone, Christian Thomas drew interference once again on Prout at 10:14. A Pyett minor for interference at 10:40 would negate the power play opportunity.

Once four on four play expired, Springfield started to show signs of life. Jake Hansen put a pass to Springfield’s Sean (B.) Collins (not to be confused with Connecticut’s Sean (P.) Collins) that ran him into Talbot. Dylan McIlrath took exception to that and, simultaneously, took a holding penalty with 3:43 to play in the period.

Talbot made a quality save on a cross-ice play between Cody Goloubef and Scott Howes before the period ended, and the Whale led 1-0 heading into the second.

Seventy-one seconds in to the second period, former Whale Tim Erixon flipped the puck over the glass. Talbot was called upon to stop a shorthanded flurry, including Falcons captain Ryan Craig on the doorstep five minutes in.

Springfield goaltender Allen York replied with a few big saves of his own, particularly one on Tessier after a wild bounce off the glass.

Shayne Wiebe sat for slashing at 7:02 and Springfield would get on the board on the ensuing power play. After Newbury horseshoed the puck around, Sean (B.) Collins pushed it to Nick Drazenovic, tipped by Jonathan Audy-Marchessault on the way. Craig jammed it in front and Drazenovic would knock it out of the air to tie it up at one apiece.

McIlrath got some more attention from Springfield and the officials after running down Tim Spencer, who was making an effort to touch up on a delayed penalty. Erixon was guilty of interference for the original penalty and McIlrath was called for cross-checking.

Craig sought a second Springfield goal when Kubalik wristed a high shot from the point and a great bouncing redirect was tracked by Talbot with eight to go.

The Whale would then take a 2-1 edge when Blake Parlett got a pass from Newbury and cranked it towards the net. With traffic in front, Falcon defenseman Bryan Helmer accidentally gloved the puck into his own net at 13:16.

Tessier was tripped by Goloubef with 2:12 left in the second and Will Weber was called for high sticking at 19:10, giving the Whale 38 seconds of five on three time. Newbury fired a shot that nailed Mashinter in the ribs, but the cost came with the reward of an assist, as the puck found its way to Segal, then Vernace right in front to make it 3-1.

Weber’s penalty rolled over in to the third, and York made another timely save on Tessier moving left to right.

Springfield dominated the third period, and Scott Howes managed to collect a rebound on his backhand, earning Kubalik and Holden assists and cutting the deficit in half. York left the net with 83 seconds left and Talbot was forced to make two more stops in the last 30 seconds, but the Whale held on to win 3-2. Talbot finished with 26 saves, while York stopped 30 of the 33 he faced.

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Springfield Falcons 2 at Connecticut Whale 3
Saturday, January 26, 2013 – XL Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum

Springfield 0 1 1 – 2
Connecticut 1 2 0 – 3

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Yogan 2 (Haley, Pyett), 2:08. Penalties-Kubalik Spr (roughing), 0:06; Prout Spr (interference), 6:09; Prout Spr (interference), 10:14; Pyett Ct (interference), 10:40; McIlrath Ct (holding), 16:17.

2nd Period-2, Springfield, Drazenovic 14 (Craig, Audy-Marchessault), 8:20 (PP). 3, Connecticut, Parlett 3 13:16. 4, Connecticut, Vernace 3 (Segal, Mashinter), 19:44 (PP). Penalties-Erixon Spr (delay of game), 1:11; Wiebe Ct (slashing), 7:02; Erixon Spr (interference), 9:11; McIlrath Ct (cross-checking), 9:11; Drazenovic Spr (high-sticking), 14:18; Goloubef Spr (tripping), 17:48; Weber Spr (high-sticking), 19:10.

3rd Period-5, Springfield, Howes 3 (Kubalik, Holden), 13:22 (PP). Penalties-Jean Ct (holding), 11:40.

Shots on Goal-Springfield 8-6-14-28. Connecticut 14-14-5-33.
Power Play Opportunities-Springfield 2 / 4; Connecticut 1 / 7.
Goalies-Springfield, York 5-4-0 (33 shots-30 saves). Connecticut, Talbot 15-17-0 (28 shots-26 saves).
A-7,372
Referees-Keith Kaval (40).
Linesmen-Marty Demers (79), Luke Galvin (2).

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NEW YORK, January 26, 2013 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has recalled forward Benn Ferriero from the Connecticut Whale of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Ferriero, 25, tallied an assist while making his Whale debut in last night’s 4-1 win against Manchester. The Rangers acquired Ferriero from Pittsburgh on Thursday, in exchange for forward Chad Kolarik. Prior to the trade, Ferriero registered four goals and 14 assists for 18 points, along with 14 penalty minutes in 34 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL). He ranked third on Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in assists, was tied for fifth on the team in points and ranked second in shots on goal (97) at the time of the trade.

Originally selected by the Phoenix Coyotes as a seventh round choice (196^th overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, Ferriero signed as a free agent with the San Jose Sharks on August 23, 2009. He has registered 14 goals and eight assists for 22 points in 92 career NHL contests over three seasons with San Jose. He established a career-high with seven goals in 35 games last season. He made his NHL debut with San Jose on October 1, 2009, at Colorado, and registered his first career point with a goal two days later at Anaheim. Ferriero has also notched one goal in eight career playoff contests with the Sharks.

The Rangers will begin a three-game homestand tonight when they face-off against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m.), in an Original Six matchup.

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By Wil Goldsholl

Hartford, CT, January 25, 2013 – In the teams’ third meeting of the season, the Connecticut Whale defeated the Manchester Monarchs 4-1 at the XL Center in Hartford on Friday night. Brandon Segal earned First Star honors, tallying a goal and an assist, and Benn Ferriero had a secondary assist in his first game playing for Connecticut. Ferriero was acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins Thursday for Chad Kolarik, and was reunited with former Worcester linemate Brandon Mashinter, also new to the team by way of trade.

The top line of Ferriero, Mashinter and Segal made their presence felt early, earning a handful of chances in the early minutes. Following a Segal slapshot, Manchester’s Andrew Campbell was called for high sticking and the Whale’s first power play ensued. Forty-four seconds in to that man advantage the Whale’s Micheal Haley was called for interference, while Manchester’s Nick Deslauriers sat for high-sticking simultaneously. Not many chances came out of the five on four situation. 

Manchester saw their first power play opportunity at 9:21 when Kelsey Tessier put his stick in the midsection of Robert Czarnik as he tried to shoot from the circle. Manchester was not able to generate any quality chances on their first man-up try either.

Both offenses picked up the pace in the middle of the period. Mashinter broke the puck away from Chris Huxley and had a chance near the crease. Ferriero let one go from the high slot moments later. Kris Newbury found Tessier with a high to low pass with six minutes to play in the first, and then the Monarchs’ Tanner Pearson slapped one off the pipe 30 seconds later. Segal was on Manchester backstop Peter Mannino’s doorstep as the clock read four minutes, and Mannino’s stick was broken on the play. He would play the next minute and a half stickless, making two more saves in the process.

David Meckler dumped Andrew Yogan on the half-boards with 2:33 left and Connecticut had better fortune on the next power play. Receiving a high to low pass with 34 seconds to go on the advantage, Segal banged it towards the crease. Mashinter was lurking on the other side to gather the rebound with 1:06 left in the period. Ferriero earned the secondary assist on Mashinter’s fourth of the year.

Christian Thomas grinded for two chances in last 30 seconds, foreshadowing his second-period performance, and the first ended with the Whale leading 1-0.

Two and a half minutes into the second, Manchester’s leading point-getter, Linden Vey, received a cross-ice feed from Tyler Toffoli. The puck made its way from the point to the slot to the top right corner and the game was tied on Vey’s 11^th of the year.

The Whale jumped to a 2-1 lead when Thomas barreled in on the forecheck again. He was able to fight off one defender behind the net and sling the puck in front. Monarch defender David Kolomatis was there on the crease and inadvertently redirected it past Mannino inside the stick-side post. Segal spoke on the goal after the game, “You never really mean for that, but he was rewarded for his good forechecking; Christian was wheeling out there tonight.” Head Coach Ken Gernander would express the same sentiments about the young forward’s performance.

Pace picked up after the goal; Newbury drove a puck off the iron as squarely as possible, Manchester’s Andrei Loktionov made a big hit behind his own net, and Whale goaltender Cam Talbot made a timely stop on a Brandon Kozun one-timer.

With seven to go in the period, strong puck movement paid off for Connecticut. Tessier, Newbury, and Blake Parlett got a cycle going. Tessier got the puck down the right wall to Newbury, who rolled out to the point. He slipped the puck between defenders for Segal who beat Mannino on a low angle chance for his season’s 12^th.

Mashinter and Ferriero went one-two on the Manchester doorstep moments later and Mannino came up with a huge save. Mashinter credited some of the line’s success to his and Ferriero’s play together in Worcester.

Mike Vernace let one fly from the point in the last minute that Mannino never saw. Through heavy traffic on the left side, the puck somehow found its way to the short-side corner and the Whale took a 4-1 lead with 54.3 seconds on the clock.

Thirty seconds later, Talbot was called upon again to turn away Andy Andreoff’s rebound try with a stretching right leg. Anthony Stewart saw one more chance on a tip, but the Whale held on to the three-goal edge through two.

Opening the third, Tessier broke in on the wing and Mannino threw a two-pad stack to turn him away. Jason Wilson intercepted a clearing pass on the point and made a handy move to draw tripping on Deslauriers a minute after that.

With a shot count of just 8-5 in Manchester’s favor, the third was slightly slower than the first two, but Connecticut locked down in what was their best home performance of the year. Gernander would add in the post-game, “I’m pleased with everything top to bottom tonight. (Segal’s) line was great obviously, Newbury played really well. Cam (Talbot) brought his A-game. Our defense was good and we got a special teams goal.”

Talbot finished with 28 saves on 29 tries, while Mannino finished with the 28 as well on 32 shots faced. The Whale prepare for their third game in four nights Saturday night (7:00 PM faceoff), at home, against the division-rival Springfield Falcons.

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Manchester Monarchs 1 at Connecticut Whale 4
Friday, January 25, 2013 – XL Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum

Manchester 0 1 0 – 1
Connecticut 1 3 0 – 4

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Mashinter 4 (Segal, Ferriero), 17:54 (PP). Penalties-Campbell Mch (high-sticking), 5:35; Deslauriers Mch (high-sticking), 7:09; Haley Ct (interference), 7:09; Tessier Ct (hooking), 9:21; Meckler Mch (interference), 17:27.

2nd Period-2, Manchester, Vey 11 (Toffoli), 2:30. 3, Connecticut, Thomas 9 7:32. 4, Connecticut, Segal 12 (Newbury, Parlett), 13:31. 5, Connecticut, Vernace 2 19:05. Penalties-No Penalties

3rd Period- No Scoring. Penalties-Deslauriers Mch (tripping), 6:26.

Shots on Goal-Manchester 12-9-8-29. Connecticut 14-13-5-32.
Power Play Opportunities-Manchester 0 / 1; Connecticut 1 / 3.
Goalies-Manchester, Mannino 10-6-0 (32 shots-28 saves). Connecticut, Talbot 14-17-0 (29 shots-28 saves).
A-4,168
Referees-David Banfield (77).
Linesmen-Brent Colby (7), Jim Briggs (83).

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NEW YORK, January 25, 2013 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has assigned forward Kris Newbury to the Connecticut Whale of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Newbury, 30, was credited with one hit in 5:00 of ice time in last night’s contest at Philadelphia. He returns to Connecticut where he has registered 15 goals and 21 assists for 36 points, along with 94 penalty minutes in 40 games with Connecticut this season. Newbury has recorded seven points (five goals, two assists) in his last five contests with the Whale. He leads Connecticut in assists and points, is tied for first in shorthanded goals (two) and ranks second in goals, power play goals (five), penalty minutes (94) and shots on goal (91). He has also posted 12 multi-point efforts, including three, three-point performances.

A veteran of six NHL seasons, Newbury has skated in 67 career NHL games with the Rangers, Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs, registering four goals and four assists for eight points, along with 130 penalty minutes. Newbury has tallied one assist and 66 penalty minutes in 19 career games with the Rangers. He made his NHL debut on December 23, 2006, against Washington as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and recorded his first career NHL point with a goal on January 1, 2007, against Boston.

The Brampton, Ontario native was acquired by the Rangers from Detroit in exchange for forward Jordan Owens on March 3, 2010. He was originally selected by the San Jose Sharks as a fifth round choice, 139^th overall, in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.

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