By Brian Ring

Glens Falls, NY, October 28, 2011 – The Connecticut Whale defeated the Adirondack Phantoms, 4-2, Friday night at the Glens Falls Civic Center. The win was the fourth straight for the Whale, who moved into first place in the Northeast Division with their triumph over the Phantoms.

The Whale took the first lead of the game while shorthanded, after Carl Hagelin was flagged for slashing at 12:45 of the first period. Kelsey Tessier and Jordan Owens broke into the Phantoms’ zone on a two-on-one, with Tessier sliding the puck to Owens, who had a wide open net against Adirondack goaltender Michael Leighton (27 saves). Brendan Bell earned the secondary assist on the goal, his second point in three games with the Whale.

The Phantoms tied the game up just 28 seconds later on the Hagelin power-play, when Eric Wellwood wired a shot past Connecticut goaltender Cam Talbot (27 saves). Tom Sestito registered an assist on the goal in his first game against the Whale this season, as did Leighton.

Connecticut had caught a break earlier in the period, when an apparent Phantoms goal was waved off. Talbot had attempted to cover a loose puck with his blocker, but appeared to push it over the goal line accidently. It was deemed, however, that the official had already blown the whistle.

John Mitchell gave the Whale a 2-1 lead just 46 seconds into the second period, firing a laser of a shot past Leighton. Mitchell entered the offensive end on a three-on-one with Hagelin and Jared Nightingale, but opted to take the shot. Mats Zuccarello assisted on the goal in his first game after sustaining an injury in last Saturday’s game in Springfield.

Owens extended the Connecticut lead to 3-1 at 16:26 of the second period, when he blistered a shot past Leighton from the Phantoms’ blue line for his second goal of the night and the eventual game-winner. Scott Tanski and Pavel Valentenko assisted on the goal.  For Tanski it was his first pro point and for Valentenko, his first point of the season after missing the first two weeks to injury.

The Phantoms closed the Whale lead to 3-2 on a goal from Harry Zolnierczyk scored with just 1:49 remaining in the third with the Whale’s Mitchell in the box. Denis Hamel and Jason Akeson assisted on the score, but Adirondack could not muster the equalizer.

Sean Avery marked his Whale season debut with an empty-net goal with just 32 seconds left in the third period to seal a 4-2 Connecticut victory. Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and Bell assisted on the goal.

The first-place Whale will return to action Saturday night, when they head to Worcester to take on the Sharks at the DCU Center (7:05, “The Rock” 106.9 WCCC-FM). Connecticut will meet the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in a special school-day start time on Wednesday (11:00 AM) at the Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard before finally returning home on Fri., Nov. 4, when the Whale will host the brand-new St. John’s IceCaps (7:00).

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Connecticut Whale 4 at Adirondack Phantoms 2
Friday, October 28, 2011 – Glens Falls Civic Center

Connecticut 1 2 1 – 4
Adirondack 1 0 1 – 2

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Owens 1 (Tessier, Bell), 13:09 (SH). 2, Adirondack, Wellwood 4 (Sestito, Leighton), 13:37 (PP). Penalties-Bourdon Adk (slashing), 8:49; Hagelin Ct (slashing), 12:45; Mitchell Ct (tripping), 14:03; Grant Ct (delay of game), 17:10.

2nd Period-3, Connecticut, Mitchell 2 (Zuccarello), 0:46. 4, Connecticut, Owens 2 (Valentenko, Tanski), 16:26. Penalties-Lauridsen Adk (cross-checking), 7:40; Mitchell Ct (roughing), 9:01; Marshall Adk (roughing), 9:01; Valentenko Ct (boarding), 10:20.

3rd Period-5, Adirondack, Zolnierczyk 4 (Hamel, Akeson), 18:11 (PP). 6, Connecticut, Avery 1 (Audy-Marchessault, Bell), 19:27 (EN). Penalties-Deveaux Ct (double minor – high-sticking), 9:26; Mitchell Ct (cross-checking), 16:35; Avery Ct (fighting), 19:27; Bourdon Adk (fighting), 19:27.

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 9-12-10-31. Adirondack 8-11-10-29.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 0 / 2; Adirondack 2 / 7.
Goalies-Connecticut, Talbot 2-1-0 (29 shots-27 saves). Adirondack, Leighton 4-1-0 (30 shots-27 saves).
A-2,910
Referees-Chris Ciamaga (24).
Linesmen-Robert St. Lawrence (10), Mike Emanatian (69).

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By Brian Ring

After wrapping up three straight wins last weekend, the Whale will take to the road for a pair of games on Friday and Saturday.

Friday will see Connecticut travel to Glens Falls, NY to take on the Adirondack Phantoms for the second time on the young season, looking to avenge a 6-3 opening night loss to their new Northeast Division rival (7:00). On Saturday (7:05), the Whale will head over to Worcester to meet a traditional rival in the Sharks, who have yet to lose in regulation this year (3-0-0-1).

The Whale had opened up a 3-1 lead over the Phantoms back in the season opener on October 8^th in Glens Falls, but were unable to hold on to the lead in spite of Kris Newbury’s hat trick. Despite being in the same division as the Phantoms, the Whale will face Adirondack just twice more after Friday’s game, so it is crucial for the Whale to pick up points against division opponents when possible.

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“We know Adirondack’s a good opponent,” said Whale head coach Ken Gernander. “They’re doing well, they’re right at the top of the thing in standings there. You know the lead we had, the start we had was encouraging, and it was kind of symptomatic of our team early on that we couldn’t maintain those leads, but since then I hope we’ve got it rectified and it will be a good contest. “

The Whale did fail to maintain leads in that contest and also against Albany and Bridgeport so far this season, but this past weekend’s action would seem to indicate a turnaround. Connecticut cut down on penalties during a 5-0 drubbing of the Manchester Monarchs last Friday, as well as in a 2-1, come-from-behind victory over the Springfield Falcons on Saturday and a 4-1 win on Sunday. The disciplined Whale were able to maintain pressure on their opponents throughout the weekend, without fumbling their lead.

“Of all the things you can control for the most part, discipline you can control,” explained Gernander.

“Hockey’s hard enough to win games without giving your opponent manpower advantages and taking some of our players out of the flow of the game and overtaxing others. It just encompasses so much, so if we can be disciplined I think it will help a lot of the long run.”

As for what the Whale can expect on Saturday during their first encounter with the Sharks, Worcester brings in a dangerous power-play that has tallied seven goals in just four games this season, making discipline even more crucial. The Sharks also own the league’s number one penalty-killing unit going into Thursday’s action, allowing just one goal so far while short-handed. Impressive rookie Mike Connolly, fresh out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth, may also be a factor, as he has gathered seven points (4-3-7) over his first four professional games.

“They’ve always been kind of a strong opponent and a rival of ours, just given the geographic distance, and we’re familiar with quite a few of the faces on their team and we’ll know what to expect there,” said Gernander. “First time around the league, everybody’s trying to feel each other out.”

As usual, both of this weekend’s games can be heard on “Rockin’ Hockey Radio” on “The Rock”, 106.9 WCCC-FM.  Fans can also watch all of the action on-line at www.ahllive.com.

Following this weekend’s action, the Whale will travel to Bridgeport Wednesday to face the Sound Tigers in GEICO Connecticut Cup action at a special school day start time (11:00 AM). The Whale will finally return home on Friday, Nov. 4, when they will host the new St. John’s IceCaps, top affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets, at the XL Center (7:00).

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

By Brian Ring

A player beginning his professional career after four excellent and high-scoring junior seasons could be expected to struggle and become frustrated when he faces the inevitable challenges that come with the different pace of the American Hockey League.

Whale rookie Jonathan Audy-Marchessault, however, has taken it as a learning experience, one that he has already made strides on. The Cap-Rouge, Que. native entered this season coming off of an outstanding final year for the Quebec Remparts of the QMJHL, having tallied 95 points (40-55-95) in just 68 games with his junior club. Despite the fact that he went undrafted, Audy-Marchessault was readily recognized for his achievements, being named as a First-Team QMJHL All-Star and winning the Bud Light Cup as the league’s player of the year.

As a former teammate of both Ryan Bourque and Kelsey Tessier with Quebec, Audy-Marchessault attracted the interest of the Rangers organization, which signed him to a Whale AHL contract.  Audy-Marchessault was brought in to both the Traverse City Prospects Tournament, and to the Rangers rookie camp and main training camp, to showcase his skills. He impressed enough to earn himself a spot with the Whale, and you would be hard-pressed to find a better fit for him than on a team with two of his prior teammates. Entering any NHL-style training camp can be intimidating, but one run by Rangers head coach John Tortorella could be especially daunting. Ryan Bourque’s prior camp experience, however, helped him to show his fellow rookie the ropes.

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“It’s been really good [having him and Tessier there],” said Audy-Marchessault. “When I went to Traverse City and to New York, I didn’t know what to expect and Ryan was teaching me a lot about what to do and keep my play simple and give me some confidence. It was really good for me to have Ryan there.”

Whale sophomore Kelsey Tessier went through a similar situation last year, entering his first pro season after spending three and a half seasons with the Remparts. Tessier, a New Brunswick native, helped Audy-Marchessault get accustomed to the Hartford area and as an added bonus speaks fluent French, making Audy-Marchessault’s transition from Quebec City to Connecticut’s capital that much easier.

“When I came to the Whale camp, with Kelsey the first day he gave me a little tour of the city and showed us some buildings that we could live in. They were really good for me,” said Audy-Marchessault.

On-ice production often does not happen instantaneously for players making the leap from junior hockey to the professional ranks, and other than a shootout game-winner against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the second game of the season, Audy-Marchessault failed to reach the score sheet. He broke out in a big way this past weekend, however, during a home-and-home set with one of the Whale’s biggest rivals, the Springfield Falcons.

With Connecticut trailing 1-0 to Springfield in Saturday’s game, Audy-Marchessault tapped defenseman Tomas Kundratek’s rebound past Falcons goaltender Dan Taylor for his first professional goal.  That tied the game, which the Whale would eventually go on to win. Audy-Marchessault carried the confidence he gained from breaking his point-scoring drought into the next afternoon’s action, scoring on Springfield’s Manny Legace once and assisting on two other goals in Connecticut’s 4-1 win over the Falcons.

“It felt pretty good,” said Audy-Marchessault of his best weekend as a pro.”When I came here, my first games, I was kind of stressed a little bit and I didn’t know what to expect and I’m getting used to the game a little bit, so this weekend went pretty well for me and for the team. It’s a good weekend but we have to look forward now.”

The 5-9, 175 pound forward is not looking too far ahead, despite his recent success, instead choosing to work on one skill he knows he will have to improve in order to keep advancing in the professional ranks.

“I think it’s my speed,” said Audy-Marchessault. “You always have to improve your speed in your one-on-one battles because here, the guys are bigger and faster. The neutral zone is closing a lot, so you don’t have much space to make plays, but I mean you kind of learn that stuff over the years and with games of experience. It’s going better and better and I think I’m working on it and I think I’ll be good to go forward.”

He will have a wide selection of teammates to try and emulate this season, with the Whale boasting a large number of players that have had a great deal of success at both the AHL and the NHL level. In fact, another even more diminutive sniping forward has been a particular source of help for the rookie.

“There’s really some good examples,” Audy-Marchessault said of his veteran teammates. “When you look at them, they have some good skill, they work always in practice. Like a guy like, it’s only been one week he’s here, but Zuccarello, he’s a pretty nice guy. When I watch those guys that have had success in the past here and in the NHL, NHL games, they are good examples for me.”

Like his fellow rookies in the Whale dressing room, Audy-Marchessault has a unique opportunity this season to play with and learn from veterans like Sean Avery, Wade Redden and Kris Newbury.  Unlike some of his teammates, though,  he also gets to play with some of his junior teammates. The presence of Bourque and Tessier on the Whale can only help to improve the game of not only Audy-Marchessault, but of all three former Remparts stars.