By Wil Goldsholl

Hartford, CT, January 23, 2013 – After 17 days away from home ice, the Connecticut Whale returned to the XL Center and bested the division rival Adirondack Phantoms in Hartford on Wednesday night by a count of 6-5 in overtime. Brandon Segal scored one of his two goals in the extra period to seal the win for Connecticut. Whale newcomer Jason Wilson scored his first goal since joining the team and Brandon Mashinter tallied two assists in addition to his first goal in a Connecticut jersey, since being traded from Worcester. Jason Missiaen stopped 34 of the 39 shots he faced to pick up his fifth win of the season, while Cal Heeter and Brian Boucher split the work in the Adirondack goal on 33 shots against.

Both teams were slow to get going in the first five minutes; Adirondack’s Brandon Manning was sent off for hooking just 32 seconds in and Connecticut blueliner Sean Collins was sentenced to two minutes for slashing when Shane Harper made a move three minutes later.

Connecticut would kill that penalty, however, and draw first blood at 5:39. Kris Newbury pushed the puck around behind the net until it found Chad Kolarik on the half boards. A tap pass and a quick release from Mashinter would beat Heeter over the stick side shoulder, earning Mashinter his third of the season. Coach Ken Gernander said of Mashinter’s performance, “He had a couple strong games last weekend… tonight he was able to cash in.”

Gameplay became more fluid over the midway point of the period and Heeter would be tested. Kelsey Tessier found Christian Thomas on the doorstep once for a near miss, and Heeter flashed the leather on Mashinter following a beauty of a backhand feed from Newbury.

Things got hairy for Connecticut late in the first when Wilson and Newbury earned hooking and holding penalties, respectively, just 18 seconds apart. Brandon Manning hit the pipe as the first penalty expired. Manning then dished to Danny Syvret along the line for a slapper that found its way home at 15:54. Harry Zolnierczyk was awarded the secondary assist.

Connecticut would see one more man advantage before the first 20 minutes expired. Tessier was hacked by Harper moving up the middle with 3:13 to play. Heeter showed his glove hand prowess yet again on a Thomas one-timer that was redirected by Mashinter. On the ensuing draw, Blake Parlett’s shot was blocked, but the puck was touched by J.T. Miller to Segal, who would tuck a snapper five-hole with 2:04 remaining.

The Whale led 2-1 through the first with a 13-11 shot advantage.

Wilson opened scoring in the second, when Thomas snapped down the wing and pulled the trigger. With Cullen Eddy right on top of him, Wilson managed to tuck the puck up into a small window for his first career AHL score.

Then, 7:53 into the period, Collins made a sharp outlet feed from the Whale end. Mashinter broke the puck in and dropped it back for Tessier, who went short-side high from the circle for his seventh of the year.

Following that fourth Whale goal, Heeter was replaced in the Adirondack net by Boucher.

Oliver Lauridsen was called for hooking at 8:47. Missiaen staved off a short-handed flurry before Connecticut replied. Lefty blueliner Mike Vernace slapped at the puck from the center point and Micheal Haley tipped it in the slot. Haley’s fourth came at 10:33 on the power play.

Just two minutes later, Zolnierczyk buried a rebound after some chaos in front of the Connecticut crease to make the score 5-2. That goal would be the last scoring play of the period with just over seven minutes to play. 

A Jeff Dimmen penalty started the third period 56 seconds in, but did not stop Adirondack’s comeback campaign. Rob Bordson took a bank pass from Zolnierczyk and dipsy-doodled Missiaen in the crease for a shorthander at 2:07. The deficit was cut to just two.

With 3:08 to play, Shayne Wiebe was called for high sticking. Missiaen first made some quality saves, but with an empty net and a 6-on-4 situation, Jason Akeson was able to cut the lead to one.

Following Phantoms timeout, Adirondack went right back to work. Marcel Noebels gathered a rebound on his backhand after Manning let one fly form the point. With 20.5 seconds on the clock, the game was now tied at five apiece, after Adirondack’s four unanswered goals in reply to Connecticut’s four earlier on.

Gernander, who has been preaching the importance of consistency, went on to say, “We’re game to game, period to period, and sometimes shift to shift.”

Adirondack outshot Connecticut 14-5 in the third period, and 38-30 through regulation.

The extra period trickled by until 70 seconds remained. Segal described the goal in the post-game, “Pyer (Logan Pyett) got it up to Masher (Mashinter), and I saw he chipped it across to Vern (Vernace), and his backhand, unbelievable sauce. I was already charging the net and just tapped it in.” With one hand on the stick, Segal was certainly casual receiving Vernace’s seeing-eye pass. With 56.8 seconds on the clock, Connecticut took the win, 6-5.

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Adirondack Phantoms 5 at Connecticut Whale 6 (OT)
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 – XL Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum

Adirondack 1 1 3 0 – 5
Connecticut 2 3 0 1 – 6

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Mashinter 3 (Kolarik, Newbury), 5:39. 2, Adirondack, Syvret 2 (Manning, Zolnierczyk), 15:54 (PP). 3, Connecticut, Segal 10 (Miller, Parlett), 17:56 (PP). Penalties-Manning Adk (hooking), 0:32; Collins Ct (slashing), 3:21; Manning Adk (roughing), 7:28; Jean Ct (roughing), 7:28; Wilson Ct (hooking), 13:57; Newbury Ct (holding), 14:15; Harper Adk (slashing), 16:47.

2nd Period-4, Connecticut, Wilson 1 (Thomas, Klassen), 3:10. 5, Connecticut, Tessier 7 (Mashinter, Collins), 7:53. 6, Connecticut, Haley 4 (Vernace, Parlett), 10:33 (PP). 7, Adirondack, Zolnierczyk 9 (Johnston, Harper), 12:48 (PP). Penalties-Lauridsen Adk (hooking), 8:47; McIlrath Ct (roughing), 11:12; Mangene Adk (high-sticking), 15:17.

3rd Period-8, Adirondack, Bordson 4 (Zolnierczyk), 2:07 (SH). 9, Adirondack, Akeson 6 (Mangene, Syvret), 18:15 (PP). 10, Adirondack, Noebels 4 (Manning, Syvret), 19:39. Penalties-Dimmen Adk (interference), 0:53; Lauridsen Adk (hooking), 5:54; Thomas Ct (diving), 5:54; Mashinter Ct (interference), 13:05; Wiebe Ct (high-sticking), 16:52.

OT Period-11, Connecticut, Segal 11 (Vernace, Mashinter), 4:03. Penalties-No Penalties

Shots on Goal-Adirondack 11-13-14-1-39. Connecticut 13-12-5-3-33.
Power Play Opportunities-Adirondack 3 / 6; Connecticut 2 / 5.
Goalies-Adirondack, Heeter 7-11-1 (20 shots-16 saves); Boucher 1-1-0 (13 shots-11 saves). Connecticut, Missiaen 5-4-1 (39 shots-34 saves).
A-2,212
Referees-Jean Hebert (43), Mark Lemelin (41).
Linesmen-Jim Briggs (83), Kevin Redding (16).

Providence, RI, January 20, 2013 – David Warsofsky had a goal and an assist Sunday for the Providence Bruins, who outshot the Connecticut Whale 38-15 at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center Providence on the way to a 4-1 win.

J.T. Miller scored the only Whale goal.  Ryan Spooner and Justin Florek had two assists each for the Bruins.

The Whale led for much of the first period, after Miller scored on Connecticut’s first shot of the game at 4:26.  After Sean Collins lost the puck in the left-wing corner, Brandon Mashinter was able to get it to Miller between the hash marks, and Miller buried a slap shot behind Bruin goaltender Niklas Svedberg (14 saves).  Mashinter picked up his first point in three games with the Whale with the lone assist on the goal.

Providence responded, though, with two goals in a span of 1:25 late in the period.

Bruin goal-scoring leader Jamie Tardif got his 18^th of the year at 16:32.  Spooner found Tardif  unchecked in front of the Whale net, and Tardif pounded a high shot past Whale netminder Jason Missiaen (34 saves).

Then, at 17:57, Warsofsky gave Providence a 2-1 lead with a long snapshot from the middle of the blue line that went through a screen and past Missiaen.

The only goal of the second period was a Bruin power-play score at 7:34.  With Kris Newbury in the penalty box for interference, Warsofsky fed a pass from right to left across the slot, and Carter Camper’s quick shot eluded Missiaen’s diving save attempt.

Providence then put it away with a Kyle MacKinnon goal with 5:11 left in the third.  Graham Mink passed the puck from behind the net to MacKinnon in the slot, and Missiaen had no chance on MacKinnon’s quick shot.

Sunday’s game was the last of six straight on the road for the Whale, who will start a run of six straight and ten out of 12 at home this Wednesday, January 23, with a 7:00 game against the Adirondack Phantoms at the XL Center.  For that and all Whale home games, tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

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Connecticut Whale 1 at Providence Bruins 4
Sunday, January 20, 2013 – Dunkin' Donuts Center

Connecticut 1 0 0 – 1
Providence 2 1 1 – 4

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Miller 7 (Mashinter), 4:26. 2, Providence, Tardif 18 (Spooner, Florek), 16:32. 3, Providence, Warsofsky 3 (Spooner, Bartkowski), 17:57. Penalties-Vernace Ct (interference), 12:29; Mink Pro (hooking), 12:33.

2nd Period-4, Providence, Camper 4 (Warsofsky, Florek), 7:34 (PP). Penalties-Wilson Ct (interference, fighting), 2:26; Randell Pro (fighting), 2:26; Newbury Ct (interference), 6:15; McIlrath Ct (fighting), 9:36; Robins Pro (fighting), 9:36; Hanson Pro (hooking), 18:54.

3rd Period-5, Providence, MacKinnon 4 (Mink, Hanson), 14:49. Penalties-Bourque Ct (fighting), 2:44; Klassen Ct (fighting), 2:44; McIlrath Ct (roughing), 2:44; Button Pro (fighting), 2:44; Cross Pro (fighting), 2:44; Florek Pro (goaltender interference, roughing), 2:44; McIlrath Ct (roughing), 7:39; Hanson Pro (roughing), 7:39; Miller Pro (goaltender interference), 7:39; Haley Ct (cross-checking), 17:10; Button Pro (slashing), 19:55.

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 6-5-4-15. Providence 12-14-12-38.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 0 / 5; Providence 1 / 4.
Goalies-Connecticut, Missiaen 4-4-1 (38 shots-34 saves). Providence, Svedberg 16-6-2 (15 shots-14 saves).
A-7,599
Referees-Geno Binda (22), Ryan Murphy (5).
Linesmen-Bob Bernard (42), Jack Millea (23).

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Portland, ME, January 19, 2013 – Chad Kolarik and Kris Newbury had a goal and an assist apiece, and Jason Missiaen made 32 saves, to lead the Connecticut Whale to a 4-1 win over the Portland Pirates Saturday night at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

Three of the Whale’s goals were on special teams, as the power play was 2/3 and Connecticut also scored a shorthander.

“Huge bounce-back game, we needed those two points, especially after the loss (Friday) night (a 4-2 defeat in Springfield), where we didn’t play very well,” Kolarik said.  “We showed a lot of emotion tonight and we worked their defensemen down low, and the two power-play goals were huge for us, to get the power play going is good.”

The Whale started slowly in the game, as Portland got 11 of the first 13 shots, and the Pirates got on the scoreboard first at 8:49 of the opening period.

Brett Hextall fed a pass across the slot to Ethan Werek on the right-wing side, and Werek was able to cut in and put a shot over Missiaen’s stick-side shoulder.

The Whale replied on their first power play of the game at 13:38, as Newbury scored his fifth goal in three games.  Kolarik sent Newbury down the left side with a pass, and Newbury sent a perfectly-placed snapshot into the top corner on Pirate netminder Mark Visentin’s catching-glove side.

Connecticut then took its first lead of the game 1:21 into the second period, scoring on a four-on-three power-play.

Logan Pyett sent a feed from the blue line to Newbury, stationed in the right-wing circle, and Newbury one-touched it to the front of the net to Kolarik, who deflected it perfectly through Visentin (21 saves).  The goal was Kolarik’s team-high 16^th of the season.

Shayne Wiebe scored his first career AHL goal, a shorthander, at 4:32 of the third period to make it a 3-1 Whale lead.  A Portland pass got through defenseman Michael Stone near the blue line, and Wiebe beat Visentin to it at the bottom of the left faceoff circle and flicked it into the far side of the net.

The shorthanded goal was the Whale’s third in two games in Portland on the week, as the Connecticut penalty-kill scored twice in a 6-1 win over the Pirates on Tuesday night.

Kelsey Tessier completed the scoring at 8:26, finishing a partial breakaway with a move to the backhand after taking a long feed from Blake Parlett.

The Whale are back in action Sunday, traveling to Providence for a 3:05 PM game against the Bruins.  All of the action of that game can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290 and on-line at www.ctwhale.com.  Video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com. 

Sunday’s game is the last of six straight on the road for the Whale, who will start a run of six straight and ten out of 12 at home this Wednesday, January 23, with a 7:00 game against the Adirondack Phantoms at the XL Center.  For that and all Whale home games, tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

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Connecticut Whale 4 at Portland Pirates 1
Saturday, January 19, 2013 – Cumberland County Civic Center

Connecticut 1 1 2 – 4
Portland 1 0 0 – 1

1st Period-1, Portland, Werek 7 (Hextall, Dziurzynski), 8:49. 2, Connecticut, Newbury 15 (Kolarik, Parlett), 13:38 (PP). Penalties-Klassen Ct (boarding), 1:23; Newbury Ct (cross-checking), 5:01; Parlett Ct (elbowing), 5:01; Szwarz Por (goaltender interference), 11:59; Mashinter Ct (roughing), 20:00; Klinkhammer Por (cross-checking), 20:00.

2nd Period-3, Connecticut, Kolarik 16 (Newbury, Pyett), 1:21 (PP). Penalties-Conner Por (tripping), 0:40; McIlrath Ct (tripping), 2:49; Pyett Ct (interference), 12:26; Mashinter Ct (fighting), 16:08; Brown Por (fighting), 16:08.

3rd Period-4, Connecticut, Wiebe 1 4:32 (SH). 5, Connecticut, Tessier 6 (Parlett, Pyett), 8:26. Penalties-Haley Ct (boarding), 0:45; Parlett Ct (kneeing), 3:27; Shinnimin Por (boarding), 4:53; McIlrath Ct (roughing), 14:58; Hextall Por (roughing), 14:58.

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 8-10-7-25. Portland 13-9-11-33.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 2 / 3; Portland 0 / 7.
Goalies-Connecticut, Missiaen 4-3-1 (33 shots-32 saves). Portland, Visentin 9-8-1 (25 shots-21 saves).
A-6,944
Referees-Dave Lewis (46).
Linesmen-Joe Andrews (32), Landon Bathe (80).

HARTFORD, January 17, 2013:  The American Hockey League today named Connecticut Whale right-wing Chad Kolarik to the Eastern Conference squad for the upcoming 2013 Dunkin’ Donuts AHL All-Star Classic in Providence, RI.

After losing the entirety of last season to injury, Kolarik, a fifth-year pro out of the University of Michigan, leads the 2012-13 Whale in goals, with 15, and ranks second on the club in points with 30, and is a +2 in 37 games.  The 26-year-old Kolarik also leads the Whale team in shots on goal with 121.

Kolarik, who was acquired by the New York Rangers organization November 11, 2010 from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Dane Byers, has logged 238 games of AHL action in his career, with the San Antonio Rampage, Syracuse Crunch, Springfield Falcons and the Whale, scoring 82 goals and adding 89 assists for 171 points, while serving 194 minutes in penalties.  The Abington, PA native has also suited up for six NHL career NHL games, four with the Rangers and two with the Blue Jackets, registering one assist and two PIM.

Beginning Friday and until January 24, fans will have the opportunity to vote for the starting lineups for the 2013 AHL All-Star Game by visiting facebook.com/theahl and completing the official CCM AHL All-Star Fan Ballot. Voters will also be entered to win prizes of a team-signed 2013 AHL All-Star stick (two) and team-signed 2013 AHL All-Star commemorative programs (10).

The 2013 Dunkin’ Donuts AHL All-Star Classic will take place January 27-28 in Providence.  Tickets are on sale now by calling the Providence Bruins at (401) 273-5000 or visiting www.providencebruins.com. All-Star 2-Packs are $55 and $75 and include admission to both the 2013 Pepsi AHL All-Star Skills Competition at 7 p.m. on Sunday, January 27, and the 2013 AHL All-Star Game at 7 p.m. on Monday, January 28. All-Star 4-Packs are $75 and $100 and include admission to the Skills Competition and the All-Star Game, as well as the Post-Skills Party (January 27, 9:30 p.m.) at the Rhode Island Convention Center and the 2013 AHL Hall of Fame Induction & Awards Ceremony (January 28, 11 a.m.) at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium.

The Whale are back in action tomorrow night, Friday, January 18, traveling to Springfield to meet the Falcons in a 7:00 PM game.  All of the action of that contest can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290.  Fans can also listen on-line at www.ctwhale.com, and video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com.  The next home game for the Whale is this Wednesday, January 23, a 7:00 battle with the Adirondack Phantoms.

Whale tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

Season tickets for the Whale’s 2012-13 AHL season are also available. For information on season seats, and all of the Whale’s many ticketing options, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 548-2000 to talk with an account executive today.

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NEW YORK, January 17, 2013 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has recalled forward Brandon Segal from the Connecticut Whale of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Segal, 29, has registered nine goals and seven assists for 16 points, along with 60 penalty minutes in 38 games this season. He is tied for third on the team in goals and shorthanded goals (one), ranks fourth in penalty minutes and third in shots on goal (88). Segal notched a shorthanded goal and posted a plus-three rating in a 6-1 win yesterday at Portland. He posted a season-high, four-game point streak from October 19 at Norfolk to October 26 against Hershey, registering four goals and two assists over the span.

A veteran of four NHL seasons, Segal has skated in 102 career NHL games with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Los Angeles Kings and Dallas Stars, registering 11 goals and 11 assists for 22 points, along with 83 penalty minutes. Segal established NHL career-highs in 2009-10 with six goals, six assists and 12 points while splitting time between Los Angeles and Dallas. He made his NHL debut with Tampa Bay on March 3, 2009, against Pittsburgh, and recorded his first career NHL point with an assist on December 31, 2009, at Minnesota as a member of the Kings.

The Richmond, British Columbia native was signed by the Rangers as an unrestricted free agent on July 11, 2012. He was originally selected by the Nashville Predators as a fourth round choice, 102^nd overall, in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.

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Portland, ME, January 15, 2013 – Kris Newbury scored two goals, and Cam Talbot made 29 saves, as the Connecticut Whale rolled to a 6-1 win over the Atlantic Division-leading Portland Pirates Tuesday night at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

Portland had won eight straight home games, tying a franchise record, and 13 of its previous 15 overall.  The Whale won despite being outshot 30-22, and scored two shorthanded goals.

“I thought our ‘D’ played good, we made a good first pass and we didn’t spend much time in our end,” Newbury said.  “(Talbot) played great for us again and we were able to get a couple of goals. 

“It’s a lot easier when we’re not playing as much in our end, holding on to the puck in theirs.  I thought we did a great job from our D getting the puck through to the net, and we had guys in front tipping pucks, getting lots of traffic.”

The only goal of the first period was a shorthander by the Whale, and the second goal in three games for Kelsey Tessier.  It came at 13:27, as Blake Parlett stepped up smartly in the neutral zone to break up an Evan Brophey pass, and then found Tessier unchecked in front of the net.  Tessier’s high shot got by Pirate goaltender Mark Visentin, who had shut the Whale out the only previous time he faced them, a 1-0 Portland win in Hartford December 15.

The Whale controlled much of the play in the second period, outshooting Portland 10-5, but the Pirates got a fluky bounce to tie the game at 7:27.  Pirate defenseman Mathieu Brodeur was credited with his third goal of the year when his shot from the left point went wide of the goal but caromed toward the front of the net and went off of Talbot’s right pad and into the goal.

Connecticut struck back with a pair of goals in 52 seconds to regain the lead, starting at 12:54, when Newbury made it 2-1 with his 11^th of the year.  Chad Kolarik worked the puck to Newbury in the offensive zone and Newbury, while moving left to right across the slot, shot back against the grain and beat Visentin high to the stick side.

J.T. Miller then made it a two-goal lead at 13:46.  Battling with a Portland defender to Visentin’s right, Miller was able to tip Mike Vernace’s long heave from the left point through Visentin and over the goal line.

The Whale had collapsed late in the second and in the third period in their last visit to Portland, a 4-3 loss New Year’s Eve in which they gave up a 3-0 lead, but such would not be the case Tuesday, as the Whale tacked on three more goals in the third, despite being outshot 14-7.

Logan Pyett made it a 4-1 lead at 4:29, collecting a loose puck at the left point and closing several feet before gunning a high slap shot past Visentin.  Then, at 11:33, Brandon Segal capitalized on a puckhandling mistake by Visentin for Connecticut’s second shorthanded tally of the game.

Visentin came out behind the net to play a dump-in, but appeared not to realize that Segal was bearing in on him.  When the puck got away from Visentin, Segal jumped on it and stepped in front to bury a backhander into the vacated net.

Newbury completed the scoring with his second of the game just 1:01 later, at 12:34.  Dylan McIlrath picked up his first professional point by feeding Newbury, who fired a bad-angle shot from the right-wing side that found its way past Visentin, who had Shayne Wiebe pressuring him from the opposite side.

The victory was the Whale’s first in four tries against the Pirates, and improved Connecticut’s record to 16-18-3-1 for 36 points.

The Whale are next in action this Friday night, January 18, when they travel to Springfield for a 7:00 PM game against the Northeast Division-leading Falcons.  All of the action of that game can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290 and on-line at www.ctwhale.com.  Video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com. 

The Whale’s next home game is Wednesday, January 23, a 7:00 game against the Adirondack Phantoms.  For that and all Whale home games, tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

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Connecticut Whale 6 at Portland Pirates 1
Tuesday, January 15, 2013 – Cumberland County Civic Center

Connecticut 1 2 3 – 6
Portland 0 1 0 – 1

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Tessier 5 (Parlett), 13:27 (SH). Penalties-Brown Por (tripping), 0:17; Sinkewich Por (interference), 5:13; Collins Ct (slashing), 12:47; Miller Ct (hooking), 16:33.

2nd Period-2, Portland, Brodeur 3 (Sinkewich, Conner), 7:27. 3, Connecticut, Newbury 11 (Kolarik), 12:54. 4, Connecticut, Miller 6 (Vernace, Yogan), 13:46. Penalties-Kolarik Ct (tripping), 16:19; Gormley Por (holding), 16:59.

3rd Period-5, Connecticut, Pyett 4 4:29. 6, Connecticut, Segal 9 11:33 (SH). 7, Connecticut, Newbury 12 (McIlrath, Wiebe), 12:34. Penalties-Jean Ct (holding), 2:04; Kolarik Ct (delay of game), 10:21; Thomas Ct (fighting), 13:24; Hextall Por (fighting), 13:24; Parlett Ct (kneeing), 14:51.

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 5-10-7-22. Portland 11-5-14-30.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 0 / 3; Portland 0 / 6.
Goalies-Connecticut, Talbot 13-16-0 (30 shots-29 saves). Portland, Visentin 9-7-1 (22 shots-16 saves).
A-2,616
Referees-Tim Mayer (19).
Linesmen-Joe Andrews (32), Landon Bathe (80).

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HARTFORD, January 14, 2013:  Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the parent New York Rangers have reassigned forward Jason Wilson to the Whale from its ECHL affiliate, the Greenville Road Warriors.

Wilson, a 2010 Ranger fifth-round draft pick (130^th overall) has skated in 20 games with the Road Warriors, scoring one goal and adding four assists for five points.  The 6-2, 205-pound second-year pro also has 53 penalty minutes, which ranks him fifth on the Greenville club.  Prior to being assigned to the Road Warriors November 29, the 22-year-old Wilson had missed the Whale’s first 17 games due to injury.

Last season with Greenville, Wilson played 56 games and had four goals and 10 assists for 14 points, along with 102 PIM, the third-highest total among Greenville skaters.

The Whale are back in action tomorrow night, Tuesday, January 15, traveling to Portland to meet the Pirates in a 7:00 PM game.  All of the action of that contest can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290.  Fans can also listen on-line at www.ctwhale.com, and video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com).  The next home game for the Whale is Wednesday, January 23, a 7:00 battle with the Adirondack Phantoms.

Whale tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

Season tickets for the Whale’s 2012-13 AHL season are also available. For information on season seats, and all of the Whale’s many ticketing options, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 548-2000 to talk with an account executive today.

Hershey, PA, January 13, 2013 – A poor first period doomed the Connecticut Whale Sunday at Giant Center, as the Hershey Bears scored four times in the first en route to a 5-0 win.

The result gave the Bears a sweep of a two-game series in Hershey with the Whale, whom they bested 4-3 in a shootout Friday night.

Barry Almeida led the way for Hershey Sunday with a goal and two assists, and former Whale defenseman Tomas Kundratek had a goal and an assist.  Dany Sabourin (four saves) and Philipp Grubauer (23 saves) shared the shutout in net.

The first period was nightmarish for the Whale, as they were outshot 17-4 and gave up three power-play goals.

The onslaught started just 42 seconds in, when Almeida beat Whale goaltender Cam Talbot (26 saves) with a shot from the top of the right-wing circle.  That came with Hershey’s Garrett Mitchell down on the ice in the opposite corner and apparently injured, after coming together with the Whale’s Dylan McIlrath.

Kundratek made it 2-0 on a five-on-three man-advantage at 11:58.  The ex-Whale defenseman blasted a shot from the left circle past Talbot, off a pass from Zach Hamill.

South Windsor, CT-raised Jon DiSalvatore then scored on a backhander from the slot on another power play at 15:39, after taking a pass from Ryan Potulny.

Tom Poti, the 13^th-year pro and former New York Ranger, playing his first career minor-pro game on a conditioning assignment from Washington, scored a third Bear power-play goal at 18:51.  Sneaking down from the left point, Poti got two whacks at the puck in front of the goal after Almeida centered it, and was able to put it past Talbot on the second effort.

The Whale picked up their play considerably in the second period, outshooting the Bears 12-9 despite being shorthanded three more times, but could not cut into the Hershey lead on relief goaltender Grubauer, who replaced injured starter Sabourin at the start of the second.

Despite being outshot 11-5 in the third period, Hershey scored the only goal of the frame, when Mitchell beat Talbot to the short side with a backhander at 10:25, after being set up by Almeida.

The loss dropped the Whale to 15-18-3-1 on the year and snapped a streak of four straight games (2-0-1-1) with at least a standings point.

The Whale are next in action this Tuesday night, January 15, when they travel to Portland for a 7:00 game against the Pirates.  All of the action of that game can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290 and on-line at www.ctwhale.com.  Video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com. 

The Whale’s next home game is Wednesday, January 23, a 7:00 game against the Adirondack Phantoms.  For that and all Whale home games, tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

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Connecticut Whale 0 at Hershey Bears 5
Sunday, January 13, 2013 – Giant Center

Connecticut 0 0 0 – 0
Hershey 4 0 1 – 5

1st Period-1, Hershey, Almeida 3 0:42. 2, Hershey, Kundratek 12 (Hamill, Potulny), 11:58 (PP). 3, Hershey, DiSalvatore 11 (Potulny, Kundratek), 15:39 (PP). 4, Hershey, Poti 1 (Almeida, Sjogren), 18:51 (PP). Penalties-Sjogren Her (holding), 2:49; Oleksy Her (delay of game), 3:48; Klassen Ct (high-sticking), 11:00; Segal Ct (high-sticking), 11:31; Kolarik Ct (misconduct – unsportsmanlike conduct), 12:41; Stoa Her (misconduct – unsportsmanlike conduct), 12:41; McIlrath Ct (kneeing), 13:52; Haley Ct (boarding), 18:38.

2nd Period- No Scoring. Penalties-Segal Ct (tripping), 1:23; Collins Ct (slashing), 5:28; Kalinski Her (roughing), 11:28; Tessier Ct (tripping), 13:44.

3rd Period-5, Hershey, Mitchell 9 (Almeida, Kalinski), 10:25. Penalties-Marshall Her (closing hand on puck), 0:56; Yogan Ct (bench minor – too many men), 7:39; Parlett Ct (roughing), 10:51.

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 4-12-11-27. Hershey 17-9-5-31.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 0 / 4; Hershey 3 / 9.
Goalies-Connecticut, Talbot 12-16-0 (31 shots-26 saves). Hershey, Sabourin 6-5-0 (4 shots-4 saves); Grubauer 1-1-0 (23 shots-23 saves).
A-10,452
Referees-Dave Lewis (46), Darcy Burchell (42).
Linesmen-Jud Ritter (34), Scott Pomento (25).

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HARTFORD, January 13, 2013:  Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the parent New York Rangers have recalled forward Chris Kreider from loan to the Whale, and that defenseman Matt Gilroy has been released from his AHL Contract.

Gilroy has signed an NHL free agent contract with the Rangers, and both players will be joining the Rangers for the start of their NHL training camp.

Kreider, the Rangers’ first-round pick (19^th overall) in 2009, has scored five goals and added seven assists for 12 points, and registered 55 penalty minutes, in 33 games with the Whale.  The rookie out of Boston College finished last season by posting 5-2-7 in 18 playoff games with the Rangers, after winning an NCAA championship with the Eagles (23-22-45, 66 PIM in 44 GP).

Gilroy, a fourth-year pro with 194 NHL games-played to his credit, led all Whale defensemen in goals with six, and also had nine assists for 15 points, in 34 games with Connecticut, along with 14 penalty minutes.  The former Hobey Baker Award-winner with Boston University split last season between the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning (2-15-17, 16 PIM in 53 GP) and Ottawa Senators (14 GP, 1-2-3, 2 PIM), after playing his first two pro years with the Rangers.

The Whale are back in action later today in Hershey, taking on the Bears at 5:00 PM in the second of back-to-back games between the two clubs.  All of the action can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290.  Fans can also listen on-line at www.ctwhale.com, and video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com).  The next home game for the Whale is Wednesday, January 23, a 7:00 battle with the Adirondack Phantoms.

Whale tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

Season tickets for the Whale’s 2012-13 AHL season are also available. For information on season seats, and all of the Whale’s many ticketing options, visit www.ctwhale.com, or call the CT Whale ticket office at (860) 548-2000 to talk with an account executive today.

Hershey, PA, January 12, 2013 – The Connecticut Whale gained a standings point for the fourth straight game (2-0-1-1) Saturday night at Giant Center, but lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Hershey Bears.

The Whale outshot Hershey 36-23 in the game, including 26-11 in the first two periods, but trailed 2-1 heading into the third before coming back to get the point.

Kelsey Tessier scored in the third period for the Whale, and Chad Kolarik had a shorthanded goal, but a Zach Hamill power-play tally wiped out a short-lived 3-2 Connecticut lead.

“In large part, I thought we outchanced them, but I don’t know that we brought our best team game for the entirety of the game,” Whale head coach Ken Gernander said.  It’s good that we came back, but ideally I’d like to have seen us press the issue a little bit harder in the first two periods.”

The Whale outshot the Bears 13-6 in a first period that was scoreless except for a 28-second span in which the team traded goals.

Kyle Jean gave the Whale a brief lead at 17:07 with his eighth goal of the year and third in the last two games.  Jean, who scored both Whale goals in a 2-0 home win over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Sunday, took a feed from Andrew Yogan, just back up to the Whale from Greenville of the ECHL, got around Hershey defenseman Steve Oleksy on left wing and then put a backhander past Bear goaltender Philipp Grubauer.

Garrett Mitchell got that goal right back for Hershey at 17:35, forcing a shot from the bottom of the right circle through Whale netminder Jason Missiaen, who got his first AHL shutout with 35 saves in Sunday’s win.

The Bears then struck again on the first shift of the second period, and this time it was Mitchell finding Jonathan Kalinski for Kalinski’s first goal of the season.  That was on a shot from just below the left-wing faceoff dot past Missiaen’s catching glove, and that goal would be the only scoring of the second, despite the Whale having a 13-5 shots edge.

Tessier tied the game at 11:56 of the third with his fourth goal of the year, a tip-in of a Logan Pyett shot from near the blue line.  Then, after Kris Newbury was penalized for cross-checking at 13:18, Kolarik increased his team-leading goal total to 15 with his second shorthander of the season at 13:50.  Grubauer, making only his second AHL appearance of the year, stopped Kolarik’s first attempt with his pads, but Kolarik fought off Stafford to get to the rebound and snapped it in.

Just 54 seconds later, though, at 14:44, with Newbury still in the box, Hamill gunned a shot from the left faceoff dot past Missiaen to create a 3-3 tie that carried through to overtime.

After a scoreless OT, Stafford and Stan Galiev scored shootout goals for the Bears, and Kolarik was the only one of five Whale shooters to score on Grubauer, giving Hershey the two points.

The Whale and Bears battle again Sunday at Giant Center, in the Whale’s second of six straight road games, facing off at 5:00 PM.  All of the action of that game can be heard live on “Beethoven Radio” AM 1290 and on-line at www.ctwhale.com.  Video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com. 

The Whale’s next home game is Wednesday, January 23, a 7:00 game against the Adirondack Phantoms.  For that and all Whale home games, tickets start as low as $10 each ($12 each when tickets are purchased on the day of the game), at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, through TicketMaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.

To continue reading, please click on the continue reading button below if you're on the home page.

Connecticut Whale 3 at Hershey Bears 4 (SO)
Saturday, January 12, 2013 – Giant Center

Connecticut 1 0 2 0 – 3
Hershey 1 1 1 0 – 4

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Jean 8 (Yogan, Pyett), 17:07. 2, Hershey, Mitchell 8 (Almeida, Kalinski), 17:35. Penalties-Marshall Her (holding the stick), 8:24.

2nd Period-3, Hershey, Kalinski 1 (Almeida, Mitchell), 0:17. Penalties-Kane Her (tripping), 12:06; Parlett Ct (holding), 14:31.

3rd Period-4, Connecticut, Tessier 4 (Pyett, Grant), 11:56. 5, Connecticut, Kolarik 15 (Vernace), 13:50 (SH). 6, Hershey, Hamill 11 (Kundratek, McNeill), 14:44 (PP). Penalties-Yogan Ct (hooking), 7:31; Parlett Ct (cross-checking), 8:25; Newbury Ct (cross-checking), 13:18.

OT Period- No Scoring. Penalties-No Penalties

Shootout – Connecticut 1 (Miller NG, Kolarik G, Newbury NG, Thomas NG, Jean NG), Hershey 2 (Mitchell NG, Stafford G, Kundratek NG, Galiev G).
Shots on Goal-Connecticut 13-13-7-2-0-35. Hershey 6-5-10-1-1-23.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 0 / 2; Hershey 1 / 4.
Goalies-Connecticut, Missiaen 3-3-1 (22 shots-19 saves). Hershey, Grubauer 1-1-0 (35 shots-32 saves).
A-10,409
Referees-Graham Skilliter (48).
Linesmen-Bob Goodman (90), Jud Ritter (34).

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