Norfolk, VA, January 7, 2011 – The Norfolk Admirals scored three goals in a span of 68 seconds in the third period Friday night at the Norfolk Scope, to break open a 2-2 game and score a 5-2 victory over the Connecticut Whale.
The loss kept the Whale (19-14-2-5, 45 pts.) five points behind the first-place Manchester Monarchs, who lost 3-0 in Providence, in the Atlantic Division, and the Portland Pirates, who beat Springfield at home, 4-1, moved into a second-place tie with the Whale.
The Admirals, who improved to 19-9-6-2 for 46 points on the year, outshot the Whale 19-7 in the decisive third period, in which they got goals from Mike Vernace, Mike Angelidis and Chris Durno.
Norfolk dominated play throughout the period but were held at bay by Whale goaltender Chad Johnson (35 saves) until Vernace scored at 11:22. The goal came immediately off of a faceoff win by Blair Jones, who beat Tim Kennedy on a draw and got the puck to the center point to Vernace, who beat Johnson high.
Twenty-three seconds later, at 11:45, Angelidis drove to the net and jammed in a centering pass from Jones out of the right-wing corner. Durno, the Norfolk captain, then completed the quick burst at 12:30, when he gunned a drive from the right-wing circle past Johnson after Marc-Antoine Pouliot fed the puck across the slot.
To continue reading, click on the read more button below.
The Whale were outshot by a total of 40-26 in the game, and found themselves behind on the first shift, as Johan Harju, the Admirals’ leading goal-scorer, got his 15th of the year just 17 seconds after the opening faceoff.
After a pinch by Connecticut defenseman Tomas Kundratek failed to get the puck deep on the right-wing boards, the Admirals broke three-on-two, and Harju was able to get behind Kundratek’s partner, Pavel Valentenko, and snapped a shot past Johnson’s stick side.
The Whale took over a lot of the play shortly after that and, after several glittering saves by Norfolk goaltender Cedrick Desjardins, were able to even the score at 8:45, on a goal by Brodie Dupont.
The Admirals’ Pierre-Cedric Labrie attempted to pass across the slot in his own zone and Dupont intercepted. After Desjardins stopped Dupont’s first shot, Kelsey Tessier worked the rebound back to Dupont in the slot, and his backhand shot eluded Desjardins (24 saves), who was seeing his first action since a callup to parent club Tampa Bay that saw him win both of his first two career NHL appearances.
The Whale built a 14-3 shots advantage at one point, but Desjardins yielded nothing else, and the Admirals got the final seven shots of the session.
The two teams also traded goals in a second period that saw Norfolk outshoot the Whale 11-5.
James Wright put the Admirals back on top at the 10:06 mark, after good work deep in the offensive zone with linemates Matt Fornataro and Paul Szczechura. Fornataro dug the puck out behind the net and played it to Wright at the left-wing faceoff dot. Wright fired a high shot into the net behind Johnson, through an effective screen by Szczechura.
The Whale got that one back at the 15-minute mark, though, on the second goal in four Whale games for Jason Williams. Todd White pushed the puck down the left-wing wall to Williams near the corner. Williams moved toward the slot and tried to center to Chad Kolarik, but the puck deflected off of Admiral defenseman Scott Jackson and squeaked between Desjardins and the goalpost to his right.
The loss was the Whale’s second in three games, but only their third regulation defeat in the last 19 outings (13-3-0-3). The Whale and Admirals get together again at Scope on Saturday night at 7:15 PM, and Norfolk has won the first two games of the season series by a combined score of 10-3, having beaten the Wolf Pack 5-1 in the first meeting October 20 in Hartford. The five goals-against came one game after the Whale and Johnson had shut out the Worcester Sharks, 2-0, in Worcester Wednesday night.
MCDONAGH MAKES RANGERS DEBUT
Rookie defenseman Ryan McDonagh became the third Whale player to make his NHL debut this season with the Rangers on Friday night against the Dallas Stars. McDonagh replaced Michal Rozsival, who aggravated a pulled rib muscle in a 2-1 overtime victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night. Wing Mats Zuccarello, the second Whale player to join the Rangers, won that game with his first NHL goal. Whale wing Dale Weise is on his second recall to the Blueshirts.
McDonagh was paired with Matt Gilroy after exchanging places on the Rangers roster with Michael Del Zotto, a member of the NHL all-rookie team last season who was assigned to the Whale on Monday and set up Tim Kennedy’s winner in a 2-0 victory over the Worcester Sharks on Wednesday night. Gilroy had four assists in five games with the Wolf Pack last season in a successful attempt to rediscover his game, as Del Zotto is trying to do now.
McDonagh, the Montreal Canadiens’ first-round pick (12th overall) in 2007, was reunited with rookie center Derek Stepan, a teammate for two seasons at the University of Wisconsin, which lost 5-0 to Boston College and top Rangers prospect Chris Kreider in the NCAA championship game in April. Since McDonagh is a left-handed shooter, it allowed Gilroy to move to his natural right side. Steve Eminger, a little more comfortable on the left side, was paired with former Wolf Packer Michael Sauer. The Rangers’ No. 1 pairing was two more former Wolf Pack players, Marc Staal and Dan Girardi.
McDonagh, Stepan, Weise, Zuccarello and Sauer are NHL rookies. Stepan centered Zuccarello and former Wolf Pack forward Brandon Dubinsky, and Weise was alongside center/captain and Trumbull native Chris Drury and Alex Frolov.
Left wing Sean Avery played his first game since an unfortunate 23-game stint with the Stars that was followed by a stint with the Wolf Pack before he joined the Rangers. Avery played with sniper Marian Gaborik and former Wolf Pack center Artem Anisimov.
The Rangers play at St. Louis on Saturday night, then return home to host the Canadiens on Tuesday night.
Wing Jamie Langenbrunner didn’t play for the Stars after being re-acquired from the New Jersey Devils for a conditional third-round draft pick. The conditional pick will become a second-rounder if the Stars win the first round of the playoffs or re-sign the former Devils captain before July 1. If the Stars re-sign him after July 1, the Devils swap their 2012 third-round pick with the Stars’ second-round pick.
The 35-year-old Langenbrunner scored 10 goals in the Stars’ run to the Stanley Cup in 1999. He was traded to the Devils on March 19, 2002 and won another Stanley Cup in 2003. But like the Devils, who have the NHL’s worst record, he struggled this season with four goals, 10 assists and a minus-15 in 31 games and missed eight games with a sore neck. He had only four goals in 20 regular-season games after being captain of Team USA that won a silver medal in the 2010 Olympics. He was a healthy scratch in the Devils’ game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night.
NEW ROAD JERSEYS TO APPEAR NEXT FRIDAY
The Whale has a rematch with the Admirals on Saturday night and then will debut their new blue road jerseys at the end of their four-game road trip next Friday at Portland. The jerseys are available for purchase at the XL Center or The Hartford Store, 45 Pratt Street in Hartford. Prices, including sales tax, are $289 (authentic), $125 (senior replica) and $99 (junior replica). … The Whale returns to the XL Center next Saturday at 7 p.m. to face Providence, the start of a three-game homestand that will include former Boston Bruins standouts Rick Middleton and Reggie Lemelin signing autographs in the XL Center atrium from 6-7 p.m. and then dropping the ceremonial first puck. Middleton, who played 12 seasons with the Bruins after two with the Rangers, and Lemelin will also be playing with the Bruins legends team that will face the Hartford Whalers legends Feb. 19 at 4 p.m. before the Whale plays the Providence Bruins. That doubleheader is part of the “Harvest-Properties.com Whalers Hockey Fest” at Rentschler Field in East Hartford on Feb. 11-23. Early commitments for the Whalers team include Jordy Douglas, Ray Neufeld and Gordie Roberts. Tickets ($20 to $85) for the Legends Game and Whale-Bruins game can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com and the Bushnell box office in Hartford on Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. or by calling the Whale at 860-728-3366. They also can be purchased online and printed immediately at Ticketmaster.com. … The homestand also will include visits from league-leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Jan. 16) and Hamilton (Jan. 21), which is a special Family Value Night at which New Britain Rock Cats mascot Rocky will be on hand. There will be a giveaway, a table setup and autograph session, and the New Britain High School marching band will perform the national anthem and during the first intermission. Tickets in the lower level are $16 and include a soda and pizza slice or hot dog. Visit www.ctwhale.com.
DISCOUNTED TICKETS FOR WHALE FANS
Whalers Sports and Entertainment, in association with the XL Center, is offering a discount for “Disney On Ice” shows to Whale fans. For discounted tickets, use the discount code WHALES and save $4. Discounted tickets start at $11 for shows Saturday at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday at 4:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the XL Center box office, online at Ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. For groups of 15 or more, contact the XL Center group sales office at 860-548-2000.
… Whale mascots Pucky and Sonar will appear at the University of Hartford women’s basketball game against Albany on Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Reich Family Pavilion in West Hartford. It’s Father/Daughter Day as daughters get a free ticket when dad buys a $15 ticket in the lower level. Pucky and Sonar will have a dance-off at halftime with Howie the Hawk, the Hartford mascot. So come and root on coach Jennifer Rizzotti’s team and enjoy some time with Pucky and Sonar.
… WS&E chairman and CEO Howard Baldwin will be the guest speaker at the East Hartford Chamber of Commerce breakfast series sponsored by AT&T Connecticut Tuesday at 8 a.m. at the Sheraton Hartford Hotel on East River Drive in East Hartford. Baldwin will speak about his efforts to revive the local hockey market, the Whalers Hockey Fest and other economic development opportunities.
“I am very excited to have a man of Howard Baldwin’s experience, energy and commitment to Connecticut and the Hartford area speaking at our Chamber event,” Chamber president Ron Pugliese said. “I invite anyone who has the desire to see the Hartford area grow and prosper economically to join us on January 11.” … Howard Baldwin Jr., the new president and COO of WS&E, has a new Twitter account accessible to Whale fans at howardbaldwinjr.
… Former Wolf Pack defenseman Terry Virtue and Hartford Whalers wing Scott Young will be among the first six inductees into the Worcester Hockey Hall of Fame on Jan. 22 at the DCU Center in Worcester. It’s “Salute to the IceCats” Night, in tribute to the franchise that preceded the Sharks in Worcester, and other inductees will be Kelly O’Leary, Eddie Bates, Larz Anderson and Marvin Degon Sr., father of former Wolf Pack defenseman Martin Degon.
… The Whale’s eighth Tip-A-Player Dinner and Sports Carnival, presented by Aetna, will be Jan. 23 at the XL Center from 4-7 p.m. Tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for children, and proceeds benefit Gaylord Specialty Healthcare at Gaylord Hospital in Wallingford. For more information, contact Lori Leniart at 860-728-3366.
ALL-STAR VOTING ENDS SUNDAY
On-line fan voting for the AHL All-Star Classic Jan. 30-31 at the Giant Center in Hershey, Pa., runs through midnight Sunday at theahl.com and facebook.com/theahl. Players receiving the most votes by position will earn berths in the starting lineups of the Eastern Conference and Western Conference teams. A committee of AHL coaches will select the remaining All-Stars, and all 30 clubs must be represented. By completing the official ballot, fans are entered to win a grand prize of a team-signed All-Star jersey. Ten more winners will receive an official All-Star Classic T-shirt.
The Hall of Fame Class of 2011, to be inducted Jan. 30 at 11 a.m., is Mitch Lamoureux, Larry Wilson and the late Harry Pidhirny and Maurice Podoloff, who grew up in New Haven and graduated from Yale. AHL Hall of Famer Bruce Boudreau, former coach of the Hershey Bears and now coach of the Washington Capitals, will be the keynote speaker, and AHL graduate and 2008 Foster Hewitt Award winner Mike Emrick will be master of ceremonies.
ORTMEYER SIGNS WITH WILD
Former Wolf Pack and Rangers right wing Jed Ortmeyer signed with the Minnesota Wild and cleared waivers but remained with the AHL’s Houston Aeros, where he signed a professional tryout contract earlier this season.
The gritty 32-year-old Ortmeyer has played 306 NHL games with the Rangers, Nashville and San Jose. He had his best season in 2009-10 when he had eight goals and 11 assists in 76 games with the President Trophy-winning Sharks.
Ortmeyer will continue to provide veteran leadership for the Aeros or take that strength to the Wild and possibility skate on a line with Eric Nystrom, a linemate for two years at the University of Michigan, where he also played with former Wolf Pack goalie Al Montoya.
“Hopefully I can play well enough (in Houston) to get back to playing in the NHL,” Ortmeyer said. “My game is pretty simple, working hard, good on the penalty kill and being an energy guy. Hopefully I can chip in some points and be a good role model for some of the younger guys (in Houston).” … Former Rangers goalie Jason LaBarbera, a two-time AHL goalie of the year with the Wolf Pack and named to the All-Time Wolf Pack team in November, made 34 saves in the Phoenix Coyotes’ 2-0 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night. … Former Wolf Pack and Rangers wing Nigel Dawes had four goals in the Chicago Wolves’ 9-3 victory over the Toronto Marlies on Wednesday night. That same night, Peoria’s Derek Nesbitt had four goals and an assist in a 7-4 victory over the San Antonio Rampage. … The AHL suspended Wilkes-Barre/Scranton right wing Jesse Boulerice for 10 games for his actions in a 3-2 shootout victory over the Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday night. Boulerice was suspended under the provisions of AHL Rule 28.1 (supplemental discipline) after review of a third-period incident in which it was determined Boulerice deliberately applied physical force to an official without intent to injure. He began serving his suspension Friday night against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and will be eligible to return on Jan. 28 against the Albany Devils.
Connecticut Whale 2 at Norfolk Admirals 5
Friday, January 7, 2011 – Norfolk Scope
Connecticut 1 1 0 – 2
Norfolk 1 1 3 – 5
1st Period-1, Norfolk, Harju 15 (Pouliot, Durno), 0:17. 2, Connecticut, Dupont 6 (Tessier), 8:45. Penalties-Mihalik Nor (holding), 1:55; Nightingale Ct (roughing), 15:20; Labrie Nor (roughing), 15:20.
2nd Period-3, Norfolk, Wright 11 (Fornataro, Szczechura), 10:06. 4, Connecticut, Williams 2 (White, Nightingale), 15:00. Penalties-No Penalties
3rd Period-5, Norfolk, Vernace 6 (Jones), 11:22. 6, Norfolk, Angelidis 12 (Jones, Berry), 11:45. 7, Norfolk, Durno 11 (Pouliot, Quick), 12:30. Penalties-DiDiomete Ct (interference, misconduct), 13:09.
Shots on Goal-Connecticut 14-5-7-26. Norfolk 10-11-19-40.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 0 / 1; Norfolk 0 / 1.
Goalies-Connecticut, Johnson 13-13-3 (40 shots-35 saves). Norfolk, Desjardins 13-5-1 (26 shots-24 saves).
A-4,891
Referees-Jeff Smith (49).
Linesmen-Mark Hamlett (81), Scott Pomento (25).
