DOWNED BY MARLIES

by Kevin Zalaznik // 12.10.2011 // Recap

TORONTO – Darcy Zajac netted his fifth goal of the season, but the Albany Devils fell 4-1 against the Toronto Marlies Saturday afternoon at the Ricoh Coliseum. The game marked the Devils first trip to Canada in team history. Albany lost for the second time in as many nights and is now 12-10-2-1 on the season. Toronto, which is 8-1-2-0 at home, improves to 15-7-3-1.

The Devils played 40-plus minute with only 16 skaters. Myles Stoesz and Brad Mills both received game misconducts late in the first period. Despite playing shorthanded, Albany won the shot battle, 27-25.

Stopping all by one of the Devils tries was Toronto’s netminder Ben Scrivens. For Albany, Keith Kinkaid made his 13th start and had 21 stops.

Zajac’s goal came as the Devils trailed 3-0 at 13:40 of the third period. Matt Anderson earned his team-leading 11th assist and 16th point, while Stephane Veilleux registered his seventh assist and 10th point.

The Marlies received power-play goals from Josh Engel, Nazem Kadri and Luca Caputi and a shorthanded goal by Greg Scott.

Engel’s tally came at 14:10 of the first period from Simon Gysbers and Darryl Boyce, while Kadri’s goal was at 18:40 from Mike Zigomanis and Scott.

Scott netted an unassisted breakaway goal at 7:41 of the third. Caputi capped the scoring with 10 seconds remaining in the game. Assists went to Joe Colborne and Gysbers.

The Devils return to the Times Union Center with a 7 pm contest against the Syracuse Crunch on Wednesday, Dec. 14.

by Kevin Zalaznik // 12.10.2011 // Preview

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Listen/Watch: ahllive.com
Tweet: @albanydevils

Storyline
For the first time in franchise history, the Devils are crossing the border to play a game in Canada. Tonight’s game will also only be the second meeting between these two teams all-time. Toronto defeated Albany, 4-3, in overtime at the Times Union Center on Nov. 13.

Notables
- The Devils are third in the Northeast Division with a 12-9-2-1 record and are 4-5-1-0 away from the Times Union Center. The Marlies are first in the North Division with a 14-7-3-1 mark and are 7-1-2-0 at home.

- Keith Kinkaid will likely get the start. He is 7-4-0 on the year with a 2.73 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage.

- Missing from last night’s game at Rochester were Steve Bernier, Matt Corrente, Stephen Gionta, Jay Leach and Vladimir Zharkov – all did not dress. Additionally, defensemen Matt Taormina and Alexander Urbom were recalled by New Jersey earlier in the day.

- Toronto is coming off a 2-1 win at Hamilton yesterday. Greg Scott scored a 18:27 of the first and Jerry D’Amigo netted the game-winner at 8:18 of the second.

- Marlies goaltender Ben Scrivens is 5-2-0 with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage.

All-Time Series
Meetings: 1
All-Time: 0-0-1-0
At Devils: 0-0-1-0
At Marlies: 0-0-0-0
Season Series: 0-0-1-0

Puck Drop
In the last four games, the Devils have outshot their opponents, 149-110. This season, Albany is 7-6-1-0 when winning the shot battle. Additionally entering the weekend, the Devils are eighth in the AHL for fewest shots against per game (28.22).