Devils Downed By Falcons

by Dan St-Jacques // 1.23.2013 // Recap

ALBANY, NY – The Albany Devils could not overcome a two-goal deficit and were downed 4-2 by the Springfield Falcons Wednesday at Times Union Center. The loss snaps a three-game point streak for the Devils and marks the first time the team failed to register a point against the league-leading Falcons. Albany, which is now 2-1-0-1 against Springfield, goes to 15-14-1-9. The Falcons improve to 25-9-3-3.

Mike Sislo scored shorthanded, Joe Whitney chipped in a goal and Bobby Butler added an assist. In goal, Jeff Frazee made 29 saves on 33 shots.

For Springfield, Michael Chaput had a goal and two assists and Tomas Kubalik registered a goal and a helper. Cody Goloubef and Scott Howes also scored. In goal, Allen Yorkmade 25 saves on 27 attempts.

The Falcons jumped out to a two-goal lead thanks to goals from Goloubef at 8:45 of the first and Chaput at 4:39 of the second.

Sislo answered for the Devils with the team’s fifth shorthanded tally of the season. On an odd-man rush, he made a drag move around a Springfield defender and fired a wrist shot into the upper-left corner at 5:30. The goal was Sislo’s second of the year, giving him five points in the last six games (1g-4a).

Before the end of the period, Springfield reclaimed its two goal lead with Howes’ tally at 14:27. In the third, Kubalik made it 4-1 at 1:34.

The Devils were brought back within two when Butler forced a turnover deep in the offensive zone and found Whitney who buried his shot from in close. With the goal, Whitney has now registered a point in five of his last six games (4g-2a). Butler improved his team-leading point total to 24.

Next up, the Devils travel to the Adirondack Phantoms Friday for the seventh installment of the Time Warner Cable Cup. Puck drop is at 7 pm and fans can listen on 104.5 “The Team” ESPN Radio or online at ahllive.com.

Lineup 
Goaltenders: Jeff Frazee, Keith Kinkaid
Defensemen: Eric Gelinas, Raman Hrabarenka, Dan Kelly, Jay Leach, Corbin McPherson, Alexander Urbom
Forwards: Matt Anderson, Bobby Butler, Phil DeSimone, Mike Hoeffel, Chris McKelvie, Harri Pesonen, Tim Sestito, Mike Sislo, Joe Whitney, Darcy Zajac, Kelly Zajac, Steve Zalewski

Scoring 
1st Period-1, Springfield, Goloubef 2 (Craig, Chaput), 8:45.
2nd Period-2, Springfield, Chaput 6 (Kubalik, Craig), 4:39. 3, Albany, Sislo 2 5:20 (SH). 4, Springfield, Howes 1 (Erixon, Joudrey), 14:27.
3rd Period-5, Springfield, Kubalik 11 (Chaput), 1:34. 6, Albany, Whitney 9 (Butler), 5:02.

Springfield Falcons 4 at Albany Devils 2 - Status: Final
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 - Times Union Center

Springfield 1 2 1 - 4
Albany 0 1 1 - 2

1st Period-1, Springfield, Goloubef 2 (Craig, Chaput), 8:45. Penalties-Urbom Alb (interference), 16:52.

2nd Period-2, Springfield, Chaput 6 (Kubalik, Craig), 4:39. 3, Albany, Sislo 2 5:20 (SH). 4, Springfield, Howes 1 (Erixon, Joudrey), 14:27. Penalties-Kelly Alb (interference), 4:53; DeSimone Alb (hooking), 9:13; Joudrey Spr (tripping), 11:36; Hrabarenka Alb (hooking), 13:45; Audy-Marchessault Spr (interference, unsportsmanlike conduct), 14:08; Joudrey Spr (tripping), 17:23.

3rd Period-5, Springfield, Kubalik 11 (Chaput), 1:34. 6, Albany, Whitney 9 (Butler), 5:02. Penalties-Hoeffel Alb (delay of game), 2:16; Goloubef Spr (interference), 8:39; Chaput Spr (roughing), 12:58; Gelinas Alb (roughing), 12:58; Kubalik Spr (tripping), 15:25.

Shots on Goal-Springfield 12-9-12-33. Albany 13-7-7-27.
Power Play Opportunities-Springfield 0 / 5; Albany 0 / 6.
Goalies-Springfield, York 5-3-0 (27 shots-25 saves). Albany, Frazee 3-7-4 (33 shots-29 saves).
A-2,323
Referees-David Banfield (77), T.J. Luxmore (49).
Linesmen-Mike Emanatian (69), Frank Murphy (29).

by Kevin Zalaznik // 1.23.2013 // Recap

Follow the Action
Radio: 104.5 “The Team” ESPN Radio 
Online: ahllive.com
Twitter: @albanydevils, @albanydevilspr, #adevils

Storyline 
The Albany Devils are trying to extend their point streak to four straight games when they host the Springfield Falcons tonight at Times Union Center. Albany, which is 1-0-0-2 in its last three games, has gone 5-2-0-2 in its last nine games.

Notables 
- The Devils are third in the Northeast Division and tied for 11th in the Eastern Conference at 15-13-1-8 (39 pts.), including a 7-7-0-5 home record. The Falcons are first in the division and tied for first in the conference at 24-9-3-3 (54 pts.) with a 13-4-2-0 road mark.

- Jay Leach netted his second goal of the season during the Devils game Sunday against the Adirondack Phantoms. In 470 career AHL contests, the defenseman has registered 79 points with 23 tallies and 56 assists. Leach has also appeared in 70 NHL games, posting three points with a goal and two assists.

- Keith Kinkaid’s 12 wins so far this year have already tied him for ninth for the Devils single-season record. He is two wins away from moving into a sixth-place tie with 14 wins. Jeff Frazee sits atop of the list for his 28 win performance during the 2008-09 season.

- The Falcons are coming off a 4-1 victory against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Sunday. Nick Holden produced two goals and Nick Drazenovic had a goal and an assist.

- Curtis McElhinney has appeared in 26 games for Springfield, posting a 17-6-2 mark with a 2.25 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage. He ranks second in the AHL for wins and first for shutouts (6).

Last Meeting 
Jan. 19, 2013: Albany 1 at Springfield 2 (Shootout) 
After two goals during the first nine minutes of play, the Devils and the Falcons didn’t score again, forcing overtime and a shootout. In the end, Springfield’s Wade MacLeod fourth round goal lifted his team to a 2-1 victory at MassMutual Center. Eric Gelinas and Springfield’s Nick Drazenovic were responsible for the regulation goals. Gelinas’ fourth tally came after Drazenovic scored on a power-play at 7:10. Less than two minutes later, Gelinas wound-up for a bomb from the top of the right circle for a 5-on-3 power-play tally at 8:56.

All-Time Series 
All-Time: 24-20-1-4
Home: 11-9-1-3
Away: 13-11-0-1
2012-13: 2-0-0-1

Puck Drop 
Tonight’s game features “Dollar Dawg Night” with $1 hot dogs and $1 sodas.