Maine Faces BU in weekend series

PHOTO COURTESY CHRIS ROY

The University of Maine men’s ice hockey team skated to a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Boston University on Saturday night in front of 5,350 fans at Alfond Arena. Will O’Neill (Salem, Mass.) and Joe Pereira scored first period goals and the goalie stole the show the remainder of the night. Maine moves to 11-7-6 on the season and 8-5-4 in Hockey East play. Boston University sees it record go to 12-7-7, 9-5-5 in conference play.

Maine wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. Tanner House (Cochrane, Alberta) battled to get the puck to Brian Flynn (Lynnfield, Mass.). Flynn and a BU defender both pursued the puck, but Flynn was able to get it to Will O’Neill on the blueline. He fired the first shot of the game past BU goalie Kieran Millan just 21 seconds in. For O’Neill, it was his second goal of the season.

Minutes later on the power play, Maine tried to make a pass on the blueline that Boston University’s Chris Connolly picked off. He skated in on Maine goalie Martin Ouellette (St.-Hippolyte, Quebec) on a two-on-none breakaway. Connolly slide the puck to Joe Pereira who beat Ouellette. For Periera, it was his 11th goal of the season.

Maine had a commanding 20-2 edge in shots on goal in the first period and finished the game with a 42-20 advantage. Maine goalie Martin Ouellette and BU netminder Kieran Millan each made some outstanding saves in the game. Ouellette finished with 19 saves and moves to 3-2-2 on the season. Millan made 41 saves and moves to 9-5-7.

Maine finished the game 0-for-7 on the power play, while BU was scoreless on five chances. The Black Bears were able to kill off a five minute penalty, including nearly a two-minute five-on-three. Maine held BU scoreless in 11 power play opportunities on the weekend.

Saturday marked the 100th career game for Maine junior Spencer Abbott (Hamilton, Ontario). Flynn, who played in his 100th career game for Maine on Friday night, played in his 100th consecutive game on Saturday night.

The Black Bears return to action on Friday, Feb. 4 when they face off against the University of New Hampshire, for a two game series in Durham, N.H. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 PM and the game can be seen on NESN.

 - UNIVERSITY OF MAINE - 

MAINEiacs with another comeback win 5 - 2

For the second time this weekend, the Lewiston MAINEiacs fell behind early, before coming back to win a key divisional battle. The Chicoutimi Sagueneens took a 2-0 lead early in the second period, only to see the MAINEiacs score twice in the second and three times in the third period for a 5-2 victory in front of 1,941 fans at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee.

The Sagueneens opened the scoring in the latter stages of the first period. Guillaume Asselin skated in on a 2-on-1 rush, before blasting a slap shot through Nicholas Champion from the bottom of the right circle. 1:05 into the second period, Asselin struck again, wiring in a shot from an identical location.

Midway through the second period, the MAINEiacs got on the board, starting their comeback. Sam Henley attacked the offensive zone on a forecheck, freeing up the puck for Alex Zafiris. The rookie forward found Antoine Houde-Caron in the slot, who beat Francis Desrosiers high over the glove. With 1:56 left to go in the spirited middle frame, Lewiston knotted the score. Sam Carrier flipped the puck into the offensive zone, springing Stefan Fournier in alone. Fournier's backhander hit off of the post, off of Desrosiers, and in for the equalizer.

The home team continued to ride the momentum into the third period, taking their first lead of the afternoon at the 3:19 mark of the third period. Sam Carrier tossed the puck into the middle of the ice, allowing Cole Hawes to deflect a shot into the top part of the goal. Hawes' seventh tally of the season was also Lewiston's 1,000th in franchise history on home ice. The MAINEiacs maintained their one-goal lead until the final seven minutes of the game, when they eventually pulled away. Olivier Dame-Malka's wrist shot from the point put Lewiston ahead by two, before Matt Bissonnette converted off of a pass by Stefan Fournier for a 5-2 final score.

Nicholas Champion earned the win for the MAINEiacs, making 19 saves on 21 shots. Francis Desrosiers suffered the loss for Chicoutimi, stopping 28 of the 33 shots he faced.

The MAINEiacs will continue their homestand on Tuesday night at 7:00, when they play host to the Shawinigan Cataractes.

- Lewiston MAINEiacs -

Pirates harpoon the Whale

Derek Whitmore scored on the power play with 7.5 seconds remaining in regulation to lift the Portland Pirates to a 3-2 win over the Connecticut Whale in an American Hockey League game played tonight in front of 10,872 at the XL Center.

Nick Crawford and Matt Ellis also scored for the Pirates, who improved to 29-14-4-1 with the win.

Jeremy Williams and Brodie Dupont scored for the Whale, who lost their third straight to sink to 22-20-2-5.

The Pirates got off to a quick start as Crawford scored three minutes into the game to give the visitors an early advantage. The lead was short-lived as just over two minutes later Jeremy Williams tied it to leave the two teams even at one after one.

There was no scoring in the second. Ellis scored on the power play in the opening minute of the third period to restore Portland’s one-goal lead. Dupont answered with a power-play goal of his own with just under eight minutes left in regulation to set the stage for Whitmore.

The Whale out shot the Pirates 38-24 in the game as David Leggio posted his fourth consecutive victory.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the Game were 1. Whitmore, 2. Leggio and 3. Dupont

--PIRATES COMMUNICATIONS--

UMaine goes 0-fer on power play, knots Terriers

The University of Maine men’s ice hockey team skated to a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Boston University on Saturday night in front of 5,350 fans at Alfond Arena. Will O’Neill (Salem, Mass.) and Joe Pereira scored first period goals and
the goalie stole the show the remainder of the night. Maine moves to 11-7-6 on the season and 8-5-4 in Hockey East play. Boston University sees it record go to 12-7-7, 9-5-5 in conference play.

Maine wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. Tanner House (Cochrane, Alberta) battled to get the puck to Brian Flynn (Lynnfield, Mass.). Flynn and a BU defender both pursued the puck, but Flynn was able to get it to Will O’Neill on the blueline.
He fired the first shot of the game past BU goalie Kieran Millan just 21 seconds in. For O’Neill, it was his second goal of the season.

Minutes later on the power play, Maine tried to make a pass on the blueline that Boston University’s Chris Connolly picked off. He skated in on Maine goalie Martin Ouellette (St.-Hippolyte, Quebec) on a two-on-none breakaway. Connolly slide the puck
to Joe Pereira who beat Ouellette. For Periera, it was his 11th goal of the season.

Maine had a commanding 20-2 edge in shots on goal in the first period and finished the game with a 42-20 advantage. Maine goalie Martin Ouellette and BU netminder Kieran Millan each made some outstanding saves in the game. Ouellette finished with 19
saves and moves to 3-2-2 on the season. Millan made 41 saves and moves to 9-5-7.

Maine finished the game 0-for-7 on the power play, while BU was scoreless on five chances. The Black Bears were able to kill off a five minute penalty, including nearly a two-minute five-on-three. Maine held BU scoreless in 11 power play
opportunities on the weekend.

Saturday marked the 100th career game for Maine junior Spencer Abbott (Hamilton, Ontario). Flynn, who played in his 100th career game for Maine on Friday night, played in his 100th consecutive game on Saturday night.

The Black Bears return to action on Friday, Feb. 4 when they face off against the University of New Hampshire, for a two game series in Durham, N.H. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 PM and the game can be seen on NESN.

Pirates decommission Admirals

Jhonas Enroth and the Portland defense held the top offense in the league to a single score as the Portland Pirates defeated the Norfolk Admirals 2-1 in an American Hockey League game played this evening in front of 3,285 at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

Derek Whitmore and Mark Mancari provided the scoring for Portland with a goal apiece, and Jhonas Enroth stopped 27 shots as the Pirates improved their Atlantic Division best record to 28-13-4-1. Portland now stands at 17-3-3-1 at home, and won the season series over Norfolk 3-0-0-1.

Johan Harju netted the only Norfolk goal of the night as they lost their second straight while dropping to 24-12-7-2 on the season.

Whitmore got the hosts on the board at 16:23 of the first period, capitalizing on a crossing pass from T.J. Brennan. At the 12:53 mark of the second period, Mancari beat Mike Smith on a breakaway to raise his league leading goal total to 27 and extend the Portland lead to 2-0. Norfolk managed to cut the lead in half with just under eight minutes remaining in the final period on Harju’s tally, but Enroth stood tall the rest of the way in protecting the one-goal advantage.

The Admirals out-shot the Pirates 28-21 as Mike Smith’s record dropped to 0-2-0 and Enroth improved to 16-12-1 on the season.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the game were all from Portland: 1. Enroth, 2. Brennan and 3. Mancari.

This weekend the Pirates will be on the road for two divisional matchups. Friday night they will be down in Providence taking on the Bruins at the Dunkin Donuts Center at 7:05 p.m., and will continue on the road to Connecticut to take on the Whale at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday. The games can be heard live on 95.5 News Talk WLOB or on-line at www.portlandpirates.com beginning with the pre-game show 15 minutes prior to the opening faceoff.

Mancari named Reebok AHL Player of the Week

The American Hockey League announced today that Portland Pirates right wing Mark Mancari has been named the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Jan. 23, 2011. In four games, Mancari scored eight goals and added two assists for 10 points while posting a plus-7 rating for the Pirates.

Mancari scored a goal in a 5-3 loss at Worcester on Wednesday, then potted a goal and recorded two assists in a 5-2 win over the Sharks on Friday. He scored three more times on Saturday as Portland earned a 5-2 victory over Providence, and notched his second consecutive hat trick to help the Pirates rally for a 5-4 shootout win in Worcester on Sunday, moving Portland back into sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division.

In recognition of his achievement, Mancari will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Pirates home game.

A 25-year-old native of London, Ont., Mancari has taken over the AHL lead with 26 goals and ranks third with 51 points in 42 games for Portland, including 12-7-19 during his current 11-game scoring streak. The sixth-year pro has totaled 145 goals and 203 assists for 348 points in 404 career AHL games and has added six points in 19 NHL games with the Buffalo Sabres, including one assist in three games this season.

--AHL COMMUNICATIONS--

UMaine ties Northeastern

The University of Maine men's ice hockey team battled back from a 2-0 deficit to take a 3-2 lead in the third period, but in the end, skated to a 3-3 draw at Northeastern on Saturday night. Maine moves to 11-6-5 on the season and 8-4-3 in Hockey East play. Northeastern moves to 7-10-5 overall and 6-7-4 in conference play. Maine was led by senior captain Tanner House (Cochrane, Alberta) who had a pair of goals in the game.

Maine and Northeastern battled through a scoreless first period. The Black Bears finished the period with a 9-5 edge in shots on goal.

Northeastern took a 1-0 lead just 54 second into the second period with a power play goal. Wade MacLeod had a shot from the right face-off circle that Maine goalie Shawn Sirman (Blezard Valley, Ontario) stopped, but the rebound lay in the crease before Anthony Bitetto fired it into the goal. For Bitetto, it was his second goal of the season. Tyler McNeely also assisted on the goal. The Huskies added to their lead less than two minutes later. Rob Dongara left a drop pass for Mike McLaughlin.

McLaughlin rifled a shot past Sirman from the right face-off circle, extending Northeastern's lead to 2-0. Brodie Reid also picked up an assist on the goal.

Maine pulled to within one goal at 16:15 of the second period when Brian Flynn (Lynnfield, Mass.) tipped a Gustav Nyquist (Malmo, Sweden) shot past Northeastern goalie Chris Rawlings on the power play. Robby Dee (Plymouth, Minn.) began the play with the initial shot on goal. It did not take Maine long to tie up the game when Tanner House tipped a Spencer Abbott (Hamilton, Ontario) shot from the blueline past Rawlings at 17:10. For House, it was his seventh goal of the season.

The Black Bears took their first lead of the game when House scored his second of the game. Two players collided in the neutral zone, leaving the puck up for grabs. A Northeastern player and House both rushed the puck. House was able to gain control of it and one-time a shot past Rawlings, giving Maine a 3-2 lead. For House, it was his eighth goal of the season.

Wade MacLeod tied the game at 3-3 for Northeastern with just 2:36 remaining in regulation when he beat Sirman. Bitetto also assisted in the goal.

Maine goalie Sirman made 19 saves in the game. He moves to 3-0-3 on the season. Rawlings stopped 34 shots in goal for the Huskies. He moves to 6-8-5.

Maine finished the game with a 37-22 edge in shots on goal. The Black Bears were 2-for-5 on the power play, while Northeastern was 2-for-7.

The Black Bears return to action on Friday, Jan. 28 when they host Boston University in the first of a two-game series. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 PM. Tickets are available by calling the Maine ticket office at 207-581-BEAR or 1-800-756-TEAM.


-U-M-

Pirates keep it Bruin against Providence

Mark Mancari registered his second hat trick of the season, both against Providence, and tied a personal career-high by extending his point streak to 10 games in leading the Portland Pirates to a 5-2 victory over the Providence Bruins in an American Hockey League game played tonight in front of a season-high 7,126 at the Cumberland County Civic Center. The 7,126 fans in attendance equals the third sellout of the year and largest crowd in three years.

Colin Stuart and Dennis Persson also provided goals for the Pirates, as they won their fourth straight at home and moved into a tie for first-place in the Atlantic Division with the Manchester Monarchs sporting a 26-13-4-1 record for 57 points. In the five meetings of the season against Providence, Portland has earned a point in each while totaling a 4-0-1-0 record.

Lane MacDermid and Trent Whitfield tabbed the only Providence goals of the night as their four game win streak came to a halt in dropping their record to 19-20-3-1.

At the 7:13 mark of the first period, Stuart put the Pirates ahead while on a five-on-three power play, capitalizing on a rebound opportunity after shots from T.J. Brennan and Luke Adam were turned away. Providence had an answer four minutes later as MacDermid beat Jhonas Enroth for his third goal of the season. In a tightly contested couple of periods, both goaltenders turned away many scoring chances, until Mancari beat Dalton on a breakaway at the 15:18 mark of the second to give the hosts their second lead of the game. However, the Bruins would have another answer when Whitfield netted his first of the season three minutes into the third period in only his ninth game back from the injured list. With four minutes remaining in the game, Persson blasted home a power-play goal from the point to give the Pirates a lead they would not relinquish. Mancari sealed the game with two goals, including an empty-net tally with under two minutes remaining, to raise his team-leading goal total to 23.

The Bruins out-shot the Pirates 35-32 as Dalton’s record dropped to 7-3-0 and Enroth improved to 14-12-1 on the season.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the game were all from Portland: 1. Mancari, 2. Persson and 3. Drew Schiestel (two assists).

--PIRATES COMMUNICATIONS--

Pirates bitten by Sharks; Gragnani recalled

After receiving a brief opportunity to showcase their skills with the NHL’s San Jose Sharks, Brandon Mashinter, Andrew Desjardins, and Justin Braun each scored a goal in their first games back with Worcester to lead the home team to a 5-3 victory over the Portland Pirates in an American Hockey League game played tonight in front of 2,439 at the DCU Center.

Tommy Wingels and T.J. Trevelyan also contributed to the scoring effort and Alex Stalock made 27 saves as Worcester avenged their recent 8-3 setback against Portland on Saturday, and improved their record to 20-16-2-5.

Igor Gongalsky scored a goal in his second straight game against Worcester and extended his points streak to three as the Pirates record dropped to 24-13-4-1.

After killing off a lengthy five-on-three Pirates power play early in the first, the Sharks would gain momentum on a power-play goal by Mashinter (first game back after a 10-game stint with San Jose) at 16:18 to give the hosts a 1-0 lead heading into the locker room for the first intermission. Worcester would continue their offensive blitz in the second, striking for two in a span of 27 seconds to give them a comfortable 3-0 advantage. Desjardins put one home at the 13:41 mark on a tip-in, and Braun sent a shot from the point off a Portland skate and past Jhonas Enroth at 14:08. Heading into the second intermission, Worcester led Portland in shots 32-9 with most of the action happening in front of Enroth. The Pirates would attempt a comeback three minutes into in the third on Gongalsky’s second of the season, however the Sharks would answer as soon as Gongalsky left the penalty box due to a hooking infraction on a strike by Tommy Wingels at 5:23. A second comeback effort would ensue as Derek Whitmore knocked home a power-play goal on a rebound with seven minutes left, and Mark Mancari beat Stalock to cut the Sharks lead to one with just under three minutes remaining. However, Stalock would hold strong against the third period Portland shot barrage (20 shots faced in the period) and Trevelyan sealed the game with an empty-net goal with four seconds left to send the home team to victory.
The Sharks out-shot the Pirates 37-29 as Stalock improved his record on the year to 17-16-3 and Enroth dropped to 13-12-1.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the game were all from Worcester: 1. Nick Schaus (two assists), 2. Wingels (game-winning-goal and assist) and 3. Jody Pederson (two assists)

Notes: Buffalo Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier announced today that defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani has been recalled from the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League.

This is the first recall of the season for Gragnani (6’2”, 200 lbs., 3/11/1987), who is second on the Pirates in scoring with 30 points (7+23) in 38 games. His 23 assists are tied for the team lead, and he equaled a Portland franchise record on January 15 when he collected five assists in an 8-3 win over Worcester. The 23-year-old Gragnani has 176 points (42+134) in 258 career AHL games with Portland/Rochester. Gragnani has six previous games of NHL experience with Buffalo since 2007-08.

The Maineiacs to Summerside? Not so fast

As someone who sat through a "will they stay or will they go" situation with the Portland Pirates last year, I was hesitant to jump on this one until someone from the team commented on it.

A source with knowledge in the Maineiacs organization, who didn't want to go on the record due to the sensitive nature of the situation, admits the team is looking for a new home, but stressed that:

"Nothing is in place at this time. Not for Summerside, not anywhere."

A tweet from a Canadian businessman yesterday and quotes from the Mayor of Charlottetown Clifford Lee sparked a firestorm, including one internet report that stated that a "prospective deal was in place". Not the case says the source.

"If Summerside came to us with that deal (rumored to be 1.5 mil), we would have already accepted it," stated the source. "Currently, we are talking to different cities, but nothing is finalized, and no paperwork for relocation has been filed with the league."

Currently, the Maineiacs attendance is the biggest Achilles heel. To keep the team in town, the team needs to make roughly 4 dollars more per person who comes through the gate than they currently are. It was also revealed that the organization has not made a profit in any of the seasons it has been in Lewiston, including the 2007 President's Cup year. It is projected the team will lose $600,000 this season, which is an actually an improvement of around $300,000 from last year.

There is a January 31st deadline with the QMJHL to file for relocation, and as Justin Pelletier from the Sun Journal points out, the league has yet to receive any official request for relocation.

There are also potential stumbling blocks in a move to Summerside, as the PEI Rocket is still in town and about 40 miles away, which many feel would defeat the purpose of a relocation, which would mean the QMJHL Board of Governors could deny the move. The league will not approve the team folding, either. It's either relocation or the team will stay put.

When asked why the Canadian businessman and the Mayor of Charlottetown have come out with this, the source says:

"I think the Mayor is trying to build up support to keep the PEI Rocket in town. For the other guy, I think he has an axe to grind for some reason."

So the final word right now? The Maineiacs are looking for a new home, but they haven't found one.

Yet.

Update: Dave Stewart from the Guardian tweeted that Summerside is denying the reports.

Pirates soar past Falcons

Mark Parrish scored a pair of goals and Jhonas Enroth made 27 saves to lead the Portland Pirates to a 4-1 win over the Springfield Flacons in an American Hockey League game played this afternoon in front of 2,773 at the MassMutual Center.
Matt Ellis and Colin Stuart also scored for the Pirates while Mark Mancari stretched his point-scoring streak to seven games (4-5-9) with an assist. The win was the Pirates’ third straight as they moved to 24-12-4-1 on the season.

Cody Goloubef netted the lone goal for Springfield, who dropped to 18-19-1-3 with their third straight loss.

The Pirates struck first in the game as Parrish connected shorthanded to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. However, only 64 seconds later Goloubef answered to tie the game one after one. Neither team was able to find the back of the net in the second, although the Falcons were awarded a great chance to take the lead when Tom Sestito was awarded a penalty shot midway through the period only to be denied by Enroth. The two teams headed into the third even at one. Ellis scored what turned out to be the game winner just under seven minutes into the third followed by Parrish’s second of the game and Stuart’s empty netter.

The Falcons out shot the Pirates 28-20 in the game as Enroth posted the victory.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the Game were 1. Parrish; 2. Pirates defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani and 3. Goloubef.

The next Pirates game takes place Tuesday when they travel to Worcester to face off against the Sharks in a 7 p.m. contest. The game is the re-scheduled contest from December 26th. The game can be heard live on 95.5 News Talk WLOB and on line at www.portlandpirates.com beginning with the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m.

The Pirates return home for games Friday and Saturday at the Civic Center.

--PIRATES COMMUNICATIONS--

Black Bears ground Eagles

Making his first start in over a month, University of Maine sophomore goalie Shawn Sirman (Blezard Valley, Ontario) responded in stellar fashion, stopping 24 shots en route to a 4-1 victory over third-ranked Boston College on Sunday
night at Alfond Arena in Orono, Maine. Maine got a goal and two assists from Jeff Dimmen (Colorado Springs, Colo.), while Joey Diamond (Long Beach, N.Y.), Tanner House (Cochrane, Alberta) and Brian Flynn (Lynnfield, Mass.) each added a goal and an
assist. The Black Bears improve to 11-6-4 on the season and 8-4-2 in Hockey East play. Boston College falls to 15-6-0 overall and 11-5-0 in conference play.

Joey Diamond broke a scoreless tie 4:33 into the first period on his ninth goal of the season. The play developed when Jeff Dimmen carried the puck into the Eagle zone with Maine on the power play. Dimmen hit Brian Flynn with a pass in the right
circle. Flynn walked in on Boston College goaltender John Muse before sliding a pass to Diamond who one-touched the pass into the back of the net on Muse’s blocker side.

The Black Bears would extend their lead to 2-0 with just 51 seconds remaining in the first period. Mike Cornell (Franklin, Mass.) fired a shot that was kicked behind the net by Muse. Diamond collected the puck and threw a pass to the front of the
net that hit off a Boston College skate and right to Tanner House, who slapped the shot past Muse from the slot.

Maine would waste no time extending their lead in the second period their lead as Flynn notched his 12th goal of the season just 33 seconds into the period. Gustav Nyquist (Malmo, Sweden) carried the puck into the Eagle zone and left it in the right
circle for Flynn. Flynn would gather the puck and fire a wrist shot that snuck past Muse’s blocker side and into the back of the net. Dimmen also assists on the goal for the Black Bears.

Dimmen built the Maine lead to 4-0 at 4:47 of the second period. House would dig the puck out from behind the Boston College net and send it along the boards to Nyquist. Nyquist would control the puck along the right boards before sending a pass
back to Dimmen who launched a slap shot through a crowd and over Muse’s right shoulder for his third goal of the season. The goal knocked Muse out of the game, as he was replaced by sophomore Parker Milner.

Boston College would add a goal 5:36 into the third period when Cam Atkinson tallied his 17th goal of the season. Chris Kreider sent a pass to Brian Gibbons who slid the puck along to Atkinson. Atkinson would pick up the puck and flick it into the
back of the net to cut the lead to 4-1. Sirman made key stops the rest of the way as Maine earned the 4-1 victory.

Sirman was fantastic in net for Maine as he made many flashy saves while picking up his third win of the season moving his overall record to 3-0-2. Muse made seven saves in 24:47 before Milner stepped in and stopped 13 shots of his own. Muse picks
up the loss for Boston College and falls to 13-4-0.

Boston College held the slight edge in shots on goal at 26-24. Maine as 1-for-3 on the man-advantage while shutting out the Boston College power play on all four of its opportunities. It was the second game in a row that Maine did not allow a power
play goal.

The Black Bears return to action on Saturday, Jan. 22 when they travel to Boston for a battle with the Northeastern Huskies. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 PM.

--UM Communications--

Senators filibuster Pirates

AHL scoring leader Corey Locke registered a pair of goals and assists to boost his league leading points total to 55 and lead his Binghamton Senators to a 5-2 victory over the Portland Pirates in an American Hockey League game played this evening in front of 4,140 at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

Ryan Keller also contributed a multi-point game with a goal and assist for Binghamton as they improved to 20-16-2-2 and ran their current winning streak to four games.

The Pirates dropped to 21-12-4-1 on the season, and their three-game winning streak came to a halt, as Brian Roloff and Mark Mancari scored the lone Portland goals.

The Senators jumped on the Pirates early with two goals in the first 11 minutes by Mike Hoffman and Keller. Hoffman beat Pirates goaltender Jhonas Enroth on Binghamton’s first attempted shot in the game, and Keller sent home his 13th of the season midway through the period to give the visitors an early two-goal advantage.

Portland would respond with a strike from Mancari at the 16:02 mark, and Roloff’s first career professional goal on a tip-in with 30 seconds remaining in the period to tie the game at two heading into the first intermission. Only 19 seconds into the second period, Locke snuck a wrist shot past Enroth to give the Senators their second lead of the game and one they would not relinquish. Binghamton would go on to seal the game late in the third period on Andre Benoit’s fifth goal of the season, and an empty-netter by Locke with one minute remaining.

The Senators out-shot the Pirates 29-27 and goaltender Robin Lehner made 25 saves for his fourth straight victory, improving his record on the year to 5-5-1.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the game were all from Binghamton: 1. Locke, 2. Lehner and 3. Keller.

Pirates tame Tigers

ustin Bowers and Mark Mancari each scored a goal and an assist and Marc-Andre Gragnani had three assists to lead the Portland Pirates to a 5-3 win over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in an American Hockey League game played tonight in front of 2,044 at Arena at Harbor Yard.

Paul Byron, Maxime Legault and T.J. Brennan also scored for the Pirates, who ended a three-game winless streak with the win. Portland is now 19-11-4-1 on the season.
Mark Katic, Brandon Svendsen and Mark Wotton replied for the Sound Tigers, now 18-16-1-2.

Katic scored the only goal of the opening period to give the home side a 1-0 lead after one. The offense arrived in the second as the two teams combined for four goals in a span of 4:55. The Pirates began the uprising when Byron tied the game at one with a power-play goal seven minutes into the period. Legault followed 1:32 later to give Portland their first lead of the game and a 2-1 advantage. Only 61 seconds after that the Sound Tigers countered as Svendsen tied the game at two. However, Bowers completed the onslaught with just under eight minutes left in the period to give Portland a 3-2 lead heading into the third. Brennan and Mancari upped the count to 5-2 in the third before Wotton found the back of the net to complete the scoring in a 5-3 Pirates victory.

The Pirates out shot the Sound Tigers 41-35 in the game as Jhonas Enroth posted the victory.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the Game were 1. Bowers, 2. Gragnani and 3. Svendsen.

The next Pirates home game will take place this Friday when the Springfield Falcons come to town.

Ouellette gets an award

University of Maine freshman goalie Martin Ouellette (St.-Hippolyte, Quebec) has been named the Hockey East Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Month for December. Ouellette finished December 2-1-0 with a 1.96 goals against average and a
.925 save percentage.

Ouellette began December with a 5-0 blanking at Providence where he made a career-high 32 saves in the game. It was the first career win for him to go along with his first career shutout. He then dropped a 4-3 decision in overtime to third-ranked
New Hampshire. Ouellette backstopped Maine's 3-2 overtime win against Cornell in the 2010 Florida College Classic where he made 21 saves.

Ouellette is 2-1-1 on the season with a 2.17 goals against average and a .909 save percentage.

The Black Bears return to action on Saturday, Dec. 8 when they travel to Merrimack for a 4 PM tilt with the Warriors.

Will O'Neill named Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week

University of Maine junior defenseman Will O'Neill (Salem, Mass.) was named the Pure Hockey Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Jan. 3, 2011. O'Neill helped the Black Bears split a pair of games in the 2010 Florida College Classic.

O'Neill returned to the lineup on Dec. 29 against #6 Miami after missing eight games with an injury. He dished out an assist on Maine's lone goal in a 4-1 loss to the RedHawks. He followed that up by recording a pair of assists in Maine's 3-2 win in overtime against Cornell the following night.

For his efforts, O'Neill was named to the 2010 Florida College Classic All-Tournament Team.

O'Neill has seen action in 10 games for the Black Bears this season. He has one goal and seven assists for eight points.

O'Neill and the Black Bears return to action on Saturday, Jan. 8 when they travel to Merrimack for a Hockey East game with the Warriors. Puck drop is scheduled for 4 PM.

- University of Maine - 

Maine takes care of a chippy U-18 Team at the CX4

GUSTAV NYQUIST HAD 3 ASSISTS IN PORTLAND SUNDAY

The University of Maine men's ice hockey team skated to a 5-1 win over the U.S. Under-18 Team on Sunday afternoon in a game played at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine. Gustav Nyquist (Malmo, Sweden) had three assists in the game, while Brian Flynn (Lynnfield, Mass.) and Josh Van Dyk (Woodstock, Ontario) each chipped in with a goal and an assist.

Team USA took a 1-0 lead when Reid Boucher tipped a Robbie Russo shot past Maine goalie Martin Ouellette (St.-Hippolyte, Quebec) at 14:00 of the first period. Jake McCabe also assisted on the goal. Maine tied the game up just a minute later when Mike Cornell (Franklin, Mass.) fired a shot from the left face-off circle past US Under-18 Team goalie Matt McNeely. Brian Flynn (Lynnfield, Mass.) and Gustav Nyquist (Malmo, Sweden) each assisted on the goal.

Maine took the lead with just 11 seconds remaining in the first period when Flynn stuffed the puck past McNeely just inside the right post. Adam Shemansky (Robbinsville, N.J.) and Van Dyk assisted on the play.

Spencer Abbott (Hamilton, Ontario) extended Maine's lead to 3-1 just 50 seconds into the third period on a goal set up by Will O'Neill (Salem, Mass.) and Nyquist.

VanDyk got on the scoreboard when he received a pass from Nyquist and fired a shot past McNeely from the slot at 7:33 of the third period. Robby Dee (Plymouth, Minn.) also picked up an assist on the play.

Maine capped the scoring at 18:08 when Jon Swavely (Reading, Pa.) scored from the right face-off circle. Mike Banwell (Scarborough, Ontario) and Brice O'Connor (Londonderry, N.H.) each assisted on the tally by Swavely.

Maine finished the game with a 39-23 advantage in shots on goal. The black Bears were 3-for-9 on the power play, while the U.S. Under-18 Team finished the game 1-for-5.

Maine goalie Ouellette made 22 saves in goal. Matt McNeely made 34 saves for the U.S. Under-18 Team.

The Black Bears return to action on Saturday, Jan. 8 when they travel to Merrimack for a Hockey East Conference game with the Warriors. Puck drops is scheduled for 4 PM.

Pirates drop another

Seems like the Portland Pirates have had this issue since game one this season, keeping a late lead. The issue raised it's ugly head yet again as the Worcester Sharks beat the Pirates 3-2 on Sunday. Here is the Pirates story.


Matt Irwin scored on the power-play with 3.3 seconds remaining in regulation to lift the Worcester Sharks to a 3-2 win over the Portland Pirates in an American Hockey League game played this afternoon in front of 3,550 at the DCU Center.

Sean Sullivan and Ryan Del Monte also scored for the Sharks, who ended a two-game losing streak with the victory. Worcester is now 17-12-2-4.

Corey Tropp and Derek Whitmore scored for the Pirates, now 18-11-4-1.

Sullivan opened the scoring late in the opening period to give the Sharks a 1-0 lead after one. Del Monte connected for the only goal of the second period to give Worcester a 2-0 advantage heading into the third. Tropp and Whitmore scored goals six minutes apart in the third to get the Pirates back on even terms only to see Irwin win it with the last second power-play goal.

The Sharks out shot the Pirates 30-28 in the game as David Leggio took the loss.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the Game were 1. Irwin, 2. Del Monte and 3. Tropp.
With the win the Sharks take a 3-1 lead in the Unum Challenge.

The next Pirates home game will take place on Friday, January 7th when the Springfield Falcons come to town. The first 1,500 fans through the gates will receive thundersticks courtesy of Goodwill. Plus, make a donation to Goodwill and receive two free tickets to a future Pirates game. It’s also Camp Bow Wow Adopt-a-Dog Night as Almost Home Rescue will have dogs at the game for fans to adopt. Fans can also receive two free tickets to a future Pirates game by donating a dog toy or a dog or cat food item. All donations and proceeds for Camp Bow Wow Adopt-a-Dog Night will go to the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland, the Animal Welfare Society of Kennebunk, the Planet Dog Foundation, and the Bow Wow Buddies Foundation. Tickets for the game, as well as each of the remaining Pirates home games, are on sale now by calling 207-775-3458, visiting the Cumberland County Civic Center Box Office or on-line at ticketmaster.com.

Biddeford's Brian Dumoulin and Team USA advance to Medal Round

Biddeford's Brian Dumoulin in action last night

Jack Campbell (Port Huron, Mich./Windsor Spitfires) made 25 saves and Mitch Callahan (Whittier, Calif./Kelowna Rockets) scored the game-winning goal, as the U.S. National Junior Team edged Switzerland here tonight, 2-1, in its fourth and final preliminary-round game of the 2011 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship.


Team USA finished in first place in Group A with a 3-1-0-0 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record, guaranteeing the United States a spot in the semifinal round. The U.S. will face the winner of the quarterfinal match-up between Canada and Switzerland on Monday (Jan. 3) at 7:30 p.m. EST.

"I thought our team defense was excellent tonight," said Keith Allain, head coach of the U.S. National Junior Team. "It helps to have Jack back there, and that gives us confidence moving forward."

Switzerland got on the board first, but Team USA tied the score, 1-1, midway through the first period. With the U.S. on the power play, Charlie Coyle (East Weymouth, Mass./Boston Univ.) threw a backhand pass from behind the net to Chris Kreider (Boxford, Mass./Boston College), who buried a shot low to the far post.

The U.S. scored the game-winning goal midway through the second period. With Team USA cycling the puck in Switzerland's zone, Callahan jammed the puck past Switzerland goalie Benjamin Conz on a wraparound attempt for his first goal of the tournament.

Despite Switzerland's efforts to even the score in the third, Campbell shut the door for his fourth win of the tournament. Meanwhile, Conz finished the night with 40 saves in a losing effort.

Team USA's semifinal game on Monday night will be televised on NHL Network U.S. and streamed live on USAHockey.FASTHockey.com.

NOTES: Ryan Bourque (Boxford, Mass./Quebec Remparts) was named Team USA's player of the game ... Team USA finished 1-for-3 on the power play, while Switzerland was 0-for-1 with the man advantage ... Jack Campbell leads all tournament goalies who have played greater than 40 percent of their teams' total minutes with a 1.03 goals-against average and .957 save percentage ... In other action, Sweden earned the first seed in Group B with a 6-5 shootout win over Canada; Finland blanked Slovakia, 6-0, to claim the second seed in Group A; and Russia claimed the third seed in Group B with an 8-3 win over the Czech Republic. For a full tournament schedule and ticket information, visit BuffaloWorldJuniors.com... Additional information on Team USA, including a team blog, stats and a media guide, can be found at USAHockey.com.

Tim Kennedy a one man wrecking crew for the Connecticut Whale. Pirates lose in OT again.

Tim Kennedy netted his second straight overtime game-winning goal against the Pirates on a power-play, only 24 seconds into the extra period to lead his Connecticut Whale to a 5-4 victory over the Portland Pirates in an American Hockey League game played this evening in front of 6,733 at the Cumberland County Civic Center. This evening’s attendance marked the second sellout of the season for the Pirates, joining the November 5th matchup against the Adirondack Phantoms.

NHL veterans Todd White and Jason Williams each earned a goal and an assist, and Wade Redden tallied three assists to help the Whale improve to 17-12-2-5 on the season and move them into a tie with Portland for second place in the Atlantic Division.

Paul Byron led the Pirates with a goal and an assist, extending his goal scoring streak to three games, while they dropped to 18-10-4-1 on the year.
In the first period, the Pirates matched their total offensive output from the previous matchup on Mark Mancari’s team-leading 14th goal of the season.

However, the Whale would rebound quickly in the second with consecutive goals by Chad Kolarik and White to give them a brief 2-1 lead. A few minutes later with five minutes left in the period, Byron extended his goal scoring streak to three games on a penalty shot, beating Connecticut goaltender Chad Johnson for the first successful Pirates penalty shot since February 13, 2009 when Felix Schutz beat Taylor Dakers of Worcester. The two teams would see-saw back and forth throughout the third as Newbury started the fireworks by registering the first shorthanded goal of the season for Connecticut (previously the only AHL team without a shorthanded goal) only 0:23 into the period. Exactly five minutes later, Portland’s Justin Bowers scored his first goal as a Pirate in his second stint with the team and Williams would chip in with his first goal as a member of the Whale at the 7:20 mark to give them their third lead of the game at 4-3. The Pirates again tied the game midway through the third on Colin Stuart’s seventh goal of the season and 150th career AHL point. The score would remain the same through the rest of the period as the teams headed to extra time for the second straight game. Kennedy once again one-upped his former team, 12 seconds sooner than Wednesday night, sending the Whale to their third straight victory.
The Connecticut out-shot Portland 31-28 for the night and Enroth took the loss, dropping his record to 9-10-1.

The Allied Home Mortgage Three Stars of the game were 1. Kennedy, 2. Byron and 3. Wade Redden.

The Pirates will be on the road for their next game this Sunday, January 2nd at 3:00 p.m. as they travel to Worcester to take on the Sharks in game four of the UNUM Challenge. Fans can tune-in to 95.5 News Talk WLOB to listen to the game live from the DCU Center, with the pregame show starting at 2:45 p.m. The next Pirates home game will take place on Friday, January 7th when the Springfield Falcons come to town. The first 1,500 fans through the gates will receive thundersticks courtesy of Goodwill. It will also be Camp Bow Wow Adopt-a-Dog Night as Almost Home Rescue will have dogs at the game for fans to adopt. Fans can receive two free tickets to a future Pirates game with a donation to Goodwill or by donating a dog toy or a dog or cat food item. All donations and proceeds for Camp Bow Wow Adopt-a-Dog Night will go to the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland, the Animal Welfare Society of Kennebunk, the Planet Dog Foundation, and the Bow Wow Buddies Foundation. Tickets for the game, as well as each of the remaining Pirates home games, are on sale now by calling 207-775-3458, visiting the Cumberland County Civic Center Box Office or on-line at ticketmaster.com.

- PORTLAND PIRATES -