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ADIRONDACK PHANTOMS (5-3-1) vs. Hershey
Bears (5-1-2)
Phantoms - 2nd Northeast Division, 5th Eastern Conference
Bears - 2nd East Division, 4th Eastern Conference
Glens Falls Civic Center, Glens Falls, NY
Saturday, October 29, 7:00 p.m.
Kids Halloween Costume Parade. Postgame open-skate
with the Phantoms players, presented by Glens Falls
Hospital
Phantoms Wrap-Up Three-Game Homestand
On Friday, the Phantoms and Connecticut Whale engaged
in a hard-fought battle for the Northeast Division’s
top spot, at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Although
the Whale won by a score of 4-2 and now lead the
Phantoms, 12 points to 11 points, Adirondack has
a chance to regain the top spot tonight with a win
over the Hershey Bears, the AHL affiliate of the
Washington Capitals.. The 11-time champion Bears,
5-1-2, are also looking to shrug off a tough defeat,
having surrendered a three-goal lead and losing
to the Springfield Falcons in overtime on Friday
night.
Northeast Division Standings
1. Connecticut Whale (12 points)
2. Adirondack Phantoms (11 points)
3. Springfield Falcons (10 points)
4. Bridgeport Sound Tigers (7 points)
5. Albany Devils (6 points)
Denis Hamel Countdown – 3 Goals to
Catch Merkosky
Returning Phantoms leading scorer Denis Hamel continues
to rise up the all-time AHL ranks in goals, points
and total games played. On Wednesday, he scored
an amazing last-minute goal against the Norfolk
Admirals, which sent the game to overtime and earned
Adirondack a point in the standings. Hamel’s
goal, scored by batting a pass from Harry Zolnierczyk
from mid-air, was his 322nd in 14 years in the AHL.
Passing Bruce Cline (1955-68) for sole possession
of 13th place all-time, Hamel is now just three
scores back of Adirondack Hockey Hall of Famer Glenn
Merkosky (1980-1991) for 12th place all-time in
the AHL. The former Adirondack Red Wing great, Merkosky,
had 325 goals.
Denis is tied with Arnie Kullman (1948-60) and
Ross Fitzpatrick (1982-92) for 39th all-time in
total points with 619. He is 34th in games played
with 785, just seven games ahead of veteran teammate
Dan Jancevski. Hamel has also played in 192 games
in the NHL, giving him a total of 977 professional
games and an opportunity to reach the 1,000 game
milestone by midseason.
Phantoms Tidbits
The Phantoms had their 11 game streak of going unbeaten-in-regulation
snapped with thier 4-2 loss to Connecticut on Friday.
Adirondack had gone 9-0-2 dating back to March of
last season. The Phantoms have just two regulation
losses in their last 20 games going back to February
of last year.
Adirondack and Hershey are tied for the second-most
goals scored (33) in the league. Only the Norfolk
Admirals (40 goals) have scored more.
Denis Hamel leads the Phantoms with seven goals
and 11 points. Hamel’s seven goals are fourth
in the league, just one back of the trio of Joe
Colborne (TOR), Kyle Palmieri (SYR) and Carter Ashton
(NOR).
Eric Wellwood enters Saturday on the first three-game
goal-scoring streak of his two-year professional
career.
Michael Leighton has four wins, which are tied with
Brad Thiessen (WBS), Jeremy Smith (MIL), Mike Murphy
(CHA) and Matt Hackett (HOU) for second in the league.
Only the Abbotsford Heat’s Leland Irving (5
wins) has more.
Adirondack is the only team in the league with three
of the top-seven rookie scorers. The highest-scoring
Phantom rookie is Harry Zolnierczyk, who is tied
for third place with nine points (4g, 5a). Brayden
SchenN (4g, 4a) and Garrett Roe (1g, 7a) are tied
for fourth place, while Roe’s seven assists
are first among rookies in that category. Additionally,
Jason Akeson is tied for eighth in the league among
rookies with seven points (1g, 6a), just one back
of Roe for the rookie lead in assists.
With two more power-play goals on Friday, the Phantoms
have now scored on the man advantage in 8-of-9 games
this season. Adirondack is 13-of-56 (23.2%), and
only Texas has scored more times when up a man.
Hershey Bears (NHL Affiliate: Washington
Capitals)
The Bears’ 11 Calder Cups are more than any
team in AHL history, while the team is the seventh-longest
running professional hockey team in North America,
behind only the NHL’s Original Six—Montreal
Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, New
York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks.
Hershey’s leading scorer is Chris Bourque,
who is third in the league with 14 points (6g, 8a).
A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Bourque is the
son of Hockey Hall-of-Fame defenseman Ray Bourque,
who is the NHL’s all-time leader in points
among blueliners with 1,579 over 22 seasons.
Another Bear that bears watching is Christian Hanson
whi was born in Glens Falls. The scorer of three
goals and one assist in eight games, Hanson is the
son of former minor leaguer Dave Hanson, who is
famous for playing the role of “Jack Hanson”
in the classic hockey movie, Slap Shot.
Also of note is Keith Aucoin, who leads the AHL
with 10 assists, and is 21st in all-time AHL scoring
with 720 points; and Braden Holtby, the goaltender
who has won 43 AHL games over the last 2+ seasons,
and was named the NHL’s Player of the Week
with the Washington Capitals, during the second
week of March, 2011.
Upcoming Events
Saturday, October 29, 7:00 - Phantoms vs. Hershey
at the GFCC. Kids Halloween Costume Parade. Postgame
open-skate with the Phantoms players, presented
by Glens Falls Hospital.
Sunday, October 30, 1:30-4:00 - Cruise with the
Phantoms presented by the Glens Falls Civic Center
Foundation. All Phantoms players appearing! Hor
d'oeuvres and cash bar. Tickets $25 for adults,
$15 for
kids: Available at GFCC Box Office and Achenbach
Jewelers
Monday, October 31, 7:00 pm - "Phantoms Power
Hour" LIVE from McGinny's Tavern, 193 Glen
Street. Player guests are #13 Garrett Roe and #24
Harry Zolnierczyk
Get great savings and have fun with your friends,
family or co-workers by bringing your group of 15
or more fans to enjoy fast-paced, hard-hitting Phantoms
hockey.
Call the Phantoms to find out more at 518-480-3355
and check the team's website at phantomshockey.com.
Catch all the action of Phantoms hockey all season
long on the team's flagship station, Classic Hits
Q101.7 and on phantomshockey.com. Bob Rotruck has
the broadcast coverage 30 minutes prior to game-time
with Countdown to Faceoff.
The Adirondack Phantoms are now over 10,000 members
strong on their social media networks. Be sure to
follow us on twitter @phantomshockey and on facebook.com/adkhockey
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