On Friday night in Bridgeport the Hartford Wolf Pack followed up a strong 40-minute effort with a third period collapse in which they surrendered a 1-0 lead to fall 4-1 to the Sound Tigers. On Saturday they reversed their fortunes, capping an uninspired opening two periods with a strong third period for a come-from-behind win over the streaking Manchester Monarchs. The win came compliments of second-year pro Jordan Owens, who scored his first goal in 12 games with less than 30 seconds remaining on the clock.

It was a sweet reward for the Toronto native, who had been robbed by Manchester goalie Jonathan Bernier ten minutes earlier. With 9:42 remaining in the period and Artem Anisimov and Drew Bagnall just emerging from their respective penalty boxes after two minutes of four-on-four play, Owens took a cross ice pass in the right face off circle and fired a shot top-corner on the Monarch net for what seemed like a sure goal. Somehow, the Los Angeles Kings’ first round pick (11th overall in 2006) was able to get across the crease and snag Owens’ bid in his glove, making the save of the game and keeping the closely contested match knotted at one.

The two teams carried a scoreless tie through the first half of the game until the Wolf Pack found itself in penalty trouble just prior to the halfway mark of the second period. With defenseman David Urquhart already in the box for slashing, Corey Potter was whistled for cross-checking at 11:29, setting up a 23 second 5-on-3. Just as Urquhart was stepping back on to the ice, Manchester’s top goal getter, Teddy Purcell, blasted a slap shot from the top of the faceoff circles through a tangle of bodies in front of the net. The shot, which may have been deflected on the way in, got past Wolf Pack starting netminder Matt Zaba and found its way to the back of the net at 11:57.

The Monarchs took the 1-0 lead into the third period, where a hungrier Hartford team emerged. After mustering only 14 shots through two periods (to Manchester’s 22), the Pack would strike for 16 in the third, while holding the Monarchs to just 5. The tying goal came at 13:28 on the power play when Greg Moore deflected defenseman Brian Fahey’s shot from the left point. Moore’s deflection hit the post, ricocheted off Bernier’s leg and back over the goal line, giving him his sixth of the season.

The game looked destined to go to overtime until a rare defensive breakdown by Manchester — who were riding a 6-game winning streak entering the game — resulted in a 3-on-2 for the Wolf Pack. Owens carried the puck into the Monarch zone, looking to pass the whole way. But with time and space, and no passing lanes available, Owens was left with no option but to shoot from almost the exact spot he’d been stymied from earlier in the period. This time he opted for the 5-hole, beating Bernier with just 29.6 seconds remaining on the clock.

The win returned the Wolf Pack to the .500 mark with a 9-9-0-2 record. They remain at the bottom of the Eastern Division standings, but trail Springfield, Manchester and Lowell by only a point, and Worcester, by just two. The Pack hit the road to face division-leading Providence Sunday afternoon.

Highlights from the game are available courtesy of AHL Live.

Scoring:
2. Purcell (9) (Murray, Azevedo) 11:57 (PP)
3. Moore (6) (Fahey, Sanguinetti) 13:28 (PP)
3. Owens (2) (DiDiomete, Moore) 19:29

Lines:
Dupont - Anisimov - Weise
Owens - Moore - Parenteau
Soryal - Pyatt - Ford
DiDiomete - Ouellette - Sugden

Potter - Sanguinetti
Denisov - Fahey
Urquhart - Sauer

Zaba / Wiikman

Three Stars:
1. Jordan Owens
2. Matt Zaba
3. Teddy Purcell

Through the first forty minutes of Friday’s game in Bridgeport the Hartford Wolf Pack dominated the Sound Tigers, outshooting their in-state rivals by a margin of 33-14 while keeping them pinned in their own zone for long stretches of time.  Yet the young Pack team was able to put just one tally on the board through two periods, despite their numerous scoring chances.  In the final period, the Sound Tigers roared back with four unanswered goals in a ten minute span to hand the Pack their second consecutive loss.  Three of the four goals came during special teams play, including two on the power play and one shorthanded.

Artem Anisimov kicked off the scoring for the visitors at 13:47 of the first period, extending his point-scoring streak to 7 games (4 goals, 4 assists) and moving him into second place on the team with his 6th goal of the season.  With the Pack in the midst of a line change, Mike Ouellette tried to bank the puck in off Bridgeport goaltender Yann Danis from behind the goal line.  Danis thwarted his attempt, but the rebound came out in front of the net, where a charging Anisimov was able to tuck it in just under the cross bar on the far side.

The Pack kept Bridgeport hemmed in their own zone for most of the second half of the period and finished the frame with a 16-6 advantage in shots.  They continued their strong play in the second period, outshooting the Sound Tigers by a margin of 17-8.  But an inability to finish on the part of the Pack and strong play by the game’s first star, goaltender Danis, meant the Pack would start the final stanza with a tenuous one goal lead.  That lead would prove impossible to hold.

Ben Walter picked up the Sound Tigers first goal at 6:17 of the final period, chipping a lose puck up over Hartford netminder Miika Wiikman from just off the right post for Bridgeport’s only even-strength tally.  It was Wiikman’s first start after missing two games with an undisclosed injury suffered a week ago against Lowell.  He made 21 stops on 25 shots, stopping only 7 of 11 in the third period.

Trevor Smith continued the scoring for the Sound Tigers with the first of two quick power play goals at 11:30.  With David Urquhart already in the box for roughing and a delayed call coming on Corey Potter, the second-year pro was able to bat his own rebound out of mid-air and into the net.

Just 19 seconds later, with Potter serving his hooking call, Isles forward Mike Sillinger, in Bridgeport on a conditioning assignment while he recovers from hip surgery performed last February, snapped a feed from Blake Comeau past Wiikman on the stick side.

Much like their parent club, the Wolf Pack has struggled on the power play this season, and they went 0 for 6 with the man advantage on this night.  To make matters worse, the power play gave up a shorthanded goal at 15:54 when Bobby Sanguinetti was unable to control the puck at the Bridgeport blueline, allowing Tyler Haskins to skate in on a breakaway.  Haskins deked to his backhand and put the puck over Wiikman’s pad to finish the scoring at 4-1.

Once again the Pack outshot Bridgeport in the period, registering 13 shots to Bridgeport’s 11.  They finished the game with a 46-25 advantage.

With their second loss in a row, the Wolf Pack now find themselves in the Atlantic Division basement, their sub-.500 record (8-9-0-2) putting them one point behind the Lowell Devils and two behind the Worcester Sharks.  They face the third place Manchester Monarchs in Hartford on Saturday night.

Notes:

• The Pack dressed 7 defenseman.  Brandon Sugden was a healthy scratch as a result.
• With a 15-4-0-2 record, Bridgeport is second in both the East Division and the AHL.

Scoring:
1. Anisimov (6) (Ouellette, Denisov) 13:47
3. Walter (4) (Haskins, Kohn) 6:17
3. Smith (7) (Walter, Iggulden) 11:30 (PP)
3. Sillinger (1) (Comeau, Kohn) 11:49 (PP)
3. Haskins (4) 15:54 (SH)

Lines:
Soryal - Moore - Parenteau
Dupont - Anisimov - Weise
Owens - Pyatt - Ford
DiDiomete - Ouellette

Graham - Fahey
Potter - Sanguinetti
Denisov - Sauer
Urquhart

Three Stars:
1. Yann Danis
2. Ben Walter
3. Tyler Haskins

A week ago today friends, family, teammates and fans marked forty days since the passing of Alexei Cherepanov with a somber memorial at the fallen forward’s grave site. Two days later, with the black mourning armbands they’ve worn since the his death removed — the “7″ patches remain prominently displayed on each player’s jersey, and will do so through the remainder of the season — the team halted a skid that had stretched to five games with a 3-2 shootout victory over Khimik Voskresensk.

Jaromir Jagr, who has only two assists through six games in the month of November, admitted that he continues to have difficulty dealing with Cherepanov’s death. “We still have not recovered from the tragedy,” Jagr shared. “I can’t escape the thought that I have lost a younger brother. Sometimes, you go to practice and remember how you remained on the ice with Lyoshka, worked on dekes, shots, passes. Or you sit on the bench during the game and your eyes search for a familiar number on a sweater, and you come upon continuous line of sevens.” Jagr’s not alone — the whole team is struggling through its grief. “Each of the guys is in a black, mournful frame [of mind]. You know, in the past when I read about the loss of close relatives in books, I didn’t comprehend the whole magnitude of the grief.”

A museum honoring Cherepanov is being planned for an area of the large foyer of Omsk Arena where fans filled a wall with phrases and poems of remembrance following his death. Cherepanov’s father, Andrei Cherepanov, who now works as a manger for the club, has been tasked with organizing the museum, which will contain a collection of jerseys, medals, gloves and photos of the young Russian star, as well as fan contributions including team scarves, Cherepanov autographs, and poems and songs penned in his memory.

Cherepanov’s mother, Margarita Cherepanova, spoke to reporters following the memorial about her growing frustration with the lack of answers she’s received about the cause of her son’s death. “Ms. Tarasova (the head of the department of public health services in Checkhov - ed.) declared to the whole world, that such a sick person couldn’t even participate in amateur sports,” she told Sport-Express. “What I want to ask — is Tarasova right or not? I understand that I will not find the truth. But somebody should experience at least a little bit of what I have. It’s not vengeance, but I’m a mother, and any mother will understand my feelings.” Cherepanova has been unable to get any information from investigators, instead having to rely on newspaper and TV reports. “Right now I’d don’t see the truth — I get all information from newspapers and TV screens. I call Moscow, the reply there — the investigation has been extended, everything is classified. From who? From his mother? I should know everything first, not the rest of the world. It all seems wrong somehow.”

The criminal investigation — which has been extended twice — is now expected to be concluded by the end of this month. Avangard President Konstantin Potapov has revealed that the results of medical tests performed on Cherepanov by the New York Rangers when he was in New York following the 2007 NHL Entry Draft have been of no assistance in the investigation. “Unfortunately, we expected a little more from the American tests [performed] by the Rangers,” Potapov told Sport-Express. “For the most part the examination was conducted in the form of “question and answer”. There was no in depth analysis there of how the heart works or of other internal organs. Yes, there is a cardiogram, but it concurs completely with the one that was done on Lesha by Omsk’s doctors,” he explained. “From that which has come to us, one can not draw conclusions on the reasons for the tragedy.”

After a 6-day break, Avangard return to the ice tomorrow to try to build on last weekend’s win when they face Amur Khabarovsk at home.

Under normal circumstances, this space would be filled with a recap of Sunday afternoon’s Hartford Wolf Pack game, but yet another technical failure on the part AHL Live meant I could only see the game’s first period. The Pack ultimately lost the game by the final score of 6-3, despite outshooting the Providence Bruins 30-25 and earning nine of the twelve power play opportunities awarded in the game. Hartford’s penalty killing, which had been perfect through two games this weekend, got burnt twice in the first period, though only one of Portland’s goals shows as a power play marker — their second came five seconds after a penalty to Corey Potter expired. On the positive side, Devin DiDiomete picked up his second goal in as many games after going pointless in his first nine. He also got in his first pro scrap with fellow rookie Jordan Knackstedt, who came out on the losing side. P.A. Parenteau became the first Pack player to break into double digits in goals with his 10th of the season, and Artem Anisimov maintained his point-per-game pace and extended his points streak to six games with an assist on Dale Weise’s third period goal. Matt Zaba played in his first back-to-back start of the season and was less than stellar, stopping only 19 of 25 Providence shots — there’s still no word on the nature of starting netminder Miika Wiikman’s injury or when he might return. With the loss, Hartford dropped back to the .500 mark, just one point ahead of the surging Lowell Devils, who hold a game in hand.

Half a world away, Avangard Omsk finally halted its losing streak at five games with a 3-2 shootout win over Khimik Voskresensk. Czech Jakob Klepis scored both Omsk goals in regulation, and added the game winner in the shootout for good measure. Jaromir Jagr was held scoreless in the game. Highlights and photos are available from the Avangard Omsk Schedule page.

On the junior front, thanks go to reader Rob for pointing out this interview with Evgeni Grachev over at RussianProspects.com. Grachev will once again face Brampton teammate Cody Hodgson and fellow Ranger prospect Michael Del Zotto on Monday night in the fourth game of the ADT Canada Russia Challenge. Grachev’s junior team won both its games this weekend, breaking the club winning streak record on Saturday and extending their current run to 16 games on Sunday afternoon. Grachev added another goal and two more assists in the process, re-taking the rookie scoring lead in the OHL; he currently leads all rookies in both goals and points.

Finally, for a glimpse at how Grachev’s fellow 2008 third round pick Tomas Kundratek is settling in after a fractured hand delayed the start of his junior season, see this story in the Medicine Hat News about the Czech rookie and his unlikely defense partner.

Three days ago the Portland Pirates rode their power play to a 4-2 victory over the Hartford Wolf Pack at the XL Center in Hartford.  On Saturday it was the Wolf Pack that won the special teams battle, topping the Atlantic Division-leading Pirates 6-2 in Portland on the strength of two power play goals, a shorthanded marker, and a second straight game of flawless penalty killing.

It was only the second regulation loss Portland has surrendered in sixteen games this season.  Even more impressive is that it was done with backup goaltender Matt Zaba — who hadn’t played since earning a win over the Albany River Rats on November 1st — in goal because of an undisclosed injury to starting netminder Miika Wiikman.

The Pirates put the Pack on their heels early, firing off 6 of the first 7 shots on goal in the game.  They took an early lead at 3:32 of the first period when Portland left wing Jimmy Bonneau carried the puck down the right wing boards and threw a backhander towards the front of the net, where Felix Schutz was waiting to deflect it past Zaba on the stick side.

But Hartford roared back with five unanswered goals, starting at 13:18 of the period.  The Pack were given just one of the four power plays awarded in the first frame, and they capitalized on their lone opportunity when Michael Sauer scored his first goal of the season with a low, hard shot from the blue line that deflected off a Pirate defenseman to beat Portland netminder Adam Dennis and tie the score at one.

Devin DiDiomete, who returned to the line up after watching Friday’s game from the press box as a healthy scratch, scored his first professional goal and point just over three minutes later when he deflected a Brian Fahey point shot past Dennis.  The Wolf Pack took the 2-1 lead to the locker room at the end of the period, having outshot Portland by a 12-9 advantage.

With the Pack’s penalty kill languishing at 26th in the league after Wednesday’s loss to the Pirates, Wolf Pack head coach Ken Gernander re-vamped his PK units for Friday’s game against Lowell.  The most noticeable changes were the additions of P.A. Parenteau, who’d seen occasional duty on the PK during his time in Hartford, and Artem Anisimov, who’d taken only a handful of shifts on the penalty kill prior to Friday night’s game.  On Saturday, the re-vamped PK not only thwarted all six Portland power play attempts, remaining perfect over twelve attempts in the last two games, but it earned the team the eventual game winning goal.  Anisimov broke the puck out of the Pack zone, passed it off to defenseman Vladimir Denisov as the two crossed the Portland blue line, and crashed the net, arriving just in time to deflect Denisov’s shot from the right circle past Dennis on the stick side at 7:30 of the second period.

Justin Soryal added his third goal of the season with under three minutes to go in the period when Patrick Rissmiller picked a Pirate pocket as the Portland side was attempting to break out of their own zone.  Rissmiller fed Soryal, who found himself in on a 3-on-1 down low and beat Dennis cleanly with a wrist shot from the right circle.  The period ended with the score 4-1 in favor of the Pack, despite the Pirates’ 11-8 shot advantage.

At 9:03 of the third the Wolf Pack added their second power play goal.  After receiving a perfect cross-ice pass from Parenteau, defenseman Corey Potter faked a shot, skated around the Portland penalty killer who’d dropped to block it, and unloaded a hard snap shot to beat Dennis through a screen.

After falling down by four goals, the Pirates began to apply more pressure, and built some momentum with a power play whn Anisimov went off for holding at 9:26.  The Pack penalty kill held them off, but in the twelfth minute of the period the Pirates managed to pin the Pack in their own zone.  At 12:39, with the Pack scrambling, Portland defenseman Michael Funk was able to stuff in the rebound of left wing Colin Murphy’s shot, cutting the Pack’s lead to three.

Portland center Colton Fretter killed his team’s momentum two minutes later when he was whistled for high sticking Pack defenseman David Urquhart, who was shaky in his return after sitting for the past four games as a healthy scratch.  Pack forward Matthew Ford finished the scoring by notching his first AHL goal and point just 39 seconds after the penalty expired when he wristed in the rebound of a shot by Jordan Owens.

Portland finished the period with a 9-8 lead in shots on goal, for a 29-28 advantage in the game.  Zaba earned his second win of the season and improved his AHL record to 2-1-0-0.  His 27-save performance earned him first star of the game honors.

Notes:

• Brandon Sugden and Bonneau dropped the gloves in the final seconds of the second period. Bonneau held on to Sugden for dear life, threw a few quick rabbit punches and then wrestled the Pack forward to the ice.
• Maxime Daigneault (no relation to Pack assistant coach J.J.) was recalled from Charolotte of the ECHL to back up Zaba in Wiikman’s absence.
• Center Mike Ouellette and defenseman Ethan Graham took seats in the press box as healthy scratches.
• The Wolf  Pack’s 6 goals marked their highest single-game scoring output this season.
• The Pack received only 3 power play opportunities to Portland’s 6, but they scored on 2 of them.
• Tonight marked Fahey’s second 2-assist game in his last three games.
• Rissmiller, who played center on Friday for the first time since being assigned to Hartford, has 6 points in his 5 games in Hartford.
• Anisimov’s shorthanded goal was the Pack’s first of the season. He has points (3g, 4a) in 5 straight games.
• Greg Moore currently holds the Pack’s longest point scoring streak, with points (4g, 3a) in 6 straight games.

Scoring:
1. Schutz (5) (Bonneau, Gragnani) 3:36
1. Sauer (1) (Potter, Parenteau) 13:18 (PP)
1. DiDiomete (1) (Fahey, Rissmiller) 15:32
2. Anisimov (5) (Denisov, Fahey) 7:30 (SH)
2. Soryal (3) (Rissmiller) 17:09
3. Potter (2) (Moore, Parenteau) 9:03 (PP)
3. Funk (1) (Murphy, Gerbe) 12:29
3. Ford (1) (Owens, Pyatt) 17:32

Lines:
Owens - Rissmiller - Parenteau
Ford - Moore - Soryal
Dupont - Anisimov - Weise
DiDiomete - Pyatt - Sugden

Potter - Sanguinetti
Fahey - Denisov
Urquhart - Sauer

Zaba / Daigneault

Three Stars:
1. Matt Zaba
2. Brian Fahey
3. Patrick Rissmiller

The Hartford Wolf Pack dropped a 4-3 shootout decision to the Lowell Devils in Hartford on Friday, but the real story was the game-within-the-game that was played between two friends who were facing each other for the very first time.  Lowell’s Alexander Vasyunov and Hartford’s Artem Anisimov were born a month apart in Yaroslavl, Russia in 1988, came up through the Lokomotiv hockey school together, and played together — often on the same line — in numerous tournaments for the Russian national junior team.  They were drafted just four picks apart in the second round of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, but at the start of the 2007-2008 season their careers took different paths, as Anisimov came to North America to play for the Wolf Pack while Vasyunov stayed in Yaroslavl, where he fought for ice time in an organization known for developing great young talent, but failing to integrate it at the highest level.  Last month, after playing only two games through the first seven weeks of the KHL season, Vasyunov opted to follow in Anisimov’s footsteps, and left Russia for the AHL.

On Saturday the two friends met as enemies for the first of what will likely be many, many times in their North American professional careers.  And there can be little doubt that the game held special significance to both of them.

Anisimov had the best scoring chance in a scoreless first period when he rang a shot off the post with less than five minutes remaining.  The Pack were the better team in the opening stanza, outshooting the Devils by a margin of 11-6, but were fortunate to see the Devil’s shoot wide on two early period breakaways that developed off miscues at the offensive blue line. The first was the result of a bobbled Brian Fahey keep-in, while the second came off a miscommunication between forward Brodie Dupont and defenseman Ethan Graham at the right point.

The Pack started the second period on the power play and Dupont had what appeared to be a can’t-miss opportunity to give Hartford the lead when he found himself alone in the crease with the puck.  But he was unable to find the puck in his feet before a Devils defenseman scooped it away.

Vasyunov had a prime scoring chance of his own when he picked Graham’s pocket in the high slot a few minutes later and fired off a quick wrist shot, but Pack goalie Miika Wiikman was able to make the stop to keep the teams scoreless.

The two teams split a pair of fights in the 9th minute of the middle frame.  The first was a middleweight battle between Jordan Owens and Brad Mills in which neither player landed many punches.  Mills took a slight edge in the bout based on the number of punches he threw.  The second was a battle of the big boys as Brandon Sugden faced off with rookie forward Thomas Harrison.  Sugden was the clear victor in this one, landing a number of heavy rights while Harrison failed to connect on any of his attempts.

The Devils broke the scoreless tie at 11:19 of the period when former Wolf Pack forward Chad Wiseman was allowed to skate out from behind the Pack net, all the way up to the right point, where he turned and threw a weak shot at the net.  So distracted were the Pack by Wiseman’s journey to the blue line that they left 5′9″, 165 lb. Michael Swift unchecked in the slot, where the Lowell center was able to deflect Wiseman’s shot past Wiikman.  The goal seemed to rattle the Pack, which had played fairly well to that point.  The Devils outplayed them through the remainder of the period, a fact evidenced by Lowell’s 8-5 shot advantage.

Lowell took a two goal lead just 58 seconds into the third period when Vasyunov set up Jon DiSalvatore in the crease. Wiikman stopped DiSalvatore’s first shot, but the Lowell forward was able to beat him high with the rebound.

Gred Moore cut the lead back down to one only 28 second later with his fifth goal of the season by splitting two Devils defenders to beat goaltender Jeff Fraze with a wrist shot high on the glove side from the left circle. Vasyunov answered back with his second point of the night by beating Wiikman with a one-timer from the hashmarks, making it 3-1 at 5:09 of the period.

But Anisimov wasn’t about to let his former teammate show him up, and drew the Pack back to within one with 6:21 remaining in regulation when he used his size to crash the Lowell net, tipping in a Dale Weise centering pass from the right corner.

At 18:53 Mills clipped Dupont with a high stick, earning a himself a double minor and setting up a 6-on-4 advantage for the final minute after Wiikman was pulled for the extra skater.  With just 6.1 seconds remaining, Anisimov sent the teams to overtime by deflecting Corey Potter’s point shot past Fraze.  The Pack finished an improved, but still somewhat error-prone, third period with a 13-4 advantage in shots for a 29-18 edge through regulation.

Despite starting the extra frame with the second of Mills’ two minors still on the board, the Wolf Pack were unable to solve the game in overtime, and after the two teams swapped 4 shots each, they headed to the shootout.

Wiikman allowed the first four Lowell shooters to score while Fraze stopped P.A. Parenteau and allowing goals by Patrick Rissmiller, Tommy Pyatt, and Moore. That set the Pack goalie up for the must-have stop on Rod Pelley.  The Swedish-born netminder made the save to give Anisimov the chance to tie the skills competition and send it into extra rounds.  With a repeat of the beautiful backhand move he used to win the shootout against Bridgeport on opening weekend, Anisimov did just that.  That sent Tyler Eckford, who’d beaten Wiikman for the first goal of the shootout, back out to try his luck.  Once again he beat Wiikman, setting up Anisimov for a second must-score opportunity.  This time, Fraze got the better of the young Russian, earning himself his first AHL win and ending the last place Devils’ winless streak at  seven games.

When all was said and done, Anisimov (2 goals) and Vasyunov (1 goal, 1 assist) were named first and second stars of the game, respectively, and the two friends met up on the ice to congratulate one another after their teams headed off to their locker rooms.

Video highlights from the game are available from AHL Live.

Notes:

• Dupont, who was cut by Mills’ late-game high stick, did not return for overtime or the shootout.
• The game was Sugden’s first game back after sitting out two as a healthy scratch and was easily his best of the season.  His three shots on goal equaled the total he’d put up through his first 10 games of the season.
• Anisimov now has 16 points (4g, 12a) in 16 games, one behind Parenteau for the team lead.
• Parenteau, who was riding a 7-game point streak coming into the game, was held scoreless.
• The Pack penalty kill, which has struggled this season, featured an infusion of new blood as both Anisimov (paired with Rissmiller) and Parenteau (paired with Moore) took regular shifts.  The PK was perfect in 6 attempts against Lowell’s 23rd ranked power play.

Pack Scoring:
3. Moore (5) (Soryal, Owens) 1:36
3. Anisimov (3) (Weise) 13:38
3. Anisimov (4) (Potter, Rissmiller) 19:53 (PP)

Lines:
Rissmiller - Moore - Parenteau
Dupont - Anisimov - Weise
Sugden - Pyatt - Soryal
Owens - Ouellette - Ford

Potter - Sanguinetti
Denisov - Fahey
Graham - Sauer

Wiikman / Zaba

Three Stars:
1. Artem Anisimov
2. Alexander Vasyunov
3. Jon DiSalvatore

Evgeni Grachev scored a first period shorthanded goal and earned player of the game honors for Team Russia, but his teammate on the Brampton Battalion, Cody Hodgson, trumped him, scoring a hat trick to be named player of the game for the OHL All Stars as Canada doubled Russia to pick up their second win in the ADT Canada Russia Challenge, 6-3. “He’s a great guy - he’s a lot of fun,” Hodgson said of his Brampton teammate on the tournament web site. “He’s not what they say in a typical Russian. He jokes with the guys and he’s a great hockey player as well. I didn’t notice before how big he is because I never saw him as competition before. But he’s huge. He’s a great hockey player.”  Highlights from the game, including Grachev’s breakaway shorthander, are available courtesy of Sportsnet.

An injury-depleted Avangard Omsk team lost their fourth straight game yesterday (and sixth in their last seven), falling 3-1 to Khimik Voskresensk. The loss dropped them six points behind Kharlamov Division-leading Yaroslavl Lokomotiv and into 10th place in the 24-team KHL. A visibly frustrated Jaromir Jagr was held pointless, and took two third period cross checking penalties. After the game, the dejected Czech spoke to Igor Kakurin of Championat.ru about what the team has been going through.

- As far as I understand, Jaromir, now is probably the most critical point of the season for Avangard. You’ve lost six of the last seven matches, but ahead is an entire seven home games in which it is possible to correct the situation…

- (Jagr looks with a sort of vacant stare, as if trying to figure out what he should say).

- What do you think about what’s happening with the team?

- (pause). Hmmm… (he speaks very slowly). I think… I see that this is absolutely a bad time for us. All of us. After Alexei [Cherepanov's] death we… We lost thirteen more players from the roster… Injured. It…

- Nobody could anticipate this. It could not be expected…

- Yes, I know that. Everyone knows. But… but when you lose thirteen players from the starting roster — it’s just not right. You can’t overcome that. But you know, there’s no one for you… no one to help us. No one, but yourself. We ourselves must get through it. Hope that the injured guys return, and we can… you know… we can get back to our game. [That] we can play better hockey.

- Right now you simply look shocked. You’re not yourself.

- It is quite difficult. It wouldn’t be easy for anyone. Nobody likes to lose. And I don’t like it. And for me this is very hard. But I can only have faith that we’ll get through all this, through these defeats, and that we’ll win.

- Watching you on the ice, the impression was that you play some moments alone — for yourself, and by yourself for everyone, for your team.

- That happens again and again (grinning nervously). I know that I have to continue to fight and believe that it will help everything get back on the right course. To have faith that we’ll recover. You see, when everything, absolutely everything, goes completely badly — you search, you try to find at least something good. You fight to find something. But what else can you do?

- During your entire career, did you ever encounter anything like what is happening to you now?

- I don’t know. Maybe… (pause). No, I don’t imagine I have. I don’t remember anything like this. Maybe, sometime long ago… I don’t know. But even if there was something like this, this is one of the hardest situations in my life. That is for sure.

- So what do you think about the upcoming series of home games. Coach Fleming just said at the press conference that he’s optimistic about them and expects the return of several of the injured players to the team right away…

- I hope for that very much. We need each one of them on the roster. Need them very much. I hope that it will be so.

- In the absence of so many of your players from the roster — what has happened with your teammate Pavel Rosa, who did not play today against Khimik?

- I don’t know. I simply don’t know.

- Rosa and one more Avangard forward, [Alexei] Kopeikin, played in Astana against Barys, but did not travel with the team to the match with Khimik, and have already turned up in Omsk. For what reason?

- Yes. Some sort of problems [have arisen], but I don’t know [what they are].

- As for all of these defeats…

- We don’t score goals, that is the problem. Through all of this — we have opportunities, but we do not score. We score one or two. But this is not enough to win games. Everyone understands, that to win it’s necessary to score at least four or five goals. But with one or two, it’s hard to win. But we can’t score more than one or two. That’s the problem, you know?… (pauses). I have to go now.

- Thank you. Good luck!

- (he nods, barely visibly, makes his way to the door which is opened and behind which is a crowd of Voskresensk boys, and in the distance is the bus with the team that awaits Jagr…)

Avangard head coach Wayne Fleming would not comment on the situation with Rosa or Kopeikin, but Rosa’s agent told Champtionat today that he’s under the impression his client’s contract with the Omsk club will be terminated, though neither he nor Rosa himself, who assured Championat that he’s completely healthy, have been provided any details as to why. The team did receive a boost when top center Anton Kuryanov returned, donning the captain’s “C” in place of Alexander Svitov, who’ll remain out for another six weeks following shoulder surgery.

Highlights from yesterday’s game are available from the KHL, or you can watch the entire match at Sportbox.

Ranger prospect Evgeni Grachev scored each of the Brampton Battalion’s four goals on Sunday as the Troops tied a club record by earning their 14th straight victory, 4-2 over the Ottawa 67’s.  Grachev’s four goals ties a mark reached by seven players in club history, a group which includes teammate Cody Hodgson, the 10th overall pick by the Vancouver Canucks in last June’s NHL Entry Draft, who attained the feat just 10 days earlier.  Grachev is the first import player to hit the mark for the Battalion.

A full game wrap is available from the Battalion web site, which also notes that Grachev will play in both OHL games in the ADT Canada Russia Challenge, Nov. 20th in Guelph and 24th in St. Catherines, contradicting what Russian team coach Sergei Nemchinov told Championat.ru last week.

UPDATE: In an interview for TV channel Sport on Sunday (as reported by Allhockey.ru) Nemchinov updated the roster status for the Canada Russia Challenge for the Russian players who are playing in North American this season: “The hockey players playing in the Canadian hockey league will still play with us: three players in the first three matches - they are [Dmitri] Kugryshev, [Sergei] Ostapchuk, [Dmitri] Kulikov, and maybe [Yuri] Cheremetiev.  [Andrei] Loktionov, Grachev, [Sergei] Korostin will play against the team from the Ontario junior league. If we can solve the problem of insurance then [Nikita] Filatov, [Maxim] Mayorov and [Viatcheslav] Voynov will join us.  So the roster shapes up well.”

It took six tries but the Hartford Wolf Pack finally earned their first road win of the season on Sunday against the Lake Erie Monsters, thanks in large part to a two goal, two assist performance by P.A. Parenteau. The final score was 5-3, with the Pack scoring 5 of the last 6 goals in the game after falling behind 2-0 in the first period.

For the second consecutive game the Pack played a sluggish opening period, allowing the Monsters to out-hit and out-skate them in earning a 15-9 shot advantage. It looked like special teams might once again cost them two points, after they surrendered the first marker of the game to Lake Erie on the Monsters’ very first power play opportunity while failing to cash in on their own first three attempts. Monster defenseman Ray Macias got the goal, his first of the season, by swatting a deflected cross-slot pass out of mid-air and into the net at 9:29 of the first.

Lake Erie got their second goal just under five minutes later when Pack goaltender Miika Wiikman, making his 4th consecutive start, kicked the rebound of Chris Stewart’s blast from the right circle on to the waiting stick of an uncovered Peder Skinner on the left side. Skinner had no problem putting the puck into the open side of the net for his first of the season, in only his second AHL game.

But the Pack got one back with just 30 seconds to go in the period when they converted on a 4-on-4. Greg Moore got his fourth of the season and third in three games by battling for the rebound of Bobby Sanguinetti’s point shot while being checked by a Lake Erie defenseman. The goal proved to be the momentum-changer in the game.

Hartford returned from the locker room a different team and carried the play early in the second. Their efforts finally paid off at 7:31 when Artem Anisimov rushed the puck up the right wing boards and poked a pass past a Monster defender to a breaking Brodie Dupont, who slid a low shot past Lake Erie goaltender Jason Bacashihua.

It looked like their strong play might be for naught when the Monsters re-took the lead on only their second shot of the period, a snap shot by Kyle Cumisky that deflected off a Pack defender and over Wiikman’s glove at 11:51.

But the Wolf Pack rallied to tie the game three minutes later when Michael Sauer’s wrist shot from the right point was deflected by Patrick Rissmiller right on to the stick of Parenteau, who was parked alone off the left post. Parenteau had plenty of time to settle the puck, freeze Bacashihua, and pick his spot.

Then, with just 23 seconds remaining in the period, Sanguinetti slapped a rolling puck past Bacashihua from the center point, giving the Pack the 4-3 lead. Hartford outshot the Monsters 13-3 in the period.

Lake Erie’s best opportunity of the third period came in the opening minute when they hit the crossbar while Dale Weise sat in the penalty box on a roughing call earned by jumping to Brian Fahey’s defense when Chris Durno hit him after the buzzer ended the second period. The Monsters had few quality scoring chances, especially in the final five minutes of the game, when the Pack dominated puck possession and prevented the Monsters from pulling Bacashihua for the extra skater. Lake Erie managed only 8 shots in the period to the Pack’s 15.

Parenteau put the icing on the cake with his second of the game at 11:51, one-timing a perfect cross-ice pass from Rissmiller past Bacashihua for Hartford’s second power play goal of the game.

A game recap and photo gallery are available at the Monster’s web site.  Video highlights are available from AHL Live.

Notes:

• Parenteau has earned at least a point in each of his last six games (5g, 6a) and leads the team with 16 points (8g, 8a) in 14 games
• Moore has goals in three straight, and 4 in his last 5 games, after going 9 games without a goal to start the season
• With a goal and an assist today, Sanguinetti has 5 points (1g, 4a) in his last five games
• Anisimov’s two assists give him 7 points (1g, 6a) in his last 5 games and 13 points (2 mng, 11a) in 14 games on the season
• Lake Erie had lost 6 of their last 8 games and are 5-8-0-1 on the season, good for 5th in the North Division
• Today marked the first ever meeting between the two teams

Pack Scoring:
1. Moore (4) (Sanguinetti, Parenteau) 19:30
2. Dupont (3) (Anisimov) 7:31
2. Parenteau (7) (Rissmiller, Sauer) 14:54
2. Sanguinetti (2) (Parenteau, Anisimov) 19:37 (PP)
3. Parenteau (8) (Rissmiller, Potter) 11:51 (PP)

Lines:
Rissmiller - Moore - Parenteau
Dupont - Anisimov - Ford
Pyatt - Oullette - Owens
Soryal - Sugden - Weise

Potter - Sanguinetti
Denisov - Sauer
Graham - Fahey

Wiikman / Zaba

Three Stars:
1. Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau
2. Bobby Sanguinetti
3. Patrick Rissmiller