Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.

Falcons’ offense explodes during three-game win streak

Date: 11/6/2015

SPRINGFIELD – The Falcons scored five unanswered goals to win the first game of the 2015-16 regular season by a score of 5-1 against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Justin Vaive got the Sound Tigers on the board first with a deflection goal 12:42 into the first period. A Kevin Czuczman one-timer from Taylor Beck were the assists on the goal. Dustin Jeffrey nearly tied the game but the goal was deflected on a high-stick, making it disallowed. Derek Smith did tie the game 1-1 with a goal assisted by Brendan Shinnimin and Henrik Samuelsson. The frame closed with the scored knotted and the Falcons outshooting the Sound Tigers 14-10.

The second period remained scoreless throughout much of the stanza. Craig Cunningham finally broke the tie with a goal while crashing the net. His second of the season was assisted by Jeffrey and Greg Carey. Nicklas Treutle stopped all 14 shots from the Sound Tigers during the period. The Falcons carried a 2-1 lead into the third period.

3:05 into the third period, the Falcons extended their lead with Lucas Lessio scoring his first of the season on a rebound. Samuelsson and Shinnimin assisted on the goal for two-point nights. Bridgeport pulled goaltender Christopher Gibson with three minutes left in efforts to tie the game. The Falcons would take advantage of the empty net with Lessio scoring his second of the night. Treutle tallied the assist. Springfield wasn’t done on the empty net as Laurent Dauphin potted his first of the season with Eric Selleck assisting on the goal to complete the scoring and win the game 5-1.

Treutle finished the night with 35 saves and an assist to earn the game’s first star. Springfield killed all five penalties including a five-on-three for 1:50. Bridgeport was also perfect on the kill, killing all four penalties.

The Falcons offense continued to roll with three third period goals to beat the Rochester Americans 6-1 on Friday night.

Henrik Samuelsson got the Falcons on the board early with a goal 4:07 into regulation. Lessio assisted on the goal that came on a backhand shot. Halfway through the frame, Laurent Dauphin tallied his second of the season to give the Falcons a 2-0 lead. The rebound goal was assisted by Derek Smith and Corey Potter. With just under a minute to go in the period, Phil Varone scored against Louie Domingue to push the score to a 2-1 Falcons lead. Evan Rodrigues was credited with the assist.

Greg Carey gave the Falcons a commanding 3-1 lead 3:07 into the second period. The goal was scored off a faceoff with assists going to Dustin Jeffrey and Philip Samuelsson. Samuelsson faked a slap shot and hit Carey in the slot with a pass. Neither team was able to find the back of the net the remainder of the period as the Falcons took a 3-1 lead into the third frame. The Falcons outshot the Americans 17-6 in the second.

The third period stayed scoreless until the Falcons broke it open with three goals in the final six minutes. Jeffrey scored on the power play weaving through three Rochester players and scoring five-hole on goaltender Andrey Makarov. His third of the season was assisted by Smith and Potter. Brendan Shinnimin would score 14 second later with assists given to Henrik Samuelsson and Lessio. The flurry of scoring would conclude with another tally from Jeffrey but this time shorthanded. His goal was assisted by Cunningham. The Falcons won the game by a 6-1 score and outshot Rochester 37-24.

Jeffrey finished the night with two goals and one assist as the game’s first star. Domingue won his first game of the season with 23 saves. Makarov took the loss with 31 saves.

The Falcons blasted past the Providence Bruins with a four-goal third period to win 5-2 on Nov. 1to complete the weekend sweep.

The Bruins jumped out to an early lead with a one-timer goal from Seth Griffith just 2:47 into the game. The goal was assisted by Colton Hargrove and Max Talbot. The lead would hold for nearly fourteen minutes when Corey Potter tied the game. The defenseman scored his first of the season on a shot that passed through the net to force a review from the officials. Smith and Lessio assisted on the goal. The Bruins outshot the Falcons 8-7 during the period.

Providence started the second period with another tally just 2:39 into the frame. Hargrove scored his first of the season with assists credited to Chris Casto and Talbot. Both teams had power plays during the course of the period but could not convert. The game remained 2-1 during the remainder of the period. Malcolm Subban stopped all eight shots from the Falcons during the period. Louis Domingue faced 13 shots but stopped 12 in the second.

The Falcons exploded for a four-goal third period that began with a tally from Alex Grant. Much like the first Falcons goal, Grant’s shot ripped through the netting to tie the game at two. Jordan Szwarz and Matthias Plachta assisted on the goal. With 5:44 left in the period, Cunningham pushed the Falcons ahead with his third of the season assisted by Greg Carey and Jeffrey. Carey added a power play goal four minutes later to give the Falcons a 4-2 lead with Jeffrey and Cunningham assisting. Phil Lane added an empty netter with helpers coming from Jeffrey and Smith to give the Falcons a 5-2 win.

Jeffrey finished the game with his third three-point night of the season. Domingue won his second straight game with 26 saves. Subban took the loss with 22 saves.

The American Hockey League announced that Springfield Falcons center Dustin Jeffrey has been selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Nov. 1 after compiling a combined two goals and five assists for seven points along with a plus-4 rating in three games.

The Falcons continue their string of road games with a contest against Portland on Nov. 9 at 7:30 p.m. On Nov. 10, the Falcons conclude their three-game road trip in Bridgeport with a 7 p.m. game. All games can be heard live on NewsRadio560 WHYN.