Falcons win a pair, snap losing skid

Date: 10/30/2014

SPRINGFIELD – Three Springfield Falcons players earned their first goal of the season as the team downed the Syracuse Crunch 5-1 on Oct. 26 at the MassMutual Center, capping a pair of home wins last weekend.

Springfield netminder Oscar Dansk picked up his first win of the season, turning away 36 of 37 shots. His Crunch counterpart, Kristers Gudlevskis, allowed five goals on 30 shots. The Falcons were able to convert on one of two power play opportunities, while the penalty kill unit shut down all six Crunch man-advantages.

Three quick goals in the opening frame gave the Falcons an early lead, which they carried into the first intermission. Brian Gibbons took control of the puck and sent a feed across the slot to Austin Madaisky. Madaisky one-timed his first goal of the season from the left point just 19 seconds into the period.

The Falcons went up 2-0 at the 4:00 mark. Sean Collins netted a power-play goal with the help of Gibbons and Ryan Craig. The puck deflected off Collin’s stick and up and over the shoulder of Gudlevskis. This was Collins first notch of the season.

Springfield further extended their lead at the 8:32 mark. With both teams fighting for possession in front of the crease, Kerby Rychel was able to pull the puck out and wrist a shot over a laid-out Gudlevskis. Lukas Sedlak and Jaime Sifers each earned a point on the goal.

The Falcons added one more to their tally during the second period. Hubert Labrie fired a shot from the left point off a pass from Josh Anderson. Gudlevskis made the initial save, but left the rebound out for T.J. Tynan, who potted his first of the season with 6:28 remaining in the period.

The Crunch found the back of the net for the first time in the third period, but were unable to catch the Falcons. Jonathan Marchessault won the face-off and passed out to Mike Blunden. Blunden shot the puck Joel Vermin, who put the Crunch on the board at the 2:32 mark.

Five minutes later, Domenic Monardo beat the Crunch defenders and faced Gudlevskis on the breakaway. His shot slid just under the crossbar to defeat the Crunch 5-1.

The night before, the Falcons doubled up the Norfolk Admirals 6-3, breaking a four-game losing streak for Springfield.

Springfield goaltender Scott Munroe earned his first Falcons victory, turning away 18 of 21 shots. Norfolk goaltender Igor Bobkov stopped 22 of 27 in defeat. Springfield was able to convert on one of ten power play opportunities, while shutting down seven of eight Norfolk man-advantages.

The Falcons scored three quick goals in the first period to carry a 3-0 lead into the first intermission. Corey Cowick put the Falcons on the board at the 5:37 mark. Thomas Larkin cleared the puck from the Falcons’ zone and set up Cowick for a breakaway. Cowick beat Bobkov five-hole to go up 1-0.

Gibbons extended the Falcons lead with an unassisted goal two minutes later. Gibbons fired a wrist shot from the bottom of the left circle. Bobkov appeared to make the initial save, but allowed the puck to deflect off his right pad and across the goal line.

The Falcons added their third tally at the 9:52 mark of the opening frame. A scrum after the whistle landed two Admirals in the penalty box and gave the Falcons a 5-on-3 advantage. Domenic Monardo notched his fourth goal of the season with the help of Gibbons and Madaisky.

Each team lit the lamp once in the second period, bringing the score to 4-1 after forty minutes. Joseph Cramarossa sent a centering pass to Brandon Yip from below the goal line. Yip put the puck over Munroe’s right shoulder from the slot to get on the board 3:07 into the period. The Falcons responded when Larkin found the back with just under three minutes remaining. Andrew Cherniwchan passed down to Tynan, who made a cross-ice pass to a waiting Larkin. Larkin netted a slap shot to extend the Falcons lead to 4-1.

Despite a late run by Norfolk, Springfield was able to maintain momentum and topped their competitor 6-3. The Admirals potted a power-play goal 5:25 into the third. Nic Kerdiles took a shot from the right point that was redirected by Brad Winchester and slid between Munroe’s legs and across the goal line. Brendan Bell earned credit for the secondary assist.

With 3:32 remaining, Craig one-timed a Collins feed and take back the three goal lead. The captain picked up his 80th goal with the Falcons, giving him sole possession as the franchise’s fourth all-time goal scorer.

Cramarossa cut the Falcons lead by one with 2:00 remaining, finding the back of the net with an assist from Matt Bailey. However, the Falcons could not be caught.

The Admirals pulled Bobkov for an additional attacker, leaving the net open for Rychel to pick up his first AHL point with an empty net goal to top the Admirals, 6-3. Larkin earned a point for the helper, giving him his first three-point AHL game. Sifers was credited with the secondary assist.


The Falcons and Theodore’s Booze, Blues & BBQ are teaming up to offer fans the opportunity to win a Theodore’s BBQ gift card through the ‘Blues Line BBQ’ Instagram promotion.

Fans are encouraged to post pictures of themselves on Instagram at all Falcons games using the Falcons’ Instagram handle, @TheFalconsAHL, and #BluesLineBBQ. One winner will be chosen each month and awarded with a prepaid gift card to Theodore’s. Winners will be chosen on the following days: Nov. 24, Dec. 29, Jan. 12, 2015, Feb. 16, 2015, March 23, 2015, and April 6, 2015. The winner will be announced on the Falcons official Instagram page along with Facebook and Twitter.

Theodore’s BBQ is a 30-plus-year-old Blues club in the heart of Springfield’s Entertainment District. Theodore’s serves up the Valley’s best barbeque seven days a week and their stage features the best in national, regional and local music Tuesday through Saturday. In 2004 Theodore’s was recognized by The Blues Foundation and was names ‘Best Blues Club in the Country’ with a KBA Award (Keeping the Blues Alive).