Week 17 Primer

Devils Quick Hits:

-Albany returns from the All Star Break with a 20-14-4-5 mark, good for 49 points and 4th place in the Northeast Division (9th in the Eastern Conference).

-On Monday, Tim Sestito was placed on waivers by New Jersey.  Tuesday he cleared and was returned to Albany.  He appeared in 15 games with two assists and 33 penalty minutes.

-The AHL announced Wednesday that defenseman Seth Helgeson will sit out Thursday’s game in Lehigh Valley due to suspension, thanks to an elbowing incident in Worcester on Friday night.

-Defenseman Mike Keenan, on a PTO since December 4th, was officially signed to an AHL contract on Wednesday.  He has one assist in 15 games and 15 penalty minutes.

1/29, Game #44 at Lehigh Valley

Where: PPL Center, Allentown, PA.

When: 7:00 PM.

Season Series: Albany leads 3-0.

Standings:

Lehigh Valley: 20-16-4-1, 45 points, 3rd place in East Division

Phantoms Leading Scorers/Goaltending:

Nick Cousins, 30 points (13 G, 17 A); Brandon Manning, 26 points (7 G, 19 A); Andrew Gordon, 25 points (13 G, 12 A)

Rob Zepp, 11-5-4, 2.57 GAA; Anthony Stolarz, 6-9-1, 2.91 GAA

Notes:

-The Phantoms broke a 3 game losing streak just before the break with a win at home against St. John’s on Saturday.

-Lehigh Valley is also starting a 3 in 3 week, hosting Hershey on Friday before traveling to Wilkes-Barre on Saturday.

-The Phantoms got a boost in goal when Philadelphia sent Rob Zepp back on Wednesday.

Listen: AHL Live, The Fox 1470 AM

Twitter: @trace_1114, @AlbanyDevils, @LVPhantoms, @BobRotruck

1/30 & 1/31, Game #45 & #46 vs. St. John’s

Where: Times Union Center, Albany, NY.

When: 7:00 PM (1/30), 5:00 PM (1/31).

Season Series: First 2 meetings of 4.  Future matchups: March 6th & 7th @ St. John’s

Standings:

St. John’s: 18-21-5-1, 40 points, 5th place in Atlantic Division

IceCaps Leading Scorers/Goaltending:

John Albert, 28 points (10 G, 18 A); Carl Klingberg, 26 points (14 G, 12 A); Chase Balisy, 25 points (10 G, 15 A)

Connor Hellebuyck, 18-13-2, 2.48 GAA; Peter Budaj, 0-7-4, 3.69 GAA

Notes:

-This is a rematch of last year’s first round Calder Cup playoff series, won by the IceCaps in 4 games.  They would make it all the way to the Calder Cup Finals before losing to Texas in 5 games.

-The IceCaps are finishing off a 5 game road swing, so far going 1-2 against East Division opponents with their only win in Binghamton on Friday evening.

-Connor Hellebuyck, the lone St. John’s representative at Monday’s AHL All Star Classic, got the starting nod for the Eastern Conference and stopped 9 of 13 West shots in his one period of work.

-Local ties: Former River Rats forward Nicolas Blanchard is in his first season with St. John’s and first outside of the Carolina organization.

-The first 1500 in attendance on Saturday get their very own Dan Kelly bobblehead doll.

Listen: AHL Live, stjohnsicecaps.com

Twitter: @trace_1114, @AlbanyDevils, @IceCapsAHL