WEEKLY RUNDOWN: 12-21

Flames Weekly Rundown

After the Flames extended their winning streak to five games on Wednesday in Chicago, they proceeded to drop their next two games over the weekend. First it was the Rochester Americans, who bested the Flames on Friday in a shootout, and then the Utica Comets downed Adirondack 4-1 on Saturday.

Wednesday 12/17/14: Adirondack Flames 4 – Chicago Wolves 1 (Allstate Arena)

The Adirondack Flames extended their winning streak to five games this afternoon in front of 13,690 fans at Allstate Arena in Chicago, as they silenced the Wolves by a 4-1 final.

It was a big day for the Flames’ power play, as they went three-for-six with the man-advantage. Emile Poirier scored twice in the victory, while Garnet Hathaway and Mark Cundari both added tallies of their own. Defenseman Ryan Culkin and winger Sven Baertschi both registered multiple assists, as Joni Ortio made 30 saves to earn his league leading 14th win of the season.

Friday 12/19/14: Adirondack Flames 2 – Rochester Americans 3 SO (Blue Cross Arena)

The Adirondack Flames came up just short of their sixth straight win as they fell 3-2 to the Rochester Americans in a seven round shootout on Friday evening at the Blue Cross Arena.

Adirondack netminder Brad Thiessen was the star for the visitors, as he made 47 saves on 49 Rochester shots. David Wolf and Garnet Hathaway had the goals for the Flames in the losing effort. Despite the shootout loss, the Flames earned a point that gave them seven out a possible eight points on their four game road trip.

Saturday 12/20/14: Adirondack Flames 1 – Utica Comets 4 (Glens Falls Civic Center)

The Adirondack Flames fell to the Utica Comets on Saturday evening, as they were bested by their North Division rivals by a 4-1 final in front of 4,210 fans at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

While the Flames held tight for the majority of the evening thanks to a goal from David Wolf and 21 saves from Joni Ortio,, the Comets proved too much for Adirondack. Brendan Gaunce, Wacey Hamilton, Frank Corrado, and Alex Friesen all scored for Utica, while Jacob Markstrom made 19 saves to earn the victory.

Very Special Teams

• In Wednesday’s win over the Chicago Wolves, the Flames power play was clicking, as they scored on three of their six opportunities with the man-advantage.

• The Flames have killed off 26 of their last 27 penalties, dating back to their Dec. 7 contest with the Albany Devils.

• Joni Ortio’s 14 wins this season has him sitting in second place in the league in wins, sitting just one behind of Jean-Francois Berube of the Manchester Monarchs, who has 15.

Adirondack Flames Team Leaders

Goals: Ben Hanowski (11)

Assists: Ryan Culkin (12)

Points: Emile Poirier (16)

Games: Bill Arnold (31)

PP Goals: Ben Hanowski/Garnet Hathaway (4)

SH Goals: Corban Knight (1)

+/- Rating: Michael Ferland (+6)

PIM: Mathieu Tousignant (59)

GAA: Brad Thiessen (2.62)

SV %: Brad Thiessen (.921)

Wins: Ortio (14)

Losses: Ortio (6)

GPI: Ortio (22)

Minutes: Ortio (1271:46)

Adirondack Alumni

• Markus Granlund, who started the season in Adirondack, made his 2014-15 debut with Calgary on Oct. 31. The Finnish forward has accumulated 12 points (4-8-12) in 24 games thus far with Calgary.

• In 28 games this season with Calgary, Josh Jooris has now recorded 13 points (8-5-13). After playing two games with Adirondack at the start of the season, Jooris is currently on the sidelines with an upper-body injury.

• On Saturday (12/13/14), defenseman Corey Potter was recalled to Calgary. Potter, 30, played in 19 games with Adirondack, during which time he recorded five points (0-5-5). He has yet to make his 2014-15 Calgary debut.

Flames Milestones

• With the 2-1 victory last Sunday over Iowa, Adirondack goaltender Brad Thiessen recently recorded his 100th AHL win. Thiessen owns a 4-5-1-0 record, 2.62 goals against average, and a .921 save percentage this season.

• Flames center Max Reinhart currently has 95 AHL points. He is just five away from reaching the 100 point plateau. He has nine total points this season (4-5-9).

Western Conference Standings

1 * Utica Comets 29 19 5 5 0 43 0.741 81 62 5-0-3-0 6-1-3-0 0-0 377

2 * Oklahoma City Barons 29 18 7 2 2 40 0.690 95 84 2-0-0-0 7-3-0-0 0-2 411

3 * Rockford IceHogs 31 18 9 3 1 40 0.645 90 74 0-2-1-0 3-5-2-0 0-1 513

4 Adirondack Flames 31 18 11 1 1 38 0.613 87 89 0-1-0-1 6-3-0-1 1-1 552

5 San Antonio Rampage 27 16 9 2 0 34 0.630 84 81 0-1-0-0 5-3-2-0 4-0 445

6 Milwaukee Admirals 28 15 10 0 3 33 0.589 77 66 2-0-0-0 3-5-0-2 1-3 474

7 Chicago Wolves 29 15 11 3 0 33 0.569 85 72 1-0-0-0 4-6-0-0 0-0 468

8 Hamilton Bulldogs 30 14 11 5 0 33 0.550 88 80 1-0-0-0 5-2-3-0 0-0 561

9 Grand Rapids Griffins 27 14 10 3 0 31 0.574 81 71 2-0-0-0 6-3-1-0 2-0 326

10 Lake Erie Monsters 28 13 10 2 3 31 0.554 80 93 1-0-0-1 7-2-0-1 0-3 387

11 Texas Stars 28 11 9 8 0 30 0.536 74 82 0-1-0-0 5-3-2-0 0-0 349

12 Charlotte Checkers 29 11 15 2 1 25 0.431 66 85 2-0-0-1 4-4-1-1 1-1 576

13 Toronto Marlies 29 10 15 4 0 24 0.414 59 85 0-2-1-0 5-3-2-0 1-0 494

14 Rochester Americans 30 11 18 1 0 23 0.383 83 95 0-1-0-0 2-8-0-0 1-0 490

15 Iowa Wild 29 9 18 1 1 20 0.345 74 96 0-1-0-0 4-5-0-1 1-1 470

*Denotes Division Leader

The Week Ahead

Friday at Utica (12/26/14) – 7:00 p.m.

The Adirondack Flames will travel to Utica to face the Comets for the fifth time this season. While Adirondack has come close, the Comets have edged the Flames in all four meetings this season, two of which have occurred in both Utica and Glens Falls.

The Comets have had a very strong start to the season, as their 43 points have them in first place in not just the Western Conference, but the American Hockey League as a whole. Cal O’Reilly has been the leading point getter for Utica up to this point, with 27 (3-24-27), but Brandon DeFazio’s nine goals (9-7-16) has him leading in that department.

Swedish native Joacim Eriksson has become the mainstay in net for Utica with Jacob Markstrom’s recent absence from the lineup due to injury. Markstrom has since returned, but Eriksson’s 11 wins, 2.28 goals against average, and .918 save percentage has had him in net for 18 of the Comets 29 games this season.

Saturday at Hamilton (12/27/14) – 7:00 p.m.

On Saturday, the Flames will travel to across the border to Canada to meet the Hamilton Bulldogs. This will be the fifth meeting of the season between the two teams and the Flames have won three of the first four.

The Bulldogs have played better in recent days, as they’ve lost just twice in regulation over their past 10 games. Leading Hamilton offensively thus far has been rookie forward Charles Hudon. In 30 games this season, Hudon has accumulated nine goals and 22 assists for 31 points, which is good enough for third overall in points in the AHL. Hudon’s nine goals also has him as the team leader in goals for the Bulldogs as well.

Between the pipes, Mike Condon and Joey MacDonald have split the workload, as Condon has seven wins, and MacDonald six. Condon, however, is leading the charge statistically speaking, as his 2.31 goals against average and .926 save percentage is a team best. Recently, MacDonald was recalled to Montreal and netminder Dustin Tokarski was reassigned. Tokarski led the Bulldogs last season with 20 wins, a .919 save percentage and a 2.38 goals against average.

Sunday at Toronto (12/28/14) – 3:00 p.m.

Following their tilt in Hamilton, the Flames will then travel to Toronto for a Sunday matinee with the Marlies. This will be the second meeting between these two AHL affiliates this season, as the Flames won the first meeting by a 3-2 final in Glens Falls back in November.

Things haven’t gone quite as the Marlies may have hoped, as they currently sit in 13th place in the Western Conference with a 10-15-4-0 record, but a 5-3-2-0 stretch over their last 10 has them headed in the right direction. Rookie right winger Connor Brown has led the way offensively to this point for the Marlies, as his eight goals and 22 points (8-14-22) currently has him atop the Toronto stat sheet.

In net, rookie netminder Antoine Bibeau has split the workload with Finnish goaltender Christopher Gibson. Bibeau, however, is leading the way in wins, with six, and goals against average (2.63), while Gibson has him beat with regards to save percentage (.915).

Upcoming Events and Promotions

The Flames will be on the road until New Year’s Eve, when they will return home for a 5:00 p.m. tilt with the Toronto Marlies. In addition to being a Great Meadow Federal Credit Union Wednesday, the Dec. 31 game will also feature an indoor fireworks show following the game, as well as a Gingerbread House raffle presented by Scoville Jewlers.

Tickets are available now for all home games through a full season, 22 game, 12 game, or a flex pack. Visit the Flames box office, call 518-480-3355, or order online now at glensfallscc.com.