HAWK’S VIEW – MOSES ARRIVES IN THE LAND WITH PROMISE

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the CT Whale

Among the three most recent additions to the Whale roster, two, forward Andrew Yogan and defenseman Peter Ceresnak, were both Ranger draft picks and had been on the organization’s radar screen for at least a year.  The other, winger Steve Moses, though, was somewhat of an unknown commodity when he joined the Whale last week.

Early reviews are quite positive, however, for Moses, a Leominster, MA native who suited up for his first two pro games this past Saturday against Providence and Sunday at Bridgeport, after finishing a four-year career at the University of New Hampshire.

WHALE WEEKLY: March 26 – April 1, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the CTWhale

The Whale only managed one point out of three games this past weekend, but maintained a two-point lead over Bridgeport for first place in the Northeast Division.  The Whale fell to Portland, 4-1, on Friday night at home, then dropped a 3-2 decision to the P-Bruins the following night in Hartford. Connecticut gathered one point in a 4-3 overtime road defeat to the Sound Tigers to close out the weekend Sunday.  Kris Newbury and Jonathan Audy-Marchessault led the Whale offense with a goal and two assists each on the weekend.

This week:

• The Whale host three opponents in three days this weekend, starting with a date against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Friday night at the XL Center (7:00 PM faceoff). The next night, the Adirondack Phantoms come to town for their final Northeast Division clash of the season with the Whale (7:00), and the Whale close out the weekend’s action on Sunday with another tilt against the Providence Bruins.  That game faces off at a special time of 2:00 PM.

MOSES PARTING THE ICE IN HARTFORD

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the CTWhale

Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the Whale has signed forward Steve Moses to an Amateur Tryout (ATO) agreement.

Moses, a 5-9, 170-pound native of Leominster, MA, just completed a four-year Hockey East career at the University of New Hampshire.  The 22-year-old Moses led the Wildcats in goals, and tied for second among Hockey East skaters, this season with 22, and also added 13 assists for 35 points, good for a tie for the Wildcats’ team leadership in that department.  He also served 16 minutes in penalties.  Over his four seasons in a UNH uniform, Moses totaled 47 goals and 51 assists for 98 points, along with 65 PIM, in 148 games.

WHALE WEEKLY: March 19 – 25, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the Connecticut Whale

The Whale took four out of six points in three home games this past weekend, solidifying their lead in the Northeast Division with wins over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and the Portland Pirates. The Whale began the weekend with a big 3-2 win over the Sound Tigers Friday, before a 3-0 setback against Springfield on Saturday. Connecticut closed their three-games-in-three-nights home slate with a 5-4 shootout triumph over the Pirates on Sunday afternoon, helping them to carry a four-point division lead into this week. Tommy Grant posted a four-point game on Sunday (2-2-4) and Jonathan Audy-Marchessault had a four-point weekend as well (2-2-4). Casey Wellman had three points in Friday’s win (1-2-3), while Cam Talbot Sunday won his first decision in goal since Feb. 18.

WHALE WEEKLY: March 12 – 18, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the CTWhale

The Whale won two out of three games again this past weekend, starting off with a key 4-3 shootout victory at home Friday over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in Northeast Division action. The Whale would fall to the league-leading Norfolk Admirals Saturday at the XL Center, 3-1, on Connecticut Hockey Hall of Fame night, but would rebound nicely with a 5-3 road win over the Manchester Monarchs on Sunday. Casey Wellman had two goals and an assist in Sunday’s game, and both Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and Kris Newbury cracked the 20-goal mark over the course of the three games. Chad Johnson recorded his 20^th win of the season in goal Sunday, after earning a First-Star nod in Friday’s win over the Sound Tigers.

WHALE WEEKLY: February 27 – March 4, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the CT Whale

The Whale split two games this past week, easily handling the Portland Pirates, 5-1, at the XL Center on  Friday, before dropping a 2-0 decision to their I-91 rivals, the Springfield Falcons, on Saturday. Connecticut’s blanking on Saturday was the first against the Whale since Oct. 9 at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Five different Whale players scored in Friday’s victory over the Pirates, with ten different players receiving a point in the contest. Tommy Grant had a goal and an assist and Kelsey Tessier had two helpers on Friday, while Chad Johnson stopped 52 of 55 shots in goal on the weekend.

WHALE WEEKLY: February 21 – 26, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the Connecticut Whale

The Whale posted another successful week as they entered the third weekend in February, winning two out of three games on their slate. Connecticut began the weekend with a 6-3 defeat of the Springfield Falcons on Friday at the XL Center, before winning a home-ice thriller against the Worcester Sharks, 3-1, on Saturday night. The Whale closed out the weekend’s action Sunday in Providence, where they dropped a narrow 4-3 decision to the P-Bruins. Andre Deveaux was on fire this past weekend, scoring four times and adding an assist for five points in three games. Kris Newbury led the team in scoring over that span with a goal and five assists, and Jonathan Audy-Marchessault tallied four assists.

WHALE WEEKLY: February 14 – 19, 2012

The Whale continued their hot February this past week, going 3-0-1-0 in four games to pull into sole possession of first place in the Northeast Division. The Whale posted wins over Syracuse, Springfield and Manchester, and earned a point in Sunday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Wojtek Wolski finished the week’s action with four points (2g-2a-4pts.), with Jonathan Audy-Marchessault registering two goals and an assist. Chad Johnson won five straight games in February, posting a 1.50 goals against average and a .953 save percentage this month.

This week:

The Whale will look to continue their winning ways in February with home tilts against Springfield this Friday (7:00) and Worcester (7:00) on Saturday, before heading to Providence (4:05) to face the Bruins on Sunday.

WHALE WEEKLY: February 6 – 12, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the Connecticut Whale

The Whale finished the first week of February with their best stretch of 2012 to date, snapping an eleven-game winless streak with back-to-back wins over Albany and Hershey. Connecticut knocked off the Albany Devils, 3-2, at the XL Center on Friday night, before besting the Hershey Bears, 4-1, on the road Saturday before nearly 11,000 fans. Tommy Grant and Kris Newbury both had two-goal weekends, and Mats Zuccarello had three assists, to highlight the Whale’s offense. Chad Johnson made 39 saves in Saturday night’s win, his second of two victories to begin the month.

WHALE WEEKLY: January 30 – February 5, 2012

BY: Bob Crawford, Voice of the Connecticut Whale

The Whale finished out the first month of 2012 with a pair of home games at the XL Center, and despite two hard-working efforts, the squad could not get themselves into the win column as they endured a pair of narrow defeats. Connecticut hosted the Eastern Division-leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Friday night, dropping a 3-2 overtime decision before resuming their I-91 rivalry with the Springfield Falcons on Saturday. The Whale drew a season-best 11,181 fans to the XL Center, the ninth-largest XL Center crowd in regular-season franchise history, but the home squad was defeated, 2-1. Jonathan Audy-Marchessault had a goal and an assist in the weekend’s action, and goaltenders Chad Johnson and Cam Talbot combined to stop 64 of 69 shots in the two games.