Chaput continues break out

Stefan Chaput

(Photo by Jennifer Bock)

Chris Fitz Gerald at the Troy Record chats with center Stafan Chaput, who is continuing the break out season he never had a chance to finish last year. 

Rats outrank Admirals, 3-1

Post-game coverage:

• River Rats sink Admirals 3-1, AlbanyRiverRats.com
• Hard work spurs rally, Albany Times Union
• This year numbers favor the Rats, Albany Times Union
• Rats notes 'n quotes: Blanchard may face suspension, Albany Times Union
• Hat trick for Rats, Troy Record
• Man down? No problem for the Albany River Rats, Schenectady Daily Gazette
• Scoresheet, AHL.com

Update: Technical difficulties slowed us down today. Our apologies. 

See clips of the goals by Goertzen and Chaput. Don't get your hopes up for a shot of the hit by Blanchard. Looks like the cameras missed it.

Rats clobber Amerks, 6-1

Superior special teams, dynamic offense, solid defense and spectacular goaltending. That pretty much sums up the River Rats' win Saturday night against the Rochester Americans. Albany dominated the game, 6-1. 

Rookie netminder Mike Murphy had a stellar professional debut, stopping 28 of 29 shots and proving almost invincible. His chance at a shutout was spoiled with only 6:03 remaining in the third period. 

Speedy playmaker Jerome Samson took home a goal and three assists. Samson, who led the River Rats in scoring last year, is now approaching the top of the league with seven points in three games. 

Samson is gifted at finding and creating passing lanes. If someone is open with room to shoot, chances are Samson will find him. Last night he made several smart plays under pressure, including a no-look pass to Drayson Bowman, who ripped it home.

Bowman last night maintained his goal-per-game pace and also picked up two assists. Bowman now has five points in three games. 

Captain Pat Dwyer continues to lead by example, creating opportunities out of sheer will. Dwyer tallied two points with a goal and an assist. 

Center Stefan Chaput, who was assigned a larger role after Mike Angelidis was injured, had a three-point night with a goal and two assists. 

Forward Nick Dodge and rugged defenseman Zack FitzGerald also scored. 

Zach Boychuk and Harrison Reed picked up an assist each. 

The Rats' energetic offense had Rochester's back against the wall. The Americans were simply too slow to keep up with Albany's youthful talent. 

Meanwhile, in their own zone, the Rats looked more focused than ever. 

Despite the loss of top D-man and alternate captain Brett Carson to a broken wrist, the Rats played a solid defensive game, perhaps the best of the season thus far. 

Albany forced Rochester's forwards to the outside and did a good job of covering the traffic in front of Murphy. 

The Americans stayed even on shots, but lacked genuine opportunities. 

When the Americans did break through, Murphy was there to respond. 

When the shutout was lost, nobody was more disappointed than rookie defenseman Jamie McBain, who made an uncharacteristic turnover in his own zone that led to the goal.

McBain knew his mistake cost Murphy the doughnut. You would have thought the game was on the line the way McBain smashed his stick in anger afterwards. The giveaway was a bad slip, but the emotion McBain showed for his teammate was good to see. The boys are truly pulling for each other. 

Bryan Rodney and Jonathan Paiement had a great game. Hard to believe Paiement spent so much time in the ECHL. 

Big Benn Olson played in his first contest of the season. His physical stay-at-home defense and enforcer mentality kept the Americans in check. 

Matthew Pistilli skated in his first professional game. He had a couple of good shots and played well. 

The River Rats went 2-for-8 on the power play, with Bowman and Samson hooking up for both goals. The Rats' penalty kill remained flawless, going 6-for-6 and standing at 12-for-12 on the season.

Brad Herauf was a healthy scratch. 

The Rats' record now stands at 2-1-0-0, good for second place in the East Division. Albany trails Hershey by two points and has a game in hand. 

The Rats play Wednesday night at home against the Norfolk Admirals.

More post-game coverage:

• Albany unloads six straight on Rochester, AlbanyRiverRats.com
• Rookie sparks Rats, Troy Record
• Rookies lead way for Rats, Albany Times Union
• Rats notes 'n quotes: Carson out 4-6 weeks, Albany Times Union
• Murphy, River Rats put it all together, Schenectady Daily Gazette

Hurricanes' Propsects Are Tournament Champs!

"It was a good win. It was a good week. You come out here and come together as a team for five days, you might as well go out and win the thing. We had a good group of guys who played hard for four games. It feels good. We've got a lot of talent in that room, a good group of guys and I think we just had fun with it. ... Worked hard and enjoyed it."
--Captain Nick Dodge
(Photo from Hockey's Future)

The Carolina Hurricanes' prospects have won the tournament in Traverse City! With only five defenseman and 11 forwards, the Canes defeated the Minnesota Wild tonight in the championship game.

Carolina was led to a 4-1 victory on goals by Chris Terry, Zach Boychuk, Brandon Sutter, and Stefan Chaput, all of whom are set to play in Albany next season!

The first two tallies were traded early in the first period. The Hurricanes scored 6:16 into the game, as Chris Terry notched his second of the tournament, assisted by Matthew Pistilli and Beau Schmitz. Matt Kennedy was penalized for slashing less than a minute later and the Wild capitalized on the power play, knotting the game at 1-1.

The score remained tied through the end of the first period, with the Wild ahead on shots 11 to 5.

The Canes continued to struggle in the shot department in the second period, but Zach Boychuk took control of game, scoring his fourth goal in four contests, and putting Carolina up 2-1 at the 7:10 mark.

The goal apparently inspired the team, as the Hurricanes began to catch up on shots.

Brett Bellemore was sent to the box for tripping with under two minutes remaining, but Brandon Sutter put home a shorthanded goal, giving Carolina a 3-1 lead heading into the third period.

Three minutes into the third, Chris Terry was assessed a charging penalty, while Matthew Pistilli and the Wild's Marco Scandella received coincidental roughing minors.

The Canes killed off the power play, which lasted for a minute and 16 seconds before being interrupted by another roughing call on Minnesota.

As time clicked away, the teams traded power plays one more time, but neither scored.

Stefan Chaput sealed the deal with an empty netter, putting Carolina up 4-1 with just over a minute remaining. He was assisted by Drayson Bowman.

Mike Murphy registered his third win of the tournament, stopping 31 of 32 shots.

Justin McCrae and Michal Jordan sat out with injuries.

Expect more coverage over the next 24 hours.

Update: Brandon Sutter is happy with the outcome of the tournament. Hockey's Future has a short recap.

Q&A with Stefan Chaput

Stefan Chaput at the 2009 NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City
(Photo from Tracking the Storm)

Albany center Stefan Chaput talks with Holly Gunning at Hockey's Future.