I’m down too, Pucky. Also going to miss you if the rumors are true… (Photo: Doug Kerr/flickr)

It wasn’t a good weekend for the Whale as they lost both of their games in regulation to the Albany Devils on Friday and Portland Pirates on Saturday by scores of 3-2 and 5-1. Kris Newbury and Christian Thomas had the goals against the Devils with Marek Hrivik getting the loan goal against the Pirates.

I’m not going to sit here and rehash the games because (1) they lost and (2) well they weren’t pretty so I’m sure no one really wants to re-live them. If you do, here are video highlights of both:

» Continue reading “Whale Go Out With A Whimper”

Brandon Mashinter scored the goal that got the Whale their only point of the weekend. (Photo: Chris Rutsch/flickr)

The Whale entered the home stretch to the playoffs this weekend with their last 3-in-3 of the regular season, all games coming on the road. On Friday morning, they had a playoff spot. By Sunday night, they were clinging so tightly to it as this was definitely a weekend the boys would like to forget.

Friday night the Whale were in Manchester for a match-up with the Monarchs. The game started well as Chris Kreider scored a beautiful power play goal late in the first period with assists to Benn Ferriero and Kris Newbury. Unfortunately that would be all the Whale could muster as the Monarchs scored three unanswered goals (Weal, Pearson and an empty-netter to Kozun) over the last forty minutes to take the 3-1 victory.

» Continue reading “Not A Good Weekend For The Whale”

Is someone headed to NYC so he can put this jersey on again instead of a green one? (Photo: clyde/flickr)

So we’re stuck between the lockout ending and the season beginning meaning there isn’t a whole lot going on at the moment. Therefore you get to read what I like to call a stream of consciousness regarding our organization (i.e. a bunch of random thoughts/info that has nothing to do with one another).

Bear with me, I promise to make it worthwhile.

» Continue reading “Time For Some Babbling On The Rangers & Whale”

OT loss + Shutout Win = 3 out of 4 points and a deserving stick salute! (Photo: @kaboom23/twitter)

Yes the NHL lockout is over. That doesn’t mean we are going to stop talking about the Whale. It just means our recaps may become more weekly rather than daily. (Side note: If anyone is interested in covering the Whale full-time for the site, by all means contact me.)

Speaking of the Whale, it was a pretty good weekend for the boys as they grabbed five out of a possible six points. It started on Friday as they shutout the Adirondack Phantoms at home. You can read about that game here.

Saturday nights’ rematch against the Phantoms in Adirondack didn’t go as well as but it wasn’t a total loss. Lineup for the Whale remained the same with Cam Talbot back in net. The teams combined for 42 penalty minutes, which included two fights, so it was your typical Rangers-Flyers game.

» Continue reading “Whale Gain Points In Weekend Games”

Ugh. Another one who has to bite his old team. Can the Whale stop losing players who have the ability to come back and haunt them? (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

The Whale hoped to end 2012 on the right foot by finally beating the Portland Pirates on their third try. They were well on their way to doing so when disaster struck and to that this Whale fan has one thing to say – Good riddance 2012! Hopefully 2013 will be a better year for you boys!

As for the game, no lineup changes for the Whale…but that is probably because they have no extra players to switch out as the only player on the roster not playing at the moment is Dylan McIlrath, who is serving the second game of his two-game suspension.

The Whale got the first power play of the game a little over five minutes in and while they got a few chances, they weren’t able to get one past Chad Johnson. (Yes, the same Chad Johnson who manned the Whale net last season.) Six and a half minutes later, the Whale took their first penalty. Thirty seconds later, the Pirates went back to the box leading to a minute and a half of 4-on-4 hockey.

» Continue reading “Whale Fans: Good Riddance 2012!”

The guy in blue is in the AHL right now. Being that he was going against the Rangers top defense pair last year, something tells me he shouldn’t be. Him scoring two goals in the first 7 minutes of the game tonight confirms that thought. (Photo: Robert Kowal/flickr)

Tonight the Whale were in Bridgeport for a Wednesday night game against the Sound Tigers. Unfortunately their best Wednesday night scorer the past few weeks is in Ufa, Russia at the moment. Looks like they needed him.

Couple of roster changes as Jason Missiaen returned from Greenville to backup Cam Talbot with Bryan Hince heading back down without playing a single minute. On defense, Mike Vernace replaced Logan Pyett. The forward lines remained the same.

As for the game itself, the Sound Tigers were wearing their jerseys dedicated to the victims of the Sandy Hook shooting. You can see pictures here. The Whale will be wearing these patches on their jerseys for the remainder of the season. To say this game had a little more meaning would be an understatement.

» Continue reading “Third Period Comeback Falls Short”

Two goals, two assists and a fight for Newbury the past two days. I’d say he had a good weekend. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

The Whale had two games this weekend and then got to go home and spend time with their families. Two wins would’ve been ideal. Unfortunately they have to settle for a split.

Two roster changes to note. First as mentioned earlier in the week, J.T. Miller officially left the team to join Team USA for the World Juniors tournament. Tommy Grant slotted into his place. On defense, recent call-up Steven Delisle (pronounced duh-lil) replaced Mike Vernace who was a healthy scratch. You can learn more about Delisle here.

» Continue reading “Whale Split Weekend Games, Head to Christmas Break”

Way to get back on the right track boys! (Photo: @irishecho1/twitter)

There is a saying that it’s not how you start, but how you finish. Tonight the Whale had a decent start against the Worcester Sharks. They had an even better finish.

A couple of lineup changes to note. First, the Whale made a roster change earlier in the day when they sent Jason Missiaen to the ECHL then signed Bryan Hince to a PTO and brought him up to backup Cam Talbot. Not sure if this move was related to Missiaen’s play or if they just wanted to get him some playing time.

There was also a change at forward as Shayne Wiebe replaced Tommy Grant. I missed the beginning of the game so honestly have no idea why Grant was out. He’s been playing well so I doubt he was a healthy scratch. Hopefully it’s minor and he’s back soon.

» Continue reading “Big Third Leads Whale To Victory”

Since I couldn’t find a picture of Miller, congrats Tessier on your first goal of the year! (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

The best thing about AHL hockey? You never know who is going to be hero or when but when you go into the third period tied, you know someone is going to be. Tonight it was a former first round draft pick playing in his rookie pro season. He couldn’t have picked a better time since the Rangers brass was in the stands watching.

First some news regarding the lineup. The opening lineup for the Whale included Cam Talbot in net, Sam Klassen and Sean Collins on defense and Kris Newbury between Chad Kolarik and…CHRIS KREIDER! Honestly the Rangers keep dodging bullets on the injury front. I’m not complaining but I’m worried at some point we won’t get this lucky. With Kreider being okay, the lineups were the same as the weekend.

» Continue reading “J.T. Miller Wins It For Whale”

Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay… (Photo: Melissa Andus)

Last weekend, the Whale took six out of a possible six points. From hat tricks to last second goals, it was a good weekend. This weekend? Not so much as the Whale took only one of a possible six points and saw a player going down with an injury.

Friday saw the Whale dropping a 4-2 decision in Providence against the Bruins. Chad Kolarik continued to find the back of the net adding his seventh and eighth of the season after scoring a hat trick last week. Unfortunately, he was the only one who could get a puck past Niklas Svedberg. Kris Newbury assisted on both goals.

» Continue reading “Not A Good Weekend For The Whale”