Portland makes itself at home
Published: November 13, 2009, 12:37 am
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All it took for the Portland Pirates to end their two-game losing streak was some home cooking, some 500-plus miles away from their actual home.
The Buffalo Sabres' AHL affiliate visited HSBC Arena on Thursday and came away 6-3 winners over the Sabres' old affiliate, the Rochester Americans. It was the first meeting between the two teams since Buffalo switched affiliations prior to last season. Portland improved its "home" record to 5-2, while it's just 1-8 on the road.
Goaltender Jhonas Enroth, fresh from being sent down by the Sabres earlier in the day, earned the win, making 23 saves in front of a sparse crowd announced at 4,685.
"Any time Jhonas gets exposed to [Sabres goaltenders coach] Jim Corsi and gets to work on his technique and structure, those are good things," Pirates coach Kevin Dineen said. "The benefit that he not only got an NHL game during his stay here, but that exposure to our organizational goalie coach was a big thing."
Also big for Portland was the bounce-back effort of its special teams. After struggling in a 6-1 loss to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Wednesday, the Pirates scored on the power play and while short-handed.
Mark Mancari, who didn't sign with the Pirates until near the end of training camp after searching unsuccessfully for an NHL job, opened the scoring in the first period on the power play. Mancari's slap shot from the point was set up after a touch pass from rookie Tyler Ennis.
"I got a great pass from Tyler and I capitalized on it," said Mancari, whose sixth goal tied him with Ennis for the team lead.
Portland's power play entered the game ranked 21st in the AHL with a 12.5 percent success rate.
"They've been an issue for us and to get one — right off the bat, that gives you a little confidence," Dineen said.
After jumping ahead, 1-0, Portland showed the sluggish legs that are to be expected after arriving at 3 a.m. the day of a game.
Rochester, which had a franchise-record tying 11-game winning streak stopped, tied the game just 17 seconds after Mancari scored. The Amerks then took the lead with just 28 seconds left in the first period on a tip-in by Jamie Johnson off a point shot from Jason Garrison.
The Pirates' special teams responded in the second when 5-foot-9, 156-pound rookie Paul Byron scored short-handed. Coming in on a two-on-one break, Byron took a pass from Cody McCormick and beat Rochester rookie goalie Alexander Salak.
The Pirates weren't done. Mancari, voted the game's first star, set up the next goal by Philip Gogulla after some pretty three-way passing with linemate Ennis.
If Mancari has been upset about not landing an NHL job, he didn't show it on the ice Thursday.
"There was no hard feelings on my part," Mancari said. "I love the organization."
The Pirates chased Salak with their fourth goal. Former Amerk Derek Whitmore's shot from an impossible angle along the left somehow made it between Salak's pads. Portland added its fifth goal on a breakaway with just three seconds left in the second period. Amerks defenseman Keaton Ellerby tripped skating backward near his own blue line, allowing McCormick to walk in alone and beat Chris Beckford-Tseu.
The teams traded goals in the third period, with Rochester's Chris Taylor, a former Sabre, making it 5-3. The Pirates iced it with Kyle Wanvig's empty-net goal with 1:17 left.
"This was an important win for us," Mancari said. "Playing the No. 1 team in the league, it was a good sign of things to come."
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