WORCESTER - Goaltender Daniel Taylor stopped 37 shots in regulation and 4 of 5 shootout attempts in his first AHL start as the Manchester Monarchs edged the Worcester Sharks 4-3 in a shootout.
Following a scoreless third period and overtime session, Taylor denied four shootout snipers as center Mike Iggulden was the only Sharks player to get the puck past him. Monarchs left wing Matt Moulson and center David Meckler beat Sharks netminder Thomas Greiss for the shootout win.
Monarchs left wing Jeff Giuliano tallied his second goal in as many games at 11:25 of the first period to give Manchester the early lead. One minute and six seconds later, left wing Lukas Kaspar evened the score at 1-1.
Center Patrick Jarrett gave the Monarchs the lead back at 13:40 of the first stanza with his second goal of the season.
Midway through the second period, Worcester jumped out to a 3-2 lead with two power play goals 40 seconds apart. But the lead did not last long as the Monarchs retaliated with defenseman Brian Boyle's ninth goal of the season. Manchester went 0 for 2 on the power play.
Taylor earned his first AHL win in his debut by stopping 37 of 40 shots through 65 minutes of play. Greiss took the loss with 20 saves.
Hartford 3, Lowell 1
HARTFORD, Conn. - The Lowell Devils could not solve goaltender Al Montoya in a 3-1 loss to the Hartford Wolf Pack last night.
Looking for their first win against the Wolf Pack this season, the Devils' struggled on offense. They failed to convert on five power plays. For most of the first two periods, the game was a duel between Lowell netminder Jordan Parise and Montoya. It wasn't until 15:38 of the second that Lowell's Nicklas Bergfors broke the scoreless tie.
While the Devils were able to get the first goal of the game, the Wolf Pack would snag two quick ones with under two minutes left in the second period and take a 2-1 lead into the intermission.
The goalie stoned Devils captain Stephen Gionta on a breakaway at 13:12 and helped preserve the Wolf Pack's lead with 80 seconds left, diving across the crease to deny Barry Tallackson after a turnover left Hartford with an open net. Mike Ouellette completed the scoring with an empty-net goal at 19:46.
