Last Wednesday, the Falcons visited Syracuse. After a forgettable first period in which the Falcons dug themselves into a two goal hole, they battled back and gave up two empty netters to fall by a score of 5-2.
Friday night it was back on home ice. Home ice hasn’t been kind to the Falcons this season or last. Not just that, but there was a big crowd on hand, something else that hasn’t worked out well for the team. It didn’t help that hot and cold Anton Khudobin was red hot for the visiting Providence Bruins. The game ended up going to a shootout, with the B’s prevailing for the 2-1 win.
Week 13 and calendar 2011 drew to a close on New Year’s Eve in Hartford with a game against the Connecticut Whale. The Falcons got off to a good start, taking a 2-1 lead into the locker room after one period. The Whale came storming back, with four unanswered goals in the second and third periods, claiming a 5-2 win over Springfield for their fifth win in as many attempts against the Falcons this season.
This week, the standings look like this:
AHL NORTHEAST DIVISION STANDINGS (as of 1/1/12):
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS | GF | GA |
| Connecticut (NYR) | 33 | 19 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 42 | 106 | 94 |
| Adirondack (PHI) | 32 | 17 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 36 | 91 | 86 |
| Albany (NJD) | 34 | 14 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 35 | 80 | 105 |
| Springfield (CBJ) | 32 | 14 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 30 | 90 | 93 |
| Bridgeport (NYI) | 33 | 12 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 28 | 88 | 111 |
Anton Blomqvist returned to the lineup this week for the first time since October 16th when he got injured against the Manchester Monarchs. Similar to when Maksim Mayorov recently returned to the lineup, it may take a few games to get up to full speed, but his return was timely for the Falcons. Speaking of Maks, in his last four games he has notched two goals and added two assists.
Tomas Kubalik is another player who missed some time due to injury. Kubie is regaining his rookie form, when he led the Falcons in scoring. He has registered four goals in his last four games.
Falcons Individual Stats:
| Player | Pos. | GP | G | A | Pts. | +/- | PIM |
| Martin St. Pierre | C | 30 | 6 | 24 | 30 | +5 | 24 |
| Cam Atkinson | RW | 30 | 15 | 10 | 25 | +6 | 18 |
| Nick Drazenovic | C | 17 | 5 | 15 | 20 | -1 | 12 |
| Alexandre Giroux | LW | 22 | 10 | 8 | 18 | +1 | 20 |
| Dane Byers | LW | 25 | 8 | 9 | 17 | -7 | 67 |
| Ryan Russell | C | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 15 |
| Ryan Garlock | C | 29 | 3 | 8 | 11 | -4 | 13 |
| Wade MacLeod | LW | 22 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 0 | 8 |
| David Savard X | D | 23 | 2 | 9 | 11 | +1 | 22 |
| Tomas Kubalik | RW | 22 | 7 | 3 | 10 | -4 | 18 |
| Brent Regner | D | 31 | 1 | 8 | 9 | +2 | 6 |
| Matt Calvert | LW | 19 | 3 | 5 | 8 | -3 | 10 |
| Nick Holden | D | 24 | 3 | 5 | 8 | -4 | 14 |
| Cody Goloubef | D | 21 | 0 | 8 | 8 | -7 | 29 |
| Andrew Joudrey | C | 30 | 2 | 5 | 7 | -1 | 2 |
| Brett Lebda | D | 20 | 1 | 6 | 7 | -2 | 10 |
| Cody Bass | C | 10 | 2 | 4 | 6 | -1 | 35 |
| Maksim Mayorov | LW | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 | -2 | 6 |
| Mike Thomas X | RW | 21 | 1 | 3 | 4 | -6 | 16 |
| Adam Mair | C | 20 | 0 | 4 | 4 | -3 | 41 |
| Aaron Bogosian | LW | 24 | 2 | 1 | 3 | -1 | 22 |
| Ray Macias X | D | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | +3 | 0 |
| John Moore X | D | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -2 | 2 |
| Teddy Ruth | D | 21 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -3 | 11 |
| Tim Spencer | LW | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 |
| Oliver Gabriel X | LW | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -5 | 0 |
| Dalton Prout | D | 26 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 25 |
| Patrick Cullity (with Springfield) | D | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 4 |
| Manny Legace (with Springfield) | G | 19 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Chaz Johnson X | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Chad Costello | F | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 |
| Darcy Campbell X | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Paul Dainton X | G | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Anton Blomqvist | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Allen York | G | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steven Delisle X | D | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +2 | 8 |
| Danny Taylor X | G | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
GOALTENDING:
Manny Legace checks in at 11th best goalie in the AHL. Legace’s goals against average is 2.34, with a .919 save percentage. Legace has started the last 10 games in a row for the Falcons.
Transactions This Week:
Dec. 30: Dane Byers (LW) returned by Columbus
Dec. 31: Mike Thomas (RW) loaned to Chicago Express (ECHL)
Dec. 31: David Savard (D) recalled by Columbus
Injury Report:
Adam Mair, Nick Holden, Nick Drazenovic, Cody Bass, Wade MacLeod and Cody Goloubef are all currently out of the lineup.
Nick Drazenovic is dealing with the aftermath of a concussion. Cody Bass, according to Scott Howson, injured a shoulder and will likely miss the rest of the season.
Things won’t be getting any easier for the Falcons when they take to the ice for the first weekend of the new year. Friday night, the Birds will host the Worcester Sharks at The Nest in a 7:30 game. Saturday night, it’s back to the XL Center in Hartford for another game against the Connecticut Whale. The Whale return to Springfield on Sunday afternoon to finish off the home and home set at 3PM.