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TRENTON, N.J., -- The Trenton Devils had a memorable week in which they went 3-0-0-1 at home to push them up to third place in the ECHL's American Conference, North Division. The week was highlighted by the retirement of Scott Bertoli’s No. 19 jersey and an offensive display against the South Carolina Stingrays Saturday night. The Devils will see just one opponent in three games this week, the Wheeling Nailers.

 

DEVILS BARELY GIVE ROYALS A SNIFF IN 4-1 WIN: The Trenton Devils dominated the Reading Royals throughout the game en route to a 4-1 win Wednesday night at Sovereign Bank Arena. Trevor Kell continued his recent hot streak by scoring the first goal of the game 7:53 into the contest. Kevin Cormier and Tim Judy picked up the assists, their first points of the season. With just under five minutes to go in the first period, Brock Hooton scored with a backhander from the high slot to tie the game at one. Jeff Prough answered back 28 seconds later with his team-leading 21^st goal of the season, giving the Devils the lead for good. In the second period, Jeremy Akeson stole the puck from Gerard Miller and fed it to Dave Leaderer, who walked to the left circle and fired home his eighth goal of the season at 12:24. Matt Radoslovich completed the scoring with his 10th goal of the season at 19:22, a wrist shot from the slot that beat Royals goaltender Michael Ouzas.

 

CASTONGUAY RETURNS TO DELIVER WIN:Eric Castonguay scored just moments into his return and assisted on the deciding goal to vault the Trenton Devils to a 2-1 win over the Wheeling Nailers Friday night. Castonguay wasted no time in his return to the ice, scoring 1:29 into the contest. He picked up a loose puck in front of the crease and slipped it between the legs of Nailers goaltender Curtis Darling. The Nailers answered back quickly, scoring 3:13 later on an Aaron Clarke goal. The Wheeling forward took a pass from Kelly Miller and fired the puck top shelf while the Devils were being called for a delayed penalty. Later in the first period, Darling was called for a delay of game penalty, as he played the puck outside the trapezoid, giving the Devils a two-man advantage. They capitalized as Matt Cohen scored his 10th goal of the season on a rebound from a Castonguay shot at 15:58. The Devils stood tall defensively for the rest of the contest, allowing just two shots in the third period. The Devils completed the night with a 2-1 victory, pushing them into third place in the ECHL’s American Conference, North Division.

 

DEVILS HONOR BERTOLI’S NO. 19, THEN SCORE NINE: -- An offensive barrage led by a Brad Snetsinger hat trick catapulted the Trenton Devils to a 9-7 victory over the South Carolina Stingrays Saturday night in front of 6,013 at Sovereign Bank Arena. The Devils honored Scott Bertoli by raising his No. 19 jersey to the rafters in a 40-minute pre-game ceremony. Jeff Prough started the scoring 9:30 into the game by picking up the loose puck from the far half-boards and ripping a shot between the legs of Stingrays goaltender Jonathan Boutin. Snetsinger scored the first of his three goals at 11:38 by taking a feed from Eric Castonguay across the crease and slamming it home for his 14^th of the season. Prough added another tally on the power play at 15:47 by whacking at a loose puck in the crease, eventually putting it into the net. The Stingrays came out storming in the second period with two goals of their own, making it a one-goal game 3:42 into the stanza. However, Castonguay started the Devils' next flurry of goals by roofing a shot from the far circle at 4:49, his 15^th of the season. Kevin Cormier even got into the act, scoring his first goal as a Trenton Devil at 6:02. Snetsinger dangled the puck next to the net and centered it to Cormier, who banked it in to give the Devils their three-goal cushion back. Snetsinger continued his good play with his second goal and fourth point of the night at 10:02. After serving a penalty for hooking, Snetsinger streaked out of the box and took a drop pass from Prough, firing the puck past Boutin. The Stingrays came back with three straight goals of their own, getting back to within one 3:43 into the third period. Jeremy Akeson would score his 12^th goal of the season at 6:04 to answer back and make it a 7-5 Trenton lead. Akeson managed to find open real estate past Boutin for the strange goal from the near corner. Snetsinger completed his first career hat trick at 9:10, taking a cross-ice feed from Dan Eves and slamming the puck home to capitalize on the Devils' second power play goal of the night. Still, South Carolina would not go away, as they scored twice to make it an 8-7 game with 1:55 left in regulation. It would take a goal from a former teammate of Bertoli to put the game out of reach. Jim Henkel, who played with Bertoli for two seasons in Trenton, streaked in on the left wing into the Stingrays zone and slipped the puck past Boutin to ice the game for Trenton with 57 seconds left, a memorable 9-7 win on the night that "The Franchise" was honored.

 

DEVILS COME BACK TO EARN A POINT: Kelly Miller scored the deciding goal in the sixth round of the shootout for the Wheeling Nailers as they defeated the Trenton Devils, 5-4, at Sovereign Bank Arena Sunday night. The Devils were able to earn a point after climbing back from a three-goal deficit. Bryan Ewing started the scoring 12:46 into the contest with his 34^th goal of the season. He assisted on Billy Ryan's first professional goal at 17:01 to give Wheeling an early two-goal advantage. Just 56 seconds later, Brad Snetsinger followed up on his hat trick from the previous night by flipping a shot over the left shoulder of Nailers goaltender Jordan Alford, his 17^th goal of the season. The second period started poorly for the Devils as they gave up two early goals to the Nailers. Jordan Morrison scored 25 seconds into the stanza and Ewing added his second goal at 2:57, resulting in a switch in goal for the Devils as Charlie Effinger came in relief of Gerald Coleman. The Devils picked up their level of play in the middle of the second, and were duly rewarded, as Scott Bartlett found a loose puck to the right of Alford and fired it in for his fourth goal of the season at 10:55. Jeremy Akeson pulled the Devils to back within a goal on the power play, as the power forward took the puck from behind the net and wrapped it in past Alford at 15:13. Matt Cohen forced overtime with 6:47 left in regulation as he ripped a shot off the glove of Alford and into the net on the power play, his 11^th goal of the season. Although the Devils controlled the final 25 minutes of play, outshooting the Nailers 25-8 in that stretch, they would fall in the shootout. With the score tied at two in round six, Miller was able to beat Effinger stick side to finish off the Devils.

 

THEY GOT THEIR MONEY’S WORTH: The Devils and Stingrays put on an offensive display in front of 6,013 at Sovereign Bank Arena Saturday night, the largest crowd of the season. The game produced the most combined goals (16) in team history, and it was the fifth time that Trenton scored nine goals in a game, the first since November 11, 2006 in a 9-1 win against the Dayton Bombers.

 

THE DEVILS FORGET WHAT LOSING AT HOME FEELS LIKE: Despite losing in a shootout at home Sunday evening, the Devils have earned a point in each of their last 15 games at Sovereign Bank Arena, going 13-0-1-1 since their 4-3 loss against the Cincinnati Cyclones on December 28. The Devils have outscored their opponents, 63-37, in those 15 games.

 

QUICK HITS: Brad Snetsinger has 19 points (8g, 11a) in seven games during the month of February...Matt Cohen leads ECHL defensemen with 10 power play goals...Eric Castonguay has eight points (2g, 6a) in the three games since his return.

 

UPCOMING GAMES

 

Tuesday, February 24, 7:00 p.m. -- Devils vs. Wheeling Nailers

Saturday, February 28, 7:35 p.m. -- Devils at Wheeling Nailers

Sunday, March 1, 4:05 p.m. -- Devils at Wheeling Nailers

 

The Devils face the Wheeling Nailers three times this week, with a weekday game at home and two on the road in Wheeling. The Nailers hold the season series advantage at 4-2-0-1, and are currently in fifth place of the ECHL's American Conference, North Division, four points behind the third place Devils. Bryan Ewing, who leads ECHL rookies with 35 goals, finally scored against the Devils in Sunday's game. The Devils were the last team in the division to allow a goal to Ewing.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

 

Tuesday, February 24, 7:00 p.m. -- Dollar Hot Dog Night at Sovereign Bank Arena

 

Fans attending the game can purchase hot dogs for a dollar from various concession stands during the Devils’ game against the Reading Royals.

 

Wednesday, February 25, 1:30 p.m. -- Gear Up for Safety/Face Off for Fitness at Trenton, NJ

 

Trenton Devils Athletic Trainer Michael Bronstein and a Trenton Devils player will visit the students of Monument School in Trenton, NJ to teach them about healthy eating and exercise habits and the importance of wearing protective gear while playing sports. The Face-Off for Fitness and Gear Up for Safety programs are two of the three programs making up the Trenton Devils P.L.A.Y. Program, sponsored by NJEA.

 

Practice/Game Schedule: (subject to change)

 

Tuesday, February 24 -- Pre-game Skate at Sovereign Bank Arena, 10:00 a.m.

 

Game vs. Wheeling -- 7:00 p.m.

 

Wednesday, February 25 -- Practice at Grundy Recreation Center, 10:00 a.m.

 

Thursday, February 26 -- Practice at Grundy Recreation Center, 10:00 a.m.

 

Friday, February 27 -- Practice at Grundy Recreation Center, 10:00 a.m.

 

Travel to Wheeling

 

Saturday, February 28 -- Pre-game skate at WesBanco Arena, 11:15 a.m.

 

Game @ Wheeling -- 8:05 p.m.

 

Sunday, March 1 -- Game @ Wheeling -- 4:05 p.m.

 

Return to Trenton

 

Monday, March 2 -- TBD

 

DEVILS GAME BROADCASTS: Tune in as Paul Roper brings you all of the Devils' hockey action live Saturday and Sunday on www.trentondevils.com, courtesy of B2 Networks. Video broadcasts are available for a charge of $7 per game, while audiocasts are free of charge. A cable or DSL Internet connection and Windows Media Player 9 are required to view the games.

 

Along the Boards returns this Wednesday! Join Paul Roper with Trenton Devils coaches and players live from the Lawrence Grill at the Quaker Bridge Mall in Lawrenceville, NJ. Fans are invited to come out to the show, which starts at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 25. The show is streamed online at the Devils' official website, www.trentondevils.com, courtesy of B2 Networks.

 

--devils--