HAMILTON, Ont. - Cedrick Desjardins saw his franchise-record shutout streak come to an end, but still finished with 28 saves as the Hamilton Bulldogs cruised past the Abbotsford Heat 5-1 in American Hockey League action on Wednesday night.
Desjardins was beaten late in the third period by Abbotsford winger Riley Armstrong, a goal which ended his shutout streak at 212 minutes 37 seconds. Desjardins fell short of the AHL record of 249:51 set by Johnny Bower for Providence during the 1956-57 season.
Mikael Johansson opened the scoring 2:19 into the second period with his first goal of the season for Hamilton (15-6-5). It was Johansson's first game back after missing more than a month with a groin injury.
Grant Stevenson, who signed as a free agent with Hamilton on Nov. 23, added to the lead with his first of the season, beating Abbotsford netminder Leland Irving on a power play at 13:24. Irving finished with 31 saves for the Heat (14-12-4).
Bulldogs scoring leader Brock Trotter extended the advantage at 15:15 with his seventh of the season, as Hamilton led 3-0 after 40 minutes on the strength of 17 second-period shots.
David Desharnais' goal made it 4-0 at 5:37 of the third period on a man advantage, and Ryan Russell added his team-leading eighth goal at 10:50 while the Bulldogs were shorthanded.
Armstrong's goal with 5:14 left in the game concluded the scoring.
