The Monsters began the game with fresh legs and plenty of speed as the two teams raced to a scoreless first period.

Many of the same trends continued into the second period as the teams skated hard and yielded no points until halfway into the set. Chris Stewart broke the scoreless tie at the 10:27 mark on a pass from T.J. Hensick. Stewart was planted to the left of the circle when Hensick made a crisp pass from the deep right slot. Also assisting on the goal was Eric Healey, who recorded his 11th assist on the season.

Hensick returned to the Monsters just hours before Friday’s game, having been called up to the Colorado Avalanche following the November 24 home matchup against Manitoba. His presence was felt early on in Friday’s contest, as evidenced by his helper on Stewart’s tally.

“Chris and I had chemistry before I left. We’re close off the ice so I think that’s why we play so well on it,” said Hensick.

The third period began with a quick score from veteran Moose winger Mike Keane at the 0:46 mark. Keane’s marker was assisted by Pierre-Cedric Labrie and Alexandre Bolduc.

Michael Grabner followed up Keane’s tally with one of his own at the 6:44 mark to take the lead. Assists on the Grabner goal were credited to Milan Gajic and Danny Groulx.

To add to the 2-1 lead, the Moose scored an empty net goal via the blade of Bolduc at the 19:23 mark of the game.

“We had a 1-0 lead going into the third period. There’s nothing wrong with winning a game 1-0. We just made a couple of mistakes, a couple of breakdowns defensively and they capitalized. Basically, in the third period I think we got outworked,” said Monsters head coach Joe Sacco.

Monsters netminder Mike Wall turned away 34 of the 36 shots that he saw while his counterpart Cory Schneider stopped 25 of 26 on the night.

The Monsters return to action Saturday night at The Q versus the Rochester Americans at 7:30 p.m.

Sights and Sounds
View photos	Hensick Interview	Watch Sacco Interview
Three Stars
Michael Grabner (MAN)	Mike Keane (MAN)	Alexandre Bolduc (MAN)
Quote, Unquote
“It’s something that I would like to have back. It was a tough break after a 1-1 game. We wanted to get a point out of that at least.” - Monsters goaltender Mike Wall | More Quotes