Bulldogs chomp Amerks 5-2 in near empty arena.

Alexander Avstin scored his first goal as a pro, and added and assist to lead the Hamilton Bulldogs to a 5-2 win over the Rochester Americans.

The game was played in front of a crowd of just 1669 people, one of, if not the smallest crowd in franchise history.

Yannick Weber had two goals, including one on the power play, and has seven points on the season. The Swiss born defenseman has recorded at least two points in each of the Bulldogs first three games this season.

With Weber's power play goal, the Bulldogs have scored with the man advantage in each of their three games this season. The team is third in the league with a 30.8 power play efficiency.

Bulldogs captain Alex Henry and center Andreas Engqvist each had two assists.

Matieu Carle also added to the Bulldogs scoring when he one-timed a pass from Avstin past Americans goalie Jacob Markstrom. Andrew Conboy had the other goal for Hamilton.

Scott Timmins and Michael Duco scored for Rochester. The Americans wore a number five on their helmets, Tuesday night, to honour former Rochester player Craig Charron. The Americans Hall of Famer died on Tuesday after a year-long battle with lung cancer. He was 42.

Robert Mayer made 23 saves to get the win. Mayer appears to be the number one man between the pipes for Hamilton, as Curtis Sanford is out for up to three weeks after taking a puck to the throat in practice last week.

The Bulldogs travel to Winnipeg for a pair of games Thursday and Friday night against the Manitoba Moose.

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:
1. HAM - Yannick Weber - 2 (Ben Maxwell, David Desharnais) - 11:00 (PP)
2. HAM - Alexander Avtsin - 1 (Andreas Engqvist, Andrew Conboy) - 18:06

2nd Period:
3. HAM - Mathieu Carle - 1 (Alexander Avtsin, J.T. Wyman) - 4:35

3rd Period:
4. RCH - Kenndal McArdle - 1 (Scott Timmins, Joe Callahan) - 10:03
5. HAM - Andrew Conboy - 2 (Alex Henry, Andreas Engqvist) - 10:41
6. HAM - Yannick Weber - 3 (Alex Henry, Max Pacioretty) - 16:36
7. RCH - Michael Duco - 3 (Clay Wilson, Bill Thomas) - 18:10 (PP)

Scoring:
Rochester: 0-0-2-2

Hamilton: 2-1-2-5

Shots:
Rochester: 7-8-10--25
Hamilton: 9-14-9--32

Goaltending:
Hamilton: Robert Mayer (25 shots, 23 saves)
Rochester: Jacob Markstrom (32 shots, 27 saves)

Power Play:
Hamilton: 1-for-3
Rochester: 1-for-5

Attendance: 1,669

Three Stars: 1. Alexander Avstin 2. Yannick Weber 3. Andreas Engqvist