Former Vipers Goaltender Hammond Records First Career NHL Win:

Former Vernon Vipers goaltender Andrew Hammond Made his first career NHL start Wednesday vs the Montreal Canadians recorded 42 saves in a 4-2 win over the Habs for his first career NHL victory.

Hammond is in his second season with the Binghamton Senators attended the Ottawa Senators development camp in July before being released from the Sens Training camp was recalled from the American Hockey League on January 29th 2015.

Hammond made his NHL debut on February 27th 2014 vs the Detroit Red Wings. Hammond was the backup for Senators starting goaltender Robin Lehner that night but made his NHL debut after Lehner was pulled late in the 2nd period giving up six goals on fifteen Detroit shots. Hammond would finish the game playing just over thirty four minutes stopping all eleven Red Wing shots in a 6-1 loss to Detroit.  Hammond saw his second taste of NHL action played the third period Monday, allowing two goals on five shots in a 6-3 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes.

Hammond played parts of two years in Vernon (2007-2009) after coming over in a trade with the Surrey Eagles during the 2007-08 season. In 52 regular season games with the Vipers Hammond posted a (33-15-1) record recording 6 shutouts.

Andrew Hammond's Player Profile:

http://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=38007

This was in the Ottawa Citizen Newspaper:

Andrew Hammond gets the win in his first NHL start

Ken Warren, Ottawa Citizen

Published on: February 18, 2015
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Senators 4 Canadiens 2

It wasn’t exactly Carey Price vs. Pekka Rinne.

Or Carey Price vs. Craig Anderson, for that matter.

No, if there was a marquee banner outside Canadian Tire Centre before the Ottawa Senators 4-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens Wednesday, the goaltending match-up would have read Andrew Hammond vs. Dustin Tokarski, in reference to the non-household names manning the creases.

Hammond, making his first career start in the Senators net due to injuries to Craig Anderson and Robin Lehner, was outstanding under the microscope. He made 42 saves, registering his first big-league win at the tender age of 27.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau, fresh from another recall from Binghamton, broke a 1-1 tie late in the second period.

Mark Stone padded the lead to 3-1 on a power play with 10:33 remaining. Stone’s goal was necessary, as the Canadiens’ Nathan Beaulieu scored his first career NHL goal with 5:35 remaining, putting plenty of tension into the final minutes.

Kyle Turris salted away Hammond’s victory, scoring into an empty net with 1:31 remaining after Stone intercepted a P.K. Subban pass at the Senators blueline.

Tokarski, giving Canadiens number-one goaltender and MVP candidate Carey Price a breather to prepare for games against playoff-bound opponents, was also solid, making 36 saves.

The Senators and Canadiens may be worlds apart in the standings – Montreal prepping for the post-season and Ottawa looking to the future – but electricity was in the air. Along with plenty of nastiness.

Naturally enough, it was another big night for Pageau against the Canadiens. Pageau, recalled Tuesday from the minors on Tuesday, deflected an Erik Karlsson pass past Tokarski with 1:47 left in the second period.

Pageau has three goals in 24 games, two of them against Montreal. He also, famously, scored a playoff hat trick against Montreal during their 2013 playoff series.

After Milan Michalek opened the scoring by tucking a puck through Tokarski at the 11:26 mark of the second, Max Pacioretty replied only eight seconds later, beating Hammond between the legs on a breakaway.

The final few minutes of the second period were heated, the Canadiens particularly upset about an unpenalized hit from Eric Gryba on Lars Eller. Back in the 2013 playoffs, Gryba hit Eller with a punishing open ice hit. Eller was gone for the series and Gryba received a two-game suspension.

It was an impressive effort from Hammond, who owns the Senators net for now.

And maybe for awhile yet. Anderson (bruised right hand) and Lehner (suspected concussion) have shown no signs of returning soon.

They, along with winger Clarke MacArthur (suspected concussion) could be out for days. Weeks? Months? Who knows? There have been no updates from the Senators on the condition of any of their injured players.

In the scoreless first period, both Hammond and Tokarski both made big stops and received big-time help from the posts.

Brandon Prust and Subban hit the post in the first. Hammond held his ground on a Pacioretty first period breakaway, keeping the game in a scoreless deadlock.

Tokarski, meanwhile, was aided by a Michalek deflection that clanged off the iron. He also caught a break when Mike Hoffman and Bobby Ryan lost control of the puck on breakaway attempts and when Subban slid in front of a Pageau shot following an impressive shift by the Pageau-Curtis Lazar-Erik Condra line.