The Portland Pirates put together 60 solid minutes Saturday night to cruise to a 4-0 victory against the Providence Bruins, the AHL's best team, before 5,492 fans at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

After blowing three-goal leads twice before eking out a 6-5 win against Albany Friday night, the Pirates never let up in recording their sixth win in the last seven games.

"We feel we have good team speed and we have a strong forechecking team." Portland Coach Kevin Dineen said. "It's a matter of us taking more pride throughout a game and taking some pride in the defensive side of things."

Bobby Ryan, in his second game with the Pirates after spending three weeks in the NHL with Anaheim, scored two goals and had an assist.

"It's just nice to be here and to put it away," Ryan said. "This is a heck of a team, and every single guy chipped in in their own way tonight, and I was just the guy who put the puck in the net."

Mike McKenna, making his sixth start in the last seven games, made 25 saves to post his second shutout of the season.

Rookie defenseman Brendan Mikkelson jumped into the offensive play early, and it paid off handsomely.

He slammed a left-handed shot inside from the right side of the slot inside the near post for his fifth goal of the season 5:34 into the game after Ryan sent a pass from the bottom of the left circle across the front of the crease to him.

Less than three minutes into the second period, Ryan scored on a breakaway set up by Petteri Wirtanen's outlet pass. Ryan sent goalie Tukka Rask down to his right with several moves before lifting the puck over his left shoulder.

"I've had a tough time in shootouts, and I said to myself after the last couple of tries, 'I've got to start shooting,'..." Ryan said. "The move was just to freeze him and it did, and I just put it over the top of him."

Wirtanen extended his points streak to seven games.

At 7:46, Drew Miller, who has five goals in his five games with the Pirates after spending nearly four months with Anaheim, tipped in defenseman Eric Weinrich's pass from the top of the slot inside the left post for a power-play goal.

Ryan completed the scoring 8:55 into the third period with a shot from the outer edge of the right circle for his 13th goal as Rask lay on his back inside the crease.

"It was a never-look-back situation for us tonight," Ryan said, "and that was just what we needed."

NOTES: With Gerald Coleman scratched from the lineup in a precautionary health move, J.P. Levasseur, called up from the ECHL's Augusta Lynx, served as backup goalie.

Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 725-8795 or at:

pbetit@pressherald.com