Montreal Canadiens Assign Pair To Hamilton
Published on January 1, 2009 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hamilton Bulldogs News Release
MONTREAL, QC - Montreal Canadiens General Manager Bob Gainey announced today that forward Ben Maxwell and defenseman Ryan O'Byrne have been assigned to the Hamilton Bulldogs, while Hamilton Bulldogs General Manager Julien BriseBois announced today that defenceman Frederic St-Denis has been recalled from the Cincinnati Cyclones.
Maxwell, 20, made his National Hockey League debut with Montreal on December 13th, 2008 versus the Washington Capitals after being recalled from Hamilton the previous day. In seven contests with the Canadiens in 2008-2009, the 6'0", 177-pound centre went pointless with a -1 rating and two penalty minutes while averaging 9:55 of time on ice. Prior to being recalled by the Habs, the first-year professional played in 26 games with the 'Dogs and produced 20 points (eight goals, 20 assists), a +1 rating and 12 penalty minutes. Maxwell, a native of North Vancouver, British Columbia, was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the second round, 49th overall, in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.
O'Byrne, 24, returns to Hamilton, where he helped the Bulldogs capture the American Hockey League's 2007 Calder Cup Championship, for the first time since February 2008. In 22 games with Montreal this season, the 6'6", 228-pound blueliner registered three points (three assists), a -5 rating and 23 penalty minutes while averaging 15:43 of time on ice. In 55 career regular season games with the Canadiens, O'Byrne has posted 10 points (one goal, nine assists), a +2 rating and 68 penalty minutes. In 100 career regular season games with Hamilton, the right-handed defenceman has notched 20 points (two goals, 18 assists), a -4 rating and 178 penalty minutes. In 22 post-season games with the Bulldogs, all during the 2007 Calder Cup Playoffs, the Victoria, B.C. native tallied seven points (two goals, five assists), a +12 rating and 32 penalty minutes. O'Byrne, who was picked to represent the Hamilton Bulldogs at the 2008 AHL All-Star Classic, was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the third round, 79th overall, in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.
St-Denis, 22, returns to Hamilton for the third time this season. In four games with the Bulldogs, the 5'11", 190-pound defenceman has produced one point (one assist), a -1 rating and no penalty minutes. In 15 games with the ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones in 2008-2009, the native of Greenfield Park, Quebec has posted 13 points (13 assists), a +6 rating and six penalty minutes.
Maxwell and O'Byrne are scheduled to participate in Hamilton's practice today at 11:00 a.m. at Copps Coliseum and will be available for tomorrow night's game versus Syracuse. St-Denis, who will not be participating in today's practice, is expected to be available for tomorrow night's game against the Crunch.
Hamilton's next game will take place tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m., when they will host their North Division rival the Syracuse Crunch in game three of a six-game home stand. Tickets for all Bulldogs home games are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, any Ticketmaster outlet, online at www.ticketmaster.ca or through charge-by-phone at 905-527-7666.
All Hamilton Bulldogs games can be heard on the flagship radio station of the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network, Talk 820 (AM 820 CHAM). Fans can also listen to or watch every 'Dogs game on www.hamiltonbulldogs.com by clicking on the 'AHL Live' or 'Talk 820' icons on the homepage. All regular season radio and online broadcasts will begin with a pre-game show 30 minutes prior to the scheduled game time.
In operation since 1936, the American Hockey League continues to serve as the top development league for all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 82 percent of today's NHL players are AHL graduates, and more than 6 million fans have attended AHL games across North America in each of the past seven seasons.
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