Opponents This Week: (Oct. 20, 21): The Marlies begin their three game road swing tonight against the Abbotsford Heat, AHL affiliate of the Calgary Flames, at 10:30 p.m. (ET). The Heat currently ranks third in the North Division with a 3-0-2-1 record for nine points, two points ahead of the Marlies. Abbotsford enters the week as one of the few teams to have not lost in regulation. The Flames moved their affiliate to Abbotsford to begin the 2009-10 season after two seasons of play in Moline, Illinois as the Quad City Flames. The Marlies will play back-to-back games against Abbotsford on Tuesday and Wednesday, marking the first two of eight meetings against the Heat this season. Last season, the Quad City Flames finished fifth in the West Division with a 36-31-6-7 record, for 85 points and missed the playoffs by one point. On October 13, Abbotsford recorded its franchise's first win, beating the Manitoba Moose 4-2. Leland Irving stopped 28 shots in the victory and former Vancouver Canuck Jason Jaffray was awarded the first star after netting the game winner. Abbotsford's Kris Chucko currently leads the team in scoring with eight points (four goals, four assists) through six games. Chucko was drafted 24th overall by the Calgary Flames in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Chucko is one of five first round draft picks currently on the Abbotsford roster. Heat head coach, Jim Playfair won the Calder Cup as the bench boss of the Saint John Flames in 2000-01. The Heat will play five games this week, starting with two against Toronto and then hit the road to play Grand Rapids (twice) and Chicago to close out the week.
(Oct. 24): The Marlies will face the Grand Rapids Griffins, AHL affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings, on Saturday at the Van Andel Arena at 7:00 p.m. The Griffins currently post a record of 1-4-0-0 for two points and rank seventh in the North Division. The match-up will be the second of six meetings between the two division rivals. In their first meeting of the season, the Marlies bested the Griffins 3-2 in a thrilling come-from-behind victory. Andre Deveaux scored with 36 seconds remaining in the third period to steal a win for the Marlies, who managed to erase a 2-0 first period deficit. Former Marlie Jeremy Williams opened the scoring for the Griffins with his first goal of the season, which was also his 100th goal as a professional. So far this season the Griffins have been outscored 11-20 and both their power play and penalty kill ranking 27th in the AHL. Grand Rapids, who started the season with five road games, will finally make their home debut this Friday night versus Abbotsford. Griffins' rookie Tomas Tatar earned an assist in his debut on Sunday at the age of 18, becoming the youngest player to skate in the AHL this season. Marlies assistant head coach, Derek King played four seasons in Grand Rapids (1999-2000; 2002-04), and ranks seventh on their all-time games played list with 264. King ranks third on their all-time goals list (73), fourth in assists (130) and points (203), and second with a plus-71 rating.
MARLIES HEADLINES:
The Past Weekend: The Marlies dropped both games against the Rochester Americans over the weekend. On Friday night in Rochester, the Marlies allowed four second period goals and lost 5-2. Andrew Engelage made his first career AHL start and Christian Hanson scored his first career AHL goal in the loss. On Saturday at Ricoh Coliseum, the Marlies jumped out to a 3-0 first period lead but the Americans chipped away and eventually forced overtime. In the extra frame the Marlies had a 4-on-3 advantage but allowed an odd-man break and David Brine fired home the winner for Rochester. The loss pushed the Marlies losing streak to three games.
Munny In The Bank: The Marlies signed goalie Adam Munro to a PTO contract last Thursday. On Friday night in Rochester he made his first appearance of the season in a relief effort. He turned aside all 10 shots he faced against the Americans in the third period. Munro suffered his first loss of the season on Saturday against Rochester, allowing four goals on 24 shots. Munro appeared in 26 games last season for the Marlies, compiling a record of 12-11-2 with a 2.42 GAA and two shutouts.
Starting Off Strong: The Marlies opened their 2009-10 regular with two consecutive victories over Hamilton and Grand Rapids. Toronto has dropped their past three games and has been outscored by a 14-8 margin over that span. The Marlies knocked off the Hamilton Bulldogs 3-2 in a shootout on October 4 to open their season. On October 10 against the Grand Rapids Griffins, the Marlies erased a 2-0 first period deficit and beat their division-rivals 3-2 with a late third period tally from Andre Deveaux. Toronto currently ranks fifth in the North Division with a record of 2-2-1- 0 for five points. The Marlies will play their next three games on the road beginning tonight in Abbotsford.
Devo Time: Andre Deveaux has recorded the game winning goal in both of the Marlies first two wins of the season. On Sunday, October 4 against Hamilton, Deveaux netted the shootout-out winner in the fourth round in Toronto's 3-2 victory. Last Saturday, the Freeport, Bahamas native broke a 2-2 tie against the Griffins with 36 seconds remaining in regulation to give the Marlies the 3-2 win. Deveaux was named the game's first star of the night on October 10 against Grand Rapids for his game-winning tally. In five games this season, Deveaux has recorded two goals and one assist with six penalty minutes.
Jiri Back At It: Jiri Tlusty has picked up right where he left off from a season ago. Tlusty has recorded at least a point in three of his past four games. He currently leads the Marlies in points with five (three goals, two assists). He's notched a team-high, two multi point games so far this season. On October 11 against the Rockford IceHogs, he scored two goals in Toronto's 5-3 loss. Last season he ranked second on the team and 19th in the AHL with 66 points (25 goals, 41 assists).
Gettin' Ziggy With It: The Marlies announced on Monday that they signed forward Mike Zigomanis to a professional try-out contract. The Toronto, Ontario native played in 22 games last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, collecting six points (two goals, four assists) and 27 penalty minutes. Zigomanis has skated in 189 career NHL games with Carolina, St. Louis, Phoenix and Pittsburgh.
Reading Report: The Toronto Maple Leafs ECHL affiliate, the Reading Royals currently rank second in the East Division with a 0-1-0-1 record for one point. Stefano Giliati scored his first career ECHL goal on Saturday and also added an assist in the Royals shootout loss. Eric Werner racked up two assists on Saturday and currently ranks tied for first on the team in helpers. Joe Ryan has skated in one game, registering zero points and a minus-one rating.
Welcome Back: The Toronto Marlies opened their 2009-10 season at Ricoh Coliseum on Sunday, October 4 against the Hamilton Bulldogs with a 3-2 shootout victory. Kyle Rogers and Ben Ondrus each scored for Toronto and Andre Deveaux notched the shootout winner. Joey MacDonald was solid in net, earning second star honours, making 32 saves in the victory. In total, the Marlies will play five home games and four road games during the month of October.
In The Community: The Toronto Marlies will be participating in their first of seven community practices on Monday, October 26 at the Bob Fallis Arena in Bradford, Ontario. The team will hit the ice at 6:00 p.m. for an hour long practice, followed by a full-team autograph signing.
Behind The Bench: The Marlies have a brand new coaching staff this season. Dallas Eakins was named the head coach of the Toronto Marlies on August 4, 2009. Eakins previously served as the Director of Player Development for the Toronto Maple Leafs last season. Gord Dineen and Derek King will both be behind the bench as Eakins' assistants. Dineen spent the 2008-09 as the head coach with the Iowa Chops. King returns to the organization after playing 161 games for the Maple Leafs from 1997 to 2000 during which he scored 45 goals and 53 assists for 98 points.
Making Their Debut: The Marlies dressed nine new players in their home opening game against the Hamilton Bulldogs on October 4. Defensemen Brendan Mikkelson, Carl Gunnarsson, Brennan Evans and Juraj Mikus; forwards Richard Greenop, Greg Scott, Christian Hanson and Tyler Bozak and goaltender Joey MacDonald all made their Marlie debuts.
Starting in Scotland: The Marlies played three games in Edinburgh, Scotland to begin their preseason. Toronto dropped their opening match to the Hamilton Bulldogs 1-0. The Marlies bounced back with a 6-1 victory over the hometown Edinburgh Capitals in their second game. In the Gardiner Cup final matchup against the Bulldogs, the Marlies lost 3-1. Andre Deveaux and Ryan Hamilton led all scorers with three points each.
MARLIES QUICK HITS:
- Robert Slaney notched his first career AHL points (two assists) on Friday night in Rochester in his AHL debut.
- Christian Hanson scored his first career AHL goal on Friday night in Rochester. In five games this season, Hanson has tallied one goal and two assists.
-Toronto has only allowed one third period goal so far this season through five games. The Marlies have outscored their opponents 5-1 in the final period.
- Ryan Hamilton is currently on a three-game point streak (one goal, three assists), the longest streak of the season for the Marlies. Hamilton ranks second on the team in points with four.
- Brennan Evans scored his first goal as a Marlie on Friday night in Rochester. Evans currently ranks first on the team in penalty minutes with 29 and first with a plus-three rating.
- Alex Foster and Brennan Evans were named assistant captains prior to their season opening game; while Ben Ondrus began his third season as captain of the Marlies. Ondrus scored the game tying goal mid-way through the third period on October 4 versus Hamilton.
Reebok/AHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE
For the week ending October 18, 2009, the Toronto Marlies nominated forward Ryan Hamilton for consideration as the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week. Hamilton's impact was felt in both of Toronto's games over the weekend, racking up a goal and two assists in two games. Hamilton notched a two-point (one goal, one assist) game on Saturday in the Marlies 4-3 overtime loss and was named the game's third star. On Friday night in Rochester he chipped in with an assist. Hamilton is currently on a three-game point streak (one goal, three assists).
MARLIES ON THE WEB
Follow the Marlies all season long for the latest, most up-to-date information on their official web site, torontomarlies.com
MARLIES UPCOMING PROMOTIONS:
Friday, October 30 vs. Adirondack Phantoms - Live Band / Halloween Night
Sunday, November 1 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton - Veterans Night
MARLIES RECAP:
Friday, October 16 at Rochester
Rochester's Special Teams Too Much for Marlies
Marlies Goals: Evans (1), Hanson (1)
Americans Goals: Brine (2), Taffe 2 (4), Repik (3), Garrison (1)
Three Stars: 1. Garrison (RCH), 2. Taffe (RCH), 3. York (RCH)
Recap: The Marlies dropped their second straight game on Friday night, 5-2 to the Rochester Americans in their first road game of the season. After falling behind 4-0 to the Amerks, Brennan Evans' slap shot put Toronto on the board mid-way through the second period. Christian Hanson scored his first career AHL goal to close out the game in the third period. Andrew Engelage made his AHL debut, making nine saves on 14 shots. Robert Slaney scored his first career AHL points with two assists. Toronto allowed two power play goals and one shorthanded marker in the three-goal loss. Adam Munro started the third period for the Marlies and turned aside all 10 shots he faced.
Saturday, October 17 vs. Rochester
Marlies Can't Hold Onto 3-0 First Period Lead
Marlies Goals: Hamilton (1), Deveaux (2), Foster (1)
Americans Goals: Repik 2 (5), Wilson (2), Brine (2)
Three Stars: 1. Brine (RCH), 2. Repik (RCH), Hamilton (TOR)
Recap: The Marlies couldn't hold onto a 3-0 first period lead, dropping their third straight game on Saturday afternoon. Ryan Hamilton, Andre Deveaux and Alex Foster all scored for Toronto in the opening frame. Hamilton and Deveaux's goals were both scored on the power play. The Americans chipped into the Marlies lead with two second period goals, and then tied it in the third period with a shorthanded tally by Clay Wilson. While the Marlies were on the power play in overtime, David Brine won it for the Amerks with a slap shot that beat Toronto starting goalie Adam Munro. The Marlies power play went 2-for-7 in the game, but also allowed two shorthanded goals. Hamilton finished the game with a goal and an assist and Munro made 20 saves in the loss.
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