AHL Texas Stars

Gameday Preview - Texas at Lake Erie

Published on February 15, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Texas Stars (21-24-2-2, 46 points) at Lake Erie Monsters (24-22-2-2, 52 points)

The Texas Stars and the Lake Erie Monsters meet for the first of four meetings this season. Wednesday's game is the ninth all-time regular season meeting in AHL history between the two clubs. Texas is 3-4-1-0 all-time against Lake Erie, including a 1-2-1-0 record at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. Dating back to October 2010, the Monsters have taken the last three meetings of the series, including sweeping a pair of home games over the Stars last year. Overall, the team is 3-1-0-0 at home and 5-3-0-0 all-time against Texas. The two teams will play two games at Cedar Park Center and one more in Cleveland to wrap up the series. All three games will be played between March 26 and April 1. Lake Erie is currently one point out of second place in the North Division and three points back of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Texas is sitting nine points behind Peoria for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Texas has three wins in its last ten games, going 3-6-1-0 over that span. The team has dropped the first two games of a three-game road trip. Prior to the road swing, Texas ended a five-game winless skid with a 6-3 win at home over Milwaukee last Wednesday. After losses in Rochester (9-4 on Friday) and Hamilton (2-0 on Sunday), the team will conclude its road swing in Lake Erie (Cleveland). The Stars are 10-16-0-1 on the road this season, having been outscored by their opponents 90-68 on the scoreboard. The team has two road wins in the last 12 attempts. The Stars are 9-15-0-2 against the West Division and 3-2-0-0 against the North Division. Texas' scoring has been spread out evenly this season, with 41 first-period tallies and 58 second-period markers. Since Dec. 3 (last 29 games), Texas has outscored the opposition 40-28 in the second period after getting outscored in the middle frame 26-18 in the previous 20 games. The Stars lead the opposition in second-period scoring with a 58-55 edge. The club has been outscored by the opposing team 156-145 for the season. Texas is ninth in the league with a 3.02 goals per game average and it ranks 27th defensively with a 3.23 goals against average. The Stars are 14-0-1-1 when leading after two periods of play, but they are 3-21-0-0 when trailing after two periods of play. The team is 10-9-2-2 in games decided by one goal this season. Texas and Manchester are tied for the AHL lead with five overtime wins this season, going 5-0-2-2 when tied after regulation. The Stars are tied for second in the AHL with ten shorthanded goals this season.

Lake Erie is playing its best hockey of the season, extending its points' streak to six-games (5-0-0-1) with a 2-1 win over Syracuse on Sunday at home. The Monsters are 6-3-0-1 in their last ten games played. The team has outscored the visitors 61-58 en route to a 12-10-1-1 mark at the Quicken Loans Arena. The team has three wins in the last four outings at home. Lake Erie relies on the first goal of the night, when scoring first the team is 16-3-0-1. When they give up the first goal, their record is 8-19-2-1. The Monsters are 11-9-0-0 within their own division and 3-8-0-1 against the West Division. Despite getting outscored in the first period, the club has outscored the opposition 89-79 in the final two periods combined. The Monsters ranks in the top ten by averaging 17.46 penalty minutes per game. In turn, only eight teams in the AHL have been shorthanded more than Lake Erie. Goal scoring has not come easy for the team, ranking fourth to last in the AHL by averaging 2.46 goals per game. The Monsters have been one of the best defensive teams in the AHL, ranking eighth with a 2.74 goals against average. Lake Erie ranks 29th out of 30 teams by averaging 27.68 shots per game. They rank in the top ten of the league by allowing 31.32 shots per game. The Monsters are 16-0-1-1 when leading two after two periods of action, but 4-20-1-0 when trailing after two periods of play. The club is a perfect 11-0-0-0 when leading after two periods of play at home. Lake Erie is 13-7-2-2 in games decided by one goal.

Texas Stars

Center Travis Morin and winger Matt Fraser lead Texas in scoring. Morin is the clubhouse leader with 34 assists and 42 points in his first 49 games played. He ranks in the top five of the AHL for assists and top ten of the league for power-play helpers. Rookie forward Matt Fraser is second in scoring with 38 points in 47 games. He leads the team with 23 goals scored and 170 shots on net. Fraser sits in the top ten of the AHL for goals scored, including ranking tied for sixth in power-play goals (9). Fraser is tied for sixth overall among all rookies in points and first in shots.

Colton Sceviour, Francis Wathier and Ryan Garbutt round out the top scorers for Texas. Colton Sceviour is second on the team with 22 assists and he is tied for third with 33 points. Sceviour has four goals and seven points in his last nine games. His is second all-time on the Stars scoring list with 105 points. Center Ryan Garbutt has 33 points (16g-17a) in 49 games. He is second on the team in goals scored and tied for third in points. He also leads the team with 86 penalty minutes, followed by Francis Wathier's 70 and Luke Gazdic's 69 minutes. Garbutt is tied for fourth in the AHL with five shorthanded points and second with four shorthanded assists. Wathier is tied for fifth overall on the team with 26 points and he is fifth with nine goals. Rookie center Scott Glennie is tied for fifth one the team with 26 points. Winger Mike Hedden has eight points over his last ten games played, scoring three goals and setting up five others.

Jordie Benn leads all defenders and he ranks in the top ten of the AHL among defensemen with eight goals. He also is first among Texas blueliners with 21 points in 45 games played. Veteran Dan Spang is second among Stars defenders with 19 points in 48 games played. He leads all team defensemen with 17 assists this year. Captain Brad Lukowich is third among Texas defensemen in scoring with 18 points in 42 games played. Brenden Dillon is second among all defensemen with 15 assists and he is first among D-men with 48 penalty minutes. Veteran defender Maxime Fortunus has 16 points in 45 games. He is the highest scoring defenseman in team history with 73 points.

Goalies Andrew Raycroft and Tyler Beskorowany split time in net for Texas. Raycroft is 7-7-1 with a 3.06 goals against average and a .896 save percentage in 15 starts for the Stars. Beskorowany is 6-12-0 with a 3.17 goals against average and a .887 save percentage.

Special Teams

The Stars have converted 46 of 232 power plays for a 19.8% conversion rate, as Texas is eighth overall in power play percentage. The Stars have killed off 156 of 188 opponents' power plays (83.0%), ranking 13th overall on the penalty kill. Texas has the fewest penalty kills in the AHL at 188. The Monsters are 16th in the AHL on the penalty kill, stopping 82.2% of their opponents' power plays. Overall, Lake Erie ranks 17th in the AHL on the power play after going 36-for-203 (17.7%).

The Lake Erie Monsters

The Monsters are without their top scoring skater, defenseman Tyson Barrie is up in the NHL with Colorado after leading the team with 24 assists and 29 points through 46 games played. The rookie is among the AHL leaders with 17 power-play assists. Center Evan Brophey is first among active skaters with 28 points in 46 games played. Brophey is third on the team with 15 assists and second with 13 goals scored. Right wing Hugh Jessiman recently left the team to sign with Abbotsford. At the time of his departure, he led the team with 20 goals scored, including a team-high seven on the power play. Jessiman also led the team with four game-winning goals and was second with 75 penalty minutes. Former second-round pick of the Avs in 2005, third-year pro Ryan Stoa sits among the top scorers for the Monsters. He is fourth overall on the team in scoring with 24 points off ten goals and 14 assists in 49 games played. He also leads the team with 127 shots on goal and a -11 rating. Despite missing games due to injury, right wing Greg Mauldin has put together nine goals and 21 points in 33 games this season. Second-year pro Mark Olver has played the last 14 games with Lake Erie after spending the bulk of the year with an injury, he has two goals and eight points.

With Tyson Barrie on recall, Cameron Gaunce becomes the team's leading producer from the blueline with 16 assists and 19 points in 49 games played. Recently required from Hershey, Danny Richmond has 11 points in 29 games played. In his first five games with the Monsters, Richmond has five assists and seven points.

In goal, Gerald Coleman has shouldered the load for team of late, starting the last eight games. Coleman is 7-2-1 with a 2.54 goals against average and a .928 save percentage. Trevor Cann has played in 25 games this season, going 9-16-0 with a 2.92 goals against average and a .902 save percentage. Goalie Cedrick Dejardins had played well until he suffered an injury. Prior to going down, Desjardins was 8-5-1. He was also among the league leaders with a 1.85 goals against average and a .941 save percentage.

Stars Recall Schultz from Idaho

The Texas Stars announced on Tuesday that forward Stephen Schultz has been recalled from the Idaho Steelheads, Texas' ECHL affiliate.

Schultz returns to the Stars after scoring two goals and totaling three points in two games with Idaho. Prior to going to the Steelheads, he scored seven goals and totaled nine points in 32 games for the Stars this season. He joined Texas in late March of 2011 after concluding a four-year career at Colorado College from 2007-11. The 24-year-old rookie played in five regular season games without registering a point for the Stars in 2010-11.

Dallas Recalls Adam Pardy From Conditioning Stint, Texas Releases Berube

The Dallas Stars announced on Thursday that the club has recalled defenseman Adam Pardy from the Texas Stars, Dallas' primary affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL). Additionally, the Texas Stars have released defenseman Mike Berube from a PTO (professional tryout agreement),

Pardy, 27, has played the last two games for Texas on a conditioning assignment, collecting four assists and a +1 rating. He set up three goals in the Stars 6-3 win at home over Milwaukee on Wednesday. Prior to being assigned to Texas, Pardy skated in 22 games for Dallas, recording one assist and 15 shots. The 6-4, 220-pound defenseman from Bonavista, NL has appeared in 169 NHL games, notching 27 points (four goals, 23 assists).

Berube played in five games for Texas, going scoreless with ten penalty minutes. He will return to the Central Hockey League's Allen Americans, Texas' CHL Affiliate. Berube played the first 29 games of the season with the Americans, scoring two goals and totaling nine points.

Texas Shuffles the Deck with A Series of Roster Moves

The Texas Stars announced last Wednesday that the Dallas Stars have reassigned forward Jake Hauswirth to Texas from the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees of the Central Hockey League. In addition, forward Stephen Schultz has been assigned by Texas to the Idaho Steelheads, the ECHL Affiliate of Texas. The Stars also announced that forward Brenden Connolly has been released from a PTO (professional tryout agreement).

Hauswirth played in 11 games for Texas earlier in the season, setting up one goal for his first AHL point. He started the 2011-12 season with Rio Grande Valley, scoring six goals and adding ten assists for 16 points in 24 games played.

Connolly played in 12 games for Texas this season, registering two assists for the Stars. At the time he joined Texas, he was third overall in the ECHL scoring race, potting 20 goals and dishing out 23 assists for 43 points in 31 games with Greenville.

LAST THREE GAMES

Texas 0 at Hamilton 2 2/12/12

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Hamilton Bulldogs 2-0 in front of 4,804 fans at Copps Coliseum on Sunday. Hamilton goalie Nathan Lawson made 39 saves for his fourth shutout of the season. Lawson stopped 15 in the first period and 13 shots in the second period to preserve the win. Bulldogs center Ryan White scored twice in the second period, helping Hamilton end its four-game losing skid. Texas goalie Tyler Beskorowany made 25 saves, as the Stars fall to 10-16-0-1 on the road this year.

Texas 4 at Rochester 9 2/10/12

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Rochester Americans 9-4 in front of 5,675 fans at the Blue Cross Arena on Friday night. The Americans scored five times in the second en route to a home victory over the Stars. Eight different Rochester skaters picked up a multi-point night in the win, led by Zack Kassian and Travis Turnbull, who both netted a pair of goals. Texas forward Mike Hedden scored once and added two assists for his first three-point night in the AHL. Rookie Matt Fraser, center Travis Morin and center Mathieu Tousignant also scored in the defeat. Rochester goalie Drew MacIntyre got the win with 24 saves. Texas goalie Andrew Raycroft suffered the loss, stopping 13 of 19 shots before he was pulled at 12:30 of the second period in favor of Tyler Beskorwany.

Milwaukee 3 at Texas 6 2/8/12

The Texas Stars defeated the Milwaukee Admirals 6-3 in front of 4,158 fans at the Cedar Park Center on Wednesday night. Center Ryan Garbutt registered a hat trick, as the Stars scored six unanswered goals in the final two periods. Three other Stars put up multi-point nights. Center Scott Glennie registered a goal and two assists, and defenseman Adam Pardy added three assists. Right wing Colton Sceviour scored a goal and an assist in the win. Texas goalie Andrew Raycroft stopped 21 of 24 shots in the win.

What's Ahead:

DATE OPPONENT TIME RADIO

Wednesday, February 15 at Lake Erie 9:45 AM 1530 AM

Friday, February 17 San Antonio 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

Saturday, February 18 San Antonio 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

* All times listed are central time

Check out the Texas Stars Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from February 15, 2012


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