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Hamilton Bulldogs Weekly

January 28, 2013 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hamilton Bulldogs News Release


THIS WEEK'S GAME SCHEDULE/BROADCASTS (All times EST)

Friday, February 1st vs. Grand Rapids Griffins, Copps Coliseum, 7:30 p.m. - Funny 820 AM/Cable 14

Saturday, February 2nd at Toronto Marlies, Ricoh Coliseum, 3 p.m. - Funny 820 AM

BULLDOGS AT A GLANCE

Record : 14-21-1-5, 34 points ... Home: 8-6-1-2, 19 points, Road: 6-15-0-3, 15 points ... Standings: 5th North Division ... 15th Western Conference ... Last 10 games: 3-4-0-3 ... Longest winning streak: 2 (Oct. 13-19, Dec. 8-11) ... Longest losing streak: 5 (Dec. 16-26, Jan. 11-21) ... Leading scorers: C Gabriel Dumont (39 GP 13-11-24) ... C Michael Bournival (37 GP 3-10-13) ... D Nathan Beaulieu (40 GP 2-11-13) ... D Frederic St-Denis (38 GP 3-9-12) ... Goaltenders: Cedrick Desjardins (19 GP 6-11-2, 2.77 GAA, .908 Save %, 2 SO), Robert Mayer (22 GP 8-9-3, 3.15 GAA, .893 Save %, 0 SO) ... Power play - Home: 9-for-70, 12.9 percent, 25th AHL ... Road: 8-for-99, 8.1 percent 30th AHL ... Overall: 17-for-169, 10.1 percent, 30th AHL ... Penalty killing - Home: 5-for-72, 93.1 percent, 1st AHL ... Road: 32-for-118, 72.9 percent, 30th AHL ... Overall: 37-for-190, 80.5 percent, 24th AHL ... Goals for per game: 2.12, 30th AHL ... Goals against per game: 3.17, 27th AHL

OPPONENTS AT A GLANCE

GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS (Affiliation: Detroit Red Wings) - Head Coach: Jeff Blashill ... Record: 24-14-2-2, 52 points ... Home: 12-9-2-1, 27 points ... Road: 12-5-0-1, 25 points ... Standings: 1st Midwest Division ... 2nd Western Conference ... Leading scorer: RW Gustav Nyquist (42 GP 14-26-36) ... Leading goaltender: Petr Mrazek (23 GP 14-7-1, 2.42 GAA, .911 Save %, 0 SO) ... Power play: 37-for-187, 19.8 percent, 7th AHL ... Penalty killing: 35-for-183, 80.9 percent, 23rd AHL ... Goals for per game: 3.24, 5th AHL .... Goals against per game: 2.83, 17th AHL ... Last game: Jan. 26 L 5-2 vs. Houston ... Last 10 games: 4-4-1-1 ... The Griffins have played 18 road games, tied with the Abbotsford Heat and Hershey Bears for second-fewest in the AHL. The Rochester Americans have played 17 games away from home. Five teams have played 24 road games to date ... Grand Rapids is 5-3-0-1 against North Division foes ... The Griffins' 136 goals scored are third-best in the conference, five shy of the Charlotte Checkers and two behind the Americans ... Grand Rapids owns the AHL's third-best power play on the road, having scored 18 goals in 83 opportunities for an efficiency rating of 21.7 percent ... The Griffins are 24th in the AHL at killing penalties on the road, having allowed 16 goals in 78 shorthanded situations (79.5 percent) ... The Griffins are 11th in the AHL in penalty minutes, averaging 18:38 minutes per game ... The Griffins' five shootout wins are tied with four other teams for most in the league ... D Chad Billins and RW Gustav Nyguist represented the Griffins at the AHL All-Star Classic at Providence, R.I. ... C Joakim Andersson has two goals and six assists for eight points in his last five games ... C Landon Ferraro has recorded 16 points, including eight goals, over his last 17 games. He has three shorthanded goals this season, two behind the league leader, Derek Grant of the Binghamton Senators. Ferraro has six shorthanded points and leads the league in that category ... C Riley Sheahan leads AHL rookies with two shorthanded goals ... The Griffins' seven shorthanded goals are tied for third in the AHL, four behind the Senators ... The Griffins are 15th in the AHL, averaging 30.07 shots per game. They are fifth in the league in shots allowed, surrendering an average of 27.45 per game ... The Griffins' 11 goals against the host Rockford IceHogs on Jan. 19 marked a league high for this season ... LW Jeff Hogan turns 35 on Feb. 1 while LW Triston Grant marks his 26th birthday the following day ... All-time series: 35-26-1-2-5 ... This season: Second of four meetings. The Bulldogs posted a 4-3 win via shootout at Grand Rapids in their season opener on Oct. 13. The Bulldogs visit Grand Rapids on March 8 ... First-round NHL picks: D Mark Mitera (Anaheim, 2006) C Riley Sheahan (Detroit, 2010) ... Connections: D Mark Mitera played 76 games for the Bulldogs in 2011-12 ... C Riley Sheahan is a native of St. Catharines

TORONTO MARLIES (Affiliation: Toronto Maple Leafs) - Head Coach: Dallas Eakins ... Record: 23-13-2-2, 50 points ... Home: 13-3-0-1, 27 points ... Road: 10-10-2-1, 23 points ... Standings: 2nd North Division ... 5th Western Conference ... Leading scorer: LW Ryan Hamilton (38 GP 18-9-27) ... Leading goaltender: Jussi Rynnas (12 GP 6-5-1, 2.22 GAA, .927 Save %, 3 SO) ... Power play: 40-for-210, 19 percent, 9th AHL ... Penalty killing: 26-for-170, 84.7 percent, 8th AHL ... Goals for per game: 3.33, 4th AHL ... Goals against per game: 2.60, 8th AHL ... Last game: Jan. 16 L 3-1 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton ... Last 10 games: 5-4-0-1 ... The Marlies will visit the Rochester Americans on Friday night ... Toronto is 13-7-2-0 against North Division opponents ... The Bulldogs' visit marks the opening of a four-game homestand for the Marlies, who will have played all but one of their previous nine games away from Ricoh Coliseum ... The Marlies had a six-game home winning streak stopped in a 3-1 loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins last Saturday ... The Marlies are fifth in the AHL in attendance, averaging 7,180 fans over 17 home dates. The Marlies and the Bulldogs have each played the fewest home games in the league ... The Marlies average 16.73 penalty minutes per game, 15th in the league ... The Marlies have the AHL's fourth-best power play at home, with 23 goals in 99 opportunities for an effectiveness rating of 23.2 percent ... Toronto home-ice penalty killers are sixth in the league, having allowed nine goals in 78 shorthanded situations (88.5 percent) ... The Marlies average 28.50 shots per game, 24th in the AHL. The allow an average of 27.65 shots per game, sixth in the league ... The Marlies have yet to lose a game in regulation in which they lead after the first or second period. They are 31-0-3-3 in such contests, including a log of 21-0-0-2 at home ... C Tim Connolly has three goals in as many games for the Marlies after being sent down by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Connolly, 31, is seeing his first AHL action after 697 National Hockey League games with the New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres and Maple leafs ... C Joe Colborne has 12 points, including three goals, in his last nine games ... HC Dallas Eakins and LW Ryan Hamilton represented the Marlies at the AHL All-Star Classic at Providence, R.I. Hamilton has recorded 10 goals and six assists for 16 points in his last 16 games. He is second in the AHL in shooting percentage with 18 goals in 71 shots (25.4 percent) ... All-time series: 41-35-0-7-8 ... This season: 10th of 12 meetings. The Bulldogs posted a 4-1 win at home in the opener on Oct. 19, but lost 5-0 at Toronto the following night. The Marlies prevailed 5-4 in overtime at Hamilton on Oct. 26, but the Bulldogs skated to a 6-3 win at Copps Coliseum on Nov. 16, but fell 6-1 the following day at Ricoh Coliseum. The Marlies won 3-2 at Air Canada Centre on Dec. 26 and skated to a 6-0 win at Ricoh Coliseum on Jan. 2. The Bulldogs posted a 2-1 win at home on Jan. 8 but lost 3-2 via shootout to the visiting Marlies on Jan. 19. The Bulldogs return to Toronto on Feb. 6... First-round NHL picks: RW Carter Ashton (Tampa Bay, 2009), D Joe Colborne (Boston, 2008), C Tim Connolly (New York Islanders, 1999), D Jake Gardiner (Anaheim, 2008) ... Connections: None

TRANSACTIONS

Jan. 22 - D Mike Commodore released from Professional Tryout contract

Jan. 23 - RW Mike Blunden returned from Montreal Canadiens (NHL)

Jan. 26 - RW Mike Blunden recalled by Montreal Canadiens (NHL)

INJURY REPORT

C Blake Geoffrion (depressed skull fracture, November 9th vs. Syracuse at Montreal) is out indefinitely ... C Joonas Nattinen (shoulder, Dec. 28 vs. St. John's) is out indefinitely ... RW Aaron Palushaj (shoulder, December 11th vs. Lake Erie) is out one week ... D Greg Pateryn (fractured elbow, November 2nd at Rochester) is day-to-day

PRACTICE/MORNING SKATE SCHEDULE

Monday, Jan. 28: Off Day

Tuesday, Jan. 29: Off Day

Wednesday, Jan. 30: Off Day

Thursday, Jan. 31: Practice - 4 pm (Copps Coliseum)

Friday, Feb. 1: Morning Skate - 10 am (Copps Coliseum)

Sunday, Feb. 3: Practice - 12 pm (Copps Coliseum)

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

January 21st: at Rochester - Americans 6, Bulldogs 3

The Americans got goals from six different players as they beat the Bulldogs 6-3 in a Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee that began at 1:05 p.m. The Americans raced out to a 3-0 first-period lead, but Louis Leblanc and Zack Stortini brought the Bulldogs within one at the end of the frame and Joey Tenute tied the game 24 seconds into the second period. Rick Schofield scored the eventual winning goal 83 seconds later and Evan Rankin and Brian Flynn also scored. Robert Mayer faced 34 shots in the Bulldogs net while David Leggio made 21 saves for the Americans. Both teams were 1-for-2 on the power play.

January 26th: at Cleveland - Bulldogs 2, Monsters 1 (SO)

Stefan Chaput scored the deciding goal in a nine-round shootout as the Bulldogs snapped a club-record 10-game road losing skid with a 2-1 win. Gabriel Dumont opened the scoring with his team-leading 13th goal of the season, a shorthanded strike at 17:10 of the second period. Bill Thomas tied the game on the power play at 6:47 of the third period. Cedrick Desjardins was beaten by the Monsters first shootout participant, Mike Sgarbossa, but stopped the next eight shooters. Desjardins made 22 saves to collect his first win since Dec. 11. Sami Aittokallio faced 33 shots in the Lake Erie net. The Bulldogs were 0-for-6 on the power play while the Monsters went 1-for-7.

TEAM NOTES

After playing a total of eight home games in December and January, the Bulldogs will play nine of their 12 February games at home. The Bulldogs, who have only played 17 home games, tied with the Toronto Marlies for fewest in the AHL, are averaging 6,324 fans per game, ninth in the league ... The visit by the Griffins will mark the first time in nine games that the Bulldogs are meeting an opponent outside the North Division. The Bulldogs were 2-3-0-3 in that run against division foes ... The Bulldogs have allowed six goals in a game three times this season ... The Bulldogs are 8-13-1-4 against North Division opponents and 11-16-1-5 against Western Conference foes ... The Bulldogs are 8-4-1-5 in one-goal games ... The Bulldogs are 9-0-0-0 when leading through two periods, joining the Texas Stars as the only AHL teams yet to lose when holding a lead through 40 minutes. The Bulldogs are 4-0-0-0 when leading at home through two periods ... The Bulldogs' win at Lake Erie was their first on the road since a 6-4 decision over the Rockford IceHogs on Dec. 15. The Bulldogs' subsequent 10-game road losing streak matched a club mark set from Jan. 14 to March, 2002 ... That win was also the Bulldogs' second via shootout this season. The first came in their season opener at Grand Rapids on Oct. 13 when they prevailed 4-3 ... The Bulldogs are 2-1-5 in eight extended-time games this season. They have yet to win in overtime while suffering one loss in that fashion ... The Bulldogs are averaging 19.95 penalty minutes per game, eighth in the AHL ... The Bulldogs average 28.71 shots per game, 23rd in the AHL while surrendering 29.90 per game, 13th in the league ... The Bulldogs parted way with AC Ron Wilson on Jan. 22. Wilson, 56, spent nine seasons with the Bulldogs over two stints from 2003-09 and 2011-13.

PLAYER NEWS

RW Mike Blunden played one game between assignments with the Montreal Canadiens. He had seven goals and 14 points in 37 games prior to his latest summons from the Canadiens ... D Mike Commodore had two assists and 26 penalty minutes in 17 games ... G Cedrick Desjardins's 22-save performance in a 2-1 shootout win over the Lake Erie Monsters last Saturday night snapped a personal 11-game losing skid. The win was his first since he made 29 saves in a 1-0 win over the visiting Monsters on Dec. 11. Six of those losses came in one-goal games ... With RW Brendan Gallagher still with the Canadiens, C Gabriel Dumont was named to the Western Conference roster for the AHL All-Star Classic at Providence R.I. Dumont leads the Bulldogs in goal and points with 13 and 24 respectively. His 11 assists fare tied for the team lead with D Nathan Beaulieu. Dumont has scored two of the Bulldogs' three shorthanded goals this season and his two game-winning goals are tied for the team lead. Dumont has four goals and two assists for six points in his last seven games ... C Louis Leblanc's goal at Rochester was his fourth of the season and broke a 19-game goal drought dating to a 3-0 road win over the Abbotsford Heat on Dec. 1. The goal was also his first point in 11 games ... RW Zack Stortini's goal at Rochester was his first of the season and his first point since earning an assist in the season opener, a 4-3 shootout win over the host Grand Rapids Griffins on Oct. 13. He had nine goals in 74 games last season for the Milwaukee Admirals. Stortini is eighth in the AHL with 142 penalty minutes ... C Joey Tenute has four points, including two goals, in six games.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

C Blake Geoffrion turns 25 on Feb. 3

FEBRUARY HOCKEY MONTH IN STEELTOWN FLEX PACK

With nine home games in the month of February, the Bulldogs have launched a 10-game Hockey Month in Steeltown flex pack including the following games:

Friday, Feb. 1 vs. Grand Rapids Griffins 7:30 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 8 vs. Chicago Wolves 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 9 vs. Texas Stars 7 p.m.

Tuesday, Feb. 12 vs. Toronto Marlies 7:30 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 15 vs. Hershey Bears 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 16 vs. Houston Aeros 7 p.m.

Monday, Feb. 18 vs. Rochester Americans 3 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 24 vs. Milwaukee Admirals 3 p.m.

Tuesday, Feb. 26 vs. St. John's IceCaps 7:30 p.m.

The flex pack also includes vouchers redeemable for one ticket in the $26, $20 or $17 price range for any February home game or the regular-season finale on April 21st at 3 p.m. against the Rochester Americans which is also Fan Appreciation Day.

The pricing structure for the Hockey Month in Steeltown flex pack is as follows:

Gold: $160

Red: $130

Blue: $110

For more information on the Hockey Month in Steeltown flex pack, call 905-529-8500 or 1-866-DOGS-TIX, e-mail ticketing@hamiltonbulldogs.com or visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com .

FEBRUARY THEME GAMES

The Bulldogs have a number of theme and event games planned in February including:

Saturday, Feb. 9 vs. Texas Stars 7 p.m.

Pink in the Rink in support of women's cancer

Friday, Feb. 15 vs. Hershey Bears 7:30 p.m.

Military Night as the Bulldogs salute the men and women of Canada's armed forces

Saturday, Feb. 16 vs. Houston Aeros 7 p.m.

Pepsi Night

Monday, Feb. 18 vs. Rochester Americans 3 p.m.

Family and Faith Game

Sunday, Feb. 24 vs. Milwaukee Admirals 3 p.m.

Tim Hortons Jamboree

BULLDOGS MERCHANDISE

Fans can purchase Bulldogs merchandise during all home games at the "Dawg House" store located behind section 114 on the concourse level at Copps Coliseum. In the store, fans can find hats, t-shirts, jackets, replica jerseys, foam fingers, foam 'Bone Heads', and other select novelty items for sale. 2012 AHL Outdoor Classic gear will also be available for a limited time.

THE BULLDOGS ON THE AIR

Fans can listen to and watch all 'Dogs games on www.hamiltonbulldogs.com . Live coverage with the team of play-by-play broadcaster Derek Wills (all home and away games) and colour commentator Al Craig (all home and select away games) will begin with the Pioneer Pre-Game Show 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start time.

All Bulldogs games are broadcast on www.AHLLive.com.

STAY CONNECTED WITH THE BULLDOGS

Fans can follow the Bulldogs online and watch game highlights, behind-the-scenes video and get breaking news and feature stories at HamiltonBulldogs.com. Fans can get the latest Bulldogs news and information on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bulldogsAHL and follow play-by-play broadcaster Derek Wills at www.twitter.com/dogsplaybyplay .

Fans can "Like" the Bulldogs' official face book page at www.facebook.com/hamiltonbulldogs and see game highlights and other video features at the Bulldogs' official YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/bulldogstube .

TICKET INFORMATION

2012-2013 Hamilton Bulldogs season tickets, Pioneer Flex Pack tickets, group tickets and single-game tickets are on sale now. For as little as $10 per game, you can enjoy the many benefits of being a 'Dogs season ticket holder including reserved seating for all home games at Copps Coliseum, the option to redeem unused tickets for any regular season game, discounts on team merchandise and access to exclusive season ticket holder-only events with the team. Convenient payment plans are available.

For more information on how to join our team by becoming a Hamilton Bulldogs season ticket holder, or for more information on Pioneer Flex Pack tickets or group tickets, call 905-529-8500 or 1-866-DOGS-TIX, e-mail ticketing@hamiltonbulldogs.com or visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com . 'Dogs single-game tickets are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, any Ticketmaster Outlet, online at www.ticketmaster.ca, or by calling 905-529-8500 or 1-866-DOGS-TIX.

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