First Place Worcester Sharks Hit The Road
February 8, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release
Top 3!
#1 Dennis McCauley records first professional hat trick in 8-4 win at Springfield on Wednesday!
#2 Danny Groulx has first four point game in his career (2-2-4) in 8-4 win over Falcons on Wednesday!
#3 Tyson Sexsmith makes 21 stops in first career shutout in victory over Devils on Friday!
Last Week: (2-2-0-0) 4pts, 4gp
Wed. 2/3 W Worcester SHARKS 8 @ Springfield Falcons 4
Fri. 2/5 W Lowell Devils 0 @ Worcester SHARKS 3
Sat. 2/6 L Providence Bruins 5 @ Worcester SHARKS 3
Sun. 2/7 L Worcester SHARKS 2 @ Providence Bruins 6
Next Week:
Fri. 2/12 Worcester SHARKS @ Bridgeport Sound Tigers - 7:00 p.m.
Sun. 2/14 Worcester SHARKS @ Manchester Monarchs - 3:00 p.m.
Rewind the Tape:
2.3.10 - Worcester 8 - Springfield 4 - W - DCU Center
Dennis McCauley doubled his season goal total with his first professional hat trick as the Sharks won a wild affair against the Springfield Falcons 8-4 at the Mass Mutual Center on Wednesday night. Danny Groulx extended his point streak to seven games with two goals and two assists, Benn Ferriero had a goal and two assists and Steven Zalewski had three assists in the Sharks 30th victory of the season. The Sharks scored three power play goals in a game that featured 76 penalty minutes as Alex Stalock made 25 saves in net for Worcester in the victory.
2.5.10 - Worcester 3 - Lowell 0 - W - DCU Center
Tyson Sexsmith stopped all 21 shots he faced and the Worcester Sharks once again came through on their promise to win the game as they knocked off the Lowell Devils, 3-0. Andrew Desjardins scored the game-winner early in the second period while Danny Groulx extended his point streak to eight games with a goal and an assist. Dennis McCauley two points (1-1-2) as Worcester outshot the Devils 37-21. The Sharks tied a season high with a point in eight straight games (7-0-1-0).
2.6.10 - Worcester 3 - Providence 5 - L - DCU Center
Providence used three third period goals to come from behind and knock off the Sharks, 5-3 in a physical contest in front of a sellout crowd at the DCU Center in Worcester. With the loss, the Sharks' eight-game point streak (7-0-1-0) came to an end. Steven Zalewski had a goal and an assist to become the first Sharks player to reach the 50-point plateau on the season and Danny Groulx extended his point streak to nine games (4-12-16) with a second period assist.
2.7.10 - Worcester 2 - Providence 6 - L - Dunkin Donuts Center
The Providence Bruins scored four goals in an 130 second span in the second period as the first place Sharks dropped their second straight meeting with their Route 146 rivals at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence by the score of 6-2 on Super Bowl Sunday. Benn Ferriero tied a Sharks record with his third shorthanded goal of the season and Matt Jones scored his 2nd of the season in a game that featured 77 penalty minutes and a near brawl during the warm up skate. The Sharks allowed a season high 46 shots on goal and gave up nine power play opportunities for the 2nd straight game.
Sharks in the Atlantic:
The Sharks are currently swimming in 1st place with 66 points (31-16-2-2) in the Atlantic Division through 51 games with an one point advantage over the second place Monarchs (Sharks have two games in hand) and a two point edge over the third place Devils (Sharks have two games in hand). The Sharks lead the 4th place Pirates by five points and the 5th place Wolf Pack by nine points. Worcester has an 11 point advantage over the 6th place Sound Tigers and a 13 point cushion over the 7th place Bruins (53 points). The 8th place Springfield Falcons (45 points) round out a very choppy Atlantic Division. This is the latest the Sharks have ever been in first place in their history.
400 WINS!
*400 WINS!....With the 4-1 victory vs. Springfield on November 1st, head coach Roy Sommer became just the 4th coach in AHL history to reach the 400 win plateau.
AHL COACHING WINS - ALL-TIME
1. Fred "Bun" Cook 1937-56 19seasons 1,171GP 636 WINS
2. Frank Mathers 1956-85 18seasons 1,256GP 610 WINS
3. John Paddock 1981-2009 15seasons 1,107GP 585 WINS
4. Roy Sommer 1998-current 12th season 931GP 424 WINS
*Worcester Sharks Head Coach Roy Sommer, who plays a major role in developing players for the San Jose Sharks, is currently the longest-tenured coach (12th season) in the American Hockey League. His current regular season record after the win is now: 424-393-56-58.
*In Coach Sommer's first AHL victory.... The Kentucky Thoroughblades defeated the Albany River Rats 6-4 at the Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky on October 17th 1998. Coincidentally, Assistant Coach David Cunniff recorded an assist as a member of the River Rats in the hockey game.
*Assistant Coach David Cunniff has joined Coach Sommer in 267 of the 424 victories (62%).
Shark Bites:
*Captains for the 2009-10 season: Captain Ryan Vesce (2nd year), Assistant Captains Derek Joslin (2nd year) and Mike Moore (1st year).... T.J. Trevelyan, Joe Callahan, Steven Zalewski, Frazer McLaren, and Dwight Helminen have also worn the "A" on their jerseys.
*From east to west..... The Sharks already have ELEVEN players that have seen action to both the AHL and NHL this season (McLaren, Zalewski, Vesce, Joslin, McGinn, Couture, Callahan, Ferriero, Mitchell, Demers, and McCarthy). The Sharks had 11 players accomplish that feat last season. Logan Couture, Ryan Vesce, Benn Ferriero, Jason Demers, and Frazer McLaren have each recorded their first NHL goals this season. Torrey Mitchell and Dwight Helminen are currently (Feb 8) on recall to San Jose. The Worcester Sharks have had 58 CALL-UPS this season to San Jose.
*You always remember your first..... Dennis McCauley (10/10), John McCarthy (10/9), Brandon Mashinter (10/9), Logan Couture (10/10), Dean Strong (10/30), and Nick Petrecki (1/23) have all scored their first professional regular season goals this season.
*32.... Since a 3-1 loss in Portland on November 20th, the Sharks are 23-6-2-1 in their last 32 games with 49 of a possible 64 points. (.790)
*Quickest to 31 wins... the Sharks hit the 31 win plateau in game #49 this season on February 5th. The Sharks hit 31 wins on March 6th last season in game #61, on April 12th in game #79 in 2007-08, and on March 16th in game #67 in 2006-07.
*55 shots... the Sharks set an AHL high this season with 55 shots on goal vs. the Bruins on Saturday, January 9th... the highest total in Sharks history... The Sharks had 21 shots in the 1st, 15 in the 2nd, and 19 in the 3rd...Danny Groulx had ten shots in the game and Benn Ferriero had eight.
*The Comeback.... The Sharks trailed 5-1 with just over 23 minutes left against the Pirates on Sunday, January 10th before scoring FIVE unanswered goals to win in overtime.... The four goal deficit victory tied a Sharks record.
*Road Warriors!.... the Sharks are 9-3-0-1 in their last 13 road games.... The Sharks have played the fewest games on the road this season (21)... the Sharks play their next five games on the road and nine of their next 12 away from the DCU Center.
*Best PP on Road... the Sharks boost the best power play on the road this season at a 23.2% rate. Overall, the Sharks power play ranks 9th in the AHL (18.8%).
*Home Cooking!.... the Sharks are 14-3-2-0 in their last 19 games at the DCU Center... Worcester has played the most home games this season in the AHL (30).
*Kick off the New Year!... the Sharks end January with a 9-2-2-0 record... good for their best month in franchise history!
*Sharks rule the Atlantic... the Sharks have 25 WINS in Atlantic Division games (25-14-2-2) the 2nd most wins in the AHL against their own division.
*3rd BEST in AHL... the Sharks have the 3rd best winning percentage in the AHL with a.647 clip; trailing the Bears (.800), and the Bulldogs (.708).
*Firsts this Week... Dennis McCauley scored his first pro hat trick in Springfield on Wednesday... Danny Groulx recorded his first pro four point game on Wednesday in Springfield...Tyson Sexsmith recorded his first pro shutout with 21 saves vs. the Devils on Friday... Sexsmith also added his first pro point with an assist on Friday.
*Desjardins likes going FIRST... Andrew Desjardins leads the Sharks with SEVEN first goals this season... Andrew has 13 goals this season to surpass his eight goal total last season, his first in the AHL.
*Point per game.... The Sharks have FOUR players averaging a point per game.... Couture (1.36pts per game), Benn Ferriero (1.20), Ryan Vesce (1.14), and Zalewski (1.00). Jamie McGinn (.850) and Danny Groulx (.803) are close behind.
*First period advantage.... Worcester is outscoring their opponents 47-38 in the first period, trail 58-59 in the 2nd even at 58-58 in the third period. The Sharks are 17-2-0-1 when leading after twenty minutes of play this season.
*Extra, Extra.... The Sharks are 3-2 in OT this season (McGinn, Couture, and Helminen) after going 7-1 last year in the overtime period.
*Young Guns....The average age of the Sharks roster is 23 (4th youngest team in the AHL on opening night) which includes 13 rookies, five 2nd year players and two third year players. At the age of 28, Danny Groulx is the oldest while Nicholas Petrecki at 20 years old and six months is the youngest.
*Massachusetts... The Sharks have FIVE players born and raised in Massachusetts (John McCarthy - Andover, Corey Quirk - Brockton, Dennis McCauley - Billerica, Joe Callahan - Brockton, and Benn Ferriero - Essex)
*Streakers... Ryan Vesce has a FIVE game point streak (3-6-9)...Couture FOUR games (4-2-6).... Ferriero TWO games (2-0-2).... McCauley a TWO game fighting major streak.
*Logan among rookies... Despite only playing 33 games, Couture is 2nd in the AHL in rookie scoring with 45 points (18-27-45)... 1st among rookies with 18 goals....4th among rookies with 27 assists.
*Logan among everyone... Couture is 15th in the AHL in points scored (18-27-45).... Logan leads the AHL with EIGHT game winning goals in just 33 games played.
*Between the pipes.... Rookie Alex Stalock leads the AHL with 27 wins and 1st in minutes played with 2364 and 4th in saves with 971.
*Need to score 1st... Worcester is 22-4-0-1 (.833) in 27 games they have scored the first goal of the game... the Sharks are just 9-12-2-1 when allowing the first goal... the AHL average winning percentage is.753% when scoring the first goal of the hockey game.
*All four years....Defenseman Derek Joslin is the only Sharks player to suit up in all four seasons in Worcester.
*Can't score if you don't shoot.... The Sharks are 2nd in the AHL with 35.80 shots per game, including a franchise record 55 shots on goal against the Bruins on Saturday, January 9th.... Danny Groulx is 1st among AHL defensemen with 156 shots on goal.
*Keep it close... the Sharks are 16-3-2-2 in one-goal hockey games good for 37 of their 66 points... the sharks are 15-13-0-0 in games decided by two or more goals.... The Sharks are 2nd in the AHL with 16 one-goal victories with seven of those coming on the road.
*Follow the leaders.... Danny Groulx is 1st in the AHL among d-men with 33 assists, 1st in shots with 156, and 1st in points (8-33-41).... Logan Couture leads the AHL with eight game winning goals, 2nd in rookie scoring (18-27-45), 1st among rookies with 18 goals scored, and 15th in the AHL point scoring race in just 33 games played... Rookie Alex Stalock is 1st in the AHL with 27 wins and 1st in minutes played (2364).... Benn Ferriero leads all AHL rookies with THREE shorthanded goals and is 4th in rookie scoring with 36 points (16-20-36) in just 30 games played, and John McCarthy is 4th among rookies with a +15 rating... Steven Zalewski is 8th in the AHL point scoring race (18-32-50) in 50 games... Brandon Mashinter is 21st among AHL rookies with 25 points (14-11-25).
*Mr. Dependable.... Sharks defenseman Danny Groulx has played in 159 straight games... he dressed in all 80 games last season in Rockford.... Andrew Desjardins has dressed in 125 straight games for Worcester breaking the record held by Derek Joslin (114 games).
*10-10 Vision.... Sharks rookie forward Brandon Mashinter has 14 goals and ELEVEN fighting major penalties.... The only Sharks player ever to have double digits in both categories over the course of a season.
*8 and 8.... After setting a Worcester Sharks record last season with 21 fighting major penalties, Frazer McLaren has eight fights in the AHL and eight fights in the NHL this season... he is the only player to have over 100 penalty minutes this season in Worcester (101).
*Racking up the PIMS last week... The Sharks racked up 136 penalty minutes (28 minors, 7 majors, 2 ten minute misconducts, and two game misconducts) in four games this week for an average of 34 minutes per game... the Sharks average 16.78 penalty minutes per game this season.
*Hey Shorty it's your birthday!... the Sharks have scored the 4th most shorthanded goals this season (Ferriero 3, Zalewski 2, Couture 1, Desjardins 1, McGinn 1, Wilson 1)
*Five for fighting...The Sharks have 48 fighting major penalties this season through 51 games... (Brandon Mashinter 11, Dennis McCauley 9, Frazer McLaren 7, Nicholas Petrecki 5, Joe Loprieno 3, John McCarthy 1, Mike Moore 1, Steven Zalewski 1, Joe Callahan 1, Andrew Desjardins 4, Dan DaSilva 2, Jamie McGinn 1, and Derek Joslin). The Sharks had 78 fighting majors last season, 68 fighting majors in 2007-08 and 54 in 2006-07.
*All-Stars!....
Logan Couture, Danny Groulx, and Alex Stalock represented the Sharks in the 2010 Time Warner Cable AHL All-Star Classic held January 18th and 19th at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine. Former AHL All-Stars for the Worcester Sharks include: Mathieu Darche (2007), Mike Iggulden (2008), Derek Joslin (2009), and Ryan Vesce (2009).
Coming and goings from the shark tank:
02/07/2010
Derek Joslin (D)
Worcester
ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)
02/07/2010
Dwight Helminen (C)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
02/07/2010
Jason Demers (D)
Worcester
ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)
02/06/2010
Derek Joslin (D)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
02/06/2010
Jason Demers (D)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
02/05/2010
Derek Joslin (D)
Worcester
ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)
02/05/2010
Jason Demers (D)
Worcester
ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)
02/04/2010
Derek Joslin (D)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
02/03/2010
Derek Joslin (D)
Worcester
ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)
02/03/2010
Jamie McGinn (LW)
Worcester
ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)
02/03/2010
Matt Jones (RW)
Worcester
ADD Reassigned by San Jose (NHL) from Kalamazoo (ECHL)
02/01/2010
Derek Joslin (D)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
02/01/2010
Jamie McGinn (LW)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
02/01/2010
Jason Demers (D)
Worcester
DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)
Top Worcester Sharks:
o Goals Couture and Zalewski (18)
o Game Winners Couture (8)
o Assists Groulx (33)
o Points Zalewski (18-32-50)
o Power play Points Zalewski (6-13-19)
o Shots Groulx (156)
o PIM McLaren (101)
o Fighting Pen. Mashinter (11)
o Plus/Minus McCarthy (+15)
o Wins Stalock (27)
o G.A.A. Stalock (2.64)
o Save % Stalock (.903)
o Shutouts Sexsmith and Stalock (1)
Sharks in the Pacific:
The San Jose Sharks are 38-11-9 with 85 points this season and are currently in 1st place in the Pacific Division and have the 2nd most points in the NHL. The Sharks have a 10 point lead over the 2nd place Phoenix Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings in the Pacific.
Brad Staubitz has three goals and three assists along with 69 penalty minutes through 28 games.... Former Worcester Shark Devin Setoguchi has 23 points (14-9-23) through 46 games... Torrey Mitchell has a goal and two assists in 32 games... Thomas Greiss is 6-3-0 with 2.51 GAA and a.919 save%.
Sharks in the ECHL:
The Kalamazoo Wings are 24-14-4-2 with 54 points this season in the ECHL and currently in 3rd place in the North Division trailing the first place Cincinatti Cyclones by 7 points.
Mitch Versteeg has 11 points (2-9-11) in 35 games... Dean Strong has two goals and four assists in six games played.
Coming Up:
The Sharks continue their five game road swing in Bridgeport on Friday (7p.m.) and in Manchester on Sunday (3p.m.).
The Sharks are already taking deposits for their 5th season in Worcester! Jump in today and save over 30% off box office prices! Find out how to get the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs for FREE by calling the Sharks front office 508-929-0500. Some of the exclusive benefits for full season ticket holders will include:
* Guaranteed same seat for all 40 home dates and playoff home games at the DCU Center
* Significant savings off box office ticket prices
* Priority access to purchase tickets to DCU Center events (subject to availability)
Season ticket packages, group tickets, and individual tickets for the 2009-10 and season are on sale now by contacting the Worcester Sharks Office at 508.929.0500 or by crashing the net at www.SharksAHL.com.
All games can be heard live on 580AM and 94.9FM WTAG, as well as online through AHL Live, by following the link on the Sharks website at www.SharksAHL.com.
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American Hockey League Stories from February 8, 2010
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- First-Place Bulldogs Continue To Roll With Two North Division Tilts This Week - Hamilton Bulldogs
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