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8,189 fans at DCU Center send Sharks off for All-Star break - Worcester Sharks Weekly

January 28, 2013 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


Shark Snap Shot:

The Worcester Sharks (20-17-1-4, 45pts) chomped three points of a possible four points in two games last week. The Sharks snapped their season high five game losing skid (0-4-0-1) with an impressive 3-1 win at Springfield on Friday. The Sharks erased a three goal deficit to force overtime but fell to the Bruins 4-3 in the shootout in front of 8,189 fans at the DCU Center on Saturday night. Worcester enters the All-Star break in 8th place (playoff spot) in the Eastern Conference.

The Worcester Sharks player of the week nominee is forward Tommy Grant. Tommy recorded his first goal as a member of the Sharks with a beautiful shorthanded breakaway goal in Springfield on Friday and added an assist on Saturday vs. the Bruins. Grant finished the two game week with two points (1-1-2) and was +2 with two shots.

More than a few things to know....

- The Sharks are currently in 4th place (20-17-1-4, 45pts) in the Atlantic Division and 8th place overall in the Eastern Conference.

- The San Jose Sharks have 11 players on their opening day roster that have spent time in Worcester (Couture, Desjardins, McLaren, Pavelski, Sheppard, Wingels, Braun, Demers, Irwin, Petrecki, and Greiss).

- The San Jose Sharks are currently 5-0-0 this season!

- Defenseman Matt Irwin scored his first NHL goal in San Jose's 4-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Jan 26. Matt now has two points (1-1-2) in five games for the San Jose Sharks.

- Forward Tim Kennedy returned to the Sharks lineup on Jan 25 after missing nine games due to injury. Kennedy leads the Sharks with 30 points (12-18-30) in 33 games.

- Veteran forward Bracken Kearns was named to the 2013 AHL All-Star Classic and picked up his 10th goal of the season on Saturday vs. the Bruins.

- Veteran forward and former San Jose Sharks winger Patrick Rissmiller was released from his PTO by Worcester on Jan 28. Rissmiller had an assist in six games for the Sharks.

- Rookie Daniil Tarasov has a five game point streak for Worcester (2-3-5).

- Worcester finished with a 3-6-0-2 record in the month of January.

- The Sharks have a two game point streak (1-0-0-1).

- Worcester has a 13-8-1-2 record vs. the Atlantic Division this season. - best record within the division.

- The Sharks lead the AHL with 14 one-goal wins. Worcester is 14-6-1-4 in one goal games this season.

- The Sharks lead the AHL with 6 wins when trailing after 40 minutes of play this season (6-12-0-3). In addition the Sharks are 6-3-0-1 when tied after 40 minutes of play.

- Coach Roy Sommer currently ranks 4th in the AHL with 529 wins in his career (15th season) and 3rd in games coached in the AHL with 1158.

- Worcester has played 12 overtime games this season (2nd most in AHL) and leads the AHL with 5 shootout victories.

- The Sharks travel to Portland on Friday for a 7pm battle vs. the Pirates before returning home to host the Bruins on PINK in the RINK night (pink ice and pink jerseys) to benefit the Cup Crusaders presented by TD Bank on Saturday at the DCU Center. Doors open at 3:30pm for a high school hockey double header between St. John's and St. Peter Marian at 4pm.

Top 3... Last Week!

1. Forward Brodie Reid tied the score in the 3rd period with his 10th goal of the season in the sharks 4-3SOL to the Bruins on Saturday!

2. Newcomer Tommy Grant scored his first goal as a member of the Sharks with a beautiful shorthanded breakaway goal in the sharks 3-1 win at Springfield on Friday!

3. Defenseman Mike Banwell scored his first professional goal in the Sharks 4-3SOL to the Bruins on Saturday!

Last Week: (1-0-0-1) 3pt, 2gp

Fri. 1/25 W Worcester SHARKS 3 @ Springfield Falcons 1

Sat. 1/26 SOL Providence Bruins 4 @ Worcester SHARKS 3

This week:

Fri. 2/1 Worcester SHARKS @ Portland Pirates - 7pm

Sat. 2/2 Providence Bruins @ Worcester SHARKS - 7pm

Rewind the Tape:

1.25.13 - Springfield 1 - Worcester 3 - W - Mass Mutual Center

The Worcester Sharks (20-17-1-3, 44pts) grabbed an impressive 3-1 victory over the first place Springfield Falcons (25-10-3-3, 56pts) on Friday night in front of 4,021 fans at the Mass Mutual Center. Worcester snapped their season high five game losing streak (0-4-0-1) while the Falcons had their six game winning streak snapped in the Sharks victory. Daniil Tarasov extended his point streak to four games (2-2-4) with a power play goal in the third period while Tommy Grant scored his first goal as a member of the Sharks with a terrific shorthanded breakaway tally in the opening frame. James Livingston scored the game winner for Worcester while Harri Sateri made 21 saves in his 8th win of season.

1.26.13 - Providence 4 - Worcester 3 - SOL - DCU Center

The Worcester Sharks (20-17-1-4, 45pts) fell to the Providence Bruins (22-16-0-3, 47pts) 4-3 in a shootout on Saturday evening in front of a sellout crowd of 8,198 fans at the DCU Center. Craig Cunningham scored the game-winner for the Bruins in the shootout to lift Providence to a 4-3 win. Bracken Kearns (10th), Mike Banwell (1st), and Brodie Reid (10th) scored the goals in regulation for the Sharks to force overtime, erasing a three goal deficit. Banwell's tally was his first goal as a professional. Reid's goal came with just 6:05 remaining in regulation to tie the game and notch a point for the Sharks. Providence got goals from Craig Cunningham (8th), Jamie Tardif (20th), and Justin Florek (4th) in regulation, all three of those goals coming in the first ten minutes of the first period. Alex Stalock was solid in net for the Sharks, turning aside 34 out of the 37 shots that he faced.

Sharks in the Atlantic:

The Sharks (20-17-1-4, 45pts in 42gp) are currently in 4th place in the Atlantic Division; which is seven points behind the 1st place Pirates (52pts in 43gp), two points behind the 2nd place Bruins (47pts in 41gp) and one point behind the 3rd place Monarchs (46pts in 44gp). The Sharks have a four point edge over the 5th place IceCaps (41pts in 44gp) to round out a very choppy Atlantic Division.

Coaching Milestones....

*1000 GAMES... With the 3-1 victory at Springfield on January 14, 2011, head coach Roy Sommer became just the 4th coach in AHL history to reach the 1,000 games plateau.

*500 WINS!.... With a 3-2 shootout victory in Hershey on February 11, 2012, head coach Roy Sommer became just the 4th coach in AHL history to reach the 500 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 1981-2010 16seasons 1,125GP 589 WINS

4. Roy Sommer 1998-current 15seasons 1,158GP 529WINS

*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 (15th season) in the American Hockey League. His current regular season record is now: 529-453 -49 -48-49. (W-L-T-OTL-SOL)

*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, Associate Coach David Cunniff recorded an assist as a member of the River Rats in the hockey game.

*Associate Coach David Cunniff has joined Coach Sommer in 374 of the 529 victories (71%).

*ECHL... Coach Sommer also has 176 wins in the ECHL coaching in five seasons with Roanoke Valley and Richmond.

Shark Bites:

*Captains for the 2012-13 season: John McCarthy was named the Sharks 5th captain in team history on October 11, 2012. Alternate captains for this season: Home: Danny Groulx and Bracken Kearns. Away: Matt Pelech and Tim Kennedy.... Jimmy Bonneau, Brandon Mashinter, James Livingston, and Jon Matsumoto have also all worn the "A" this season.

*From east to west..... Four Worcester Sharks players from the 2012-13 season are currently on the San Jose Sharks NHL roster (Irwin, McLaren, Petrecki, and Sheppard)

*January by the numbers... The Sharks finished with a 3-6-0-2 (8pts in 11gp) in January with 21GF and 34 GA. PP was 4-38 (10.5%), opponents PP was 8-44 (18.1%) and the Sharks had nine fighting majors this month.

*Streakers... Daniil Tarasov has a five game point streak (2-3-5)... Danny Groulx (0-2-2) and Tommy Grant (1-1-2) each have a two game point streak.

*Wilson back with Worcester!.... Wilson, a 25-year-old North Vancouver, BC native returns to the Sharks blue line where he spent two seasons for the Sharks through 2008-10 recording 20 points (6-14-20) in 85 games. The 6-foot-1, 190 lbs defenseman has played 36 games with the Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL) this season where he recorded 23 points (2-21-23) and 28 penalty minutes. Wilson has an assist in eight games for Worcester.

*Other New faces... the Sharks have signed several players over the last few weeks due to injury and the end of the NHL Lockout. New player snap shot:

Defenseman Denny Urban... the Pittsburgh, PA native and Robert Morris alum has been impressive in his first AHL action with the Sharks as he has eight points (3-5-8) in 13 games with Worcester... Urban was named an ECHL All-Star starter as he scored 13 goals with the Reading Royals at the time of his signing with the Sharks to a PTO.

o Daniil Tarasov (2-4-6 in 9gp) and Mikael Tam (0-1-1 in 15gp) both returned from San Francisco in the ECHL.

*Score first... the Sharks have scored FIRST 20 times in 42 games last season with a 11-8-0-1 record in those games. (Tim Kennedy 4, Yanni Gourde 1, Freddie Hamilton 2, John McCarthy 1, Brodie Reid 2, Travis Oleksuk 1, Matt Tennyson 2, Jon Matsumoto 3, James Livingston 2, and James Sheppard 1, and Denny Urban 1)

*AHL Player of the Week!.... for the 3rd time in franchise history the Sharks had the AHL's player of the week awarded on Dec 3 . Tim Kennedy was named the AHL's POW (joining Thomas Greiss and Tommy Wingels) after posting five goals (5-0-5), +5, and a shootout score in three games for the Sharks. Kennedy currently leads the Sharks with 30 points (12-18-30) in 33 games.

*Pro Debut: Forward Daniil Tarasov made his professional debut on Nov 4 vs. the Monarchs. The 21-year-old became the first player born in Russia (Moscow) to suit up for the Worcester Sharks. Daniil scored 47 goals in 60 games last year for the Indiana Ice of the USHL. Tarasov has 14 points (3-11-14) in 17 games with San Francisco in the ECHL and six points (2-4-6) in nine games with Worcester.

*5 National Champions... The Sharks have five players that have won the NCAA Division 1 Championship.... Travis Oleksuk with University Minnesota Duluth in 2011... John McCarthy was co-captain for Boston University in 2009... Nick Petrecki and Mike Brennan with Boston College in 2008... and Tim Kennedy with Michigan State in 2007.

*5 years and counting... Sharks forward Jon Matsumoto has recorded at least 20+ goals (20,29,30,20,23) in five straight seasons in the AHL heading into his first season with Worcester in 2012-13. Jon has 10 goals through 34 games this season for Worcester and current leads the team with three game winning goals.

*OT? The Worcester Sharks have played 12 games in OT this season with a .583 point % in those games. The Sharks are 2-1 in overtime and 5-4 in the shootout.

*Keeping your hat on (Thanks Ballou)... Worcester has gone 225 games since one of its players recorded a hat trick. That is easily the longest active streak in the AHL. The Sharks' last hat trick belongs to Dan DaSilva, who scored three times in Portland during a 5-2 Worcester victory in Portland on Feb. 14, 2010. No Worcester player has recorded a hat trick on home ice in more than three years, or since P.J. Fenton had one on Feb. 28, 2009 in the Sharks' 7-3 victory over Springfield. The home-ice drought has lasted for 145 games. In the meantime, Worcester has had 44 two-goal games, including five each by Benn Ferriero, Brandon Mashinter and T.J. Trevelyan. In all, Worcester players have recorded hat tricks only seven times in the franchise's 518 games. The Sharks are 7-0 in those games and 1-11-3 in the 15 games in which the opposition has had a hat trick.

*Shootout scorers.... The Sharks rank 17th in the AHL with a .304 scoring percentage (14-for-46) in the shootout. (McCarthy 2-for-4, Sheppard 4-for-7, Matsumoto 3-for-8, Tim Kennedy 1-for-7, Sebastian Stalberg 0-for-2, Travis Oleksuk 0-for-4, Brandon Mashinter 1-for-2, Brodie Reid 0-for-5, Denny Urban 2-for-2, Danill Tarasov (1-for-2), Tommy Grant (0-for-1), Danny Groulx (0-for-1), Patrick Rissmiller (0-for-1)... Sheppard leads the AHL with 4 shootout goals and 2 game winning shootout goals this season.

*Leaders among us... James Sheppard (currently in SJ) leads the AHL with four shootout goals and two game winning shootout goals... Matt Tennyson is 4th among AHL rookies with 11 power play assists.

*Nice Crowd... The Sharks have welcomed seven crowds over 5,000 fans during the 2012-13 season (6,659 on Oct 20 - 5,098 on Nov 17 - 6,621 on Deb 8, 5,008 on Dec 28, 6,503 on Dec 29, 6,959 on Jan 19 and 8,189 fans on Jan 26 )

*1,000,000th fan... The Sharks welcomed their 1,000,000th fan (season ticket holder Peter West) through the DCU Center turnstiles on Oct 28. Currently, the Sharks have had 1,075,296 fans attend a regular season game in the 6+ years in Worcester. (4,148 average in 258 home games).

*Worcester/Manchester Rivalry... the Sharks and Monarchs combined for 567 penalty minutes in the 12 games (275WOR, 292 MCH) and 25 sets of fighting major penalties in 2011-12. Worcester went 3-6-2-1 vs. Manchester last season and the series featured a pre game brawl in the series final at the DCU Center on April 10. The Sharks are 5-3-0-0 vs. Manchester this season with nine sets of fighting majors. The two teams battle on Feb 22 at DCU Center.

*Sharks/Pirates Rivalry... the Sharks and the Pirates had a bench clearing brawl in Portland on April 7, 2012 after the 12th and final meeting between the two teams. The bad blood has carried over this season with the Sharks holding a 3-5-0-0 record so far in the season series that has seen 31 fighting majors penalties and 409 total penalty minutes (200 WOR, 209 POR). The two teams combined for 15 fighting majors and 143 penalty minutes in a 5-1 Sharks victory on Nov 24 at the DCU Center. The two teams meet again on Feb 1 at Portland.

*Crazy 8's - the Sharks set a home ice Worcester hockey record with eight fighting majors vs. the Pirates in a 5-1 win on Nov 24 at the DCU Center.

*PP Specialist...Matt Irwin's 15 career power-play goals have put him in good position to set some team records, but he is not there yet. He tied the record for most power-play goals in a season by a Sharks defenseman with nine in 2011-12, also done by Garrett Stafford in 2006-07. The career record is 16, done by Derek Joslin.... Irwin made his NHL debut with the SJ Sharks on Jan 20 in a 4-1 win at Calgary and scored his first NHL goal on Jan 26 in a 4-0 win vs. Colorado.

*Tallest Shark.... Worcester Sharks rookie defenseman Taylor Doherty is the tallest player in team history standing at 6'7" 235lbs.... Doherty scored his first professional goal in game #70 and added an assist in the Sharks 3-2OTL to the IceCaps on Nov 3. Doherty has missed the last 22 games with a leg injury.

*Penalty Shot!.... Brandon Mashinter was denied on a penalty shot late in the 3rd period at Hershey on Dec 15 as Braden Holtby made the save... the Sharks are 3-for-10 in penalty shot situations in franchise history with Mash as the only player ever to take more than one (0-for-2)... Mash was traded to the NY Rangers organization on Jan 16.

*First Pro Goals this season... Travis Oleksuk and Taylor Doherty each scored their first professional goals on Nov 3... Freddie Hamilton scored his first on Nov 9, and Mike Banwell scored his first snip on Jan 26.

*Sharks in the Atlantic... Worcester is 13-8-1-2 in divisional games in 2012-13 - best record within the division.

*Super Sunday.... the Sharks are 6-3-0-0 on Sunday afternoons this season and perfect on the road 4-0-0-0!

*3rd period Heroes... Worcester is 6-12-0-3 when trailing after two periods of play this season. (6 wins most in AHL).... the Sharks were 5-44-4-7 in that situation the last two seasons combined.

*20 goal scorers?... The Sharks have three players that have scored at least 20+ goals in a season in the AHL... John McCarthy scored 20 goals last year for Worcester, Jon Matsumoto has score 20+ goals in AHL in each of the last five seasons, and Bracken Kearns has scored 20+ goals in each of the last two seasons.

*These Sharks have teeth Take 2?.... Worcester finished 1st in the AHL in penalty minutes averaging 21.32 penalty minutes per game and were 1st with 120 fighting major penalties in 2011-12. Worcester ranks 5th with 21.33 penalty minutes per game this season and 3rd with 50 fighting majors.

*90 PIMS... the Sharks recorded a then AHL high 90 penalty minutes in Worcester's 5-4 win at Providence on Dec 21. (15 minors, 2 majors, 3 misconducts, 2 game misconducts)

*Welcome back Groulx... Defensemen Danny Groulx is back with the Sharks after spending the last two seasons in the KHL. With Worcester in 2009-10, Groulx was named the Best Defensemen in the AHL (Eddie Shore Award) and First Team AHL All-Star as he racked up 66 points (14-52-55) in 80 games. Groulx has 10 points (2-8-10) in 18 games this season. Groulx missed 21 games due to injury before returning on Jan 25.

*Yanni scores shorthanded.... Finally!... Sharks rookie forward Yanni Gourde scored the first Sharks shorthanded goal of the season on Dec 2 in Providence. The Sharks had not scored a shorthanded goal in their previous 70 games spanning 306 shorthanded opportunities.

*Sherriff McLaren... Sharks tough guy Frazer McLaren ranks 1st all-time in Worcester Sharks history with 577 penalty minutes (54 FM) in 217 games. Frazer had an AHL single game high this season with 37 penalty minutes on Dec 21 at Providence. Watch Frazer's marathon fight vs. Joel Rechlicz from Jan 8 by clicking here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJhIFfNb-n4. Frazer is currently on recall with the SJ Sharks.

*Tennyson chipping in... rookie defenseman Matt Tennyson has been impressive from the blue line this season! The Minneapolis, MN native and former SJ Jr. Shark has 17 points (3-14-17) through 38 games this season. Tennyson has 13 power play points (2-11-13).

*Massachusetts!... the Sharks have had two players that that hail from Massachusetts that suited up for the team this season (John McCarthy - Andover and Patrick Rissmiller - Belmont) In addition, associate coach David Cunniff hails from South Boston.

*Hockey East Alumni!... the Worcester Sharks have seven players from Hockey East Schools (Irwin - UMass-Amherst, McCarthy - BU, Reid - NU, Petrecki and Brennan - BC, Stalberg - Vermont, Banwell - UMaine)

*BC leading the way.... The Sharks signed BC alum Mike Brennan to a PTO on Nov 27. Brennan became the 5th former BC defensemen and 6th player overall that has suited up for the Sharks over the last seven seasons. Brennan has three points (0-3-3) in 21 games for the Sharks and 2 fighting majors.

*Rookies... the Sharks have dressed 12 rookies already this season. (Travis Oleksuk, Sebastian Stalberg, Matt Tennyson, Freddie Hamilton, Yanni Gourde, Mikael Tam, Daniil Tarasov, Mike Banwell, Denny Urban, Sacha Guimond, Andy Bohmbach, Michael Pelech, and William Wrenn)

*I'll take a draft... Eight Worcester Sharks players were drafted by the San Jose Sharks. (McLaren, Hamilton, Stalock, Doherty, McCarthy, Petrecki, Sateri, and Viedensky,)

*NHL Experience.... The Sharks have had ten players on their roster with NHL experience led by James Sheppard with 224.... Breaking down the rest....Patrick Rissmiller 192, Tim Kennedy 112, John McCarthy 51, Frazer McLaren 39, Jon Matsumoto 14, Bracken Kearns 5, Matt Pelech 5, Brandon Mashinter 13, and Alex Stalock 1.

*Franchise player traded... Sharks forward Brandon Mashinter ranked in the top 10 in many of the Worcester Sharks all-time records.... Mash ranks 4th all time in goals (54), 2nd in games played (236), 7th in points (108), 6th in penalty minutes (320) and 4th in fighting majors with 34.... Brandon is also the only Sharks player to record two seasons of double digits in goals and fighting major penalties (2009-10 and 2010-11).... Mash was traded to the NY Rangers for Tommy Grant and a 7th round conditional pick on Jan 16.

*Whale turned Shark.... . Grant, 26, has posted 16 points (9-7=16) in 34 games with Connecticut (AHL) this season before getting traded to the Sharks on Jan 16. Last season with Connecticut, the six-foot-two, 195-pound North Vancouver, British Columbia native notched 23 points (11-12=23) with 39 penalty minutes in 72 games. Grant has two points (1-1-2) in four games with Worcester.

*50 saves... Harri Sateri made an AHL high 50 saves in the Sharks 3-2SOW at Providence on Dec 2. Sateri also went 5-for-5 in the shootout in the victory. The 50 saves was the 2nd most ever by a Sharks netminder. Thomas Greiss holds the record with 51 saves in a 4-1 win vs. Hartford on April 6, 2007.

*First Rounders... the Sharks have three players that were drafted in the first round of the NHL Draft... James Sheppard was the 9th overall pick by Minnesota in 2006, Matt Pelech was the 26th overall pick by Calgary in 2005, and Nick Petrecki was the 28th pick overall by San Jose in 2007.

*No sophomore jinx for Brodie... 2nd year player Brodie Reid continues to impress this season for Worcester... Reid had 25 points (10-15-25) in 66 games last year for Worcester as a rookie but already has 21 points (10-11-21) in 28 games this season for the Sharks.

*Sheppard in AHL... with 224 NHL games under his belt before an AHL conditioning stint for four games last year with Worcester, Sharks forward James Sheppard signed an AHL contract at the start of the 2012-13 season. The 9th overall draft selection by the Wild in 2006, has 23 points (8-15-23) and an AHL high 4 shootout goals in 34 games with the Sharks this season. Sheppard is currently on recall with the SJ Sharks.

*Closing in on Greiss.... Sharks netminder Alex Stalock has 71 career wins with Worcester, trailing only Thomas Greiss (74) for the most in franchise history.

*200 games... Sharks defensemen Nick Petrecki is 5th in Sharks history with 216 games played... Nick also ranks 4th in penalty minutes with 395.... Nick is currently on recall with the San Jose Sharks.

*200 games Take 2.... Captain John McCarthy played in his 200th game for the Sharks on Jan 26.

*Younger Brother... Sebastian Stalberg joined Worcester on March 15, 2012 after he signed an NHL contract with San Jose and finished his junior season at the University of Vermont. Sebastian is the younger brother of Viktor Stalberg, who currently plays with the Chicago Blackhawks. Sebastian has 10 points (6-4-10) in 35 games with the Sharks this season. The native of Gothenburg, Sweden finished with 27 goals in 106 games with Vermont.

*Older Brother... Sharks forward Freddie Hamilton made his professional debut with the Sharks on Friday in Norfolk. Freddie recorded 86 points (35-51-86) with Niagara (OHL) in 61 games last season. Freddie is the older brother of the Dougie Hamilton who was drafted by the Boston Bruins with the 9th pick overall in 2011. Dougie is currently attending the Boston Bruins training camp. Freddie has 14 points (6-8-14) in 42 games this season. Freddie is the only skater to appear in all 42 games this season for Worcester.

*Brothers on the same line... for the first time in Worcester's AHL history, two brothers suited up in the same game for the same Worcester team on Jan 19. Matt and Michael Pelech skated on the same line along side Tommy Grant in the Sharks 2-1 loss to Adirondack. Michael picked up an assist and Matt picked up his team leading 10th and 11th fighting majors in the loss.

*Like Father, Like Son... Rookie Curt Gogol finished 3rd on the Sharks with 167 penalty minutes and 2nd with 19 fighting majors through 53 games in 2011-12... his father Brent racked up 892 penalty minutes in 157 professional games in the IHL, CHL, EHL, and the AHL including 380 pims in 1978-79 in 57 games with the Flint Generals. Curt has 4 fighting majors, 94 penalty minutes, and 3 goals through 26 games this season.

*Piling up the PIMS with Pelech... Forward Matt Pelech played in his 300th AHL game on Oct 20 vs. the Devils. The 6-foot-5 bruising defenseman turned forward from Toronto, ONT has accumulated 900 penalty minutes and 70 fighting majors in 323 AHL games. "Pelly" leads the Sharks with 145 penalty minutes this season in 30 games. Pelech has been suspended twice by the AHL this season totaling 7 games. Matt currently leads the Sharks with 11 fighting majors.

*Major Bonneau... Worcester Sharks tough guy Jimmy Bonneau racked up 22 fighting majors in 54 games in 2011-12 for the Sharks. Bonneau has set the Worcester Sharks record for most fighting majors in a season surpassing Frazer McLaren (21 in 2008-09). Jimmy has 100 fighting majors in 262 AHL games along with 753 penalty minutes.... Jimmy has 6 fighting majors and 32 penalty minutes through 13 games this season.

*Acolatse can throw... Worcester Sharks rookie defenseman Sena Acolatse has been quite impressive in his first eight professional hockey fights this season. The 5-11, 205 pounder and native of Hayward, CA native fought Richard Clune, Brett Hextall, Dane Byers, Stephane Veilleux, Andre Deveaux, J.D. Watt, and Garth Murray in 2011-12. Sena led the Prince George Cougars in WHL with 15 fighting majors in 66 games in 2010-11, and also added 15 goals. Acolatse added eight goals from the blue line for Worcester in 2011-12. Sena has 4 fights (Hanson, Lane, Louis, Andreoff) this season through 27 games. Sena has missed the last 12 games due to a broken jaw.

*Acolatse can score!..... Dating back to last season, Sena has 10 goals in his last 37 game played; including four goals in 27 games this season!

*Five for fighting... The Sharks finished with 120 fighting majors in 2011-12 (franchise record) good for 1st in the AHL... this season, the Sharks have 50 fighting majors through 42 games and rank 3rd in the AHL (Pelech 11, Kearns 5, Bonneau 6, McLaren 7, Banwell 1, Gogol 4, Mashinter 4, Acolatse 4, Reid 1, Gourde 1, Brennan 2, Livingston 2, Tam 1, Petrecki 1). The Sharks had 81 fighting majors in 2010-11, 73 fighting majors in 2009-10, 78 fighting majors in 2008-09, 68 fighting majors in 2007-08 and 54 in 2006-07.

Season by the numbers...

Record: 20-17-1-4, 45 points - 4th in Atlantic and 8th in Eastern Conference

Win percentage: .536% - 16th in AHL

Home Record: 8-8-1-3

Away Record: 12-9-0-1

Attendance: 84,591 through 20 games (4,230 average)

Goals Scored: 107, 2.55 goals per game, 21st in AHL

Goals Allowed: 123, 2.93 goals against per game, 20th in AHL

Shots per game: 29.29 - 21st in AHL

Shots allowed per game: 30.38 - 16th in AHL

Score 1st: 11-8-0-1 when scoring first (.575%)

1 goal games: 14-6-1-4 in one goal games -14 wins most in AHL

PP: 16.1%, 15th in AHL (31-192)

PK: 81.7%, 20th in AHL (34-186)

SHG - 2 shorthanded goals scored

SHGA - 4 shorthanded goals allowed

PIMS - 21.33 penalty minutes per game, 5th in AHL

Fighting Majors: 50 - 3rd in AHL

OT Games - 12 - (2-1 record in OT) - Hamilton and Petrecki OTG

SO Games - 9 - (5-4 record in SO)

Roster Players - the Sharks have used 37 players this season

Goalies - the Sharks have used 2 goaltenders this season

Players receiving call-ups to San Jose - 8

NHL debuts - 1 Worcester players made their NHL debuts this season (Matt Irwin on Jan 20 at Calgary)

Call-ups to San Jose - 8 different call-ups to San Jose this season

Coming and goings from the Shark Tank: Date

Player

Team

Transaction

01/28/2013

Patrick Rissmiller (LW)

Worcester

DEL Released from PTO

01/24/2013

Tim Kennedy (C)

Worcester

ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)

01/23/2013

Michael Pelech (C)

Worcester

DEL Released from PTO

01/20/2013

William Wrenn (D)

Worcester

DEL Released from PTO

Top Worcester Sharks:

o Goals Kennedy (12)

o Game Winners Matsumoto (3)

o Assists Kennedy (18)

o Points Kennedy (12-18-30)

o Power Play Points Kennedy (4-9-13) and Tennyson (2-11-13)

o Shots Reid (86 shots)

o PIM Pelech (145)

o Fighting Pen. Pelech (11)

o Plus/Minus Grant (+7)

o Wins Stalock (12)

o G.A.A. Sateri and Stalock (2.72)

o Save % Stalock (.909)

o Shutouts Stalock (1)

Sharks in the NHL

The San Jose Sharks are 5-0-0-0 (10pts in 5gp) and currently in 1st place in the Pacific Division.

Former Worcester Sharks players on the San Jose Sharks roster include; (Couture, Desjardins, McLaren, Pavelski, Sheppard, Wingels, Braun, Demers, Irwin, Petrecki, and Greiss).

Matt Irwin scored his first NHL goal on Jan 26 in the Sharks 4-0 win over the Avalanche in San Jose.

Week ahead for San Jose:

- Tue. Jan 29 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. Anaheim

- Thu. Jan 31 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. Edmonton

- Sat. Feb 2 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. Nashville

Sharks in the ECHL:

The San Francisco Bulls are 17-21-1-4 (39pts in 43gp) and currently in 4th place in the Pacific Division.

Sharks players under an AHL contract currently playing in San Francisco include:

- G Taylor Nelson (6-8-2 record) with a 3.62 GAA and a .883 save %.

- G Thomas Heemskerk (11-12-1 record) with a 3.26 GAA and a .899 save %.

- F Marek Viedensky has 16 points (7-9-16) in 16 games played.

Week ahead for the Bulls:

- Wed. Jan 30 at 10pm (EST) at Stockton

- Thur. Jan 31 at 11:15pm (EST) vs. Ontario

Coming Up for the Worcester Sharks:

On Friday, the Sharks travel to Portland to battle the Pirates with a 7pm start. Listen to the game live on WTAG!

On Saturday, the Sharks host the Providence Bruins on at 7pm on PINK in the RINK Night to benefit the Cup Crusaders presented by TD Bank! PINK ice, PINK jerseys, and a ton of fun! Doors open at 3:30pm for the 6th annual High School Hockey Classic between St. John's and St. Peter Marian. One ticket valid for both games!

Score a family fun pack today for only $79! Four tickets, four hot dogs, and four sodas for a portion of the price! Available only through the Sharks front office for every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday games this season! Click HERE to purchase today!

2012-13 Flex ticket packages are on sale now! Score your 40 or 10 ticket flex package by contacting the Worcester Sharks front office at 508-929-0500. You decide how many tickets and how many games YOU want to attend while saving $$$ off box office pricing! It is that EASY!

Bring a group to sing the national anthem, book a fundraising event, host a birthday party, or have a blast in the high fin tunnel.... secure your personalized Sharks experience today!

Contact Worcester Sharks ticket representatives Jason Jones, Jonathan Forsberg, Kristyn Galante, Sarah Farley, and Ben Masse for your customized ticket package today! Jump in today and save up to 45% off box office prices!

Call the Sharks front office at 508.929.0500 or crash the net at www.SharksAHL.com.

Socialize with the Worcester Sharks all year long! Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WorcesterSharks, follow us on Twitter @WorcesterSharks, and download the Worcester Sharks App for free on your Droid or iPhone today!

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 January 28, 2013


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