Abbotsford Heat Center Markus Granlund Named CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month

March 3, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Abbotsford Heat News Release


Springfield, Mass.-The American Hockey League announced today that Abbotsford Heat center Markus Granlund has been selected as the CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month for February.

In 10 games with Abbotsford during February, Granlund recorded five goals and seven assists for 12 points along with a plus-6 rating as the Heat continued to jockey for positioning atop the AHL's Western Conference.

Granlund began the month with two points in a 4-1 win over Hamilton on Feb. 1 and repeated the feat in a 7-1 win over Charlotte on Feb. 4, his fourth consecutive game with both a goal and an assist. His second shorthanded goal of the month helped the Heat to a 4-3 win over Charlotte on Feb. 5, and he scored on back-to-back nights as Abbotsford and the Checkers played a pair of games in Raleigh, Feb. 15-16. Granlund ran his scoring streak to five games with an assist each on Feb. 21 at Milwaukee and Feb. 22 at Chicago, and after being recalled on Feb. 24 he made his National Hockey League debut with Calgary in a game vs. Los Angeles on Feb. 27.

A second-round draft choice (45th overall) by Calgary in 2011, Granlund leads all AHL rookies with 23 goals and ranks third with 44 points in 50 games with Abbotsford this season. A 20-year-old native of Oulu, Finland, Granlund spent the previous two seasons with HIFK Helsinki, where he was the leading rookie scorer in the Finnish SM-liiga in 2011-12.

In recognition of his achievement, Granlund will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Heat home game.

The Heat will host the Texas Stars (AHL affiliate of the Dallas Stars) on Tuesday, March 4th and Wednesday, March 5th. Tuesday's game is the annual school day game, featuring $10 tickets and an early puck drop at 10:30 AM. For tickets please call 1-877-452-HEAT (4328) or visit us online at www.abbotsfordheat.com.



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