Aebischer Named Alumnus of the Month

February 3, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release

PRINCETON, N.J. - Former Chesapeake Icebreakers and Wheeling Nailers goaltender David Aebischer of the Colorado Avalanche is the MeiGray Group ECHL Alumnus of the Month for January.

Named runner-up for the National Hockey League's Defensive Player of the Month, Aebischer was 9-2-0 with a shutout, a seven-game winning streak, a goals-against average of 2.39 and a save percentage of .924. He shared the NHL Defensive Player of the Week award on Jan. 9 becoming the fifth former ECHL goaltender to win the award this season.

Selected in the sixth round (161st overall) by Colorado in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, Aebischer is 84-55-12 with a goals-against average of 2.34 and a save percentage of .915 in five NHL seasons. In 2000-01, he and former Richmond defenseman Nolan Pratt became the third and fourth ECHL Players to hoist the Stanley Cup after the Avalanche won the championship.

Aebischer began his professional career in 1997-98 in the ECHL going 10-10-3 with one shutout, a goals against average of 3.35 and a save percentage of .897 in 17 regular season games with Chesapeake and 5-3-1 with a goals against average of 3.76 and a save percentage of .858 in 10 regular season games with Wheeling.

The Premier 'AA' Hockey League has affiliations with 25 of the 30 teams in the NHL and there are over 100 players on ECHL rosters under contract to an NHL team. In addition to United States Olympic team and Carolina Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette, there are 12 assistant coaches, 13 referees and five linesmen currently in the NHL who have ECHL experience.

There have been 40 former ECHL players who have made their NHL debut in 2005-06 raising the total number of players who have played in the NHL after the ECHL to 296.

The leading distributor of game-worn hockey jerseys and ÒOfficial Game-Worn Jersey Source of the ECHL,Ó MeiGray has sold almost 3,000 game-worn ECHL jerseys since the program began in 2002-03, including almost 900 each of the past two seasons.

ECHL Stories from February 3, 2006

• Aaron Foster's two goals lead Thunder offense despite 6-3 loss to Alaska - Stockton Thunder
• Ice Dogs Beat Wranglers Behind McAslan's Five-Point Night - Long Beach Ice Dogs
• Fish swim upstream and hit a Wall - Victoria Salmon Kings
• Bonk's Revenge: Shorthanded Goal Lifts Condors Over San Diego - Bakersfield Condors
• Gulls Come Up Short In Bako, Fall 2-1 - San Diego Gulls
• Lynx filet fish in OT - Augusta Lynx
• Grizz Can't Hang On Versus Fresno - Utah Grizzlies
• Ice Pilots Lose 4-3 to Phoenix - Pensacola Ice Pilots
• VanBallegooie's Pair of Tallies Overcome Grizzlies - Fresno Falcons
• RoadRunners Clip Ice Pilots 4-3 - Phoenix RoadRunners
• Bombers win in a shootout 3-2 - Dayton Bombers
• Everblades stumble against Idaho, fall 5-4 in shootout - Florida Everblades
• Gladiators Beat Rays, 3-2 - Atlanta Gladiators
• Titans fall to Storm, 5-1 - Trenton Devils
• Steelheads Stun Everblades, 5-4, in the Shootout - Idaho Steelheads
• Lynx add help on D with "Cookie" - Augusta Lynx
• Leavitt Named ECHL Rookie of the Month, Aces play tonight at 6:30 AST - Alaska Aces
• Condors Announce Front Office Promotions - Bakersfield Condors
• Aces' Leavitt Named CCM Vector ECHL Rookie Of The Month - ECHL
• Later and Turon Recalled to Toronto Marlies - Pensacola Ice Pilots
• ECHL Transactions - ECHL
• Saviano named ECHL Player of the Month - Florida Everblades
• Everblades' Saviano Named CCM TACKS Player Of The Month - ECHL
• Grizzlies Home Tonight, Michaud Back - Utah Grizzlies
• Chiefs "To Pass The Hat" For Local High School Hockey Player Saturday Night - Johnstown Chiefs
• Inferno Sign Veteran Defenseman - Columbia Inferno
• Edwardson Recalled to Portland - Las Vegas Wranglers
• Falcons, Fire Fighters, Police Officers Raising Money - Fresno Falcons
• Aebischer Named Alumnus of the Month - ECHL
• Beauchemin Back to Phantoms - Trenton Devils
• ECHL Today - ECHL
• Lojek Reassigned to Everblades from AHL - Florida Everblades
• Phoenix Downs Pensacola to Run Win Streak To Four - OSC Original by Andrew Nordmeier
• Free Jerseys on Saturday - Charlotte Checkers
• Gwinett Gladiators Game Notes - Atlanta Gladiators

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