Sports stats



Aeros Gameday

January 23, 2007 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Houston Aeros News Release


Nine things you need to know
- Two nights after drawing 10,656 - their fourth-largest crowd ever at Toyota Center - the Aeros welcomed 6,336 Sunday - their largest Sunday crowd since 3/19/06. Houston ranks ninth in the 27-team AHL with an average attendance of 6,082 through 22 home games, after averaging 5,800 for the entire 2005-06 season. Average attendance in the past four home games is an impressive 7,464. Houston is up 23.6 overall in attendance through the first 22 home games.
- Aeros G Josh Harding continued his stellar play against Milwaukee on Sunday. Harding stopped 26-of-27 shots in the 6-1 win, improving to 5-2-0 with a 1.14 gaa and a .956 save pct. against the Admirals in his career during the regular season. Those are Harding's best numbers against any other AHL team. Harding has allowed just eight goals in those seven games, with three shutouts. He has won each of his last three starts versus Milwaukee, with a 1.00 gaa.
- Second-year D Shawn Belle posted his first career two-goal game Sunday. He had just three career goals entering the contests. Belle became the first Aeros defenseman other than Curtis Murphy to score two goals in a game since Brent Burns did it 4/15/05, against Chicago.
- Aeros LW Benoit Pouliot matched a career-high with three points (1-2=3) Sunday. Pouliot now has 24 points (16-8=24), tied for 23rd amongst AHL rookies.
- Houston's third-year G Josh Harding has played in all but six of the Aeros' first 43 games. Harding ranks second in the AHL in games played (37), minutes (2,211), shots faced (1,149) and saves (1,058). Harding is is tied for fourth in wins (16), is 10th in gaa (2.47) and tied for fourth in save pct. (.921). Harding is 17-10-3 with a 2.36 gaa and a .925 save pct. in his last 30 decisions since starting the season 0-5-1. The Aeros' record for most games played by a goalie in one season is 72 - set by Frederic Chabot in 1996-97 in an 82-game season. Harding is on pace for 69 this season.
- Houston has allowed the game's first goal in 10 of its last 12 outings, including in each of the last five games. Houston is 2-3-0-0 in those past five games. The Aeros have scored first in just 16 of their 43 games (37.2 percent).
- The Aeros remain the lone AHL team without a decision in OT. They are 4-5 in shootouts. Milwaukee has played an AHL-high 15 extra session games, going 6-3 in OT and 2-4 in shootouts. Milwaukee's 23 OT points are tied with Bridgeport for the most in the league.
- Aeros RW Mattias Weinhandl has a team-best 18 points (9-9=18) in 16 games since getting assigned by the Minnesota Wild last month. Weinhandl is tied for the team lead with six multiple-point games.
- Starting this past Sunday and continuing until 2/25, the Aeros play six of their 16 games versus the Admirals. Houston is playing three straight home games against the Admirals, finishing in the annual Chronicle in Education Kids Day Game 2/1.

Admirals at Aeros (Aeros are 35-36-7-2 overall, Aeros are 19-16-4-1 at Houston)
- The historic rivals meet for the 81st time tonight. The Aeros have only played Chicago (87) more times.
- Milwaukee swept the Aeros in four games in the 2006 West Division Finals. Houston carried a 3-2 lead into the final five minutes of Game 1 at Bradley Center, but then allowed the next two goals, before apparently sending the game into OT with 1:48 remaining. But Milwaukee's Jordin Tootoo scored the GWG with 13.9 ticks left for a 5-4 decision. The Ads rolled 7-0 in Game 2 at Bradley Center, and completed the sweep with a pair of victories at Toyota Center.
- Houston has won five of the last six regular season meetings, including Sunday's 6-1 victory.
- Since winning 5-1 at Milwaukee 10/17/03, the Aeros are 9-16-2-2 in the last 29 regular season meetings overall.
- Milwaukee is the lone active AHL opponent that the Aeros hold an overall losing record against, with at least four meetings.
- Houston is 19-16-4-2 all-time at home against Milwaukee, but just 5-8-0-2 in the last 15 meetings.
- Milwaukee G Pekka Rinne is 2-4-0 with a 3.55 gaa and a .875 save pct. against Houston in the regular season. But in the post-season, Rinne was a perfect 4-0-0 with a 2.50 gaa and a .912 save pct.

Scouting the Aeros
The sixth-place Aeros (18-20-0-5) have 41 points and are four points behind fifth-place Iowa and eight away from the third-place tie of Peoria and Milwaukee...Houston is looking for its first set of back-to-back home wins since 11/24 and 11/26...The Aeros leave at 6 a.m. tomorrow to play Worcester to begin a three-game road trip...Team scoring leader RW Matt Foy has 31 points (15-16=31)...Next are veteran D Curtis Murphy (5-19=24) and rookie LW Benoit Pouliot (16-8=24) and LW Roman Voloshenko (8-15=23)...G Josh Harding is 17-15-4 with a 2.47 gaa and a .921 save pct....D Dieter Kochan is 1-1-0 with a 5.05 gaa and a .838 save pct., and is back after missing 29 games due to injury.

Scouting the Admirals
Milwaukee (21-16-3-4), AHL affiliate of the Nashville Predators, is 5-2-0-1 in its last eight games to move to 49 points - tied for third with Peoria in the West Division...Milwaukee is in a stretch where it plays six games in seven nights, and the Admirals begin a second straight three-in-three tonight after a Monday off-day...C Rich Peverley paces the Ads in scoring with 47 points (18-29=47), and he is a team-best plus-11...All-Star D Sheldon Brookbank leads the blueline corps with 29 points (8-21=29)...G Karl Goehring is 17-10-4 with a 2.64 gaa...G Pekka Rinne, who missed the first half of the season after a shoulder injury, returned to the lineup Friday and is 0-2-0 with a 5.40 gaa and a .780 save pct.

2006-07 meetings (3rd of 8 meetings, Aeros are 2-0-0-0 overall, Aeros are 1-0-0-0 at Houston)
November 15 Houston 4 at Milwaukee 2
Sunday Milwaukee 1 at Houston 6
Tonight Milwaukee at Houston
February 1 Milwaukee at Houston
February 2 Houston at Milwaukee
February 11 Houston at Milwaukee
February 25 Milwaukee at Houston
April 10 Houston at Milwaukee

Quick Hits
- Nine of the Aeros' 18 victories have been in come-from-behind fashion, including four of their last five.
- The Aeros are 6-6-0-5 in one-goal games. But after eight of their first 12 games were decided by one goal, just nine of Houston's last 31 contests has been decided in that fashion.
- Houston is 17-6-0-4 when scoring three goals or more, and just 1-14-0-1 when scoring two or fewer.
- The Aeros are 5-1-0-2 this season when allowing 40 or more shots.
- Milwaukee is playing its league-high 27th road game. The Admirals have played just 18 home games - fewest in the AHL.
- The Admirals have just one regulation loss on the road in one-goal games (8-1-1-3).
- Aeros D Curtis Murphy has 13 points (2-11=13) over his last 16 games to move to 24 points (5-19=24) this season - moving him into a tied for fifth place among AHL defensemen. This comes after a cold spell where Murphy was held pointless in six games - a season-high. Earlier this month, Murphy was selected to participate in the 2007 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic - his fifth appearance in as many AHL seasons. A three-time International Hockey League All-Star, Murphy has participated in eight All-Star games in as many professional seasons in North America.

Sunday's game
Defenseman Shawn Belle posted his first career two-goal game, Benoit Pouliot and Roman Voloshenko each tallied a goal and two assists and Josh Harding made 26 saves, as the Houston Aeros routed the Milwaukee Admirals 6-1 at Toyota Center. Jason Morgan and Peter Olvecky added a goal apiece and Erik Reitz chipped in two helpers for Houston. Kelsey Wilson scored a goal and Pekka Rinne made 16 stops in two periods for Milwaukee.

Power play update
- Houston is up to a tie for 21st in the AHL with the man advantage at 15.0 percent.
- The Aeros are 16-for-73 (21.9 percent) on the power play in their last 13 games.
- Houston is 4-for-12 (33.3 percent) with the man advantage in its last two games.
- Milwaukee is third in the AHL on the penalty kill at 86.8 percent.
- After killing off 30 straight shorthanded chances entering Sunday's game, the Admirals allowed the Aeros three goals on six PP chances.

Penalty kill update
- Houston sixth in the AHL on the PK at 85.9 percent.
- Opponents are 6-for-21 (28.6 percent) with the man advantage against the Aeros in the last three games.
- Milwaukee is tied for 19th in the AHL on the power play at 15.7 percent.
- The Admirals are 3-for-27 (11.1 percent) with the man advantage in their last six games.

Aeros/Admirals connections
- The Aeros face one of their former friends as a foe tonight, Lane Lambert serves as an assistant coach with the Admirals. Lambert spent parts of three seasons with the Aeros, helping the team to a Turner Cup title in 1999 along with current Aeros assistant coach Cam Stewart.
- Houston D Curtis Murphy and C Bryan Lundbohm were each on the Admirals' 2004 Calder Cup winning team. Lundbohm was injured. Murphy played for the Ads for that one season, while Lundbohm spent four (2001-05) in a Milwaukee sweater.
- Admirals LW Paul Brown and Aeros D Shawn Belle each hail from Edmonton, Alta.
- Aeros D Peter Ratchuk and Admirals C Shane Endicott were teammates in AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2001-02.
- Admirals G Karl Goehring attended the University of North Dakota from 1997-98. He was Aeros D Curtis Murphy's teammate in 1997-98, and Aeros C Bryan Lundbohm's teammate from 1998-2001.
- Milwaukee D Alex Henry was a member of the Minnesota Wild organization from 2003-06, serving as captain at one point.
- Aeros assistant coach Cam Stewart and Milwaukee D Kevin Klein and D T.J. Reynolds all hail from Kitchener, Ont.
- Aeros RW Joel Ward and Milwaukee C Cal O'Reilly are both from Toronto, Ont..

• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...

American Hockey League Stories from January 23, 2007


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Houston Aeros Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central