Aeros Looking to Continue Winning Ways At Home

January 10, 2006 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Houston Aeros News Release


Five things you need to know

After having their eight-game winning streak and seven-game home winning streak snapped Friday in a 6-5 loss to Grand Rapids, the Aeros play game two of a seven-game homestand tonight. Even with Friday's loss, Houston has won 12 of 14 at home and is 15-3-1-1 at Toyota Center this season, 21-3-1-3 in the last 28 regular-season games there and 29-5-1-3 in the last 38. The Aeros are in a stretch of games where they won't play outside the state of Texas for 37 days, until traveling to Chicago 1/22. Aeros C Erik Westrum (14-36=50) and RW Kirby Law (22-27=49) rank second and third in the AHL in scoring. They are trying to become the first duo from the same team to finish 1-2 in the league's scoring race Paul Gardner (112 points) and Jody Gage (99) turned the trick for Rochester exactly 20 seasons ago - in 1985-86. Law has a season-best nine-game point streak (8-8=16) and he has 24 points (12-12=24) in his last 13 contests alone. Law leads all AHL players with 22 goals. Rookie C Patrick O'Sullivan has 30 points (16-14=30) in his last 21 games to move into a tie for first in rookie scoring with 37 points (19-18=37). Rookie LW Roman Voloshenko, who is eligible to return tonight after leading Team Russia to a silver medal in the World Junior Championships, has 30 points (19-11=30), tied for ninth among AHL rookies. Voloshenko carries a seven-game point streak (6-4=10) into tonight's game. D Curtis Murphy ranks fourth among league defensemen with 29 points (4-25=29). Houston C Petr Taticek extended his point and assist streaks to a career-high seven games (3-8=11) on Friday. Taticek has career highs in goals (nine) and points (23) in only 30 games, while his 14 assists are one off his 2003-04 and 2004-05 totals in San Antonio. Taticek's assist streak is the longest by an Aero this season, and is just one off the AHL season-high. Taticek was acquired on loan from the Florida Panthers organization 10/15. Aeros RW and captain Kirby Law ranks third in the AHL with 49 points (22-27=49), already matching his total from the 2004-05 season, his first in Houston. Law enters this week with 199 professional goals in 580 NHL, AHL and IHL games. Law leads the AHL with 22 goals, just 10 shy of his career-best total of 32, set in 2003-04, when he ranked fifth in the league. The durable winger has played in 138 consecutive AHL games - 117 with Houston. Law is three goals shy of becoming the 12th player in team history with 50 goals, and two points from being the 23rd to reach 100. Law rides a nine-game point streak (8-8=16) into play this week, two off C Erik Westrum's team season-high. The Aeros had won 27 straight games when scoring five goals or more and they were unbeaten at 47-0-1-0 in that situation before allowing five PPG in a 6-5 loss to Grand Rapids on Friday. Houston hadn't failed to win since a 5-5 tie against Utah 3/23/04, and the Aeros hadn't lost when scoring five goals since a 6-5 defeat at the hands of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on 12/6/02, more than three years ago. Friday marked the first time the Aeros failed to hold a three or more goal lead since they saw a 4-0 lead evaporate in a 5-4 loss in Syracuse 11/28/03. Houston scored four goals in the opening 10:31 of that contest. Houston had allowed five goals of any kind in a period at home just once in team history, in the first period of a 7-3 loss to Hartford 12/8/01. The five power play goals in the game itself were a team record against the Aeros at home. They'd twice allowed four power play goals in a game. Houston had allowed just 12 PPG at home in its first 19 games before surrendering five in the final 20 minutes alone Friday.

Marlies at Aeros (Aeros are 1-0-0-0 overall, First meeting at Houston) Tonight is the Toronto Marlies' first trip ever into Houston. The Aeros also didn't play the St. John's Maple Leafs. The NHL Leafs moved their affiliate from "The Rock" to Ricoh Coliseum this season. The Marlies dealt the Aeros a 4-2 loss in Toronto 11/19, behind a goal and two assists from Johnny Pohl. Albany, Binghamton, Hershey, Lowell, Portland and Springfield are now the lone franchises that Houston has never faced in the regular season. The Aeros have played Hershey in the post-season. Six Aeros hail from Ontario: G Seamus Kotyk, D Ryan Stokes, C Rem Murray, RW Joel Ward, RW Matt Foy and D Dustin Wood. Ward is from Toronto. Eight Aeros played junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League - Kotyk, Stokes, Ward, Foy, Wood, D Erik Reitz, LW Bill Kinkel and C Patrick O'Sullivan.

Scouting the Aeros The Aeros (26-9-1-1) lost 6-5 to Grand Rapids on Friday to snap their eight-game winning streak and seven-game home winning run...Houston's 54 points rank third in the AHL and second in the Western Conference...The Aeros' West Division lead is five points over Milwaukee...A victory tonight would tie the 1998-99 Turner Cup championship team for most wins (27) after 38 games...C Erik Westrum has 50 points (14-36=50) and now ranks second in the AHL in scoring behind Grand Rapids LW Jiri Hudler (21-30=51)...Westrum leads the circuit in assists...RW Kirby Law is third in the league with 49 points (22-27=49) and is first in goals...C Patrick O'Sullivan is tied for the AHL rookie lead with with 37 points (19-18=37)...O'Sullivan and LW Roman Voloshenko (19-11=30) are tied for the league lead in goals among rookies...Voloshenko, who missed the last six games while representing Russia at the World Junior Championships, is tied for ninth among first-year players in points...D Curtis Murphy is fourth among AHL defensemen with 29 points (4-25=29)...G Josh Harding is 20-7-0 with a 2.65 gaa to rank first in the league in wins, tied for fifth in save pct. (.921) and 14th in gaa...Harding is 26-7-1 in his last 34 regular-season games...G Seamus Kotyk is 5-2-1 with a 3.20 gaa...Harding has played in six of the last seven games, and in 12 of 14, 15 of 18 and 18 of 22.

Scouting the Marlies Toronto (20-16-1-0), AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs, has won three in a row and is 8-2-1-0 in its last 11 to move into fourth place in the North Division with 41 points...The Marlies, who embark on a 10-game road trip tonight, earned a 4-1 home win over Rochester on Saturday...G Jean-Sebastien Aubin made 25 saves and has allowed just one goal in each of his last three starts, improving his record to 11-9-0 with a 2.71 gaa...G Jean-Francois Racine is 9-8-0 with a 3.21 gaa...C John Pohl leads Toronto with 34 points (19-15=34), ahead of former Stanley Cup Finalist LW Bates Battaglia (10-20=30)...D Ian White paces the blueliners with 21 points (4-17=21).

2005-06 meetings (2nd of 2 meetings, Aeros are 1-0-0-0 overall, First meeting at Houston) November 19 Houston 2 at Toronto 4 Tonight Toronto at Houston

Quick Hits Aeros RW Matt Foy has 15 points (3-12=15) in only 13 games since being assigned to the Aeros from the Minnesota Wild 11/26. Foy has points in seven of his last eight games, with 14 points (3-11=14) in that span. Foy has notched two or more points in five of his last seven games, including a career-best four assist game 12/17 vs. Peoria. Foy had seven multiple-point games in his first two seasons with Houston, but he has five already in 2005-06. His 12 assists are one off his career-high, set in his rookie campaign of 2003-04. The Aeros are 7-1-0-0 this season when Foy has at least one point. One of the biggest momentum changers in hockey can be goals in the first or last two minutes of a period. Those have been the money-winners for Houston in 2005-06. Thursday in San Antonio, C Patrick O'Sullivan scored the Aeros' 15th goal in the final two minutes of a period, including three games with more than one such goal. Houston is a remarkable 12-0-0-0 in those games. Houston has scored 13 goals in the first two minutes of a stanza, with one game with two such goals. The Aeros are also 12-0-0 when scoring in that situation. Houston has outscored its opponents 28-16 in the first and last two minutes of a period this season. Aeros D Curtis Murphy has 12 points (1-11=12) in his last 13 games. Murphy has 130 points with Houston, moving into fifth place on the team's all-time list. Murphy ranks second among blueliners in team history in both points and assists. Murphy ranks fourth among all AHL defensemen in points this season (4-25=29). Aeros veteran C Rem Murray has a season-best four-game point streak (2-3=5). The Aeros are 25-2-0-0 when scoring three goals or more, but 1-7-1-1 when scoring two or fewer. Three is also the magic number defensively, as Houston is 23-2-1-1 when allowing three of fewer goals and 3-7-0-0 when yielding four or more. Houston is 14-1-0-0 when outshooting an opponent. The Aeros are 10-0-0-0 when allowing 29 shots or fewer. The Aeros are 12-3-1-1 in one-goal games, and an impressive 17-4-1-1 in games decided by two goals or less. Thirteen of the Aeros' first 21 games were decided by one goal. Since then, however, just four of the last 16 games has been of the one-goal variety. Houston had won four straight one-goal games and seven of eight prior to Friday's loss against Grand Rapids. Since missing five games due to injury in late October and early November, Aeros second-year G Josh Harding is 15-4-0 with a 2.45 gaa to move to 20-7-0 with a 2.65 gaa on the season. Harding, who leads the AHL with 20 victories, has 41 wins with the Aeros, the most of any goalie since the team joined the AHL in 2001-02. Harding, a native of Regina, Sask., is an amazing 35-2-1 in his last 38 decisions when the Aeros score three goals or more in support of him. Harding's 20 victories through the Aeros' first 37 games puts him on pace for 43 wins this season. In 2004-05, current Buffalo Sabre Ryan Miller became the first AHL goalie to reach 40 wins since Gerry Cheevers set a league-record with 48 in 1964-65. Miller had 41 "W"'s last season. Houston has welcomed 34,870 fans to Toyota Center in the last six games for an average of 5,811. Each of those crowds has topped the 5,000-fan mark, including a season-high 7,271 on 12/28 against Iowa. The run has pushed the Aeros to an average of 5,003 through their first 20 games, ranking them 12th in the AHL. The Aeros are one game into a season-best seven-game homestand. Toronto has scored four goals or more in each of its last 10 victories. The Marlies have played only 11 one-goal games (6-4-1-0), one off Rochester's AHL low.

Power play update Houston is fourth in the league on the power play at 20.9 percent. The Aeros are 23-for-82 (28.0 percent) with the man advantage in the last 13 games. Houston is 16-2-0-0 when scoring at least two PPG. Toronto ranks 20th in the AHL on the penalty kill at 82.2 percent. The Marlies have killed off 35-of-38 shorthanded chances (92.1 percent) over their last five games.

Penalty kill update Houston is tied for ninth in the AHL on the penalty kill at 83.9 percent. The Aeros had killed off 27-of-30 (90.0 percent) of their shorthanded chances over a six-game stretch before Grand Rapids went 5-for-10 Friday, scoring five PPG in the third period. Houston is 10-1-0-1 when not allowing a power play goal and 20-3-1-1 when allowing one power play goal or fewer. Toronto ranks 10th in the AHL on the power play at 18.4 percent. The Marlies are an impressive 7-of-22 (31.8 percent) with the man advantage in the last three games.

Last Game (Friday) Jiri Hudler scored two of Grand Rapids' remarkable five third-period power play goals, and Valterri Filpulla won it with a man advantage goal with 2:17 left, as the Griffins rallied from a three-goal deficit for an improbable 6-5 victory to snap the Houston Aeros' eight-game winning streak. Hudler added two assists, Bryan Helmer had a goal and a helper, Tomas Kopecky scored and Darryl Bootland tallied the only non power-play goal for the Griffins. Jimmy Howard made 31 saves for Grand Rapids, which has come back to win from a multiple-goal deficit a whopping seven times. Rem Murray, Curtis Murphy, Petr Taticek and Matt Foy each had a goal and an assist for Houston, which had won seven in a row at home to come within one victory of a franchise record. Peter Olvecky added a goal and Josh Harding finished with 32 saves for the Aeros.

Aeros/Marlies connections Toronto D Brad Brown played for the Minnesota Wild from 2001-2004. Houston RW Kirby Law and Toronto's Ian MacNeil were teammates in 2002-03 and 2003-04 in Philadelphia. Houston C Erik Westrum and Toronto C Johnny Pohl attended the University of Minnesota together from 1998-2001. Aeros RW Matt Foy and Toronto D Brendan Bell played for OHL Ottawa in 2002-03.



American Hockey League Stories from January 10, 2006


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