Aeros Weekly Report

Published on January 10, 2005 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Houston Aeros News Release


Coming attractions:

TUE, vs. MIL, 7:05 p.m.
$15 Tuesday!
Get a $15 corner seat (normally $20) via www.aeros.com/themenights. Username is Tuesday, password is Corner. The Aeros take on the Admirals for the third time in six games and for the fourth time overall this season. The Admirals have never lost at Toyota Center, winning each of the first six meetings by a combined 26-10 margin. Houston is 1-2-0-0 versus Milwaukee this season, losing the last two games. Aero-killer Simon Gamache has six points (1-5=6) against Houston this season, all on the Ads' last six goals, and Brian Finley's 10 wins versus Houston are the most of any active netminder against the team. Allan Bester holds the overall record with 11. Milwaukee enters this week tied for first in the West with 47 points.

FRI, vs. MTB, 7:35 p.m.
Derek Boogaard Bobblehead Night
The first 3,000 fans will receive a piece of Aeros history - a Derek Boogaard Bobblehead. The Aeros and Moose play for the first of four times this season. Manitoba is playing just its fifth road game since November 13. The teams split four games in 2003-04, with each team going 1-1-0 on the other team's ice. Houston has won three of the last four home meetings, with the lone blemish a 3-1 matinee defeat November 4, 2003. Manitoba has won four of five and trails Rochester by one point for first place in the North.

SUN, vs. MTB, 5:05 p.m.
Family Day
Get four tickets, four pucks, $20 in Toyota Bucks and free parking, all for just $59! Visit www.aeros.com/themenights to order. Username is Family, password is Aeros.

This week on Aeros.com – Log on to www.aeros.com this week to help choose the subject of the next www.aeros.com Q&A session.

Scoreless streak increasing - The Aeros have been shut out in each of their last two games and haven't scored a goal in 120 minutes, 46 seconds dating back to Rickard Wallin's goal New Year's Eve in Norfolk. Houston has been shut out in back-to-back games for just the fifth time in team history - first in exactly one year. Last year's streak extended to 178 minutes, 52 seconds. The Aeros were blanked in three straight games once - March 19, 22 and 24 in their inaugural 1994-95 campaign. Houston hasn't scored a goal at Toyota Center since the first period against Milwaukee on December 23, a span of 112 minutes, 57 seconds. The Aeros have slid to 15th in the AHL at 2.52 goals per game.

Out of the gates slow in the second - The Aeros have gone five games without scoring a second-period goal, dating back to December 23 versus San Antonio. Houston has been outscored 7-0 in the second in that span and has been outscored 27-19 overall in the stanza this season. The Aeros' 19 second-period goals are an AHL-low.

Special teams update - The Aeros are 3-for-34 over their last five games on the power play, including 0-for-10 in the last two. Houston has killed off 36-of-39 shorthanded chances in the last nine (92.3 percent). Milwaukee has the last three PPG versus Houston. Other than that, the Aeros have killed off killed off 28 straight opportunities since December 2.

Trying to avoid third straight home loss - The Aeros will hit the ice Tuesday against Milwaukee trying to avoid a third straight regulation home loss. They haven't done that since December 6-12, 2002, during their Calder Cup season.

Down on the farm - The CHL's Austin Ice Bats are 14-14-2, in third place in the Southeast Division, five points behind Corpus Christi...F Dallas Anderson has three goals, four assists and 162 PIM's in 24 games...Anderson ranks fourth in the CHL in PIM's...The ECHL's Pensacola Ice Pilots are 20-9-3, good for first in the South Division...LW Jordan Krestanovich has 24 points (9-15=24)...RW Jason Beckett has 12 points (3-9=12) and is plus-12...Beckett has four points (2-2=4) in a three-game point streak...D Ryan Stokes has nine points (1-8=9) and 70 PIM's and is a plus-seven...Stokes, a rookie, has five assists in a three-game assist streak...LW Bill Kinkel has two goals and 51 PIM's in eight games and came off injured reserve last week...ECHL Louisiana is 14-16-3 and in fifth place in the six-team South Division...IceGators are 4-12-1 in their last 17...LW David Bararuk (9-15=24) is second on the team in scoring while D Maxime Fortunus has 14 points (4-9=13)...RW Mark Rooneem has 10 points (4-6=10)...D Chris Heid has seven points (2-5=7) in just eight games since being reassigned 12/23...UHL Quad City is 14-15-5, in fourth place in the West...G Robert Gherson is 4-5-3 with a 2.63 gaa...C Mike Kompon has a team-best 36 points (11-25=36)...Kompon is first in assists and second in points among UHL rookies.

West Standings - The Aeros enter this week with 35 points, in sixth place in the West for the first time since October 23. But Houston has five games in hand on Cincinnati and six on San Antonio, who are tied for fourth.
West Division Standings, 1/10
Milwaukee 22-9-2-1=47
Chicago 21-11-4-1=47
Grand Rapids 19-15-1-1=40
San Antonio 15-18-2-4=36
Cincinnati 17-19-0-2=36
Houston 16-14-2-1=35
Utah 9-25-0-2=20

Aeros still looking for first goal of 2005
MIL 2, HOU 0; WOR 1, HOU 0
The Aeros remained goal-less in 2005 with a pair of shutout losses in their first two games of the New Year.
Sunday: Jason Bacashihua made 29 saves for his eighth career shutout, outdueling former goaltending-mate Mike Smith, as the Worcester IceCats handed the Aeros their second straight shutout loss, 1-0, at Toyota Center. Jon DiSalvatore scored 7:20 into the second period for Worcester, which hasn't allowed a goal at Toyota Center in the two games it has played there. The IceCats, winners of three straight and five of six, improved to an impressive 12-2-1-2 in one-goal games.
Smith made 17 saves for Houston, which has dropped four of five.
DiSalvatore put the IceCats on the board at the 7:20 mark of the second. Mike Glumac won a battle behind the net and fed DiSalvatore in the right circle. His original shot was blocked in front, but he pounced on the rebound and put it in for his 10th goal of the season – tying Glumac for the team lead.
In the third, Bacashihua's best save came with 7:40 left, when he just got a piece of his blocker on a Stephane Veilleux attempt, pushing it over the net.
Saturday: Aero-killer Simon Gamache and Wyatt Smith each notched a power play goal and an assist, and Brian Finley turned aside 24 shots for his third shutout, as the Milwaukee Admirals defeated the Houston Aeros 2-0 at Bradley Center for their fourth straight win.
Smith totaled 26 saves for the Aeros, who went 1-2-0-0 on their three-game road trip. Houston is 1-9-1-1 in its last 12 versus the Admirals.
Gamache has 29 (13-16=29) points in 23 career games versus Houston. Gamache has 11 points (2-9=11) in a six-game point streak, and he has points in 10 of his last 11 games, with 19 points (7-12=19) in that span.
Finley, meanwhile, improved to 10-4-1 versus Houston, the most wins of any active AHL netminder against the Aeros. He has won nine of his last 10 decisions versus Houston and has won four straight games overall. Only Allan Bester (11) has won more career games against the Aeros

Player of the week G Mike Smith -
Suffered pair of tough-luck losses last week and posted 1.53 gaa and .935 save pct...Stopped 26 shots as Aeros fell 2-0 in Milwaukee on Saturday for his first road loss...Made 17 saves in 1-0 home loss to Worcester on Sunday...Has allowed two goals or less in each of his last three starts, and in six of nine overall since Josh Harding went out with a concussion November 28...Smith has appeared in 11 straight games - nine starts - and has allowed only three third-period goals over that span...Smith's 11 straight appearances are the second most in team history behind Frederic Chabot's 15 from December 8, 1999, to January 21, 2000.
Smith this week...
1/8 at MIL L 26-28
1/9 vs. WOR L 17-18
Totals - 2gp, 0-2-0, 1.53 gaa, .935 pct.

Aeros' Practice schedule:
Monday - 11-12, Toyota Center
Tuesday - 10-11, pre-game skate, vs. MIL 7:05 p.m.
Wednesday - 10-11:30, Sugar Land
Thursday - 10-11:30, Sugar Land
Friday - 10-11, pre-game skate, vs. MTB 7:35 p.m.
Saturday - 10-11:30, Sugar Land
Sunday - vs. MTB, 5:05 p.m.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 10, 2005


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