All-Star Eizenman Arrives, Blackwater Returns

Published on February 20, 2009 under ECHL (ECHL)
Stockton Thunder News Release


STOCKTON, Calif. - The Stockton Thunder, the proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers and American Hockey League's Springfield Falcons, has agreed to terms with center Oren Eizenman (IZE-en-man), Thunder head coach Matt Thomas announced today. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

In addition, it was announced left wing Judd Blackwater has been returned to the Thunder from loan to the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL and defenseman Ryan Constant has been activated off the three-day injured reserve list.

Blackwater and Constant will return and Eizenman is expected to make his debut in a Thunder uniform (jersey number 13) tonight against the Utah Grizzlies, starting at 6:05 p.m. from The E-Center (1420 KSTN/StocktonThunder.com).

OREN EIZENMAN CAREER STATISTICS

"Oren is a skilled player with a tremendous work ethic that gives us another offensive weapon that can make a game-changing play every single night," said Thomas. "We've got a great group of forwards here already and adding another talented player with his character will be a big help for us heading into the final 20 games and playoffs."

Eizenman, 23, joins the Thunder lineup after his release from a professional tryout agreement (PTO) with the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL. The 6-foot, 180-pound forward finished third place in voting for the CCM Tacks ECHL Rookie of the Year award last season, leading the Fresno Falcons in scoring with 66 points (27g-39a) and pacing the team with 27 goals in 53 games while adding a +12 rating and 28 penalty minutes.

His 12 power-play goals and six game-winning goals paced the Falcons and also ranked fifth in the ECHL with a 19.3 shooting percentage which led the team. In six Kelly Cup Playoff games, Eizenman led the team with four goals and added one assist.

During the course of his 2007-08 rookie campaign, Eizenman was a member of the National Conference team for the 2008 ECHL All-Star Game in Stockton and was honored with back-to-back ECHL monthly awards, winning the CCM Vector ECHL Rookie of the Month award for December and CCM Tacks ECHL Player of the Month award for January.

The native of Toronto, Ontario played for Thomas in Fresno and is reunited with former Fresno teammates Matt O'Dette and Daryl Marcoux after scoring 13 points (3g-10a) and amassing 10 penalty minutes in 12 ECHL games this season, occurring before Fresno ceased operations on Dec. 22, 2008.

"I'm looking forward to playing for the great fans in Stockton," said Eizenman. "Everyone knows they have the best fans in the league and I'm excited for the big boost of playing for the home team. Playing in last year's All-Star game, it gave me a glimpse of how nice it is to have the home fans cheer for you and I'm looking forward to more of that. Playing for Matt Thomas and (assistant coach) Ryan Mougenel will really help in getting situated with the familiarity of their playing style. Coming back, it's a system I'm familiar with and hopefully that will help get my feet in front of me quicker than normal."

Eizenman, who guided Israel to a gold medal in the 2005 World Championships (Division II), has skated in 81 career professional games with Milwaukee, Worcester and Manitoba of the AHL and the Fresno Falcons of the ECHL, scoring 82 points (30g-52a) while posting 46 penalty minutes. Eizenman is also reunited with rookie right wing James Bates after the two skated for the Wexford Raiders of the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League in 2002-03.

Eizenman skated in 129 games in college during his four-year (2003-07) career for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (NCAA), scoring 99 points (37g-62a) and posting 90 penalty minutes. He was named to the East Coast Athletic Conference All-Rookie Team in 2003-04 after scoring 18 points (6g-12a) in 37 games.

Constant, 23, has skated in 35 games for the Thunder this season, scoring eight points (4g-4a) and amassing 59 penalty minutes. The 5-foot-11, 200-pound defenseman is under contract to Springfield and has tallied one assist in six games for the Falcons this year.

Blackwater, 21, has skated in 32 combined games this season as a rookie for the Thunder and Fresno Falcons, scoring 21 points (7g-14a) while amassing 41 penalty minutes. The 6-foot, 193-pound forward was signed by the Thunder as a free agent on Dec. 30, 2008 and posted seven points (2g-5a) and 18 PIM's in 12 games after his arrival in Stockton.

In nine games with Rockford, Blackwater scored three goals and posted nine penalty minutes after being signed to a 25-game professional tryout agreement (PTO) with Rockford on Jan. 28.

The Thunder was voted "Best Local Sports Team" by readers of San Joaquin Magazine, has led the ECHL in attendance for three consecutive seasons and drew 239,337 fans to Stockton Arena in 2007-08. Season tickets, group tickets, individual tickets and mini plans are on sale now. For more information about tickets, merchandise, or other inquiries contact the Stockton Thunder offices at (209) 373-1500 or visit www.StocktonThunder.com.

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