Barons Weekly Report

Published on February 9, 2004 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Barons News Release


Flashback... The Barons split a pair of games with the Manitoba Moose this week to remain in second place of the North Division. On Thursday night, the Barons dropped the first of the two-game set 5-2. Although the score indicates a one-sided affair, the Moose tallied two late empty net goals for the cushion. The Barons received goals from Tavis Hansen and Milan Michalek. Seamus Kotyk played well in net despite the loss, stopping 26 of 29 shots on net. Alex Auld made 26 saves on the night, several of which were of the highlight variety to secure the Moose victory. The Barons would only have to wait until Saturday afternoon to exact revenge from the Moose. Powered by a three-goal third period, the Barons rolled to a 5-1 victory against Manitoba. Despite of a herky-jerky game characterized by 92 combined penalty minutes, the Barons received an offensive spark as five players recorded a multi-point game. Brad Boyes responded by scoring two goals and Ryane Clowe tallied a goal and an assist. Nolan Schaefer was brilliant yet again on home ice turning away 25 shots. Schaefer is now 4-0 at Gund Arena. The victory evened the season series with the Moose at 3 games apiece.

Coming Up... While Miroslav Zalesak and Garrett Stafford are showcasing their skills at the 2004 Pepsi AHL All-Star Classic in Grand Rapids, the rest of the team will enjoy a little vacation. The Barons will return to practice on Wednesday before playing the San Antonio Rampage on Thursday night at Gund Arena. The Barons are 1-0-0-1 against the Rampage this season, playing both games in San Antonio early in the season. The Rampage have struggled a bit lately going 3-6-1-0 in the last 10 games. The Barons, meanwhile, have gone 7-3 in their last 10 games, the second best ten-game stretch in the North Division currently. Brad Boyes was extremely effective against San Antonio in the first match-up this season. A game in which the Barons scored 6 goals in the third period to clinch a 7-1 victory, Boyes scored 2 goals and added 2 assists for good measure. Seamus Kotyk was brilliant in net gaining the victory by stopping 23 shots. Although their record is better at home, the Rampage's special teams work on the road is markedly better. On the road, San Antonio has a 16.4% power play percentage and a 86.9% penalty kill rate. At home however, the Rampage own just a 15.4% power play mark and a 84.4% penalty kill rate. The Barons will then travel to Utah for a Saturday night game against the Grizzlies. They will stay in Utah for a Monday night game as well. The Saturday night game in Utah will kick off a five-game road trip that will take the Barons as far west as Utah and as far east as St. John's. The Barons defeated the Grizzlies in their only meeting this season. Nolan Schaefer stopped 24 shots as the Barons received goals from Tavis Hansen, Garrett Stafford, and Jon DiSalvatore in a 3-2 victory. The game against Utah was the cleanest game of the season for the Barons as the two teams combined for only 6 penalty minutes. The Barons used their first short-handed goal of the season to win the game. The goal was scored by Tavis Hansen on a face-off play started by Craig Valette.

Barons Player of the Week... The Cleveland Barons Player of the Week is left wing Ryane Clowe. On the week, Clowe recorded 1 goal and 2 assists for 3 points in 2 games. Clowe scored at least one point in each contest. Clowe helped the Barons split two games with the Manitoba Moose this week. In each contest, Clowe recorded 4 shots. On the week, the St. John's native was a +1.

Interesting Statistics Of The Week... The Barons have not fallen in regulation in back-to-back games this season. In games following a loss in regulation, the Barons have proved resilient posting a 14-0-1-2 record. The Barons have lost by three goals or more in only six games this season. The Barons are 4-0-0-2 in games following such a loss. The Barons suffered a 5-2 loss to Manitoba on Thursday night. The Barons have gained a point in 63.9% of their last 36 games. The Barons are 20-13-1-2 for a .597 winning percentage during that span. Coincidentally, the Barons are now 7 games over .500. Top Barons... Miroslav Zalesak has now recorded at least one point in 24 out of the last 28 games. During the span, Zalesak has recorded 37 points on 18 goals and 19 assists. Zalesak, with 59 points, currently holds a 5-point lead in the AHL scoring race over Hershey's Eric Perrin and Manchester's Pavel Rosa. His 26 goals are first in the AHL and his 31 assists are fourth. Zalesak's 20 power play points are tied for fifth in the league and his 9 power play goals are tied for fifth. He has registered a point in 74% of the Barons games this season (37/50). The Barons are 20-9-3-5 in those games. When he does not record a point, the Barons are 4-8-1-0... Brad Boyes is hot on the tale of Miroslav Zalesak in scoring. Boyes is now just 11 points behind the league leader with 48 points. Boyes is tied for fifth in scoring (48), tied for fourth in goals (21), and twelfth in assists (27). In Boyes' twelve multi-point games this season, the Barons have yet to lose a game in regulation with a record of 11-0-0-1. When Boyes scores a goal, the Barons are 12-4-1-1. In the last six games in which Boyes scores at least one goal, the Barons are 6-0-0-0. When Boyes scores two goals in a game, the Barons are 4-0-0-0... Seamus Kotyk has been more than steady in between the pipes for the Barons. He is 7-2-1 in his last ten decisions. In those ten games, Kotyk owns a 2.29 GAA (23 GA) and a .939 save percentage (352-375). Kotyk was injured in the first period during his start on 1-2-04 resulting in a no decision... Garrett Stafford is amidst a great rookie campaign. Among all AHL defenseman, Stafford ranks first in points (31), tied for third in goals (8), and tied for second in assists (23). Stafford also leads all AHL rookie defensemen in goals, assists, and points. Overall, Stafford is tied for third in rookie scoring, second in rookie assists, and tied for 20th in rookie goals... Nolan Schaefer has been tremendous on home ice this season. In his 4 home starts, Schaefer is 4-0 with a 1.25 goals against average and a .958 save percentage. Overall, the Barons have gained at least one point in 8 out of the rookie's 10 starts... Ryane Clowe is another rookie having a great season. Among all rookies, Clowe is tied for eighth in scoring (27), fourth in assists (18), and fifth in plus/minus (+11). Clowe has mad his mark at home as of late. Clowe has recorded at least one assist in the last 7 Barons home games. The 7 game home assist streak is tied for the second longest in the league this season... By recording a point in 8 of the last 12 games, Jon DiSalvatore has made his way into the top rookie scorers. DiSalvatore is tied for 17th in rookie scoring with 22 points. Among all rookies, he is tied for 11th in goals (10), 22nd in assists, and fourth in shots (117)... Patrick Rissmiller has registered a point in seven of the last eight games. In those contests, Rissmiller has registered 1 goal and 6 assists. The Barons are 5-3 in the last eight games. Rissmiller is the team's third leading scorer with 33 points. His 24 assists this season are tied for 17th in the league.

3rd Annual Cleveland Barons Auction... The 3rd Annual Cleveland Barons Auction will be held on March 3rd at Windows on the River. Proceeds from the event benefit the Doug Dieken Foundation. The Doug Dieken Foundation was started by Dieken in 1997 after witnessing the impact the Special Olympics program had on his brother, who is developmentally disabled. In response to a lack of city funding for the program, the Doug Dieken Foundation began co-sponsoring a variety of events. The Annual Cleveland Barons Auction has become the cornerstone of a foundation that serves as the primary support for the Cleveland Public Schools Special Olympics Program. The entire Barons roster and front office will be on hand to enjoy the evening. Each table will have at least one member of the Cleveland Barons sitting with them. For details, call the Barons front office at 216-420-2518.

Up and West... San Jose Sharks Head Coach Ron Wilson was named head coach of the United States team that will compete in the World Cup of Hockey 2004, to be held Aug. 30-Sept. 14 in seven venues across six countries on two continents... Right wing Jonathan Cheechoo and defenseman Christian Ehrhoff showcased their abilities at the Youngstars Game during All-Star Weekend in Minnesota. Cheechoo electrified assisting on 4 of the West's 7 goals. Christian Ehrhoff wouldn't be outdone as he scored a goal for the West. The former Barons led the Western Conference to a 7-3 win... Patrick Marleau competed in the All-Star game on Sunday. Marleau did not record a point in the 6-4 Eastern Conference victory. On a side note, early on Saturday, the NHL Mascots held their annual All-Star game with the Western Conference winning by a score of 5-2. In the game, S.J. Sharkie scored twice for the West.

Standings... The Barons split their pair of games on the week to clinch their fifth straight non-losing week. To stay in second place, they needed it too. Syracuse has won their last three games. The Barons also are trying to keep pace with Hamilton, who sits in first. The Bulldogs are unbeaten in their last three (2-0-1-0) and have gone 7-1-2-0 in their last ten. The Barons have posted a 7-3-0-0 record and Syracuse is 6-2-2-0 in the same 10-game stretch. The North Division is the second strongest division in the league behind the East Division. The North has a total of 378 points while the East has a total of 379... The West Division will be quite interesting to watch down the stretch. Grand Rapids, the best team in the league with 68 points, is being hunted by the Milwaukee Admirals who currently sit in third place with 57 points. Milwaukee though, has five games in hand on Grand Rapids and has won their last 3 games. Chicago will try to block both teams though as they sit in second with 61 points on the season... Bridgeport holds the slimmest Division lead in the league, holding off Philadelphia by just one point. Bridgeport, who owns the best winning percentage in the league, is unbeaten in their last six games (3-0-3-0). In the Atlantic Division, Lowell has gotten back into the playoff race by going 7-2-1-0 in their last 10 games. Hartford, led by former Barons Chad Wiseman and John Jakopin (injured) lead the division with 63 points. Springfield, who announced an affiliation with the Tampa Bay Lightning beginning next season, sits in last place with 37 points and is just 2-8-0-0 in their last 10 games.

Barons Broadcasts... All games this season can be heard live by Crashing The Net at www.clevelandbarons.net.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 9, 2004


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