Barons Weekly Report

December 6, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Barons News Release


Flashback

12/3/04 Cleveland 3 - Utah 2 SO/OT... The Cleveland Barons and Utah Grizzlies set an AHL record on Friday night by engaging in a 16-round shootout. The Barons broke the record that was set by Lowell and Hartford just minutes earlier. Those two teams dueled in a 13-round shootout. Prior to the evening, the all-time record stood at 11 rounds (set twice). Garrett Stafford scored the shootout clincher on the Barons 16th try in sudden death. During regulation and overtime, the Barons dominated play in out-shooting the Grizzlies 40-22. Patrick Rissmiller tied the game at one in the second period with his eighth goal of the season. Ryane Clowe scored his third goal of the season in the third period to give the Barons a brief lead. Nolan Schaefer stopped 20 shots on the night in gaining his fourth win in his last five starts.

12/4/04 Hamilton 4 – Cleveland 1... The Barons opened the scoring in the first period with a power play goal scored by Ryane Clowe. The goal was assisted on by Tomas Plihal and Garrett Stafford. The Bulldogs then ran off 4 unanswered goals during the second and third period to bury the Barons. Dimitri Patzold stopped 34 shots on the day.

Coming Up

12/10/04 @ Hamilton – Copps Coliseum – 7:30pm

The Barons will travel to Hamilton to battle the Bulldogs on Friday night. Hamilton currently leads the season series with 3 wins to the Barons 2. Dating back to last season's playoffs, the Barons have played 11 of their last 28 games against the Bulldogs. The Barons are 4-7-0-0 in those games. This season, Garrett Stafford leads the Barons against Hamilton with 5 points in 5 games. Stafford has 2 goals and 3 assists against Hamilton. Christian Ehrhoff has scored both game-winning goals for the Barons against the Bulldogs this season. His three goals against Hamilton are the most for the Barons. The Barons power play has performed well against Hamilton in putting together a 28% power play percentage with 7 goals in 25 opportunities. Nolan Schaefer is 1-1-0 against the Bulldogs this season with a 1.52 goals against average and a .951 save percentage.

12/11/04 @ Cincinnati – Cincinnati Gardens – 7:35pm

Saturday will mark the third contest of the Labatt Blue Cup this season. Each team has won their home game in the series this season. Patrick Rissmiller has been great against the Mighty Ducks in his three year career with the Barons. In 18 games against the Mighty Ducks, Rissmiller has 8 goals and 6 assists for 14 points. Those 14 points are only behind (CLE) Chad Wiseman and (CIN) Tony Martensson's 15 points in the all-time series. Rissmiller scored a goal in the second meeting of the season between these two teams.

12/12/04 vs. Cincinnati – National City Rink located in Gund Arena – 5:00pm

The first period has been shooting gallery in the series for these two teams. The Barons and Mighty Ducks have each scored 3 goals apiece in the first. The total of 6 goals in that period exceed that of the second and third combined (5). The Barons have out-shot Cincinnati 72-54 in the two games. In Cincinnati's victory, Michael Ayers made his first AHL start in net and stopped 29 shots. Ayers was released and recalled in the time since that victory.

National City Breakaway with the Barons The Cleveland Barons will host the third National City Breakaway with the Barons presented by SoftRock 102.1 WDOK and Marc's on Tuesday, December 7th at the Cleveland Heights Recreation Center from 6:15-8:15pm. The Barons will hold a one-hour practice that is open to the public. Following the practice, the Barons will take the ice with the fans. It is the perfect opportunity to get autographs from and photographs with the team. The Cleveland Heights Recreation Center is located on Monticello Blvd. at Mayfield Road.

Post-Breakaway

Following the National City Breakaway, a group of Barons players will head over to The Loft courtesy of Labatt Blue. Labatt Blue will be on special during the post-Breakaway event. Patrick Rissmiller, Josh Prudden, and Mike Hoffman are scheduled to attend along with others. The Loft is located on 19367 Lorain Rd in Cleveland.

4 For $40 Family Pack

Every Sunday home game, the Barons offer the 4 for $40 Family Pack. Fans can purchase four tickets, four hot dogs, and four sodas for just $40. That is just $10 per person. To order a 4 for $43 Family Pack, call 216-420-0000.

Carkner's Christmas

Matt and Kary Carkner are organizing the Second Annual Carkner's Christmas, in conjunction with Big Brother Big Sisters of Cleveland. Each Barons player and coach will purchase three needs and wants for a member of Big Brothers Big Sisters Cleveland that is at a high level of need. On Wednesday, December 15th and Thursday, December 16th, the Carkner's will join Santa Clause and SlapShark and deliver the presents to the children's schools. On the 15th, they will visit Mary Bethune at 1pm and Alfred Benesch at 2pm. On the 16th, they will visit RG Jones at 1pm and Harrison Elementary at 2:30pm. The Cleveland Hockey Booster Club is also getting involved and adopting three children as well.

Fill The Gill

Aaron Gill, a rookie center, will make an appearance at the Cleveland Hockey Booster Club meeting on Monday, December 13th at 7:30pm. Gill will have a question and answer session with the Booster Club.

Lessons From the Pros

Patrick Rissmiller and Josh Prudden will give on-ice instruction to a team from the Thorton Park Ice Rink in Shaker Heights on Wednesday, December 15th. The two will instruct the team from 7:30-8:30pm.

You'll Shoot Your Eye Out

The Barons have been shooting like crazy lately. In the last ten games, the Barons have out-shot their opponent 349-298. The Barons are averaging 34.9 shots for and 29.8 shots against during that span. The Barons have posted a .550 winning percentage by compiling a 5-4-0-1 record in those games.

Up And West

With two games against Cincinnati this week, the Barons will have played nine of their last eleven games against an opponent from the West Division. The Barons have been successful against the West over the last two seasons. Last season, the Barons posted a 15-7-3-3 record against the West. This season, the Barons have posted a 5-3-1-2 record against the West Division. Combined, the Barons have a 20-10-4-5 record against the West the last two seasons with a winning percentage of .628. The Barons have gained at least one point in 74.4% of those 39 games (29/39).

Passing Proficiency

The Barons currently have 19 power play goals this season. With 37 assists, all but one of those goals has been accompanied by two assists. The one goal that did not have two assists came on November 6th in the Barons win over Hamilton in overtime. The Barons first goal of the game, scored by Christian Ehrhoff on the power play, was assisted by Marcel Goc.

And Then There Was One Barons head coach Roy Sommer is now the longest tenured coach in the Cleveland sporting world. Sommer took the baton from Butch Davis who resigned from the Cleveland Browns earlier this week. This is Sommer's fourth season in Cleveland, and his seventh as the coach of the Sharks top development affiliate. Here is how the rest of the Cleveland coaches stack: Eric Wedge, Cleveland Indians, 2 years 1 month; Paul Silas, Cavaliers, 1 year 6 months; Luis Rivera, Lake County, 1 year; Omid Namazi, Force, 8 months; Torey Lovullo, Aeros, 2 weeks; Terry Robiskie, Cleveland Browns, 4 days.

Barons Player of the Week

The Cleveland Barons Player of the Week is left wing Ryane Clowe. Clowe scored a goal in both games this past week. His two goals came on his only two shots of the week for a perfect 1.000 shooting percentage. He was even on the week.

The Clowe-ser

Ryane Clowe snapped a 13-game goal-less streak on Friday night. By scoring goals in back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday, Clowe has recorded one point in the last four games. His nine assists are tied for the team lead.

Riss Shot

Patrick Rissmiller has scored a goal in two of the last three games for the Barons. Rissmiller leads the team with eight goals on the season. Those eight goals are tied for 30th in the league. Rissmiller is now second on the team in shots with 60.

Plihal Power Tomas Plihal has four goals and three assists in recording at least one point in six of his last nine games. Two of his four goals during that span have been on the power play. Also, his last three goals have been the Barons second of the game. Plihal is fourth on the Barons with 12 points. His seven goals are tied for second on the team. His four power play goals lead the team and are tied for 19th in the league. Plihal's nine points and five goals in eleven home games both lead the Barons (5-4-9).

Shane On You

Shane Joseph, a right wing, has recorded two goals and five assists in gaining at least one point in six out of his last ten games. Joseph leads the Barons in rookie scoring with 11 points and is tied for 13th in the league among rookies. Among the leagues rookies, his 4 goals are tied for 15th and his 7 assists are tied for 13th. Those seven assists are tied for fourth on the Barons and his 11 points are tied for fifth.

The Only Nolan Goaltender Nolan Schaefer is playing well as of late. In winning four out of his last five games (4-1-0), he has posted a 1.75 goals against average and a .938 save percentage (135/144) in 308:24 minutes. That span includes his 33-save shutout against the Hamilton Bulldogs.

Oh My Goc Marcel Goc leads the Barons with his 16 points this season. His 7 goals are tied for second on the team and his 9 assists are tied for first. His three goals at home are second on the team. Two of those goals have come on special teams, one on the power play and one short-handed. His three short-handed goals on the season are tied with Jason Spezza for the league lead.

Air Ehrhoff

Christian Ehrhoff, a defenseman, leads the Barons in shots with 82 on the season, an average of 3.73 per game. Those 82 shots are first among all AHL defensemen and are 8th overall. Ehrhoff tied a Barons franchise record on November 6th against Hamilton with 10 shots. Ehrhoff is also mixed in the defenseman leader board in several other categories including: goals (T-8th, 4), points (T-18th, 11), and game-winning goals (T-1st, 2). Last season, he averaged nearly three shots per contest in 27 games with the Barons. Ehrhoff led the Barons with 36 shots in 9 games during last season's Playoffs.

Practice Makes Perfect

Below is the Barons schedule for the week. Practice times are subject to change. All practices at Barons Arena are open to the public. For information, contact the Barons at 216-420-0000...

Date Event Location Time

12-7 National City Breakaway Cleveland Heights Recreation Center 6:15-8:15pm

12-8 Practice Barons Arena 10:30am

12-9 Practice Barons Arena 10:30am

12-10 @ Hamilton Copps Coliseum 7:30pm

12-11 @ Cincinnati Cincinnati Gardens 7:35pm

12-12 vs. Cincinnati National City Rink located in Gund Arena 7:00pm

Barons Broadcasts

Both road games can be hear live on SportsTalk AM-850 WKNR. All games this season can be heard live by Crashing The Net at www.clevelandbarons.net.



American Hockey League Stories from December 6, 2004


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