Barons weekly report

March 21, 2005 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Barons News Release


Coming Up

3/25/05 vs. Syracuse – National City Rink located in Gund Arena - 7:00pm www.sportstalkcleveland.com

The Barons currently trail the Syracuse Crunch by two points in the North Division for the fourth and final playoff spot. On the season thus far, the Barons are 2-2-0-1 against Syracuse. Josh Prudden has scored two goals against the Crunch this season, both unassisted. Prudden leads all Barons with four points against Syracuse this season. In four games against the Crunch this season, Dimitri Patzold has been a tough-luck loser three times. He is just 1-2-1 despite posting a fine 1.97 goals against average and .944 save percentage. The teams have combined for 279 penalty minutes against each other. Each game averages 55.8 penalty minutes a game.

NOLAN SCHAEFER ACTION PHOTO... The first 3,000 fans in attendance will receive a hand-signed action photo of Barons goaltender Nolan Schaefer. Schaefer is amidst his second season with the Barons.

3/26/05 vs. Syracuse – National City Rink located in Gund Arena - 7:00pm www.sportstalkcleveland.com

The Barons will host the Crunch for the second consecutive night on Saturday. The last time the Barons battled the Crunch in consecutive nights, Cleveland was victorious in both games (6-4, 4-2). The Crunch are led by center Brad Moran. He leads the team with 57 points on 22 goals and 35 assists. The Crunch acquired center Nathan Robinson on loan from the Grand Rapids Griffins last week. Since joining the team, the 2004 All-Star has appeared in five games recording two goals and four assists (2-4-6). Crunch right wing Tim Jackman was a linemate of Barons forwards Shane Joseph and Grant Stevenson at Minnesota State-Mankato. In five games against the Barons this season, Jackman leads all players with his three goals (3-0-3).

HEY ARNOLD! PRESENTED BY COX COMMUNICATIONS... At the request of Barons Head Coach Roy Sommer, Cox Communications has lined up Arnold, from the hit Nickelodeon TV show "Hey Arnold!", to appear at Saturday's game.

CLEVELAND CLINIC SPORTS HEALTH/BARONS LUNCH BOX... The first 1,000 children 14-and-under will receive a Cleveland Clinic Sports Health/Cleveland Barons lunchbox.

CLIP CARKNER'S CURLS FOR CANCER... Pam and Cade Helmer were the winner's of the raffle to Clip Carkner's Curls for Cancer. The mother and son duo will shave the head of the Barons captain on center ice following Saturday night's game against the Crunch. In addition, they won four glass seats for the game. All of the proceeds of the raffle were donated to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

MARC'S POST-GAME SKATE... Following the shaving of Carkner's head, fans will be able to take part in a Post-Game Skate presented by Marc's. To participate, fans must bring their own skates to the rink as skates will not be provided.

Flashback

3/15/05 St. John's 4 – Cleveland 2... Aaron Gill and Tomas Plihal scored first period goals giving the Barons a 2-1 lead midway through the first period. St. John's would then go on to score three unanswered goals to defeat Cleveland. Appearing in his first game with the Barons this season, rookie Sam Paolini recorded an assist. In relief duty, Dimitri Patzold stopped 19 of 20 shots on the evening.

3/16/05 Cleveland 7 – St. John's 1... The Barons exploded for a season-high seven goals, scored by seven different players. Getting in on the scoring act were Christian Ehrhoff, Garrett Stafford, Josh Prudden, Shane Joseph, Riley Armstrong, Patrick Rissmiller, and Mike Hoffman. Recording multi-point evenings were Patrick Rissmiller (1-2-3), Jim Fahey (0-2-2), Doug Murray (0-2-2), Craig Valette (0-2-2), and Mike Hoffman (1-1-2). Nolan Schaefer stopped 23 shots on the night. The Barons five-goal third period matched the highest one-period output by any team in the AHL.

3/19/05 Cincinnati 5 – Cleveland 4 Overtime... The Barons fought back from a two-goal deficit to earn a point in overtime. Marcel Goc scored two goals, including the game-tier, for the Barons. Patrick Rissmiller recorded his second consecutive multi-point night with one goal and one assist. Grant Stevenson chipped in as well, scoring the Barons third goal of the game. Cincinnati's Pierre Parenteau recorded a hat trick in the first period of play. Cincinnati now leads the Labatt Blue Cup standings with 8 points (4-2-0-0), while the Barons own 6 points (2-2-1-1).

ICELAND USA FREE OPEN SKATE... Fans that attended Saturday's game won free admittance to select open skates at IceLand USA in Strongsville when Barons center Marcel Goc scored a goal on the Barons first power play of the game. Fans presenting their ticket stubs from the game at IceLand USA will receive free admittance at any open skate. For scheduling information, contact a Barons Account Representative at 216.420.0000.

3/20/05 Rochester 2 – Cleveland 0... The Barons were the victim of Ryan Miller on Sunday night at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo. In front of 15, 288 the Rochester goaltender gathered his AHL leading 8th shutout with his 35-save performance. Miller received goals from Paul Gaustad and Rory Fitzpatrick to secure the victory. Nolan Schaefer played well in net, with several highlight pad saves in his 24-save effort.

Winning Ways

Entering play on February 4th, the Barons trailed Edmonton by 13 points for the fourth and final playoff spot in the North Division. Since February 4th, the Barons have gained at least one point in 14 out of their last 19 games (11-5-1-2). Nine of the Barons 11 wins in that span have been decided by just one goal. The Barons have received several impressive performance during the span including: Ryane Clowe – 13 games, 10-6-16, +5; Marcel Goc – 19 games, 5-12-17; Grant Stevenson – 19 games, 4-10-14, +4; Patrick Rissmiller – 17 games, 6-10-16; and Nolan Schaefer – 8-4-0, 2.45 goals against average (28 GA in 686:34) and a .909 save percentage (280/308).

Cleveland Barons Hockey Insider Show

The Cleveland Barons Hockey Insider Show will air every Monday night from 8-9pm on SportsTalk 850-AM WKNR. The weekly show will be hosted by The Voice of the Barons Jamie Smock and Jason Gibbs, Promotions Director for WKNR. This week, Tom Holy, Public Relations Coordinator for the Barons, will fill in for Jamie Smock as a guest co-host. The show can also be heard on www.sportstalkcleveland.com.

School Is Cool

Several Barons will use this week to go back to school. On Tuesday, Mike Hoffman will read to classes at Valley View Elementary School at 2:00pm. On Wednesday, Riley Armstrong will read to classes at Wilcox Elementary School in North Ridgeville. Jamie Smock, the Radio Voice of the Cleveland Barons, and captain Matt Carkner will speak to the entire enrollment at Kensington Middle School. Arnold, from Hey Arnold!, will be in attendance courtesy of Cox Communications.

Barons Player of the Week

The Cleveland Barons Player of the Week is center Patrick Rissmiller. Rissmiller led the Barons on the week by recording five points (2-3-5) in four games. Rissmiller registered three points (1-2-3) in the Barons 7-1 rout against St. John's on Saturday. He followed that performance up with a one-goal, one-assist (1-1-2) multi-point performance on Saturday night against Cincinnati.

Making Teams Risserable

Patrick Rissmiller has recorded at least one point in nine of the last 13 games (4-10-14). Since returning to the lineup 17 games ago, Rissmiller has totaled six goals and 10 assists (6-10-16) as the Barons have gone 9-5-1-2. His 19 goals are second on the team, his seven power play goals are tied for second, and his 40 points are third. Rissmiller ranks second in goals (47), assists (78), points (125), and games played (204) in Barons franchise history.

United Marcel Service

The United Marcel Service has been delivering lately. Marcel Goc has delivered 19 assists to teammates in the last 27 games. Overall, he has 25 points (6-19-25) during that span. On the season, his 43 points and 29 assists are second on the team and his 14 goals are third. He is tied for seventh in the league with three short-handed goals, which are all unassisted.

Demolition Man

Doug Murray has five points in his last seven games (1-4-5). Murray tied a career-high by posting a +4 plus-minus rating against St. John's on Wednesday. Murray previously recorded a +4 in his fifth career game on October 24th, 2003 against Houston.

Air Ehrhoff

Christian Ehrhoff, the Barons All-Star representative, is tied for 20th among all AHL defensemen with 31 points (11-20-32). Among defensive scorers, he is tied for sixth in goals (11), tied for third in power play goals (7), and tied for sixth in game-winning goals (3). Ehrhoff's 205 shots lead all league defensemen. Ehrhoff leads all Barons defensemen in points and goals, and is second in assists. His 16 points on the power play (7-9-16) are fourth on the team.

Generous Grant

Grant Stevenson has posted 13 points in the last 15 games (4-9-13). Those 15 contests include four multi-point games for the Alberta native. Stevenson is again making a late point push. Over the last 25 games, he owns 18 (6-12-18) of his season's 31 points. Stevenson produced 16 of his 39 points during the 2003-04 season over the last 14 games of the season. Stevenson is currently tied for fourth on the Barons with his 31 points and is tied for third with his 21 assists.

Strapping On The Boots

Barons forward Nick Bootland scored his 100th regular season goal as a professional on March 12th against Milwaukee. In his career, Bootland has 29 goals at the AHL level, 44 goals at the ECHL level, and 27 goals at the UHL level. This is Bootland's seventh season as a professional.

Sugar Shane

Rookie forward Shane Joseph has amassed seven points in the last eight games (1-6-7). On the season, Joseph leads all Barons rookies with 18 assists and 28 points. Those 28 points are tied for 14th among all league rookies.

Hoffman, The Graduate

Mike Hoffman recorded points (1-2-3) in back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday, the first time he has done so in his AHL career. On Wednesday against St. John's, Hoffman scored his first AHL goal and recorded his first AHL multi-point game (1-1-2). In his last 12 games, he has registered one goal, four assists, 36 penalty minutes, and a +1 plus/minus rating. Hoffman is eighth among AHL rookies with 160 penalty minutes and is fourth among rookies with 22 major penalties.

The Clowe-ser

In his last eight games, Ryane Clowe has scored the Barons first goal five times (Note: Clowe has missed the last two games). Three of the goals were the first between either team. Clowe leads the Barons by scoring the game's first goal seven times. In his last 17 games, Clowe owns 12 goals and 8 assists (12-8-20). Clowe leads the Barons with 13 multi-point games on the season. His 51 points, 21 goals, 30 assists, and +13 plus/minus rating all lead the Barons. Clowe has been productive on the power play as he leads the team with 12 goals and 19 points.

Staff Report

Garrett Stafford has totaled a +7 plus/minus rating in his last seven games. The reigning Barons Rookie of the Year has recorded one point in two out of the last three games (1-1-2). Stafford's 15 assists and 20 points are third among all Barons blue-liners.

According To Jim

Defenseman Jim Fahey has recorded one point in seven of his last 12 games (2-7-9). Three of Fahey's four goals this season have gone for game-winners. His 21 assists lead Barons defensemen and his 21 points are second. He has been absent from the lineup for the past two games due to injury.

Wouldn't Be Prudden

On the season, Josh Prudden leads Barons rookies in goals with 12, which ranks fifth overall on the team. Prudden's four game-winning goals lead the team and his three unassisted goals are tied for the team lead. He is tied for 10th overall in goals among rookie goal scorers. Prudden's 19 points are second on the Barons in rookie scoring.

Sam I Am

The Barons newest face on the roster is Sam Paolini. He recorded an assist in each of his first three games with the team this season. Last season, the Paolini made his AHL debut with the Barons on December 23rd recording an assist. Paolini was signed to a PTO agreement on Monday. He was playing with Greenville (ECHL) as he was just traded by the Toledo Storm. In 56 games in the ECHL this season, he has 14 goals and 33 assists (14-33-47). Paolini also appeared in one game with both Utah and San Antonio (AHL) this season.

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

3-22 Practice Barons Arena 10:30am

3-23 Practice National City Rink located in Gund Arena 10:30am

3-24 Practice National City Rink located in Gund Arena 10:30am

3-25 Pre-Game Skate National City Rink located in Gund Arena 10:00am

3-25 vs. Syracuse National City Rink located in Gund Arena 7:00pm

3-26 vs. Syracuse National City Rink located in Gund Arena 7:00pm

3-28 Practice National City Rink located in Gund Arena 10:30am

Barons Broadcasts

All games this season can be heard live by Crashing The Net at www.clevelandbarons.net or www.sportstalkcleveland.com.



American Hockey League Stories from March 21, 2005


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