
Beckford-Tseu Is 350th Player To Play In NHL After ECHL
February 22, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release
PRINCETON, N.J. - Former Alaska Aces goaltender Chris
Beckford-Tseu became the 350th player to play in the National
Hockey League after playing in the ECHL when he made his debut with the St.
Louis Blues in a 5-1 loss at Los Angeles on Thursday.
The 23 year old came on in relief of former ECHL goaltender Manny Legace
in the second period and stopped eight of the nine shots he faced in the
final 26:37.
Beckford-Tseu
is the second player to play his first game this week, joining former
Wheeling left wing Joe
Jensen, who played for Carolina on Monday. Jensen and Beckford-Tseu
are the second and third players who have played in both the ECHL and the
NHL this season, join goaltender Jonathan
Quick, who has played for both Reading and Los Angeles. Beckford-Tseu
is the 21st former ECHL player to play his first NHL game this year and the
205th to make his debut in the past seven seasons, including 26 in 2006-07.
The Premier 'AA' Hockey League has affiliations with 26 of the 30 teams in
the NHL, marking the 11th consecutive season that the league has had
affiliations with at least 20 teams.
Selected in the fifth round (159th overall) by St. Louis Blues in the 2003
NHL Entry Draft, Beckford-Tseu has been named Rbk Hockey ECHL
Goaltender of the Week five times and was named goaltender
of the month for October 2005. He is 41-14-5 with five shutouts, a
goals-against average of 2.21 and a save percentage of .921 in 63 regular
season ECHL games with Alaska and Peoria.
The 6-foot-3 and 205-pound Beckford-Tseu, who was called up to St. Louis
on Monday, is 7-1-0 with a goals-against average of 2.16 and a save
percentage of .927 in eight games with Alaska and 15-9-2 with a shutout, a
goals-against average of 2.61 and a save percentage of .900 in 28 games
with Peoria. He was named Rbk
Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week for the week ending Nov. 4 after
going 2-0-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .961 save percentage.
In 2006-07, Beckford-Tseu was 7-0-0 with two shutouts, a goals-against
average of 1.27 and a save percentage of .950 save percentage in seven
games with Alaska and 12-11-4 with one shutout, a goals-against average of
2.72 and a save percentage of .900 in 29 games with Peoria.
In his second professional season in 2005-06, he became the first player
in league history to be named Rbk Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week
four times. He was selected as a starter for the 2006
ECHL All-Star Game, but did not play as he was called up to the Blues.
He was 16-1-2 with two shutouts, a goals-against average of 1.87 and a save
percentage of .929 in 19 regular season games for Alaska and 8-4 with three
shutouts, a goals-against average of 2.04 and a save percentage of .930 in
12 games in the Kelly Cup Playoffs. He also played in the AHL with Peoria
where he was 7-5-1 with a goals-against average of 3.10 and a save
percentage of .885 in 16 regular season games and 0-4 with two overtime
losses, a goals-against average of 3.78 and a save percentage of .872 in
the postseason.
In his rookie season in 2004-05, he was 11-12-3 with a goals-against
average of 2.71 and a save percentage of .908 in 29 games with Peoria of
the ECHL and also played in the AHL with Worcester, making seven saves in
29 minutes.
Twenty-six former ECHL players made their NHL debut in 2006-07 including
two who played in both the ECHL and NHL. Yutaka
Fukufuji played for Reading and Los Angeles while Bryan
Young skated for Stockton and Edmonton. Dave
McKee played for Augusta and dressed five games as the backup
goaltender for Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim.
Former ECHL players that have played their first NHL game in 2007-08 are:
former Peoria Rivermen and Alaska Aces goaltender Chris
Beckford-Tseu (St. Louis on Feb. 21), former Florida Everblades center
David
Brine (Florida on Feb. 2), former Idaho Steelheads right wing B.J.
Crombeen (Dallas on Jan. 19), former Gwinnett Gladiators left wing
Kevin
Doell (Atlanta on Jan. 4), former Alaska defenseman Zack
FitzGerald (Vancouver on Feb. 5), former Fresno goaltender Thomas
Greiss (San Jose on Jan. 14), former Roanoke Express and Wheeling Nailers
left wing Jason
Jaffray (Vancouver on Dec. 12), former Wheeling Nailers left wing
Joe
Jensen (Carolina on Feb. 18), former Toledo Storm goaltender Drew
MacIntyre (Vancouver on Dec. 13), former San Diego Gulls left wing
Cody
McLeod (Colorado on Dec. 19), former Alaska Aces and Pensacola Ice
Pilots center Chris
Minard (Pittsburgh on Jan. 21), former Columbia Inferno center Brandon
Nolan (Carolina on Dec. 22), former Johnstown Chiefs and Fresno
Falcons goaltender Dmitri
Patzold (San Jose on Oct. 7), former Gwinnett Gladiators and
Louisiana IceGators left wing Pascal
Pelletier (Boston on Jan. 17), former Reading Royals goaltender Jonathan
Quick (Los Angeles on Dec. 6), former Stockton Thunder left wing Liam
Reddox (Edmonton on Dec. 7), former Gwinnett Gladiators left wing
Colin
Stuart (Atlanta on Dec. 29), former Columbus Chill, Richmond
Renegades and Trenton Titans left wing Pete
Vandermeer (Phoenix on Feb. 10), former San Diego goaltender Tyler
Weiman (Colorado on Oct. 4), former Charlotte Checkers right wing
Craig
Weller (Phoenix on Oct. 4) and former Phoenix RoadRunners center Daniel
Winnik (Phoenix Coyotes on Oct. 4).
There are 15 coaches in the NHL who have ECHL experience including former
Wheeling coach Peter Laviolette, who is head coach of the Carolina
Hurricanes, and former Mississippi coach Bruce
Boudreau, who is head coach of the Washington Capitals.
The ECHL is represented for the seventh consecutive year on the National
Hockey League championship team in 2007 with Anaheim assistant coach Dave
Farrish, players Francois Beauchemin and George Parros and broadcasters
John Ahlers and Steve Carroll.
Milestone Former ECHL Players In NHL
1 - Scott
Gordon, Jan. 30, 1990 for Quebec against Buffalo
100 - Jean Sebastien Aubin, Oct. 21, 1998 for Pittsburgh at Tampa Bay
Manny
Legace, Oct. 21, 1998 for Los Angeles at Florida
200 - Brett
McLean, Dec. 10, 2002 for Chicago at New York Islanders
250 - Matt
Yeats, Mar. 22, 2004 for Washington at New York Islanders
275 - Brian
Eklund, Nov. 8, 2005 for Tampa Bay at Montreal
300 - David
Liffiton, Apr. 11, 2006 for New York Rangers against New York
Islanders
325 - Rich
Peverley, Mar. 4, 2007 for Nashville at Anaheim
350 - Chris
Beckford-Tseu, Feb. 21, 2008 for St. Louis at Los Angeles
ECHL
Celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2007-08, the ECHL is the Premier 'AA'
Hockey League and the third-longest tenured professional hockey league
behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League.
ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states and has grown to be a
coast-to-coast league with 25 teams playing 900 games in 17 states and
British Columbia in 2007-08.
The league officially changed its name to ECHL on May 19, 2003.
The ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 29 teams in the American Hockey League in 2007-08 and for the past 17 years there has been an ECHL player on the Calder Cup champion.
In each of the last two seasons there have been more than 225 players who
have played in both the ECHL and the AHL and there were over 800 call-ups
involving more than 500 players.
In the last five seasons the ECHL has had more call-ups to the AHL than all
other professional leagues combined with over 2,000 call-ups involving more
than 1,000 players since 2002-03.
Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.
ECHL Stories from February 22, 2008
- Steelheads Fall Apart Late In 6-0 Loss To Salmon Kings - Idaho Steelheads
- Royals Drop Devils, 7-2 - Reading Royals
- History in the Hangar as Ice Pilots Get 480th Win for Coach Marks - Pensacola Ice Pilots
- Marks Ties Brophy For ECHL Career Wins Record - ECHL
- Chewy Lifts Nailers with Last Minute Goal - Wheeling Nailers
- Chiefs Halted By Cyclones - Johnstown Chiefs
- Cyclones Desharnais Ties ECHL Assist Streak Record - ECHL
- Gladiators Fall to Ice Pilots, 3-2 - Atlanta Gladiators
- Lynx doomed from the start in 4-2 loss to Florida - Augusta Lynx
- Late Goals Trips Up Jackals In Wheeling 4-3 - Elmira Jackals
- 'Blades win 30th, beat Lynx 4-2 - Florida Everblades
- Do You Believe In Miracles? The Cincinnati Cyclones Do! - Cincinnati Cyclones
- Devils Dropped by Reading, 7-2 - Trenton Devils
- Salmon Kings Make Roster Moves - Victoria Salmon Kings
- Game Preview: Stockton Thunder At Fresno Falcons - Stockton Thunder
- ECHL Transactions- February 22 - ECHL
- "The Pow Wow" Set To Welcome Desrochers And Spence - Johnstown Chiefs
- The Two Millionth Fan Is Coming This Weekend... Will It Be You? - Bakersfield Condors
- Joel Stepp Acquired From Pensacola - Stockton Thunder
- Roadrunners To Sponsor Great Arizona Beer Festival - Phoenix RoadRunners
- Marlies Center Leveille Joins Inferno - Columbia Inferno
- Devils Announce "Blue On The Ice" Game - Trenton Devils
- Cincinnati's Desharnais Has 16-Game Assist Streak - Cincinnati Cyclones
- Beckford-Tseu Is 350th Player To Play In NHL After ECHL - ECHL
- Bombers at Hobart Arena Tomorrow Night - Dayton Bombers
- Ouellet Joins Trenton for Stretch Run - Trenton Devils
- ECHL Today - ECHL
- David Brown Assigned by Pens, Nailers Host Pre-game Party - Wheeling Nailers
- Wranglers shuffle roster, Jozsa heads to AHL - Las Vegas Wranglers
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