Bulldogs continue road trip this week

Published on February 26, 2007 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hamilton Bulldogs News Release


The Hamilton Bulldogs (American Hockey League affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens) will continue their nine-game road trip this week with three games against the top three teams in the West Division. On Wednesday, February 28th, Hamilton will travel to the Omaha Civic Auditorium to battle the Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights (AHL affiliate of the Calgary Flames) at 8:00 p.m. The Bulldogs then head to Milwaukee to face the Admirals (AHL affiliate of the Nashville Predators) at the Bradley Center on Friday, March 2nd at 8:00 p.m. The 'Dogs will then take on the Chicago Wolves (AHL affiliate of the Atlanta Thrashers) to round out their weekly schedule at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 3rd at Allstate Arena.

Hamilton posted a 1-2-0-1 record in four games last week. The Bulldogs came back from a 2-0 deficit against the Griffins to win 3-2 on Sunday, February 25th at Van Andel Arena. On Saturday, February 24th, the Dogs' played a scoreless game through regulation and overtime but ended up losing 1-0 in a shootout to Grand Rapids. The Syracuse Crunch scored twice into an empty net to blow open an otherwise close contest to defeat the Bulldogs 5-2 at Copps Coliseum on Friday, February 23rd. The Crunch also snapped the Dogs' 12-game point streak and five-game winning streak on Monday, February 19th, with a 5-3 win at the Onondaga County War Memorial at Oncenter.

With 73 points and a record of 34-20-2-3 in 59 games this season, the Hamilton Bulldogs are currently tied for second place in the North Division standings with the Rochester Americans (73 points in 57 games), and are only two points behind the division-leading Manitoba Moose (75 points in 60 games).

WEEK IN REVIEW

Monday, February 19th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 3 @ SYRACUSE CRUNCH 5

Onondaga County War Memorial at Oncenter - Syracuse, NY

Hamilton Goals: Andrei Kostitsyn (21), Corey Locke 2 (17)

Syracuse Goals: Joakim Lindstrom 2 (11), Zenon Konopka (12), Geoff Platt (24), Curtis Glencross (12)

Goaltending: Hamilton - Yann Danis (L - 18 shots, 14 saves), Cedrick Desjardins (12 shots, 11 saves) / Syracuse - Ty Conklin (W - 31 shots, 28 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 2-10 / Syracuse 1-4

Attendance: 5,186

Friday, February 23rd - SYRACUSE CRUNCH 5 @ HAMILTON BULLDOGS 2

Copps Coliseum - Hamilton, ON

Hamilton Goals: Ajay Baines (10), Mikhail Grabovski (16)

Syracuse Goals: Alexandre Picard (10), Geoff Platt 2 (27), Marc Methot (1), Zenon Konopka (13)

Goaltending: Hamilton - Cedrick Desjardins (L - 22 shots, 19 saves) / Syracuse - Tomas Popperle (L - 22 shots, 20 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 0-6 / Syracuse 1-5

Attendance: 4,569

Saturday, February 24th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 0 @ GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS 1 (SO)

Van Andel Arena - Grand Rapids, MI

Hamilton Shootout Goals: Corey Urquhart, Kyle Chipchura

Grand Rapids Shootout Goals: Ryan Keller, Matt Hussey, Evan McGrath, Kip Miller

Goaltending: Hamilton - Dov Grumet-Morris (L - 36 shots, 36 saves) / Grand Rapids - Jimmy Howard (W - 25 shots, 25 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 0-4 / Grand Rapids 0-5

Attendance: 10,834

Sunday, February 25th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 3 @ GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS 2

Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, MI

Hamilton Goals: Dan Jancevski (4), Cory Urquhart (3), Matt D'Agostini (13)

Grand Rapids Goals: Matt Hussey (14), Jamie Tardif (2)

Goaltending: Hamilton - Dov Grumet-Morris (W - 27 shots, 25 saves) / Grand Rapids - Jimmy Howard (L - 20 shots, 17 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 1-5 / Grand Rapids 1-2

Attendance: 6,638

PLAYER TRANSACTIONS

- RW Duncan Milroy was reassigned by Montreal (NHL) to Hamilton (AHL) on Sunday, February 25th

- C Zack Stortini was recalled by Edmonton (NHL) from Hamilton (AHL) on Saturday, February 24th

- C Zack Stortini was reassigned by Edmonton (NHL) to Hamilton (AHL) on Friday, February 23rd

- G Dov Grumet-Morris was signed to a P.T.O. by Hamilton (AHL) on Thursday, February 22nd

- RW Troy Bodie was reassigned by Edmonton (NHL) from Stockton (ECHL) to Hamilton (AHL) on Thursday, February 22nd

- RW Andrei Kostitsyn was recalled by Montreal (NHL) from Hamilton (AHL) on Wednesday, February 21st

PLAYER NOTES

- G Dov Grumet-Morris posted a goals against average of 0.96 and a save percentage of .968 in two games last week. He suffered a 1-0 shootout loss to the Griffins on Saturday in his first game as a Bulldog despite posting a 36-save shutout through regulation play and overtime. Grumet-Morris also posted a 3-2 win over Grand Rapids on Sunday afternoon with 25 saves on 27 shots and was named the Pearson Dunn Player of the Game in both of his starts on the weekend

- D Dan Jancevski was named the game's first star with two points (1-1-2) and a plus-1 rating on Sunday afternoon against Grand Rapids. Jancevski now has a plus-18 rating which is good enough for a 10th place tie among AHL leaders

- C Cory Urquhart had a goal and an assist in the Bulldogs 3-2 comeback win over the Griffins on Sunday. Urquhart has now recorded 10 points (3-7-10) in 10 games with Hamilton this season

- C Corey Locke has 12 points (5-7-12) in his last seven games

- RW Duncan Milroy is on a four-game point streak (Feb. 9th-16th) with seven points (2-5-7) in that span

UPCOMING GAMES

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS @ OMAHA AK-SAR-BEN KNIGHTS - 8:00 P.M - OMAHA CIVIC AUDITORIUM

- This will be the fourth and final meeting between Hamilton and Omaha this season

- The Bulldogs are 2-1-0-0 in three games versus the Ak-Sar-Ben Knights this year

- 'Dogs RW Jonathan Ferland has three points (2-1-3) in three contests versus Omaha this season

- Hamilton is 3-4-0-0-0 in seven all-time games against the Ak-Sar-Ben Knights

- In 58 games this season, Omaha is 35-19-3-1, good enough for 74 points and 2nd place in the West Division

- Omaha C Andrei Taratukhin leads the Ak-Sar-Ben Knights with 46 points (14-32-46) in 58 games

- Knights G Curtis McElhinney is third among AHL netminders in wins (24) and tied for second in shutouts (6)

- There are three Ontario natives on the Omaha roster: Brandon Prust (London), Curtis McElhinny (London), and Chris Lee (MacTier)

FRIDAY, MARCH 2nd - HAMILTON BULLDOGS @ MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS - 8:00 P.M - BRADLEY CENTER

- This will be the third of four meetings between the Bulldogs and Admirals this season

- Hamilton has scored nine goals while conceding one in two previous wins against Milwaukee this season (2-0-0-0)

- 'Dogs centre Mikhail Grabovski leads Hamilton's attack against Milwaukee with four points (0-4-4) in two games

- The Bulldogs are 9-4-1-1-1 in 16 all-time contests against the Admirals

- In 60 games this season, Milwaukee is 29-21-4-6, with 68 points and sit 3rd in the West Division

- C Rich Peverley leads the Admirals in points with 62 (27-35-62) in 60 games played

- There are eight Ontario natives on the Admirals roster: Cal O' Reilly (Toronto), Chris Durno (Scarborough), Kelsey Wilson (Sault Ste. Marie), Preston Mizzi (Sault Ste. Marie), Rich Peverley (Guelph), Alex Henry (Elliot Lake), TJ Reynolds (Kitchener), and Kevin Klein (Kitchener)

- The Admirals also have one former Bulldog on their roster: Defenceman Alex Henry (1999-2002) has seven points (1-6-7) in 58 games this season with the Admirals

SATURDAY, MARCH 3rd - HAMILTON BULLDOGS @ CHICAGO WOLVES - 8:00 P.M - ALLSTATE ARENA

- This will be the fourth and final meeting of the season between Hamilton and Chicago

- The Bulldogs are 2-0-1-0 in three games versus the Wolves this year

- 'Dogs centre Mikhail Grabovski has five points (1-4-5) in two games against Chicago this season

- Hamilton holds a 6-5-0-2-0 all-time record against Chicago in 13 games

- In 61 games this season, Chicago is 35-19-2-5, good enough for 77 points and 1st place in the West Division

- Wolves forward Darren Haydar leads the AHL in points with 92 (32-60-92) in 54 games this season

- Brett Sterling leads the AHL in goals (44) and is first in rookie scoring with 76 points (44-32-76) in 59 games played

- The Chicago roster has six Ontario born players: Andre Deveaux (Welland), Darren Haydar (Toronto), Derek MacKenzie (Sudbury), Mark Popovic (Stoney Creek) Andy Delmore (LaSalle), and Fred Brathwaite (Ottawa)

ALUMNI WATCH

There are 51 former Bulldogs who have participated in at least one game in the NHL this season. Over 60 percent of all former 'Dogs have played in at least one NHL game. Here are a few highlights and accomplishments of ex-'Dogs from this past week:

- Montreal G Jaroslav Halak (3-1) lost his first game vs. the Islanders (Feb. 24) with 28 saves in a 3-2 contest. Prior to that he had won three-straight since his recall from Hamilton (Feb. 15) including: 31 saves vs. Columbus (Feb. 18) in a 3-2 win, 15 saves vs. Washington (Feb. 20) in a 5-3 win, and 26 saves vs. Nashville (Feb. 22) in a 6-5 shootout win

- Montreal RW Duncan Milroy (0-1-1) registered his first point of the season since his recall from Hamilton (Feb. 17) vs. Washington (Feb. 20) in a 5-3 win

- Boston G Tim Thomas (27-19-3) registered three victories and his third shutout last week including: 24 saves vs. Tampa Bay (Feb. 23) in a 6-2 win, 44 saves vs. Toronto (Feb. 20) in a 3-0 shutout win, and 30 saves vs. Philadelphia (Feb. 19) in a 6-3 win

- Montreal RW Michael Ryder (20-22-42) had a pair of goals (including the game winner) and an assist vs. Washington (Feb. 20) in a 5-3 win, and scored a goal with teammates Alexander Perezhogin (6-9-15) and Garth Murray (2-1-3) vs. Nashville (Feb. 22) in a 6-5 shootout win

- Edmonton C Shawn Horcoff (15-30-45) had a pair of goals and an assist vs. Columbus (Feb. 22) in a 4-0 win, and an assist vs. Detroit (Feb. 23) in a 4-3 shootout win

- Dallas C Mike Ribeiro (10-31-41) had an assist vs. Anaheim (Feb. 23) in a 4-1 win, and an assist vs. Vancouver (Feb. 25) in a 2-1 overtime win

- Edmonton LW Raffi Torres (13-18-31) had an assist vs. Columbus (Feb. 22) in a 4-0 win, and scored a goal vs. Detroit (Feb. 23) in a 4-3 shootout win

- Montreal LW Chris Higgins (17-10-27) had a goal vs. the Islanders (Feb. 24) in a 3-2 loss

- Columbus D Ron Hainsey (8-20-28) had a goal and an assist vs. Nashville (Feb. 25) in a 4-3 shootout loss

- Edmonton RW Fernando Pisani (12-11-23) had a goal vs. Minnesota (Feb. 25) in a 4-1 loss, and assisted on the game-tying goal vs. Detroit (Feb. 23) in a 4-3 shootout win

- Toronto LW Chad Kilger (10-13-23) had the game-winning goal vs. Philadelphia (Feb. 24) in a 5-2 win

- Montreal D Mike Komisarek (4-9-13) had an assist vs. Nashville (Feb. 22) in a 6-5 shootout win, and an assist vs. Washington (Feb. 20) in a 5-3 win

- Rangers' LW Marcel Hossa (8-5-13) had a goal vs. New Jersey (Feb. 22) in a 3-2 shootout loss

- Edmonton C Marc-Antoine Pouliot (4-3-7) assisted on Marty Reasoner's (6-14-20) game-tying goal vs. Detroit (Feb. 23) in a 4-3 shootout win

TUNE IN TO Every Game on the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network

Fans can listen to every 'Dogs game this season on the flagship station of the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network, 820 CHAM "The Legend." Fans can also listen to or watch every home and away game online at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com. To watch or listen online, click on the 'B2 Networks' or '820 CHAM' icon on the 'Dogs website. Ellery Award-winning broadcaster Derek Wills calls the play-by-play of all 80 regular season games, while Al Craig provides the colour commentary for all home games and select road games.

"B2 Power Play" packages are now available for purchase. They provide fans with a chance to watch every game of their favourite team, free access to the AHL Game of the Week and exclusive weekly highlights. And in addition to broadband viewing on personal computers, B2 Power Play will also be available on the new B2toGO network, allowing fans to watch American Hockey League games on cell phones and other wireless devices. A full season package costs $160 billed monthly at $20 per month or fans can pay for the season in full for $150. B2toGO, a service delivering live games and highlights to cell phones and hand-held Pads, are now available for purchase for a full season price of $56 over 8 instalments or $50 if paid in full. Fans who purchase "B2 Power Play" will be eligible to add "B2toGo" for only an additional $25.

GET YOUR TICKETS!

Hamilton Bulldogs tickets are on sale now! Individual game tickets are available at Copps Coliseum Box Office (in-person sales only), all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.ca or at select Sports Obsession locations. For information on season or group tickets visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com, or call (905) 529-8500 or 1-866-DOGS-TIX.

HAMILTON BULLDOGS SCHEDULE THIS WEEK

Wednesday, February 28th, 2007 - 8:00 p.m. - Hamilton Bulldogs at Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights (Omaha Civic Auditorium)

Friday, March 2nd, 2007 - 8:00 p.m. - Hamilton Bulldogs at Milwaukee Admirals (Bradley Centre)

Saturday, March 3rd, 2007 - 8:00 p.m. - Hamilton Bulldogs at Chicago Wolves (Allstate Arena)

MOLSON CUP - THREE STAR LEADERS

(1st Star - 5pts, 2nd Star - 3pts, 3rd Star - 1pt)

Player:

Points:

1. Duncan Milroy

37

2. Jaroslav Halak

36

3. Mikhail Grabovski

33

4. Andrei Kostitsyn

24

5. Corey Locke

20

6. Jonathan Ferland

19

7. Matt D'Agostini

15

8. Yann Danis

12

9. Kyle Chipchura

11

T-10. Zack Stortini

9

T-10. Ajay Baines

9

T-12. Dan Jancevski

8

T-12. Cory Urquhart

8

14. Maxim Lapierre

6

T-15. Michael Lambert

5

T-15. Mathieu Roy

5

T-15. Andre Benoit

5

18. Dov Grumet-Morris

3

T-19. Jan Hejda

1

T-19. Eric Manlow

1

T-19. Francis Lemieux

1

PEARSON DUNN PLAYER OF THE GAME LEADERS (10 pts. - Hardest working Hamilton Bulldogs player)

Player:

Points:

1. Kyle Chipchura

90

2. Maxim Lapierre

80

3. Mikhail Grabovski

60

T-4. Andrei Kostitsyn

30

T-4. Jonathan Ferland

30

T-4. Andre Benoit

30

T-4. Matt D'Agostini

30

T-4. Jean-Philippe Cote

30

T-4. Ajay Baines

30

T-4. Dan Jancevski

30

T-11. Jaroslav Halak

20

T-11. Dov Grumet-Morris

20

T-11. Corey Locke

20

T-14. Zack Stortini

10

T-14. Patrick Traverse

10

T-14. Mathieu Biron

10

T-14. Yann Danis

10

T-14. Duncan Milroy

10

T-14. Ryan O'Byrne

10

T-14. Francis Lemieux

10

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American Hockey League Stories from February 26, 2007


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