Chicago Hounds Weekly Notes

Published on December 27, 2006 under International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Chicago Hounds News Release


Getting Jacked...Hounds Lose 6-2 December 24, 2006 - Hoffman Estates, Ill. -After falling behind by two goals after the first period, the Chicago Hounds mounted their comeback; but the Elmira Jackals had other plans. Mike Broslma registered a power-play goal on a great deflection at 11:11 of the second and Greg Koehler fired his own rebound past Jackals goalie David Lemanowicz at 13:00 to tie the game at 2-2. However, the Jackals answered back with four unanswered goals to defeat the Hounds 6-2.

In the first period, Jackals forward Erik Anderson scored both a power-play and a short-handed goal to give his team a two goal lead. After the Hounds managed to tie the contest, Brent Cullaton broke the tie after he fired a shot over the shoulder of Chicago goalie Marty Magers 1minute and 35 second later. The third period saw the Hounds surrender another short-handed goal, this time to Scott Wray at 4:50. The Jackals would follow up with two more goals, one from Frank Littlejohn and Cullaton, who got his second of the night.

Despite losing by a four goal margin, the story of the game was centered on Lemanowicz who was brilliant in his performance stopping several point-blank shot. This game also marked the first time Magers had been pulled in a contest. Lemanowicz finished with 29 saves on 31 shots while Magers stopped 17 of 22 before being pulled.

Marty Magers Shuts the Door: Hounds Win 2-0 December 22, 2006 - Hoffman Estates, Ill. -The Hounds struck in the first period with a short-handed goal and Marty Magers closed the door on for his second shut out of the season as the Hounds defeated the IceHogs 2-0.

In the first period, with the Hounds down a man, Adam Kostichka sprawled on the ice to stop an intended pass and the puck broke into neutral ice where speedy forward Maris Ziedins fired a blast that beat Fredic Cloutier at 11:34. Late in the period, a viscous elbow by Rockford winger, Bryce Cockburn resulted in a five-minute major penalty and game misconduct being assessed. Chicago was unable to capitalize on their chance but did manage a power-play goal on the following power-play. Matt Amado flipped the rebound of the point shot of Mike Kautz over the shoulder of Cloutier at 7:43 which gave the Hounds a two-goal lead.

The rest of the story was written by Marty Magers who put up a brick wall stopping 19 Rockford shots in the third including a last minute breakaway by Nicolas Corbeil which Magers gloved out of the air to a standing ovation of Hounds fans. Magers finished with 32 saves on 32 shots while Cloutier tallied 32 saves on 34 shots. Chicago was 1-4 on the power-play while Rockford went scoreless in five chances.

A lot of work to do: The Chicago Hounds didn't have a Wednesday game for the first time all month last week, but the schedule doesn't ease up any longer. The Hounds will be playing several games over the next few days. Tuesday, they return to Quad City to take on the Mallards in an inter-conference and state battle. The last time these two teams battled it out was December 9th in Chicago where the Mallards quacked out a 4-1 victory.

The next night, the Hounds find their way back to the Sears Centre where they will try to defeat the top team in the Western Conference-the Fort Wayne Komets. Greg Puhalski was successful in his last outing, defeating the Komets by a close 2-1 final on December 13th.

Friday, they make their way into Rockford where they will battle the IceHogs. Marty Magers and the rest of the Hounds shut down Rockford back on December 22nd by a score of 2-0. Fredic Cloutier was also brilliant, but the IceHougs couldn't mount a comeback after Magers stopped 19 third period shots.

Finally, Bloomington will take the two-hour bus ride to Chicago on Saturday night. It has been over one month since the Hounds and the Prairie Thunder have clashed. This will make the second time Bloomington will visit the Sears Centre. The last time was on November 4th, (the first game at the Centre) which the Thunder won by a score of 3-2.

The Scoring Leaders:

Greg Koehler has continued his offensive upswing this season. He currently leads all Hounds players with 19pts in 24 games. His return to form has been an integral part in several Hounds victories. Greg Puhalski likes the way his veteran leader is playing, "We expect a lot out of Koehler and recently he has been up to form. We need his leadership on and off the ice. This game is about hard work and if you are willing to work, you can make a difference."

Meanwhile, Mike Broslma found his way off the injured-reserve list and back onto the lineup. With his return came production. The former UW Stevens Point forward managed a power-play goal in the contest versus the Jackals. Despite being off for a period of time, he didn't feel rusty, "Once I got the first shift or two out of the way, it felt like I never left. I was very comfortable all night and it felt even better after I scored. I just wished we could have pulled out the victory."

Also, forward B.J. Radovich, the newest member of the Hounds, has created some nice offensive opportunities for his teammates. In the first three games of the season, Radovich has mustered three assists. Fellow Hounds are noticing the talent of the Minnesota native, "He's fun to play with and hasn't struggled to find any rhythm despite being a new player. I think once he really gets going, he presence will be a great thing for this team," boasts Chicago blue-liner Darryl McArthur.

# PLAYERS POS GP G A PTS +/- PIM PPG PPA SHG SHA GWG SHOTS SPCT

11 Koehler, Greg RW 24 8 11 19 -4 26 4 6 0 0 1 87 .092

2 Busby, Chris D 24 3 13 16 +4 29 2 6 0 1 0 49 .061

9 Brolsma, Mike C 22 6 8 14 +5 31 2 2 0 1 0 46 .130

Goaltending Update: Incase you didn't notice, the Hounds have been using pretty much one goaltender all season long-Marty Magers. Until Saturday night, only one other goalie had played for the Hounds and that was Chris Houle who saw action on one night in Kalamazoo several months back. With Magers carrying to the entire workload for months at a time, he was finally pulled from the crease against he Jackals this past Saturday. The night prior, he attained his second shut out of the season when he was magnificent against Rockford while out dueling Fredric Cloutier. Despite the victory the night before, fatigue may have been a factor in the loss the following night; although Magers wouldn't admit that, "A loss is a loss and there can't be excuses thrown around. Tonight, I wasn't as good as I needed to be and I just have to move on and get ready for the next game."

Making his first appearance in the UHL as a backup on Saturday was Andrew Joy who surrendered one goal on one shot.

31 Magers, Marty 23 1361:49 9 13 1 2 69 3.04 712 .912

X Houle, Chris 1 60:00 0 1 0 0 4 4.00 35 .897

35 Joy, Andrew 1 7:49 0 0 0 0 1 7.68 0 .000

The Standings: The Hounds continue to climb out of the basement of the Western Conference this season. With two games in hand over Quad City, they now that Tuesdays game will be important in the standings. Hounds forward Adam Kostichka makes a valid point, "Every time we take on a conference opponent and win, we take two points from them and give them to us. So, you can't stress the importance of that, but we know that it works both ways." Chicago has played the least amount of games in the entire league despite playing 15 games in the month of December. Bloomington rests bellow Chicago with 18 points in 28 games. The Mallards are atop the Hounds with 23 points in 26 games. Currently, the Hounds sport a 9-14-1 record with 19 points in 24 games.

Western Conference

Team GP W L SOL PTS PCT GF GA PIM HOME AWAY

Fort Wayne 25 17 8 0 34 .680 95 59 810 11-2-0 6-6-0

Rockford 27 13 12 2 28 .519 83 80 747 7-5-2 6-7-0

Quad City 26 10 13 3 23 .442 82 99 697 3-6-2 7-7-1

Chicago 24 9 14 1 19 .396 63 76 497 5-6-0 4-8-1

Bloomington 28 8 18 2 18 .321 57 103 597 5-7-0 3-11-2

The Mascot is Named: After months of anticipation, the Chicago Hounds finally named their mascot-Hat Trick. His birthday was celebrated on December 23rd to a thunderous ovation at the Sears Centre. The Hounds had taken suggestions from thousands of fans over the past couple months and finally decided on Hat Trick. The first 1000 fans in attendance that night got a free hot dog in celebration of the event.

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International Hockey League 2 Stories from December 27, 2006


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