Condors Captain Approaches Milestone
Published on March 4, 2003 under ECHL (ECHL)
Bakersfield Condors News Release
Bakersfield, Calif. â The accomplishments continue to mount in CondorsTown this season, with a major milestone being approached rapidly by Condors veteran center Paul Willett. The team captain stands at 998 points, just two points shy of 1,000 in his 13-year career, heading into tonight's home game against the Fresno Falcons.
Willett has played in over 800 games between the International, American, United, East Coast and West Coast Hockey Leagues. His longest tenure with one club was with the Fort Wayne Komets in the IHL, with whom he played in over 300 games. He won a Turner Cup Championship in the IHL with Fort Wayne in 1992-93, when he led his team in scoring. He won a second championship in the UHL, with the Muskegon Fury in 1998-99, when he recorded a 90-point season and led the league in playoff scoring.
He recently passed the 300-point and 200-game plateau in his Condors career, which has spanned four seasons. While a member of the Condors, he was named the WCHL Most Valuable Player and a First Team All-Star in 1999-2000 and appointed to the WCHL Second Team All-Star in 2000-01. He is second in franchise history in points and third in goals scored. He is currently two points off the league lead with 69pts (19g-50a) in 55 games. The only active players who have scored more points in the minor leagues are Jason Firth (1,270), Kevin Kerr (1,200), Brett Seguin (1,154) and Steve Maltais (1,112).
"I guess that means I'm old," said Willett, regarding the milestone. "I've been fortunate to play on some great teams with some very talented players throughout my career. I've always enjoyed playing the game and I think my desire to win has kept me hanging around for so long.
In addition to Willett, other Condors have reached milestones as well. Jamie Cooke recently became just the third player (Steve Dowhy, Willett) in franchise history to surpass 300 career points, and also needs just two goals to reach the 300-plateau in his professional career. The right wing is playing in his 12th season, including his fifth as a Condor, with nearly 700 games under his belt in the AHL, ECHL, CHL, UHL and WCHL.
Center Shawn Byram surpassed 700 career points, spread out over North American and European leagues back on January 29th, and goaltender Kevin St. Pierre picked up his 150th win last Wednesday in Long Beach and exceeded 15,000 career minutes on January 24th. St. Pierre also set a franchise record with his 28th victory of the season on February 23rd in San Diego. The old record stood for six seasons, originally set by Lee Schill in 1996-97 with the Bakersfield Fog. The Sherbrooke, Quebec native has won the WCHL Goaltender of the Week award a team record six times. No other player in franchise history has won a weekly league award more than four times in an entire career.
The Condors currently trail the San Diego Gulls for second place in the standing by just two points. A win tonight would push them back into a tie with the Gulls. Bakersfield currently stands at 32 wins on the season. The franchise record is 34, set in the 1999-2000 season.
The Condors host their Highway 99 rivals, the Fresno Falcons tonight at 7:00pm at Centennial Garden. WB 12 and KISS 96.5 present the last Student ID Night, which gives all college and high school students the opportunity to purchase lower level seats for just $1. The first 1,000 fans will receive a set of Condors Mardi Gras Beads, courtesy of FOX 98.5 and The Prime Cut.
Individual tickets can be purchased at the Centennial Garden Box Office, which is open from 10:00am-6:00pm Monday through Saturday, by calling Ticketmaster at 322-2525, online at ticketmaster.com or stopping by any Ticketmaster location. Season tickets and group outings may be purchased by calling 324-PUCK (7825) or by visiting the Condors office next to Centennial Garden.
ECHL Stories from March 4, 2003
- Bombers Accepting Deposits for Season Tickets - Dayton Bombers
- Bombers to Accept Unused Tickets from 2/16 Game for 3/16 or 3/23 Home Tilts - Dayton Bombers
- Four Falcons Earn League Honors - Fresno Falcons
- Condors Captain Approaches Milestone - Bakersfield Condors
- Condors Release Playoff Mini Plan Package - Bakersfield Condors
- Craig Patrick to Play in Alumni Game in Wheeling - Wheeling Nailers
- Jackals Take Two out of Three on Weekend - Elmira Jackals
- Grrrowl Drop 4-1 Decision to Columbus as Playoff Race Tightens - Greenville Grrrowl
- Glenn Stewart Wins Player Of The Month For February - Elmira Jackals
- Schueller Called up to Manchester - Roanoke Express
- B.J. MacPherson Night This Saturday - San Diego Gulls
- Taking Care of Business - San Diego Gulls
- Makeup Game Versus Titans March 5 - Reading Royals
- Alban Grabs 2nd Weekly Honor - Kalamazoo Wings
- And the Winner Is..... - Kalamazoo Wings
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