ECHL Cincinnati Cyclones

Cyclones Weekly

Published on October 8, 2007 under ECHL (ECHL)
Cincinnati Cyclones News Release


COMING UP: The Cincinnati Cyclones open training camp for their eighth season of ECHL play this week, with a series of practices and a pair of exhibition games. The club builds up to its first event, an intra-squad scrimmage tomorrow (Oct. 9), at SportsPlus. The event is open to the public and is slated to start at 4pm. On Friday night (Oct. 12), the Cyclones will travel northeast to take on the Central Hockey League's Youngstown Steelhounds at the Chevrolet Centre at 7pm. That game can be heard on the internet at www.cycloneshockey.com. The week closes a bit closer to home, with a Sunday (Oct. 14) game against the Dayton Bombers. That game will be played at the Kettering Recreation Center at 7pm. There will not be a broadcast of the game that day.

OPEN HOUSE: The Cyclones will host an open house at U.S. Bank Arena on Tuesday, Oct. 17 from 6-8pm. The general public is invited to come and meet the team , take a skate on the game surface and meet the 2007-08 Cyclones squad. Ticket representatives will be on hand to help people interested in packages and plans for the upcoming season.

NO OPEN FIRES CAMPERS: The Cyclones will have welcomed 24 players to camp by the time the first exhibition game takes place. With players being re-assigned from Hamilton and Milwaukee of the American Hockey League, these numbers may fluctuate. The current breakdown is 13 forwards, seven defensemen and four goaltenders. The club may carry up to 22 players on its opening day roster. Final cut downs will take place one week from today (Oct. 15).

WEBER RETURNS: Cyclones Head Coach Chuck Weber returns for his second season at the helm of the club. Last season, Weber directed the club to a 37-29-4-2 record--the second-best record in team history--and took the squad to the seventh game of the North Division finals before being eliminated. Weber finished second in the ECHL's 'Coach of the Year' balloting and had the most wins (39) and best winning percentage (.556) of any rookie coach in the league last season.

ALL THE BENCH PERSONNEL RETURNS: In addition to Weber, Assistant Coach Dean Stork also returns for his second season. Stork captained the Cyclones during 2003-04 and returned as a full-time assistant coach last season. Also on the bench, equipment manager Chris Burke and trainer Bob Case are back for their fourth seasons with the club.

LOTS OF FAMILIAR FACES: The Cyclones have signed ten players who were with the club in 2006-07, for the upcoming season. Forward Jean-Michel Daoust, Barret Ehgoetz, Scott Reynolds, Matt Rogers and Avery Wilson return. Back on the blueline, Greg Gallagher, Matt Macdonald, Conrad Martin and Chad Starling all are in camp. Forward Billy Irish-Baker, who spent part of March with the team last year, also has signed.

SIGNED BUT NOT FORGOTTEN: During the summer, the Cyclones signed defenseman Gerard Miller from Flint (IHL). Miller attended camp with the Hamilton Bulldogs (AHL) and is still with the club, after signing a 25-game agreement at the end of the preseason. Miller played his first career AHL game last night in Hamilton's 3-2 overtime win at Rochester.

ASSIGNED: The Cincinnati Cyclones have received eight players from their affiliation agreements with Montreal and Nashville. Montreal and its AHL affiliate, Hamilton, have sent forwards Mathieu Aubin and Thomas Beauregard and goaltender Cedrick Desjardins to the Queen City. Nashville and its AHL affiliate, Milwaukee, has sent forwards Andrew Martin and James Sixsmith, with defensemen Tyler Howells and Bryan Schmidt and goaltender Dov Grumet-Morris to Cincinnati.

OTHERS IN CAMP: The Cyclones also have six other players that did not play for the squad last season or were not assigned by an NHL club. Forward David Desharnais is in on a tryout agreement. Desharnais collected 108 points (38-70-108) with Chicoutimi (QMJHL) last season. Forward Stephen Doherty is also in on a tryout agreement. Doherty has played professionally in parts of two seasons. Rookie Travis Fuller has signed with the Cyclones after finishing last season with Mississauga (OHL). Fuller tallied 47 points (15-32-47) in 43 games a year ago. Defenseman Sean Perkins was among the BCHL's top scorers among rearguards until sidelined by injury in 2006-07. Perkins was averaging nearly a point per game (7-27-34 in 38 contests) before the injury. Cincinnati area goaltenders Lee Lansdowne and John Smith are also in camp hoping to make an impression.

THEY DIDN'T SPEAK HIS LANGUAGE...: Cyclones Head Coach Chuck Weber made an appearance at Cedarville schools Friday (Oct. 5), meeting students from the elementary, middle and high schools. The highlight of the trip was giving the pep talk to the high school prior to the football team's game against arch-rival Greeneview, a 28-18 loss.

DON'T NEED A COMPUTER TO LISTEN!: The first 'Cyclones Coaches Show' of the year comes up on Monday, October 15 from 7-8pm at Jefferson Hall, located at Newport on the Levee. This year, the show will be carried on SuperTalk 96.5FM and through their website (www.supertalkfm965.com). The show will be held at Jefferson Hall every Monday throughout the season (with the exception of game days and Christmas Eve).

MORE LISTENING FUN: The Cyclones have entered into an agreement with SuperTalk 96.5FM for the upcoming season to carry 30 games on the station. There will be 28 regular season games and two playoff contests carried over the airwaves. It is the first time since the 2001-02 campaign that games have been carried on radio. The first two games carried on SuperTalk 96.5FM will both originate from Dayton, the first being the regular season opener (Saturday, Oct. 20 at 7pm) and the next will be Sunday, Oct. 28 at 5pm. A total of 28 of the 36 regular season road games will be carried on the station, as well as the weekly Coaches Show.

REWIND TO LAST YEAR: The Cyclones finished third in the North Division in the regular season and battled Toledo in the North Division semifinals. Cincinnati emerged from that series with a three game sweep in the best-of-five event, including a pair of triumphs at the Toledo Sports Arena (the final games before that building's destruction). The series win by the Cyclones marked the first time since the 2005 Kelly Cup finals that an underdog claimed a series win in the ECHL. Cincinnati advanced to the North Division Finals, losing in seven games to Dayton.

CAN'T WAIT TO RENEW THAT SUBSCRIPTION!: In 2006-07, the Cyclones were selected by The Hockey News to finish 24th out of the 25 teams in the ECHL in a preseason poll (Phoenix was picked 25th). Cincinnati responded by sitting in first place in the North Division for three months (December 23 through March 23) and it took Dayton seven games in the division finals to eliminate them.

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