Dubielewicz & Smith Named AHL All-Stars
January 7, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Bridgeport Islanders News Release
BRIDGEPORT, CT â The American Hockey League's Bridgeport Sound Tigers, the top affiliate of the National Hockey League's New York Islanders, have announced Goaltender Wade Dubielewicz and Defenseman Brandon Smith have been selected to play for the Canadian team at next month's AHL All-Star Classic in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Dubielewicz, who is the League's reigning Rookie of the Month, was named the starting goaltender for the Canadian team. The Invermere, British Columbia native leads all AHL netminders with a 1.26 goals against average, is second in the League with a .949 save percentage and tied, with several others including teammate Dieter Kochan, for fourth with three shutouts. Dubielewicz is 11-3-1 in 15 appearances this season backstopping the Sound Tigers to first place in the overall standings.
Dubielewicz signed as a free agent with the Islanders this past summer after a brilliant four-year career at the University of Denver where he posted the Pioneers' highest career save percentage, .926, and was a finalist for the 2002 Hobey Baker Award, which is given to the best collegiate hockey player in the United States. He led Denver to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Championship and was the Association's top-ranked goaltender in both 2000-01 and 2001-02.
Smith leads all Sound Tigers defenseman with three goals, 16 assists and 19 points. The Kelowna, British Columbia native ranks in the top ten in scoring among the League's blueliners and is tied for fourth among all AHL defensemen in assists. Smith has played in all but one of the Sound Tigers' 37 games this season.
Smith signed as a free agent with the Islanders in August of 2002 after one season with AHL's Cleveland Barons while under contract to the NHL's San Jose Sharks. He spent the previous three seasons, 1998-2001, with the NHL's Boston Bruins and AHL's Providence Bruins with whom he was a 1999 Calder Cup Champion. Smith played for the AHL's Adirondack Red Wings from 1994 through 1998, as well as the International Hockey League's Minnesota Moose and the East Coast Hockey League's Dayton Bombers for part of the 1994-95 season. He was named the ECHL's Top Defenseman while with Dayton. Smith spent the previous five seasons, 1989-94, playing junior hockey with the Western Hockey League's Portland Winter Hawks.
The Sound Tigers tied the Manchester Monarchs, Rochester Americans, Milwaukee Admirals and St. John's Maple Leafs for the most players, two, on the Canadian All-Star team. 14 other teams had one player each named to the squad. The PlanetUSA team, which will be led by Sound Tigers Head Coach Greg Cronin and Assistant Coach Dave Baseggio, will be announced tomorrow. The 2004 Pepsi AHL All-Star Classic will take place on February 8th and 9th at the Van Andel Arena, which is the home of the Grand Rapids Griffins.
The Sound Tigers will play the first two of six straight road games and begin a stretch in which they will play eight of the next ten games on the road when they visit the Norfolk Admirals this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and this Sunday at 4 p.m. Both of this weekend's games will be web cast live at www.soundtigers.com. Saturday's game will also be broadcast live on 600 WICC-AM.
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