East Division update
August 16, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release
With less than two months to opening night in the AHL, the player movement has not slowed down very much. After being relatively quiet during the off-season, the New Jersey Devils came out blazing late last week by signing eight players. Goaltenders Ari Ahonen and Scott Clemmensen are both back under contract, as well as defenseman Bobby Allen, Ray Schultz and Steven Spencer. Forwards Brett Clouthier and Ryan Murphy return as well, and an old Albany face returns for another go-round in the Devils organization. Pascal Rheaume, who was part of Albany's 1995 Calder Cup champion team, returns to upstate New York. Rheaume also won a Stanley Cup with New Jersey in 2003.
There was a decent shift in power in the Atlantic Division last Thursday. The Carolina Hurricanes announced the signing of Colin Forbes to a contract. Forbes will likely skate for Lowell this season after leading the Portland Pirates in scoring during 2003-04.
Tampa Bay has re-signed defenseman Darren Rumble to a contract. Rumby is expected to play with the Springfield Falcons this season along with a host of former BEARS that have made the switch this off-season. Rumble played just 10 games between Tampa and HERSHEY last season.
The Islanders have signed defenseman Keith Aldridge to a contract last week. Aldridge had been in Europe the last four seasons, including the last three with the Berlin Polar Bears. He last played in the AHL in 2000-01 for Grand Rapids before leaving to play in Frankfurt. Aldridge also played in the AHL for the Baltimore Bandits and won an NCAA national championship with Lake Superior in 1994.
A sad note from the world of hockey on this Monday: Ivan Hlinka, the national hockey coach for the Czech Republic and former Pittsburgh Penguin coach, died following a car accident over the weekend. The accident occurred near Karlovy Vary, about 70 miles west of Prague. Hlinka coached the Pens in 2000-01, leading them to a 42-32-9 record.
By now you've probably seen the new logo and color scheme for the Norfolk Admirals. The Blue and Gold is out, replaced with red, black and gold for 2004-05. A recent article in the Virginian Pilot by Tris Wykes said the team's blue and gold look dated back to 1989 when the club entered the ECHL. Norfolk will wear red sweaters at home and white on the road with a series of stripes around the jersey waist and on the socks. A gold anchor will adorn one shoulder, while the Indian head logo of the Chicago Blackhawks will appear on the other. Admirals Vice President Blake Cullen told Wykes "We want to strongly emphasize that we're in the AHL and that it's the next step to the NHL and that we're related to the Blackhawks." The new logo features a battleship firing hockey pucks from its guns with five stars underneath.
More evidence in Friday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the Penguins organization is suffering from a serious lack of signings this off-season. Chuck Finder wrote a nice piece about the Wheeling Nailers unveiling new jerseys late last week, but not having any players to put them on. "Right now, we're in sort of a holding pattern," Wheeling head coach Pat Bingham told Finder. "We're behind where we'd normally be at this stage. We're behind in the commitments." The Nailers, of course, are the next rung in the feeder system for Pittsburgh behind Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The article says that forwards Matt Murley, Matt Hussey, Tomas Surovy and Guillaume Lefebvre all remain unsigned along with defenseman Darcy Robinson. Pens GM Craig Patrick told Finder "We'd like to get them all done. They're all priorities because they're all part of our future." That future is now for Wheeling and Wilkes-Barre, and right now it looks pretty bleak.
A couple of housekeeping issues on this Monday: The second annual HERSHEY BEARS Golf Classic is filling up pretty quickly. We're not quite half full in just a couple of weeks, so if you're planning to join us on Monday, October 11 at Parkview Golf Course, you should probably get in touch with me by the end of August/first week of September. You can sign up as an individual or as a foursome, call 717-534-8983 to grab your spot soon. Also, it's time again for back-to-school shopping throughout the midstate, and the BEARS team store at GIANT Center is in the spirit of things. Starting today and running until Monday, August 30, if you purchase $50 or more in the GIANT Center main store or by phone at 717-520-5773, you'll receive a BEARS lunch bag free.
A note from Switzerland kicks off the mailbag this week. I thought you all might enjoy seeing this one.
Hi John:
David Aebischer's Fan club is planning a trip to the NHL in 2005 (hope there will be a next season...)
February 24 AVS @ Caps
February 26 AVS @ Flyers
February 27 AVS @ Rangers
March 2nd Preds @ AVS
March 4 Stars @ AVS
March 6 Sharks @ AVS
We hoped the Bears would play at Giant Center on February 25. But now we saw they will play the Phantoms at the Spectrum this night. I never will forget the first Bears game I saw at the Spectrum in January 2000! Exciting! I think the people in Hershey still remember us. Too bad we can't come to Hershey but we hope a lot of Bears fans will drive down Penn Turnpike and join us at the Spectrum.
My question: Will there be another Bears Media Guide for the new season?
Take care.
Greetings from Switzerland
Thomas Scheurer
Thomas, we look forward to seeing you at the Spectrum come February. I'm sure we all hope you have NHL games to see then. We need all the fan support we can get in south Philly as well, so we look forward to seeing you on Broad Street. As for the media guide, the finishing touches are being put on the 2004-05 book, and it should be out in time for our exhibition game on Sunday, October 3. We've added a brand new playoff section with scores and results dating back to 1938 along with nearly 100 pages of records updated through 2003-04. You'll be able to purchase it here at GIANT Center during any home game, or you can e-mail your request to jwalton@hersheypa.com.
Hi John,
Do you have any information on how Steve Moore is doing? Hopefully he'll be able to return. Perhaps Bears fans could see him in a Bears uniform again during a rehab stint. I really enjoy reading your weekly updates. Keep up the good work!!
Todd Donton
Lancaster, PA
Todd, I haven't heard anything lately on Steve's condition except that he is still improving. As for a possible return to HERSHEY, he was not qualified before July 1, so at the moment he is an unrestricted free agent. He would have to re-sign with Colorado, otherwise he will not likely be here next season.
John:
It looks like one of the best trips to go on to see the Bears this season will be the St. John's trip since they're leaving the league. I've heard you say on the air that it's not an easy place to get to. What do you recommend to someone who wants to go?
Nicole Zimmerman
Carlisle, PA
Nicole, here's the best information I have. An alert fan sent me a note last week that HIA has some pretty good fares going to St. John's on Air Canada. It's $527 round trip from here, which may sound like a lot but it's the best I've seen anywhere. Don't know how long that will last. Pretty much every flight regardless of airline and time goes through either Toronto or Montreal. If you've never been to Newfoundland, it's a very interesting place to visit and Mile One Stadium is a great place to watch a game. I don't see the AHL ever going back to the Maritimes, so it's probably the end of an era with the Leafs moving to Toronto next season. If you can swing it, I would recommend it.
Hi John:
I listen to the games when I come to GIANT Center, and I'm wondering how the new signal will get into the building now. Can you help?
Jeff Gulden
Camp Hill
Jeff, I don't have anything definite yet, but I believe we will have a system in place to hear the games in GIANT Center by opening night. The over-the-air signal does not reach all parts of the building, but we are working in conjunction with "The Ticket" to find a way to retransmit the signal within the building. I'm confident we can figure out a way that you can listen to the games here at GIANT Center regardless of where your seats are.
That's the news for this Monday. E-mail your questions to jwalton@hersheypa.com and I'll talk to you next week.
American Hockey League Stories from August 16, 2004
- Islanders Sign Vince Macri - Bridgeport Islanders
- Red Wings sign AHL's penalty minute king - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Pens Announce Game Time Changes - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- East Division update - Hershey Bears
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