ECHL ECHL

ECHL Today

February 23, 2007 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


Dayton Bombers (24-18-4) at Reading Royals (23-24-6) 7:05 p.m. ET
- Reading won 2-1 at Dayton on Feb. 17 and is 1-3-0 this season and 23-11-0 all-time against Bombers.
- Dayton is tied for ninth in the ECHL with 26 points (12-9-2) on the road.
- Royals' Malcolm MacMillan has team-leading three assists in four games against Dayton.
- Yannick Tifu leads the Bombers with five assists and six points in four games against Reading.



Charlotte Checkers (27-20-3) at South Carolina (26-19-6) 7:05 p.m. ET
- Charlotte ranks second in the ECHL on the penalty kill on the road with 88.4 percent (168-for-190).
- South Carolina is third in the ECHL on the power play at home with 22.1 percent (42-for-190).
- Bruce Graham leads Checkers against South Carolina with seven goals and 11 points in six games.
- Stingrays' Evan Schwabe has team-leading five assists and seven points in seven games against Charlotte.



Gwinnett Gladiators (29-17-6) at Florida Everblades (33-15-2) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Florida leads the ECHL with 19 shorthand goals.
- Gwinnett leads the ECHL with 95 power-play goals a power-play percentage of 24.9 percent (95-for-382).
- Everblades' Dustin Johner has team-leading nine points (4g-5a) in seven games against Gwinnett.
- Gladiators' Scott Mifsud has an ECHL season-high 19-game point streak (8g-24a).



Cincinnati Cyclones (27-19-4) at Trenton Titans (25-20-5) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Trenton ranks seventh in the ECHL on the power play at home with 18.6 percent (32-for-172).
- Cincinnati leads the ECHL on the penalty kill on the road with 91.3 percent (147-for-161).
- Scott Bertoli leads the Titans with five assists and seven points in four games against Cincinnati.
- Cyclones' Sam Ftorek has team-leading four goals and seven points in four games against Trenton.



Johnstown Chiefs (22-22-5) at Wheeling Nailers (19-25-3) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Johnstown is tied for eighth in the ECHL on the power play on the road with 17.5 percent (24-for-137).
- Wheeling is 6-4-2 when tied after the second period.
- Chiefs' Gerald Coleman is 2-0-0 with a goals-against average of 2.00 in two games against Wheeling.
- Sean Collins leads Nailers against Johnstown with nine assists and 12 points in six games.



Toledo Storm (26-21-1) at Augusta Lynx (30-21-2) 7:35 p.m. ET
- Augusta is 4-1-0 in their last five games and 13-5-2 in the last 20 games.
- Toledo is 16-0-0 when leading after the second period.
- Lynx's Ryan Lang ranks sixth in the ECHL with 65 points (23g-42a).
- Storm's Matt Zultek has team-leading 21 assists and 37 points.



Columbia Inferno (19-26-8) at Pensacola Ice Pilots (17-34-2) 7:05 p.m. CT
- Pensacola won 7-1 on Feb. 22 and is 4-3-0 this season and 12-8-1 all-time against Columbia.
- Columbia is 89.1 percent (57-for-64) on the penalty kill in their last 10 games.
- Ice Pilots' John Hecimovic and Erik Johnson each had two goals and assist on Feb. 22.
- Mike Jarmuth leads the Inferno with seven assists and nine points in six games against Pensacola.



Stockton Thunder (22-16-10) at Texas Wildcatters (30-14-9) 7:30 p.m. CT
- Texas has 14 points (6-2-2) in their last 10 games.
- Stockton is tied for fifth in the ECHL on the penalty kill on the road with 85.1 percent (154-for-181).
- Wildcatters' Kevin Baker ranks fifth in the ECHL with 30 goals.
- Thunder's Troy Bodie is fourth among ECHL rookies with 38 points (21g-17a).



Utah Grizzlies (19-28-5) at Idaho Steelheads (28-18-4) 7:10 p.m. MT
- Idaho is 4-0-1 in their last five games and 8-2-2 in their last 12 games.
- Brad Herauf leads Grizzlies against Idaho with four goals and six points in five games.
- Steelheads' Lance Galbraith leads team with nine points (4g-5a) in six games against Utah.
- Utah is 4-1-0 in their last five road games.



Bakersfield Condors (30-13-7) at Phoenix RoadRunners (23-25-4) 7:11 p.m. MT
- Bakersfield ranks seventh in the ECHL on the power play on the road with 17.8 percent (30-for-169).
- Phoenix is tied for ninth in the ECHL on the power play with 16.9 percent (65-for-384).
- Condors' Kevin St. Jacques is tied for eighth in the ECHL with 36 assists.
- Justin Aikins leads RoadRunners with 20 goals, 22 assists and 42 points.



Las Vegas Wranglers (29-10-12) at Victoria Salmon Kings (23-30-1) 7:05 p.m. PT
- Las Vegas has 16 points (7-1-2) in their last 10 games and 23 points (10-2-3) in the last 15 games.
- Victoria is 22.7 percent (5-for-22) on the power play in their last five games at home.
- Wranglers' Derek Edwardson has team-leading five points (2g-3a) in five games against Victoria.
- Salmon Kings' Bryan Bridges is 2-0-0 with a goals-against average of 1.44 in two games against Las Vegas.



Alaska Aces (37-13-3) at Long Beach Ice Dogs (19-27-3) 7:30 p.m. PT
- Alaska ranks second in the ECHL with 36 points (17-7-2) on the road.
- Long Beach is 10th in the ECHL on the penalty kill at home with 84.5 percent (142-for-168).
- Aces' Peter Metcalf has team-leading two goals in one game against Long Beach.
- Ice Dogs' Terry Harrison and Eric Neilson each have two points (1g-1a) in one game against Alaska.



Watch Games Live on B2 Networks, the "Official Broadband Broadcast Provider" of the ECHL



Premier 'AA' Hockey League Fast Facts
* Affiliations with 25 of the 30 teams in the National Hockey League marking 10th consecutive season that the league has had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.
* 322 former ECHL players have played in NHL.
* 177 have played their first NHL game in the last five seasons.
* 98 former ECHL players have played in the NHL this season and all 30 teams have had a former ECHL player play for them.
* More than 100 players under contract to NHL teams have played in the ECHL this season.
* 19 ECHL players who have played their first NHL game this season: former Greenville and Richmond right wing Krys Barch (Dallas on Jan. 15), former Mississippi defenseman Sheldon Brookbank (Nashville on Feb. 6), former Reading goaltender Barry Brust (Los Angeles on Nov. 30), former Toledo center Matt Ellis (Detroit on Dec. 18), former Wheeling defenseman Drew Fata (New York Islanders on Feb. 4), former Reading defenseman Jeff Finger (Colorado on Feb. 20), former Bakersfield and Reading goaltender Yutaka Fukufuji (Los Angeles on Jan. 13), former Charlotte defenseman Daniel Girardi (New York Rangers on Jan. 27), former Long Beach goaltender Jaroslav Halak (Montreal on Feb. 18), former Trenton goaltender Martin Houle (Philadelphia on Dec. 13), former Alaska left wing D.J. King (St. Louis on Oct. 5), former Florida center Drew Larman (Florida on Nov. 13), former Florida defenseman Martin Lojek (Florida on Feb. 3), former Toledo goaltender Joey MacDonald (Detroit on Oct. 19), former Pensacola center Kris Newbury (Toronto on Dec. 23), former Augusta right wing Pierre Parenteau (Chicago on Feb. 7), former Columbia right wing Jesse Schultz (Vancouver on Nov. 28), former ECHL All-Star goaltender Mike Smith (Dallas on Oct. 21) and former Augusta goaltender Mike Wall (Anaheim on Nov. 26).
* Record 47 former ECHL players played their first NHL game in 2005-06.
* ECHL has been represented on last six Stanley Cup champions.
* Two NHL head coaches (Peter Laviolette & Jim Playfair) and 9 assistant coaches have ECHL experience.
* Affiliations with 24 of the 27 teams in the American Hockey League.
* ECHL has been represented on last 17 Calder Cup champions.
* ECHL has affiliations with 24 of the 27 teams in the American Hockey League and for the past 17 years there has been an ECHL player on the Calder Cup Champion.
* 86 players under contract to AHL teams have played in the ECHL this season.
* For each of the past four seasons, the ECHL has had more players called up to the AHL than all other professional leagues combined with 1,646 call ups involving almost 1,000 players, including 2005-06 when there were 416 call ups involving 263 players.
* 2008 ECHL All-Star Game and Skills Competition will be hosted by Stockton Thunder, City of Stockton and Stockton Arena on Jan. 22-23, 2008.
* ECHL and its member teams contributed more than $2.3 million for charity and relief funds in 2005-06.
* Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.

Check out the ECHL Statistics



ECHL Stories from February 23, 2007


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central