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February 2, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


Cincinnati Cyclones (30-8-3) at Trenton Devils (18-22-4) 7:00 ET
- Cincinnati has won the last three meetings and is 4-1-0 against Devils, including 2-0-0 at Trenton.
- Trenton's Jim Henkel has 11 points (5g-6a) in his last six games.
- Cyclones rookie David Desharnais has an eight-game assist streak (12a) and a 10-game point streak (1g-14a).
- Devils defenseman Stephen Wood has eight points (4g-4a) in his last six games.



Pensacola Ice Pilots (9-30-4) at Augusta Lynx (23-19-3) 7:05 ET
- Pensacola won 2-1 at Augusta on Friday to tie the season series 1-1-0 against the Lynx.
- Augusta ranks fifth in the ECHL on the penalty kill at home with 87.4 percent (111-for-127).
- Mathieu Roy and Erik Fabian each scored a goal for the Ice Pilots on Friday against Augusta.
- Igor Pohanka scored a goal for the Lynx on Friday against Pensacola.



Dayton Bombers (19-17-7) at Johnstown Chiefs (17-23-2) 7:05 ET
- Dayton is 4-2-0 this season against Johnstown and is 73-45-18 all-time against the Chiefs.
- Johnstown is 12-5-2 when out shooting their opponents.
- Yannick Tifu leads the Bombers against Johnstown with seven assists and 10 points.
- All-Star Ryan Garlock leads the Chiefs against Dayton with six assists and nine points.



Charlotte Checkers (19-18-4) at Wheeling Nailers (14-25-5) 7:35 ET
- Charlotte is 12-4-3 all-time against Wheeling.
- Sean Collins leads the Nailers at home with 23 assists and 29 points in 22 games.
- Checkers' Mark Lee (3g-3a) and Bruce Graham (3g-4a) each have a three-game point streak.
- Wheeling's Kevin Croxton scored career-high four points (2g-2a) in 6-5 shootout win at Trenton on Jan. 27.



South Carolina Stingrays (28-14-2) at Gwinnett Gladiators (25-13-4) 7:35 ET
- South Carolina won 5-0 against Gwinnett on Friday to lead the season series 3-2-0 against the Gladiators.
- Gwinnett is 10-3-0 in two-goal games.
- Chris Chaput had three assists for the Stingrays on Friday against Gwinnett.
- Jeff Campbell leads the Gladiators with 41 assists and 51 points in 35 games.



Reading Royals (25-16-3) at Elmira Jackals (28-10-4) 7:35 ET
- Elmira is 2-0-0 at home against Reading and 3-1-1 overall against the Royals this season.
- Reading is on a three-game winning streak and is 7-3-0 in their last 10 games.
- Brett Pilkington leads Elmira against Reading with five assists and is tied for the team lead with six points.
- Brock Hooton leads the Royals against Elmira with five points (2g-3a).



Florida Everblades (24-17-4) at Texas Wildcatters (34-4-7) 7:05 CT
- Wildcatters have won last six meetings and are 6-0-1 in season series and 14-4-3 all-time against Florida.
- Everblades' Derek Damon has 12 points (3g-9a) in his last nine games.
- Texas All-Star Anton Khudobin is 3-0-1 with goals-against average of 1.71 against Florida.
- Florida's Justin Peters is 3-2-0 with a shutout, a goals-against average of 1.89 in his last six games.



Columbia Inferno (17-16-10) at Mississippi Sea Wolves (19-24-3) 7:05 CT
- Mississippi won 2-1 on Thursday and is 2-0-0 in the season series and 4-0-2 all-time against Columbia.
- Columbia ranks second in the ECHL on the penalty kill on the road with 87.0 percent (94-for-108).
- Kyle McAllister leads the Sea Wolves against Columbia with four assists and four points.
- Inferno's Jeff Miles has three points (1g-2a) in his last two games.



Alaska Aces (20-17-5) at Utah Grizzlies (22-19-4) 7:05 MT
- Grizzlies have won last three meetings and are 4-1-0 against Alaska, including 2-0-0 at home.
- Alaska's Matt Robinson has a three-game point streak (2g-3a).
- Utah's Ryan Kinasewich has two game-winning goals and 19 points (4g-15a) in his last 10 games.
- Aces' Kimbi Daniels has a four-game point streak (3g-3a).



Idaho Steelheads (24-14-7) at Phoenix RoadRunners (16-23-6) 7:11 MT
- RoadRunners have won the last two meetings and are 2-4-1 against the Steelheads.
- Lance Galbraith leads Idaho against Phoenix with seven assists and nine points in seven games.
- Phoenix rookie Peder Skinner has a seven-game point streak (7g-3a).
- Steelheads' Marty Flichel has a five-game point streak (4g-5a).



Las Vegas Wranglers (29-8-7) at Fresno Falcons (24-11-6) 7:30 PT
- Las Vegas won 4-3 in a shootout against Fresno on Friday to improve to 2-0-3 this season against the Falcons.
- Fresno is 17-2-2 when leading after the second period.
- All-Star Peter Ferraro scored a goal and had an assist for the Wranglers on Friday against Fresno.
- All-Star Igor Gongalsky scored two goals for the Falcons on Friday against Las Vegas.



Bakersfield Condors (12-22-8) at Stockton Thunder (19-22-2) 7:30 PT
- Stockton has won the last three meetings and is 3-3-3 in season series and 9-7-6 all-time against the Condors.
- Bakersfield's Yutaka Fukufuji is 3-1-0 with a goals-against average of 3.26 against Stockton.
- Ryan MacMurchy leads Thunder against Bakersfield with four goals and seven points in four games.
- Condors rookie Mark Derlago has two game-winning goals and eight points (6g-2a) in his last five games.

Most Career Coaching Wins
480 - John Brophy, Hampton Roads (1989-2000) and Wheeling (2001-03)
475 - John Marks, Pensacola, Charlotte (1993-98) and Greenville (1998-2006)
335 - Jeff Pyle, Gwinnett (2003 to present) and Mobile (1998-2002)
332 - Frank Anzalone, Nashville (1991-92), Roanoke (1993-98), Pee Dee (1999-2001) and Johnstown (2005-07)

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Premier 'AA' Hockey League Fast Facts

- Celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2007-08, the ECHL is the third-longest tenured professional hockey league behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League.

- ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states and has grown to be a coast-to-coast league with 25 teams playing 900 games in 17 states and British Columbia in 2007-08.

- The league officially changed its name to ECHL on May 19, 2003.

- Affiliations with 26 of the 30 teams in the National Hockey League, marking the 11th consecutive season that the league has had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.

- 345 former ECHL players have played in NHL.

- 16 former ECHL players have made their NHL debut this season: former Idaho Steelheads right wing B.J. Crombeen (Dallas on Jan. 19), former Gwinnett Gladiators left wing Kevin Doell (Atlanta on Jan. 4), former Fresno goaltender Thomas Greiss (San Jose on Jan. 14), former Roanoke Express and Wheeling Nailers left wing Jason Jaffray (Vancouver on Dec. 12), former Toledo Storm goaltender Drew MacIntyre (Vancouver on Dec. 13), former San Diego Gulls left wing Cody McLeod (Colorado on Dec. 19), former Alaska Aces and Pensacola Ice Pilots center Chris Minard (Pittsburgh on Jan. 21), former Columbia Inferno center Brandon Nolan (Carolina on Dec. 22), former Johnstown Chiefs and Fresno Falcons goaltender Dmitri Patzold (San Jose on Oct. 7), former Gwinnett Gladiators and Louisiana IceGators left wing Pascal Pelletier (Boston on Jan. 17), former Reading Royals goaltender Jonathan Quick (Los Angeles on Dec. 6), former Stockton Thunder left wing Liam Reddox (Edmonton on Dec. 7), former Gwinnett Gladiators left wing Colin Stuart (Atlanta on Dec. 29), former San Diego goaltender Tyler Weiman (Colorado on Oct. 4), former Charlotte Checkers right wing Craig Weller (Phoenix on Oct. 4) and former Phoenix RoadRunners center Daniel Winnik (Phoenix Coyotes on Oct. 4).

- There were 69 former ECHL players on NHL opening-day rosters and there have been 200 former ECHL players who have played their first game in the NHL in the past seven seasons.

- Twenty-six former ECHL players made their NHL debut in 2006-07, including two who played in both the ECHL and the NHL as goaltender Yutaka Fukufuji played for Reading and Los Angeles while defenseman Bryan Young skated for Stockton and Edmonton. Dave McKee played for Augusta and dressed for five games as the backup goaltender for Stanley Cup champion Anaheim.

- Record 51 former ECHL players played their first NHL game in 2005-06.

- ECHL has been represented on last seven Stanley Cup champions.

- There are 15 coaches in the NHL who have ECHL experience including former Wheeling coach Peter Laviolette, who is head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes, and former Mississippi coach Bruce Boudreau, who is head coach of the Washington Capitals.
- ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 29 teams in the American Hockey League, marking the seventh consecutive season that it has had affiliations with 20 or more teams in the AHL.

- ECHL has been represented on last 18 Calder Cup champions.

- In the last five seasons the ECHL has had more call-ups to the AHL than all other professional leagues combined with over 2,000 call-ups involving more than 1,000 players since 2002-03.
ECHL and its member teams contributed nearly $3 million for charity and relief funds in 2006-07.

- Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.

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ECHL Stories from February 2, 2008


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