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January 10, 2009 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


South Carolina Stingrays (20-10-4) at Charlotte Checkers (17-15-2) 1 p.m. ET
- Charlotte rookie Matthew Ford has a three-game point streak (2g-4a) and a three-game assist streak (4a).
- Stingrays rookie Maxime Lacroix has a four-game point streak (5g-2a).
- Mike Bayrack leads Charlotte against South Carolina with three goals, six assists and nine points in seven games.
- Rookie Michael Dubuc leads the Stingrays against Charlotte with six goals and 10 points in seven games.

Trenton Devils (15-14-3) at Cincinnati Cyclones (16-15-5) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Cyclones are fourth in the league with 3.44 goals per game.
- Trenton rookie Brad Snetsinger had career-high two goals and tied his career best with two points on Friday.
- Cincinnati is 8-2-5 in one-goal games including 3-3 in shootouts and 1-2 in overtime.
- Devils' Jim Henkel has a four-game point streak (3g-3a) and a three-game goal streak (3g).

Wheeling Nailers (22-7-5) at Dayton Bombers (19-12-4) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Bombers' Tyler Plante has won his last two starts to improve to 2-1-1 against Wheeling.
- Wheeling rookie Bryan Ewing has a five-game point streak (7g-3a) and a two-game goal streak (4g).
- Dayton's Mike McLean had career highs on Friday with four assists and four points (0g-4a).
- Nailers defenseman Chris Snavely has four points (2g-2a) in his last three games.

Mississippi Sea Wolves (15-17-3) at Florida Everblades (22-8-2) 7:30 p.m. ET
- Everblades' Mark Lee has a three-game point streak (2g-3a).
- Sea Wolves are 15-10-5 when scoring first and 6-0-0 when leading after two periods.
- Defenseman Noah Babin has scored in all three games he has played for Florida (0g-4a).
- Kyle McAllister leads Mississippi with three game-winning goals.

Johnstown Chiefs (22-11-2) at Elmira Jackals (16-15-4) 7:35 p.m. ET
- Jackals are 11-4-4 in one-goal games including 2-1 in overtime and 2-3 in shootouts.
- Chiefs' Ian Keserich is 2-1-0 with a shutout and a goals-against average of 1.68 in three starts against Elmira.
- Elmira defenseman Joe Grimaldi tied his career highs at Johnstown on Dec. 28 with three assists and three points.
- Jarrett Konkle has three goals and five points in his first five games with Johnstown.

Las Vegas Wranglers (15-14-3) at Utah Grizzlies (13-14-6) 7:05 p.m. MT
- Utah's Michael Mole leads the league with 1,725 minutes and 857 saves.
- Wranglers' Kevin Lalande is 2-1-1 with a goals-against average of 2.10 in five games against Utah.
- Ryan Kinasewich leads the Grizzlies in the last six games with six assists and eight points.
- Las Vegas' Kelly Czuy has four points (0g-4a) in his last three games.

Reading Royals (10-25-2) at Idaho Steelheads (20-12-2) 7:10 p.m. MT
- Steelheads rookie Ben Nelson has five goals and seven points in his last six games.
- Reading defenseman Steve Ward has nine points (3g-6a) in his last 10 games.
- Idaho is fourth in the league with a goals-against average of 2.59.
- Peder Skinner has 16 points (5g-11a) in 16 games for Reading.

Alaska Aces (20-13-2) at Bakersfield Condors (11-19-4) 7 p.m. PT
- Bakersfield's Matt Pope is tied for the league rookie lead with 20 goals and is second with nine power-play goals.
- Alaska leads the league on the penalty kill with 90.5 percent (180-for-199).
- Andrew Ianiero leads the Condors in the last five games with five assists and five points.
- Aces defenseman Bryan Miller has a four-game point streak (0g-4a) and six points (1g-5a) in his last seven games.

Ontario Reign (19-13-2) at Victoria Salmon Kings (25-9-2) 7:05 p.m. PT
- Salmon Kings' Julien Ellis is 3-0-0 with a shutout and a goals-against average of 1.00 in his last three starts.
- Ontario is third in the league with a goals-against average of 2.50.
- Victoria defenseman Dylan Yeo has 13 assists and 17 points in the last 14 games.
- Todd Jackson leads the Reign in the last 13 games with seven goals and 13 points.

Longest Winning Streak, One Season
17 - Cincinnati Cyclones, Jan. 16-Feb. 29, 2008
14 - Victoria Salmon Kings, Dec. 6 to present
Louisiana IceGators, Nov. 23-Dec. 22, 2001
Knoxville Cherokees, Dec. 28, 1993-Jan. 29, 1994
13 - Las Vegas Wranglers, Mar. 10-Apr. 7, 2007
12 - South Carolina Stingrays, Nov. 28-Dec. 31, 2007
Las Vegas Wranglers, Dec. 3-28, 2005
Pensacola Ice Pilots, Jan. 22-Feb. 18, 2005
Wheeling Nailers, Feb. 20-Mar. 12, 2004
Florida Everblades, Dec. 14, 1999-Jan. 13, 2000
Chesapeake Icebreakers, Feb. 14-Mar. 13, 1998
Erie Panthers, 1989-90

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Premier 'AA' Hockey League Fast Facts
- The ECHL celebrated its 20th Anniversary in 2007-08 and 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 21 teams in 16 states and British Columbia in 2008-09.
- The Reading Royals, the City of Reading and the Sovereign Center will host the 17th Annual ECHL All-Star Game on Jan. 21, 2009 and the 12th Annual All-Star Skills Competition on Jan. 20, 2009.
- The league officially changed its name from East Coast Hockey League to ECHL on May 19, 2003.
- Affiliations with 24 of the 30 teams in the National Hockey League marking 12th consecutive season that the league has had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.
- 386 former ECHL players have played in NHL.
- 130 have played their first NHL game in the last four seasons.
- 31 former ECHL players have made their NHL debut this season: former Wheeling Nailers and ECHL All-Star defenseman Paul Bissonnette (Pittsburgh on Oct. 4), former Bakersfield Condors center Alexandre Bolduc (Vancouver on Nov. 27), former Florida Everblades defenseman Brett Carson (Carolina on Dec. 7), former South Carolina Stingrays defenseman Sean Collins (Washington on Dec. 6), former Las Vegas Wranglers and Wheeling Nailers goaltender John Curry (Pittsburgh on Nov. 26), former Greenville Grrrowl goaltender Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers (Edmonton on Oct. 17), former Johnstown Chiefs center Andre Deveaux (Toronto on Nov. 27), former Dayton Bombers center Philippe Dupuis (Colorado on Dec. 12), former Gwinnett Gladiators right wing Pat Dwyer former Columbus Cottonmouths and Tallahassee Tiger Sharks left wing Mitch Fritz (New York Islanders on Oct. 30), former South Carolina Stingrays right wing Andrew Gordon (Washington on Dec. 23), former Charlotte Checkers center Dwight Helminen (Carolina on Oct. 28), former Trenton Devils right wing Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (New Jersey on Oct. 22), former Gwinnett Gladiators defenseman Scott Lehman (Atlanta on Dec. 18), former Charlotte Checkers defenseman Steve MacIntyre (Edmonton on Oct. 15), former Florida Everblades left wing Kenndal McArdle (Florida on Dec. 2), former Phoenix RoadRunners and Wheeling Nailers center Cam Paddock (St. Louis on Nov. 14), former Las Vegas Wranglers defenseman Adam Pardy (Calgary on Oct. 9), former Idaho Steelheads left wing Warren Peters (Calgary on Dec. 7), former Charlotte Checkers defenseman Corey Potter (New York Rangers on Dec. 7), former Charlotte Checkers, Columbia Inferno and Elmira Jackals defenseman Bryan Rodney (Carolina on Dec. 11), former Gwinnett Gladiators center Jared Ross (Philadelphia on Oct. 11), former Alaska Aces goaltender Marek Schwarz (St. Louis on Oct. 25), former Greenville Grrrowl and Stockton Thunder center Tim Sestito (Edmonton on Nov. 26), former Dayton Bombers and Las Vegas Wranglers defenseman Tyler Sloan (Washington on Oct. 21), former Utah Grizzlies and ECHL All-Star center Trevor Smith (New York Islanders on Dec. 31), former Johnstown Chiefs and Mississippi Sea Wolves forward Radek Smolenak (Tampa Bay on Dec. 2), former Augusta Lynx defenseman Brett Skinner (New York Islanders on Oct. 27), former Las Vegas Wranglers and ECHL All-Star defenseman Tyson Strachan (St. Louis on Dec. 18), former Wheeling Nailers right wing Tim Wallace (Pittsburgh on Dec. 10) and former Idaho Steelheads center Tom Wandell (Dallas on Dec. 10).
- There were 72 former ECHL players on NHL opening-day rosters.
- Twenty-six former ECHL players made their NHL debut in 2007-08 including six who played in both the ECHL and the NHL: Chris Beckford-Tseu (Alaska and St. Louis), Adam Berti (Pensacola and Chicago), Joe Jensen (Wheeling and Carolina), Dan LaCosta (Elmira and Columbus), Jonathan Quick (Reading and Los Angeles) and Danny Taylor (Reading and Los Angeles).
- Record 47 former ECHL players played their first NHL game in 2005-06.
- ECHL is represented for the eighth consecutive year on the National Hockey League championship team in 2008 by Aaron Downey of the Detroit Red Wings.
- Former ECHL coaches working as head coaches in the NHL are Bruce Boudreau of the Washington Capitals and Scott Gordon of the New York Islanders. Boudreau, who coached Mississippi for three seasons winning the Kelly Cup championship in 1999, was named NHL Coach of the Year in 2007-08 becoming the first former ECHL coach to receive the award. Peter Laviolette, who began his coaching career with the Wheeling Nailers, led Carolina Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup in 2006.
- There are 18 assistant coaches in the NHL who were players or coaches in the ECHL.
- There are 18 former ECHL officials scheduled to work as part of the NHL officiating team in 2008-09 with referees David Banfield, Chris Ciamaga, Ghislain Hebert, Marc Joannette, Mike Leggo, Wes McCauley, Dean Morton, Dan O'Rourke, Brian Pochmara, Kevin Pollock, Kyle Rehman, Chris Rooney, Justin St. Pierre and Ian Walsh and linesmen Steve Barton, Brian Mach, Tim Nowak and Jay Sharrers. Barton, Joannette, Leggo, McCauley, Nowak, Pollock, Rooney and Sharrers all worked the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
- ECHL has affiliations with 23 of the 29 teams in the American Hockey League and for the past 19 years there has been an ECHL player on the Calder Cup Champion.
- In the last six 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.
- Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.

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