Fury lengthen lead with 12-game unbeaten span

January 29, 2006 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Muskegon Lumberjacks News Release


TEAM TITLE II TALES: After an extraordinarily successful first-half of the 2005-06 campaign, the two-time reigning Colonial Cup Champions of the United Hockey League, the Muskegon Fury have launched the second-half of their 76-game schedule by increasing their lead atop the Central Division standings, while at the same time retaining a slight edge in the overall league standings over torrid Western Division leading Rockford. Under the doctrine of third-year head coach Todd Nelson, the Fury have advanced their latest unblemished skein to a remarkable 12-consecutive games; 12(11-0-1) in elevating their overall season mark to a majestic 40(32-5-3) totaling 67-points for a win percent-age of a scintillating .838. In the process, the men of the Fury armor have upgraded their advantage to 8-points atop the Central Division standings over second-place Kalamazoo 42(27-10-5)59-points, with still 2-games in hand on the Wings who are 5(1-2-2) in their last 5-games and 7(1-3-3) in their last 7-appearances at home. Tailgating on the Fury's bumper at this juncture of the season is molten-hot Rockford 42(30-7-5)65-points and winners of 6-consecutively overall. The IceHogs are actually a sizzling 19(14-1-4) in their past 19-dates. Muskegon does enjoy the potential advantage of 2-games in hand on the Illinois squadron as well. Meanwhile, the Muskegon advantage over Eastern Division front-running Danbury 44(26-11-7)59-points, also stands at 8-points with "Todd's Team" looking at 4-games in hand with the Trashers. Earning 3 of a possible 4-points the past weekend, the Fury face a formidable assignment of 3-divisional encounters in 4-nights this week, including a pair of offerings opposing Port Huron. The Muskegon men of hockey broach the week's activities with a travelogue to Port Huron Wednesday night before returning to the home base for a weekend combo on the Walker Arena marquee. Flint comes to town Friday night with the Flags reciproca-ting and playing here on Saturday night as the Fury launch an ambitious docket consisting of 13-games in the month of February.

TODD'S TOP TUNES: With his team's gigantic, dynamic and dramatic comeback 5-4 OTSO success on Saturday night, Todd Nelson has tied Rich Kromm for the most coaching wins in Fury franchise history. During the Kromm 3-year regime, the fifth coach in Fury history posted 130-victories. In his second game of the second-half of his third season "Nelly" has equaled the club standard. The Fury's incumbent coach's record currently stands at 196(130-45-21) for a win percentage of .717, the best-ever in Fury history. He is now in the position to break the record Wednes-day night when he leads his charges into battle at Port Huron.

TO SCORE TWO MORE: The Fury's all-time premiere career cannoneer, right wing Rockin' Robin Bouchard is now standing at the precipice of more history and immortality in his legendary pro career. In 2-games the past weekend, the "Gun-Sling King" delivered 5-more points on 3-goals, 2-assists with 13-SOG and a +2 rating. Included in his output were his league-best 19th PPG and his league-high 9th multiple goal game. His second goal of the game Friday night with 4.9 seconds remaining in the third period completed an improbable but stirring late come-from-behind rally that netted one very precious point in the standings through the regulation tie against archrival Quad City after the Fury trailed 4-2 with just over 2:00 left in the game. However, transcendent and superseding those consider-able weekly accomplishments was his UHL career goals' number. Now at 468-UHL career goals, "Bouch Almighty's" (469) next strike will tie his former Flint teammate, linemate and roommate Kevin Kerr as the greatest goal-scorer ever in UHL history at 469-goals. He is just 2-more goals from more hallowed halls history.

TOPPING TARRY TRAIL: Achieving 3 of a possible 4-points the past weekend on a mark of 2(1-0-1), the "Furious Ones" have constructed a colossal record of 40(32-5-3) for 67-points and a magnificent .838 win percentage. Presently, the Fury are riding the rising rapids of a season's best 12-game unsullied skein; 12(11-0-1) with their last setback incurred back on 12/30/05 at Missouri, 5-3. Since then, the "Muskegonites" have yet to sustain a setback in the new calendar year of 2006, having capped the January slate at 11(10-0-1). Dating back to last regular season, the "Knights of Nelson" have been awesome and then-some with a mark of 49(38-7-4) in the last 49-games; last 71-games 71(54-10-7); last 90-games (67-15-8). In a comparative analysis from last year and Tarry Cup II, the Fury, after 40-games, were 40(25-10-5) for 55-points. Presently, they are 7-wins and 12-points superior to last year's pace. This season, the Fury have attained two 10-game win streaks, one 5-game win skein and one unbeaten streak of 7-games; 7(6-0-1). In 2004-05, the year of Colonial Cup IV, the Fury accrued a 9-game win streak and an all-time club record and league season-best 17-games undefeated streak; 17(14-0-3). Last season as well, the Fury club attained two 10-game undefeated streaks with both being 10(9-0-1). For the monthly returns thus far this season: October 3(3-0-0); November 12(11-1-0); December 14(8-4-2); January 11(10-0-1).

FRIENDLY CONFINES DESIGNS: Appearing on the home stage with a pair of acts the past weekend, the Fury players have enhanced their home ledger to a masterful 20(15-3-2), earning 32 of a possible 40-points. Having achieved the UHL's second best home mark, the Fury are currently riding the rising tidal wave of a 7-game home ice unsullied skein; 7(6-0-1), outscoring the enemy invaders, 37-19. Muskegon's last digesting of defeat was over 6-weeks ago in their home lair where Motor City ambushed them, 5-2, back on December 16th. The local team's top win streaks at home have been 6-in a row and 5-in succession. Dating back to yester times, the Fury are 36(29-5-2) in their last 36 home performances and a remarkable 78(62-11-5) through their last 78-home dates.

RICH ROAD REVELRY: The Fury have been virtually invincible abroad thus far this season. They have achieved the circuit's supreme standing in hostile environments as their extraordinary 20(17-2-1) record reflects. Currently, the Fury are riding the crest of a season-equaling 7-game win streak away, matching their initial 7-road games of the current campaign when they also accrued a bedazzling 7(7-0-0) mark. Should the Fury happen to prevail in their next road affair, which is Wednesday night in Port Huron, they will match the club record for most consecutive road victories at 8-straight set during the first 8-road games of the 2001-02 season, the year of Colonial Cup II. Muskegon's longest overall undefeated streak abroad this season has been 11(10-0-1).

DELINEATE DIVISION: The Fury are flourishing, divisionally speaking. Against their own Central Division: 20(14-4-2); home: 11(7-3-1); road: 9(7-1-1). The breakdown as follows: Port Huron 6(4-0-2); home: 2(1-0-1); road: 4(3-0-1). Flint 3(3-0-0); home: 2(2-0-0); road: 1(1-0-0); Motor City 6(4-2-0); home: 5(3-2-0); road: 1(1-0-0). Kalama-zoo 5(3-2-0); home: 2(1-1-0); road: 3(2-1-0). The Western Division: 13(11-1-1); home: 6(5-0-1); road: 8(6-1-0). The breakdown: Fort Wayne 4(4-0-0); home: 2(2-0-0); road: 2(2-0-0); Quad City 3(2-0-1); home: 2(1-0-1); road: 1(1-0-0); Missouri 4(3-1-0); home: 1(1-0-0); road: 3(2-1-0); Rockford 2(2-0-0); home: 1(1-0-0); road: 1(1-0-0). The Eastern Division: 7(7-0-0); home: 3(3-0-0); road: 4(4-0-0). The breakdown: Richmond 2(2-0-0); road: 2(2-0-0); Roanoke 2(2-0-0); home: 1(1-0-0); road: 1(1-0-0); Danbury 1(1-0-0); home: 1(1-0-0); Adirondack 1(1-0-0); road: 1(1-0-0); Elmira 1(1-0-0); home: 1(1-0-0).

POTENT PYROTECHNICS: The UHL's top scoring machine, Muskegon fired 9-more goals the past 2-games' weekend to virtually maintain their season average of a prodigious 4.55 GFA on 182-GF in just 40-games. During their current 12-game undefeated streak, the league-leaders have cannonaded 57-GF for a GFA of a prolific 4.75. Already in 14 of their first 40-games, the Fury have generated 6 or more goals. Muskegon has been even better abroad with their high-voltage scoring power, amassing 99-GF in 20-road games for a GFA of almost 5-goals per game.

PRIMARY PRINCIPALS: The Fury are still dominating the preponderance of offensive departments in the UHL. Robin Bouchard 40(37-36-73) is #1 in league wide scoring with line-mate Jeff Nelson 38(24-48-72) ranked #2. David Wrigley 40(24-25-49) ranks 8th and Ryan Keller 32(21-23-44) is 14th. Bouchard (37) leads the UHL in goals with Nelson (24) and Wrigley (24) ranked 6th. Nelson's 48-assists are foremost in the loop while Bouchard's 19-PPG pace the league. Nelson is 5th with 12-PPG. Wrigley (7), Keller (6) are 1st and 2nd in GWG. Bouchard (207) leads the UHL in SOG. Wrigley's 4-SHG tie him for 2nd most with Nelson ranked runner-up in goal-scoring marksmanship accuracy, 24-98; .245. Nelson is #1 in the UHL with a lofty +31 rating with Dave Van Drunen (+30) tied for 2nd , Wrigley (+28) rated 4th and Keller (+27) ranked 5th in the league. In the rookie scoring category in the UHL, Wrigley is #1 and Keller is listed as #3. Wrigley's 24-goals rank rookie runner-up with Keller's 21-snipes listed as 4th best. Wrigley is 2nd in assists with 25 while Wrigley and Keller are 1st and 2nd as the best plus rated rookies in the UHL. Among UHL defensemen, Trevor Johnson is tied for #2 in scoring with 40(7-32-39) with Van Drunen 40(7-17-24) ranked 12th. Johnson's 32-assists are 3rd most. Brett Angel's 150-PIM rank 2nd among rookies and 3rd among all UHL defensemen while his 12-majors lead all defensemen and rank rookie runner-up. In the goaltending category, Clayton Pool 23(19-3-1) is tied for the league lead in wins with 19 while Kevin LaPointe ranks 6th with a 2.50 GAA.

"JOE-POM" POWER: One of the more unsung and unheralded heroes of this first-place Fury edition has been first-year standout Joe Pomaranski. The U. Miami O., product has scored 3-goals in the past week, his only 3-goals of his rookie year with all 3 of them crucial, critical, clutch connections. The past weekend, on two consecutive nights he brought his team back to life with late, dramatic, harrowing late goals. Friday night, his key strike at 17:41 of the third period fused a Fury late 2-goal rally to salvage a single point in a regulation tie against archrival Quad City. Then 24-hours later, his flair for the thrilling theater continued when he ripped the GTG with just :38 remaining in regulation time to tie Roanoke, allowing his team to cap the comeback with an ultimate OTSO success over the Vipers. His first goal of his pro career was, perhaps, a signal as to what was to come. On January 21st in Kalamazoo, his late third period goal forged a tie against the second-place Wings, again, allowing his team to complete the comeback mission with the OTSO win at Wings Stadium. The past week, Pomaranski was 2(2-0-2) with a +3 rating. He was a superb +11 for the month of January. Pomaranski is the Fury's nomination for Sher-wood / UHL Player of the Week.

ANOINT LAPOINTE: First-year goalkeeper Kevin LaPointe was never ever better than he was in the OTSO victory for his team Saturday night over Roanoke. Though yielding 4-GA in regulation, the Sacred Heart U. product was spectacular in extra time, rebuking all 5 Vipers' shots to help the Fury snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. His club needed every one of those sensational saves to preserve a 1-0 triumph in the extra session. LaPointe is the Fury's nomination for Southern Sports Supply / UHL Goaltender of the Month.

SMOOTH MOVE MAGIC: The Fury's classy center Jeff Nelson turned in another month of majesty and magic for the home town team. In 11-games in January, he was Muskegon's 2nd leading point-maker with 11(7-11-18), adding a team-best 4-PPG and a team tying-best 2-GWG. His stellar +17 rating tied for team-best as the 14-year veteran did not have single minus game the entire month, being a plus player for 9 of the 11-outings. In addition, once he was named the game's #1 Star, twice the #2 Star and thrice the #3 Star. Nelson is the Fury's nomination for Sher-wood / UHL Player of the Month for January.

GOALTEND DEFEND: The Fury goaltender Clayton Pool enjoyed another exceptional month of puck prevention attention. He completed the month undefeated with a mark of 7(6-0-1) with a stingy 2.58 GAA and stellar .922 SPCT. Included in his month's work were a 6-game win streak and a brilliant OTSO triumph 1/21/06 at Kalamazoo. He is currently on a personal 8-game unbeaten skein; 8(7-0-1) with a 2.37 GAA in that span. On the road, he has a 5-game win streak with a 2.20 GAA. For his Fury career, Pool has posted a sterling record of 37-9-6 for a win percentage of .770. Pool is the Fury's nomination for Southern Sports Supply / UHL Goaltender of the Month.

RYAN'S ROLLS ROYCE CHOICE: Another of the Fury's rookie phenoms continues to impress with his goal-scoring express. Left Wing Ryan Keller had a most prominent month in January. Ranked tied for 2nd in team scoring, he was 11(9-9-18), tying Robin Bouchard for most goals in January. His +17 rating also tied for best on the club as 9 of his 11-games were classified as plus games. Keller had only one minus game for the entire month. Keller is the Fury's nomination for Easton / UHL Rookie of the Month.

MAJOR ARRANGER: The captain, Rustyn Dolyny has been garnering point production by way of his masterful playmaking skills in recent Fury action. In fact, "Rusto Bravissimo" has engineered three consecutive 2-assists outings; 3(0-6-6) to go along with an excellent +6 rating in that span. For the season, he is 32(16-22-38) with a superb +16 rating.

POWER PLAY YAY; PK NAY: The Fury power play continues to percolate right along. Operating at a league-best 25.7%, the Fury extra man band is over 6% better that all other power plays in the loop. Muskegon is 59-230 for the season and 4 for the last 13 for a rating of 30.8%. However, the penalty-killing cast has swooned lately, surrendering a rather inordinate 5-PPGA in the last 2-games as the opposition has gone 5 for the last 8. In the process, Muskegon has slipped to 5th in the league with an efficiency rating of 84.9% with the opposition being 40-265. The Fury continue to lead the UHL in SHG with 11.

HALLMARK MAKING: Jeff Nelson (996) is just 4-games away from pro career 1,000. Robin Bouchard's next assist will be the 400th for his Fury career. Rustyn Dolyny (298) is only 2-games away from becoming only the 6th player in Fury history to play 300-games. Dolyny (108) is just 2-goals from tying Mark Turner (110) for 7th all-time in Fury annals. Dolyny's next SHG will tie him for #2 all-time with Brett Seguin (11). Steve O'Rourke (296) is just 4-games away from pro career 300.

FEW FUN FURY FAST FACTS FROM "FIC": The Fury are 6(3-3-0) in the OTSO thus far this season, winning 3 of the last 4. They are 3(1-2-0) at home in the OTSO. In his last 5-games, Trevor Johnson is 5(0-7-7). When the Fury yield 3-GA or less, they are undefeated at 28(26-0-2). The Fury are perfect on Sundays this year at 7(7-0-0); 6(6-0-0) on the road. They are 13(11-1-1) on Saturday; 9(7-1-1) at home. In the first and third periods combined this season, the Fury have outscored their opponents, 130-72.

THE WRAP ON THE WEEK: The Fury were 2(1-0-1) for the weekend with both games protracted to the OTSO. Friday night, the Fury rallied remarkably from a 4-2 deficit with barely over 2:00 remaining to gain the tie in regulation in an ultimate 5-4 OTSO outcome against Quad City. Joe Pomaranski struck at 17:41 followed by Robin Bouchard's 2nd goal of the night to knot it with just 4.9 seconds left in the contest. Bouchard (2-1-3)FG/PPG/GTG and Ryan Keller (PPG) connected for the Fury with Jeff Nelson and Rustyn Dolyny each assisting twice. Clayton Pool had 29-saves in goal. Saturday night, it was more of the same script with a different and better ending as Pomaranski struck, again. This time he delivered the GTG with :38 left before his team prevailed in the OTSO, 1-0. In the 5-4 OTSO win, Bouchard (1-1-2) scored the lone goal in the extra session as Kevin LaPointe in goal rebuffed all 5-Vipers attempts. Nelson (FG/PPG) and David Wrigley (GTG) also connected with Dolyny and Billy Collins each assisting twice.

THE FURY GAME CALENDAR THIS WEEK:

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1ST THE FURY AT PORT HURON 7: 00 PM

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4TH PORT HURON AT THE FURY 7:30 PM

The seventh and eighth sessions to be staged and waged this season; the fifth at McMorran Place Arena where the Fury have thrived thus far this season at 4(3-0-1). Overall, Muskegon is 6(4-0-2) in a half-dozen dates against their Central Division rivals. On home ice this season, the Fury are 2(1-0-1) against the fledgling Flags.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD FLINT AT THE FURY 7:30 PM

The fourth clash of the campaign against two long-time archenemies and the third in Muskegon with the Fury on top in the series at this juncture, 3(3-0-0). At home, Muskegon has dominated through victories of 6-2 on November 4th and 8-3 on January 10th. In the last actual meeting, the lone one so far in Flint, the Fury prevailed, 5-2 on January 22nd. Dating back to last season, the Fury have captured the last 8- clashes between the two teams as well as 8-in a row at home against the Generals.



International Hockey League 2 Stories from January 29, 2006


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