Gameday Preview - Texas at Houston
Published on December 26, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release
Texas and Houston meet for the sixth time this season and the 18th time in AHL history. The two teams will play a total of 12 games this season, including three more times at Cedar Park Center. The Aeros own the season series with a 4-1-0-0 mark against the Stars this season. Texas is 9-6-1-1 all-time against Houston after taking the season series in 2009-10 by going 8-3-0-1 against their in-state rivals. Texas is 0-2-0-0 this year at the Toyota Center and 4-3-0-1 all time. Overall, the Stars have dropped their last three decisions at Houston.
The Stars are 7-5-0-0 away from Cedar Park Center this season. Texas has collected points in eight of the last ten games and 15 of the last 20. The Stars are coming off a 4-3 win at home over Oklahoma City on Monday night. The Stars begin a five-game road trip on Sunday with one stop in Oklahoma City and two in Abbotsford, BC. Texas will end the road trip in San Antonio before returning home on Saturday, January 8th against Lake Erie.
Houston is 7-6-1-0 at home this year and 4-6-0-0 in the last ten games played. The Aeros are coming off their fourth straight loss, a 5-0 defeat at home to Hamilton on Tuesday. Houston has been outscored 6-0 in the last two games and 16-5 in the last four. The Aeros come into the game without a goal in the last 158:43 of play. Brendan Buck scored the team's last goal at Manitoba on Dec. 17, just 1:17 into the second period of a 5-3 loss.
Through the first five games of the series, Houston defensemen Marco Scandella leads all scorers with five assists and six points in only four games played. Former Texas Star Warren Peters has three goals and five points in five games against his old team. Center Jarod Palmer has four assists and five points in five games played. Stars center Travis Morin has collected three assists and five points in five games. Right wing Colton Sceviour has three goals and 11 points in 17 games all-time against Houston.
Texas goalie Richard Bachman is 1-3-0 with a 3.53 goals against average and an .885 save percentage against Houston this season. Tyler Beskorowany is 0-1-0 with a 3.01 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. Aeros goalie Anton Khudobin is 4-0-0 with a 2.55 goals against average and a .916 save percentage.
What's Ahead:
DATE OPPONENT TIME TV/RADIO
Tuesday, Dec. 28 at Oklahoma City 7:05 PM 104.9 FM
Thursday, Dec. 30 at Abbotsford 9:00 PM 104.9 FM
Friday, Dec. 31 at Abbotsford 8:00 PM 104.9 FM
Friday, Jan. 7 at San Antonio 7:05 PM 104.9 FM
* All times listed are local time
GAME RECAPS:
Oklahoma City 3 at Texas 4 12/20/10
The Texas Stars defeated the Oklahoma City Barons 4-3 on Monday night in front of 6,611 fans at Cedar Park Center. Stars' left wing Francis Wathier and defenseman Maxime Fortunus each recorded multiple-point efforts in the win. Oklahoma City right wing Colin McDonald added his 15th goal of the season while defenseman Shawn Belle had a multi-point night with a goal and an assist. Texas goalie Richard Bachman (11-5-1) stopped 20 of 23 shots in the victory. Oklahoma City goalie Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers (4-5-2) stopped 25 of 29 shots in the loss.
Hamilton 3 at Texas 2 (OT) 12/18/10
The Texas Stars were defeated by the Hamilton Bulldogs 3-2 in overtime on Saturday night in front of 6,518 fans at Cedar Park Center. Hamilton center Dustin Boyd scored twice, including the overtime game-winning goal 1:07 into the extra session. Bulldogs goalie Curtis Sanford (11-5-0) stopped 31 of 33 shots in the victory. Texas goalie Richard Bachman stopped 30 of 33 shots in the loss. Stars centers Travis Morin and Aaron Gagnon both scored on the night.
Texas 3 at San Antonio 12/17/10
The Texas Stars defeated the San Antonio Rampage 3-0 on Friday night in front of 6,202 fans at the AT&T Center. Texas goalie Richard Bachman stopped 41 shots in his return from the NHL's Dallas Stars. Bachman made 18 saves in the first period and coasted to his third shutout of the year, the fourth of his AHL career. Stars forwards Greg Rallo, Luke Gazdic and Francis Wathier each scored as the Stars picked up their fourth shutout in eight all-time visits to the AT&T Center. Rampage goalie Joe Fallon (0-1-0) stopped 19 of 21 shots in the loss.
Manitoba 3 at Texas 1 12/14/10
The Texas Stars were defeated by the Manitoba Moose 3-1 in front of 4,220 fans on Tuesday night at Cedar Park Center. Manitoba goalie Eddie Lack (8-6-2) stopped 39 of 40 shots, including all 19 Texas shots in the third period to preserve the 3-1 victory. Manitoba center Marco Rosa scored 7:57 into the third period, breaking a 1-1 tie, as the Moose snapped a four-game winless skid. Stars right wing Greg Rallo scored the lone Texas goal in the first period. Texas goalie Tyler Beskorowany (2-4-0) stopped 30 of 32 shots for the loss.
The Texas Stars
After 32 games of action, center Travis Morin leads Texas in scoring with 13 goals and 28 points. Right wing Greg Rallo is second on the team in scoring with 20 points (10g-10a) in 32 games played. Left wing Francis Wathier is third on the club with 18 points. Wathier is second in goals scored (11) and leads the team lead with six power-play goals. Right wing Colton Sceviour is fourth on the team in points with 15. Fabian Brunnstrom is fifth overall on the team with 14 points. Dan Spang leads all defensemen with 13 points and he is tied for sixth overall in points with 13. Defensemen Brad Lukowich and Philip Larsen are tied for second on the team with 11 assists each. Left wing Luke Gazdic's 56 penalty minutes lead the team.
Texas Stars goalies Richard Bachman and Tyler Beskorowany fill the net for Texas. Brent Krahn is currently out with an injury. Bachman has appeared in 19 games, going 11-5-1 with a 2.00 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Bachman ranks sixth overall in the AHL for goals against average and sixth in save percentage. From Nov. 16 - Dec. 7, Bachman started 10 of 11 games before receiving a call up to Dallas. In his absence, Beskorowany started in five straight games, stopping 144 of 154 (.935 %) in his last four games. Overall, Beskorowany is 2-4-0 with a 3.36 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. Krahn has appeared in nine games, posting a 5-4-0 mark, a 2.93 goals against average and a .898 save percentage.
Shooting Stars
Center Travis Morin has a point in ten of his last 12 games. Over the stretch, Morin has six goals and 11 points. Right wing Raymond Sawada has 13 points in his first 21 games played this season. His six goals are two shy of his career high and he only needs nine points to set a career high for a season. Left wing Luke Gazdic scored only three goals and four points as a rookie in 2009-10. Gazdic has four goals and nine points in his first 29 games this season.
The Houston Aeros
The Aeros return 14 players from 2009-10 team that went 34-34-7-5 with 80 points and a seventh place finish in the West Division. Houston hired their eighth head coach in team history this summer, bringing in Mike Yeo to replace Kevin Constantine. Yeo played for the Aeros from 1994-99 and he spent the last four seasons as an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yeo helped the Pens win the Stanley Cup in 2009.
Defenseman Maxime Noreau leads Houston in scoring with 19 points in 34 games played. He is one of only three defensemen in the AHL to lead their team in scoring. Two forwards are tied for second on the team in points. Left wing Robbie Earl is tied for the team lead with eight goals and second on the team with 18 points. Right wing Jon DiSalvatore leads the team with 13 assists and is second with 18 points in 34 games played. Center Cody Almond is tied for the team lead with eight goals and he is tied for fourth in overall points with 16. Right wing Jean-Michel Daoust is tied for fourth with 16 points and he is third on the team with 11 assists.
Goalies Anton Khudobin and Matt Hackett split time in net for Houston. Khudobin is 11-8-1 with a 2.64 goals against average and a .909 save percentage. Hackett, a rookie netminder, is 5-8-1 with a 2.66 goals against average and a .909 save percentage. Hackett is a first-year pro who was drafted by the Wild in the third round (#77 overall) in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.
Former Star Warren Peters has 12 points in 32 games with the Aeros this season, including three goals and two assists in five games against Texas. Peters was instrumental in the Stars run to the Calder Cup Finals. He enjoyed an AHL career-high 20 goals and 34 points in 61 games with Texas last year. Peters also played in 23 Calder Cup Playoff games with four goals and four assists. The Saskatoon, SK native led the team with 56 penalty minutes in the post season.
Special Teams
After finishing second overall last season on the penalty kill, the Stars rank 27th overall at 78.6%. Texas sits 22nd in the AHL, converting on 16.2% of its power plays. The Aeros are 23rd overall on the power play, converting 16.1% of the time. Houston is 10th overall on the penalty kill, stopping 84.4% of its opponents' power plays.
Offense and Defense
The Texas Stars are eighth overall in team defense, allowing 2.69 goals against per game. Texas is ranked 17th out of 30 teams, scoring an average of 2.91 goals per game. Houston's defense is 13th overall with a 2.88 goals against per game. The Aeros sit 24th offensively, averaging 2.62 goals per game.
American Hockey League Stories from December 26, 2010
- Admirals Sneak by Rockford - Milwaukee Admirals
- Bears Shut Down Norfolk 3-1 Sunday - Hershey Bears
- B-Sens Bury Phantoms 7-1 - Binghamton Senators
- Aeros Edge Stars 4-3 in Shootout - Houston Aeros
- Phantoms Fall in Paterson's Debut - Adirondack Phantoms
- Griffins Continue Hot Hand at Home - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Amerks "Crunch" Syracuse 5-2 - Rochester Americans
- Devils Push Penguins to the Limit; Fall in Shootout 5-4 - Albany Devils
- Crunch Fall to Rochester, 5-2 - Syracuse Crunch
- Aeros Sneak Past Stars 4-3 in a Shootout - Texas Stars
- Admirals See Point Streak Snapped at Eight Games - Norfolk Admirals
- Bulldogs Downed 4-3 by Marlies in Shootout - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Falcons Dominate Bruins 5-2 - Springfield Falcons
- Whale Powers Past Sound Tigers 4-0 - Bridgeport Islanders
- Johnson Leads Whale to 4-0 Win - Connecticut Whale
- Falcons Game at Manchester on Monday Postponed - Springfield Falcons
- Monarchs Game on Monday Postponed - Manchester Monarchs
- AHL Game Postponed - AHL
- P-Bruins Fall to Falcons 5-2 - Providence Bruins
- Klasen Recalled by Nashville - Milwaukee Admirals
- Goaltender Jaroslav Janus and Forward Johan Harju Return to Admirals - Norfolk Admirals
- B-Sens Sign Goaltender Daren Machesney - Binghamton Senators
- AHL Game Postponed - AHL
- Pitton Recalled from Stockton; Bonk Released from PTO - Oklahoma City Barons
- Worcester Sharks Game Postponed Due to the Threat of Inclement Winter Weather - Worcester Sharks
- Xcel Center Game Moved to February 13 - Peoria Rivermen
- Game Night: Amerks, Crunch Square off Tonight at Blue Cross Arena - Rochester Americans
- Senators Recall Goaltender Mike Brodeur from Binghamton - Binghamton Senators
- Gameday Preview - Texas at Houston - Texas Stars
- Falcons Host the Bruins Sunday - Springfield Falcons
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