AHL Texas Stars

Gameday Preview - Texas at Milwaukee

Published on January 14, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Texas Stars (17-16-1-2, 37 points) at Milwaukee Admirals (20-13-0-1, 41 points)

The Stars and the Admirals meet for the second time this season. This marks the 16th all-time meeting between the two teams that will play a total of four games this season. In 15 all-time regular season meetings, Texas is 11-4-0-0 against Milwaukee, including a 6-2-0-0 record at the Bradley Center. Texas is making its final appearance at Milwaukee this regular season. The Admirals come to Cedar Park Center for a pair of games on February 7th and 8th to conclude the regular-season series.

The Stars have five wins in their last ten games, going 5-3-1-1 over that span. Texas is coming off a 6-4 win at Grand Rapids on Friday night. The win pushed the team's streak to five games with at least a point (3-0-1-1). Texas continues an eight-day road trip that includes stops in Grand Rapids, Milwaukee, Rockford and Chicago. The trip ties an October roadie for games (4) and length of time spent on the road (8 days). The Stars are 9-9-0-1 on the road this season, having been outscored by their opponents 60-55 on the scoreboard. Texas ended a three-game winless skid (0-2-0-1) on the road on Friday night with the win. The Stars are 8-12-0-2 against the West Division this season. The team is 6-4-1-0 against the Midwest Division this year. Texas' scoring has been spread out evenly this season, with 36 first-period tallies and 42 second-period markers. Since Dec. 3 (last 16 games), Texas has outscored the opposition 24-12 in the second period after getting outscored in the middle frame 26-18 in the previous 20 games. The Stars lead the opposition in second-period scoring with a 42-38 edge. The club has been outscored 111-110 overall. Texas is eighth in the league with a 3.06 goals per game average. Texas ranks 26th defensively with a 3.08 goals against average. The Stars are 12-0-1-1 when leading after two periods of play, but they are 1-14-0-0 when trailing after two periods of play. The team is 8-7-1-2 in games decided by one goal this season. Texas leads the AHL with five overtime wins this season, going 5-0-1-2 when tied after regulation. The Stars are tied for second in the AHL with seven shorthanded goals this season.

The Admirals come into Saturday night's game after a 2-1 loss in Chicago on Friday night. The loss dropped the club to 7-7-0-1 on the road this season. Milwaukee is 13-6-0-0 at home this season and 4-6-0-0 in the last ten games played. The Admirals have lost three straight heading into this evening's game. Milwaukee has outscored its opponents 72-53 on home ice this season. The team ranks 29th out of 30 AHL teams in penalty minutes per game (13.55 per game). The club thrives on the first goal of the night, going 10-3-0-0 when opening the scoring. The Admirals are 4-1-0-1 against the West Division this year, with their only loss coming at the hands of Texas. Milwaukee ranks last in the AHL with one shorthanded goal this season. Despite outscoring the opposition 34-29 in the first period of play, the Admirals have been outscored 38-30 in the second and 38-21 in the third. Milwaukee sits sixth best in the AHL with a 3.09 goals against average. The Admirals rank sixth in the league with a 2.62 goals against average. Milwaukee ranks third best in the league by allowing only 27.74 shots per game. Milwaukee is 13-1-0-0 when leading after the first and second periods of play this season. The club is 7-5-0-1 in one goal games this season.

Texas Stars

Center Travis Morin and winger Matt Fraser lead Texas in scoring. Morin is the clubhouse leader with 28 assists and 33 points in his first 36 games played. He ranks fifth in the AHL for assists and he is also fifth among AHLers with 14 power-play helpers. He has seven assists and eight points in his last 10 games played. Rookie forward Matt Fraser is second in scoring with 30 points in 35 games. He leads the team with 20 goals scored and 131 shots on net. Fraser is tied for second in the AHL with nine power-play goals and he is tied for fourth overall in the AHL in rookie scoring. The All-Star ranks second among all first-year skaters with 20 goals and he is first in shots on goal by a rookie. Fraser had a ten-game scoring streak end on Dec. 30 in Abbotsford. The run was the longest scoring streak in team history. He has 10 points in his last nine games. Forwards Francis Wathier, Colton Sceviour and Ryan Garbutt round out the top scorers for Texas. For the season, Wathier has eight goals and 15 assists for 23 points in 36 games played. Wathier leads the team with a +10. Center Ryan Garbutt has 25 points (9g-16a) in 36 games. Garbutt leads the team with 59 penalty minutes, followed by Luke Gazdic's 57 minutes. Garbutt is tied for the AHL lead with three shorthanded assists this year. With three assists on Friday night, Colton Sceviour extended his scoring streak to five games. Over that span, Sceviour has two goals and eight assists over the streak. Rookie center Scott Glennie has eight points in his last four games, scoring four goals and setting up four others.

Jordie Benn, Dan Spang and veteran Brad Lukowich are tied for the team lead in points by a defensemen, each defender has 15 points on the season. Dan Spang leads all Texas defenseman with 13 assists in 35 games. Lukowich has seven points in his last five games. The 16-year pro is two games away from playing in his 1,000th pro game. Rookie Brenden Dillon (2-12-14) is fourth in points and he is first among D-men with 43 penalty minutes. Veteran defender Maxime Fortunus has 12 points in 32 games.

Goalies Andrew Raycroft and Tyler Beskorowany split time in net for Texas. Raycroft picked up his first win with Texas on Saturday night. He is 3-0-1 with a 2.45 goals against average and a .917 save percentage in four starts for the Stars. Beskorowany is 6-10-0 with a 3.08 goals against average and a .891 save percentage.

Special Teams

The Stars have converted 37 of 178 power plays for a 20.8% conversion rate, as Texas ranks seventh overall in power play percentage. The team broke out of a 2-for-48 slump with nine power-play goals over the last six games - going 9-for-34 over that span. The Stars have killed off 114 of 137 opponents' power plays (83.2%), ranking 13th overall on the penalty kill. The Stars have killed off 80 of the last 90 penalties (88.9%). The Admirals are 29th in the AHL on the penalty kill, stopping 76.9% of their opponents' power plays. Overall, Milwaukee ranks sixth in the AHL on the power play after going 28-for-133 (21.1%). The Admirals have the fewest power plays of any team in the AHL.

The Milwaukee Admirals

Center Chris Mueller leads Milwaukee in scoring with 15 goals and 26 points in 33 games played this season. Mueller's six power-play goals and 82 shots on goal are also team bests. Rookie Michael Latta is second on the team in scoring with 12 goals and 12 assists for 24 points in 34 games played. Latta is tied for ninth in the AHL and leads the Admirals with a +13. The first-year forward is also the team leader with 65 penalty minutes. Right wing Juuso Puustinen is tied for second on the team with 12 goals and third with 22 points in 34 games played. Center Kyle Wilson leads the club with 14 assists and is fourth with 21 points in 28 games played. The team is without rookie defenseman Ryan Ellis and second-year forward Gabriel Bourque. Ellis had 17 points in 26 games prior to his recall to Nashville. Bourque had 16 points in 25 games before heading to the Music City. Rookie Victor Bartley is the Ads current leader for points from the blueline. He has 13 assists and 17 points in 34 games played.

In net, the Admirals sport goalies Jeremy Smith and Atte Engren. Smith is 16-7-1 with a 2.23 goals against average, a .918 save percentage and one shutout. Engren is 3-5-0 with a 3.11 goals against average and a .890 save percentage.

Roman Traded by Dallas to Florida for Forward Esposito

The Dallas Stars announced on Friday that the club has traded left wing Ondrej Roman to the Florida Panthers in exchange for center Angelo Esposito.

Esposito, 22, has played in 16 games for the San Antonio Rampage of the American Hockey League (AHL) this season, collecting two goals and three assists totaling five points and eight penalty minutes. Prior to his professional hockey career, Esposito spent parts of four seasons with the Quebec Ramparts and the Montreal Juniors of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). He scored the game-winning goal at the 2009 World Junior Championships to secure the gold medal for Team Canada. The 6-0, 190-pound forward from Montreal, QC, was selected by Pittsburgh as the 20th overall pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Roman, 22, has spent the majority of the season with the Texas Stars, Dallas' primary affiliate in the AHL collecting one goal and four assists totaling five points and four penalty minutes with the club. The 6-0, 185-pound forward was selected by Dallas in the fifth round (136th overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Dallas Reassigns Jace Coyle to Idaho

The Texas Stars announced on Thursday that defenseman Jace Coyle has been reassigned from the Texas Stars to the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL. The rookie defenseman has split time between Idaho and Texas this year, recording an assist in 17 games with the Stars this season. He also spent three games with Idaho in early December, setting up one goal for his lone ECHL point.

Dallas Assigns Jordie Benn

The Dallas Stars announced on Wednesday that the club has assigned defenseman Jordie Benn to the Texas Stars, Dallas' primary affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL).

Benn, 24, has played in two games for Dallas this season collecting one assist and one shot. He became the 10th player in Dallas Stars history to record his first NHL point in his first NHL game. Along with younger brother Jamie Benn, they became the third set of brothers in Dallas Stars history and the sixth in team history to play in an NHL game together. At the time of his recall, the defender had seven goals and eight assists for 15 points in 31 games. Four of his seven goals have come on the power play. Jordie Benn is the older brother of current Stars forward Jamie Benn. The 6-0, 205-pound defenseman from Victoria, BC, signed a one-year free agent contract with Dallas on July 1, 2011. He played in 60 games for the Texas Stars last season, scoring two goals and 10 assists for 12 points with 39 penalty minutes.

Stars Sign Connolly to PTO

The Texas Stars announced on Tuesday that the team has signed forward Brendan Connolly to a PTO (professional tryout agreement). The rookie forward made his Texas debut on Wednesday night in Cedar Park. Connolly was third overall in the ECHL scoring race, potting 20 goals and dishing out 23 assists for 43 points in 31 games with Greenville. At the time of his recall, Connolly led his team in goals, assists, points and penalty minutes (121). In 2010-11, Connolly played in three games for Adirondack of the AHL, going scoreless in his time with the Phantoms.

LAST THREE GAMES

Texas 6 at Grand Rapids 4 1/13/12

The Texas Stars defeated the Grand Rapids Griffins 6-4 in front of 8,791 fans at the Van Andel Arena on Friday night. Rookie Scott Glennie scored twice, including 21 seconds into the third period to break a 4-4 tie. Glennie also added an assist, propelling Texas back over .500 for the first time since November 11, 2011. Right wing Colton Sceviour added three assists, as the team extended its points streak to five games (3-0-1-1). In all, five Texas skaters and four Griffins finished with a multi-point night, as the two teams combined for six goals in the opening period. Francis Wathier (1g,1a), Brad Lukowich (2a) and Ryan Garbutt (1g,1a) helped Texas improve to 9-9-0-1 on the road this season. After allowing four goals in the first period, Stars goalie Andrew Raycroft stopped 23 shots in the final two periods to pick up the win. Grand Rapids goalie Tom McCollum stopped 31 of 36 Texas shots in the defeat.

Abbotsford 1 at Texas 2 1/11/12

The Texas Stars defeated the Abbotsford Heat 2-1 in front of 3,640 fans at the Cedar Park Center on Wednesday night. Stars' right wing Colton Sceviour scored the game-winning goal with 12 seconds remaining in the third period. Forward Stephen Schultz also scored for Texas, extending the team's points streak to four games (2-0-1-1). Stars goalie Andrew Raycroft stopped 32 shots, as the Stars improved to 8-7-1-1 at home. Abbotsford goalie Danny Taylor stopped 29 of 30 shots faced in his first 40 minutes of play. Joni Ortio stopped 12 shots in relief, taking the loss for the Heat. Abbotsford center Quintin Laing scored the lone Heat.

Rockford 6 at Texas 5 OT 1/8/12

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Rockford IceHogs 6-5 in overtime in front of 5,179 fans at the Cedar Park Center on Sunday. Rockford center Brandon Pirri scored the game-winning goal just 1:02 into overtime. Five Texas skaters had multi-point nights in the OT defeat. Center Scott Glennie put up two goals and an assist, while left wing Matt Fraser and defenseman Brad Lukowich each registered a goal and an assist. Forwards Colton Sceviour and Travis Morin both had two assists for the Stars. Texas goalie Tyler Beskorowany stopped 29 shots in the loss.

What's Ahead:

DATE OPPONENT TIME RADIO

Saturday, January 14 at Milwaukee 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

Monday, January 16 at Rockford 1:05 PM 92.5 FM

Wednesday, January 18 at Chicago 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

Friday, January 20 vs. Peoria 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

Saturday, January 21 vs. Houston 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

* All times listed are central time

Check out the Texas Stars Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from January 14, 2012


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.

OurSports Central