AHL Texas Stars

Gameday Preview - Texas at Oklahoma City

Published on November 5, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Texas plays its second straight road game and first visit to Oklahoma City in team history. The Stars are coming off a 4-2 loss on the road in Houston last Sunday, the team's second straight loss. Oklahoma City picked up its fourth straight win on Saturday night, a 3-1 decision at Peoria. The Barons return home after a five-game road swing. Oklahoma City will play the next eight games on home ice. The Stars and Barons are scheduled to meet a total of ten times, including five games at Cedar Park Center.

Oklahoma City is 2-3-1-0 at the Cox Covention Center this year. Texas is 3-1-0-0 on the road after going 22-14-2-2 last season. The Stars and Barons will renew a hockey rivalry that dates back to the 1990s when the Oklahoma City Blazers played the Austin Ice Bats.

What's Ahead:

DATE OPPONENT TIME TV/RADIO

Saturday, Nov. 6 vs. Toronto 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

Wednesday, Nov. 10 vs. Chicago 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

Tuesday, Nov. 16 vs. Chicago 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

Friday, Nov. 19 at Oklahoma City 7:05 PM 104.9 FM

Saturday, Nov. 20 vs. Milwaukee 7:00 PM 1530 AM

* All times listed are local time

Upcoming Home Games and Promotions:

Toronto at Texas on Saturday, November 6, 2010 at 7:00 PM

* First 2,500 fans will receive a Texas Stars insulated lunch bag, compliments of H-E-B.

* State Farm Family Four Pack (4 tickets, 4 sodas, 4 hot dogs $44)

GAME RECAPS:

Texas 2 at Houston 4 10/31/10

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Houston Aeros 4-2 on Sunday night in front of 3,353 fans at the Toyota Center. Houston goalie Anton Khudobin stopped 34 of 36 Texas shots to secure his second straight win. Aeros forward Carson McMillan scored 6:00 into the third period, breaking a 2-2 tie and pushing Houston in front for the remainder of the game. Texas goalie Richard Bachman made 24 saves in the team's first road loss this year. Stars forwards Mathieu Tousignant and Francis Wathier both scored in the defeat. Former Stars center Warren Peters scored once and added an assist on the game-winning goal for Houston.

Houston 3 at Texas 1 10/30/10

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Houston Aeros 3-1 on Saturday night in front of 5,516 fans at Cedar Park Center. Houston goalie Anton Khudobin stopped 29 of 30 Texas shots to secure his first win of the season and end the Aeros' six-game winless skid (0-5-1-0). Houston right wing Carson McMillan scored the game-winning goal late in the first period. Texas left wing Fabian Brunnstrom scored the lone Stars goal in the loss. Houston's Marco Scandella and Nate Prosser also scored in the win. Texas goalie Richard Bachman faced 17 shots and stopped 14 in the loss.

Texas 4 at Chicago 3 10/28/10

Rosemont, IL - The Texas Stars defeated the Chicago Wolves 4-3 on Thursday night in front of 3,718 fans at the Allstate Arena. Stars forward Fabian Brunnstrom buried a slapshot 1:08 into the third period for the game-winning tally and Texas hung on for its third straight win. Texas goalie Richard Bachman stopped 40 of 43 Chicago shots, including all 14 in the third period to preserve the victory. Stars rookie forward Tristan King scored a goal and added an assist as Texas improved to 3-0-0-0 on the road this year. Center Mathieu Tousignant and defenseman Maxime Fortunus also picked up goals in the victory. Chicago goalie Edward Pasquale (4-2-0) made 22 saves in the defeat.

Texas 4 at Rockford 3 SO 10/27/10

Rockford, IL - The Texas Stars (5-2-0-0, 10 points) defeated the Rockford IceHogs (4-3-0-1, 9 points) 4-3 in a shootout on Wednesday night in front of 2,096 fans at the Rockford MetroCentre. Stars center Mathieu Tousignant ended a nine-round shootout, beating Rockford's Hannu Toivonen to seal the road victory. The Stars continued their dominance at the Rockford MetroCentre, improving to 7-0-0-0 all-time. Texas goalie Brent Krahn (4-2-0) snagged the victory by stopping 28 shots in regulation and seven of nine in the shootout. Texas defenseman Maxime Fortunus, as well as forwards Aaron Gagnon and Tristan King scored in regulation. Rockford goalie Hannu Toivonen (3-1-1) made 28 saves in regulation and six of nine in the shootout defeat.

The Texas Stars

The Texas Stars enter the second month of the season after taking six of their first ten games in October. Last year, the Stars went 7-2-2-0 in the first month of the year. Texas will play eight home games and three road games in November, including a pair of games in Oklahoma City.

After ten games of action, center Travis Morin leads Texas in scoring with four goals and eight points. Left wing Scott McCulloch is tied for the team lead with four goals in four games and he is tied second on the team with five points. McCulloch has missed the last five games with an injury. Center Mathieu Tousignant is tied for second on the team with five points and he is second with 15 penalty minutes in ten games. Forwards Tomas Vincour, Ondrej Roman, Francis Wathier, Colton Sceviour, Tristan King, Luke Gazdic and Aaron Gagnon are tied for fourth on the team with four points each. Wathier leads the team with 17 penalty minutes.

Texas Stars goalies Brent Krahn and Richard Bachman split time between the pipes. Krahn has appeared in six games, posting a 4-2-0 mark, a 2.69 goals against average and a .906 save percentage. Bachman has appeared in five games, going 2-2-0 with a 2.48 goals against average and a .921 save percentage. Both goalies have posted a shutout this year.

The Stars 25-man roster is composed of two goalies, eight defensemen and 15 forwards. Texas returns 15 players from the 2010 Western Conference Championship squad. The players range from ages 19 to 34 with an average age of 24.16. Eight players are 22-years old or younger, including two 19-year olds. The roster is made up of six different nationalities. The roster also features 17 NHL draft picks, including ten Dallas Stars draft picks.

The most notable forward returnees on the Stars roster include Aaron Gagnon, Travis Morin and Greg Rallo, three of the top scorers on the team in 2009-10. Gagnon scored a team-high 27 goals and totaled 58 points in a breakout year. Morin and Rallo also had breakout years. As an AHL rookie, Morin finished in the top ten for points by a rookie and was second on the team with 52 points. Rallo had a career-high 19 goals and 44 points on the year.

On defense, the Stars return Maxime Fortunus, Matt Stephenson and Trevor Ludwig. Also, veteran defender and two-time Stanley Cup Champion, Brad Lukowich rejoins the team. Last season, Lukowich started the year with Texas and played in the first 29 games. He was recalled to Vancouver on New Year's Day and did not return.

Both goaltenders saw action for Texas last season. Returning starter Brent Krahn played in 22 games, going 17-4-0 with a 1.83 goals against average and a .945 save percentage. His season was shortened due to injuries. Richard Bachman played in seven games for Texas last year, posting a 4-3-0 record, a 2.02 goals against average and a .933 save percentage.

The Oklahoma City Barons

The Oklahoma City Barons are the AHL Affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers. Head Coach Todd Nelson is the first coach in team history, guiding the club in its inaugural season. Nelson spent the last two years as an assistant coach with the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers prior to his first head coaching job in the AHL.

Left wing Alexandre Giroux leads the Barons with 12 points in the first 12 games of the year. Giroux spent the last four years with the Hershey Bears, winning two Calder Cups and making three Calder Cup Finals appearances. Giroux led the AHL in goals scored the last two seasons. The veteran winger scored the OT game-winning goal for Hershey at Cedar Park Center in a pivotal Game 5 of the 2010 Calder Cup Finals. Giroux's winner capped a 2-1 win for the Bears and sent the series back to Hershey with 3-2 series lead intact.

Fellow winger Linus Omark is second on the team in scoring with a team-high seven assists and a total of 11 points in 12 contests. Omark is a fourth-round choice (#97 overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. Omark is in his first pro season of North American hockey after playing in Russia and Sweden. Center Brad Moran is tied for third on the team in scoring with 10 points on five goals and five assists.

Shawn Belle is tied for third on the team in scoring and he leads all Oklahoma City defenseman in points with ten. Belle spent last season with the Hamilton Bulldogs, falling to the Texas Stars in the Western Conference Finals. Belle is joined on the blueline by Jeff Petry, a rookie out of Michigan State. Petry was drafted by Edmonton in the second round (#45 overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Experienced defensemen Richard Petiot, Alex Plante and Taylor Chorney help round out the defense,

In net, the Barons feature a tandem of goalies with plenty of NHL experience. Martin Gerber is off to a 6-4-0 start, sporting a 2.45 goals against average and a.913 save percentage. Gerber has played for the NHL's Ottawa Senators, Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Gerber played 30 games in the KHL (Russia) last season, going 15-6-6 with a 2.19 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. Fellow tender, Jeff Deslauriers is a second round pick (#31 overall) of Edmonton in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft. Deslauriers played in 48 games for Edmonton last season, going 16-28-4 with a 3.26 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. Deslauriers has yet to make his 2010 debut.

"Special" Teams

After finishing second overall last season on the penalty kill, the Stars rank 20th overall at 81.1%. Texas sits 23rd in the AHL, converting 12.8% of its power plays. The Barons are 16th overall on the power play, converting 15.8% of the time. Oklahoma City is third overall on the penalty kill, stopping 92.9% of its opponents' power plays.

Offense and Defense

The Texas Stars are sixth overall in team defense, allowing 2.60 goals against per game. Texas is ranked 21st out of 30 teams, scoring an average of 2.70 goals per game. Oklahoma City's defense ranks eighth overall with a 2.67 goals against per game. The Barons sit 13th offensively, averaging 3.00 goals per game.

Check out the Texas Stars Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from November 5, 2010


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