AHL Texas Stars

Gameday Preview - Texas at Peoria

Published on April 6, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Texas and Peoria meet for the sixth and final time this season, the 14th meeting in AHL history. The Rivermen lead the season series with a 3-2-0-0 mark against the Stars this season. They also lead the all-time series with a 7-5-0-1 record versus Texas. The Stars are 3-2-1-0 all-time at Peoria and 6-6-1-0 overall. Peoria took the first two meetings while Texas claimed the next two. The last time they played was February 23rd, a 5-2 Rivermen win at Carver Arena. The Stars are coming off a 5-1 loss at home to Rockford on Sunday. The Rivermen posted a 4-3 win at Milwaukee on Sunday.

Texas is 18-15-1-3 away from Cedar Park Center this season and 6-4-0-0 in the last ten games. The club has dropped two straight after a season-high, five-game winning streak that was snapped on Saturday at Oklahoma City. Texas has four games remaining on the season, with three of them coming on the road. The Stars will visit Milwaukee and San Antonio, as well as host Oklahoma City on Saturday to finish the regular season. Texas is in the middle of a stretch of seven games over ten days to finish the season. All seven games are against division opponents. The Stars are 30-16-2-4 against the West Division this season and 10-9-2-1 against the North Division this season. Texas is the least penalized team in the league accruing 12.82 penalty minutes a game. The Stars are 21-4-4-6 in one-goal games this year and 24-0-1-1 when leading after two periods of play this season. When trailing after two periods of play, the Stars have a 9-21-2-1 mark. The nine wins are the most of any team in the AHL when trailing after two frames.

The Rivermen are 18-15-2-2 at home this season and 4-5-1-0 in the last ten games played. Peoria is unbeaten in regulation in the last three games, going 2-0-1-0, will all the game coming on the road. The Rivermen will play three games this week to finish the regular season, including a pair of home games this weekend with Milwaukee and Chicago. The Rivermen must win all three games to guarantee a playoff spot. Peoria is 28-18-3-4 against the West Division this season. The club has been outscored by their opponents 106-104 on home-ice. They have outscored their opponents 108-104 on the road. Peoria thrives on the opening goal, when scoring first this season its 30-9-1-3 with a .744 winning percentage. Peoria ranks in the top ten of the AHL with 75 first-period goals. When leading after the second period of play, the Rivermen are 25-1-0-2. Peoria is 18-6-3-5 in one-goal games this season. Peoria ranks fourth overall in the AHL and first in the Western Conference, averaging 20.48 penalty minutes per game.

Peoria defenseman Brennan Evans leads all scorers in the season series with three goals and five points in five games against the Stars. All of his goals and over a third of his points (14) on the season have come against Texas. Peoria's Nicholas Drazenovic is tied for the series lead with three goals in five games. Rivermen center T.J. Hensick leads all skaters with four assists in four games.

Texas center Travis Morin has three points off of two goals and an assist in four games against Peoria.

In two starts against Texas, Peoria goalie Jake Allen is 2-1-0 with 1.34 goals against average, a .961 save percentage. He posted his first career shutout in October with 34 saves at Cedar Park Center. In two appearances against the Stars, Ben Bishop is 1-1-0 with a 2.53 goals against average and a .923 save percentage. Stars goalie Richard Bachman is 1-1-0 with a 2.77 goals against average and a .917 save percentage against Peoria. Tyler Beskorowany is 1-0-0 with a 0.76 goals against average and a .979 save percentage.

Stars Sign Schultz

The Texas Stars announced on Friday that the club has signed forward Stephen Schultz to an ATO (amateur tryout agreement).

The 23-year old rookie turns pro after a four-year career at Colorado College from 2007-11. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound forward posted WCHA highs as a senior this year, scoring 17 goals and totaling 45 points in 43 games played. In his final two years as a Tiger, Schultz set up 43 goals and totaled 65 points in 71 games. For his collegiate career, Schultz scored 36 goals and totaled 86 points in 127 contests. The rookie played with current Texas Stars goalie Richard Bachman and forward Scott McCulloch at Colorado College.

The Stars Streak

The Stars season-long, five-game winning streak came to an end on Saturday night in Oklahoma City. Over that span, the team outscored its opponents 21-8. The Stars were seven for 28 on the power play (25%) and 20-for-21 on the penalty kill. Over the five games stretch, Greg Rallo had five goals and five assists for ten points, while also posting a +7. Colton Sceviour had five goals and four assists over the five games. Six skaters had at least one point per game over the streak. Defenseman Maxime Fortunus was a +7 over that span. In his five starts, goalie Richard Bachman was 5-0-0-0 with a 1.40 goals against average and a .947 save percentage. He stopped 126 of the last 133 shots he has faced.

What's Ahead:

DATE OPPONENT TIME TV/RADIO

Wednesday, April 6 at Peoria 7:05 PM 104.9 FM

Friday, April 8 at Milwaukee 7:00 PM 1530 AM

Saturday, April 9 vs. Oklahoma City 7:00 PM 1530 AM

Sunday, April 10 at San Antonio 4:00 PM 104.9 FM

* All times listed are central time

LAST GAME RECAP:

Rockford 5 at Texas 1 4/3/11

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Rockford IceHogs 5-1 in front of 4,756 fans at Cedar Park Center on Sunday night. Rockford goalie Hannu Toivonen stopped 30 of 31 shots faced for the win. IceHogs center Jeff Taffe had a goal and two assists, while forwards Ben Smith and Brandon Pirri both had a goal and an assist on the night. Texas center Travis Morin had the lone goal for Texas, as the Stars fell to 22-11-3-3 at home this season. Texas goalie Tyler Beskorowany stopped 30 shots in the loss.

Texas 0 at Oklahoma City 2 4/2/11

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Oklahoma City Barons 2-0 in front of 8,833 fans at Cox Convention Center on Saturday night. Oklahoma City goalie Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers made 22 saves for his second consecutive shutout. Despite 33 saves, Texas goalie Richard Bachman suffered the loss. Oklahoma City defenseman Kevin Montgomery and forward Alexandre Giroux each scored for the Barons, ending the Stars five-game winning streak.

Chicago 2 at Texas 3 OT 4/1/11

The Texas Stars defeated the Chicago Wolves 3-2 in overtime in front of 5,710 fans at Cedar Park Center Friday night. Defenseman Philip Larsen scored the game-winning goal for Texas just 38 seconds into overtime, reducing the team's magic number to clinch a playoff spot to four points. The win also extended the team's streak to five straight. Right wing Colton Sceviour and defenseman Maxime Fortunus each tallied a goal in regulation on the night as Texas improved to 22-10-3-3 at home. Texas goalie Richard Bachman stopped 29 of 31 shots for the win as Chicago outshot Texas 31-24. Defenseman Jaime Sifers and center Andre Deveaux each notched a goal in the Wolves loss. Chicago goalie Peter Mannino stopped 21 shots for the loss.

The Texas Stars

After 76 games of action, right wing Greg Rallo leads the team in points with 53 (26g-27a). Ralllo also leads the team with 26 goals and 249 shots on net. He is tied for second in the league with seven game-winning goals and he ranks second for shots on goal. Center Travis Morin is second for Texas in scoring with 19 goals and 24 assists for 43 points in 60 games played. Morin returned to the lineup on March 7th after missing 14 games with an injury. Colton Sceviour is third on the team with 41 points and he is fourth with 25 assists in 74 games played. Dan Spang is fourth overall on the team with 36 points. He is tied for third on the team in assists (26), as well as leading all defensemen in goals (10) and shots on goal (163). Left wing Francis Wathier is second on the team with 18 goals and 167 shots in 64 games played. Defenseman Maxime Fortunus leads the team with 28 assists in 70 games played. Center Mathieu Tousignant leads the team with 114 penalty minutes.

Texas Stars goalies Richard Bachman and Tyler Beskorowany fill the net for the Stars. Bachman has appeared in 52 games, going 27-17-5 with a 2.19 goals against average and a .927 save percentage. Bachman ranks in the top five of the AHL for goals against average and save percentage. Bachman has started 35 of the last 47 games and he ranks third in the AHL with over 3,000 minutes played in net. Overall, Beskorowany is 7-7-1 with a 2.19 goals against average and a .927 save percentage. Goalie Brent Krahn has appeared in 12 games, posting a 6-6-0 mark, a 3.20 goals against average and a .895 save percentage. Krahn is out with an injury.

Record Breaker

Rookie goalie Richard Bachman has set numerous team records this year. With 27 wins on the season, Bachman has passed Matt Climie's team record of 21 wins last season. The 23-year old Bachman has topped Brent Krahn's mark of five shutouts in 2009-10. Bachman recorded his sixth shutout of the season on March 22nd against Houston. His 52 appearances have surpassed Climie's record of 43 appearances in one year. Bachman also passed Climie's mark of 2,539 minutes played, seeing a total of 3,011 minutes in the Stars crease this year. The second-year pro and AHL rookie goalie is the Stars all-time leader in most goalie categories. Bachman is 31-20-5 all-time in 59 appearances with Texas. He has played 3,398 minutes, posting a 2.17 goals against average and a .927 save percentage with seven shutouts.

Rallo Closes In On Team Record

Texas right wing Greg Rallo is closing in on the team record for goals in one season. Rallo tallied his 26th goal of the year on March 26th, pulling him within one goal of the team mark. Center Aaron Gagnon scored 27 goals in 78 games last season to set the current team mark. Rallo has already blown away the team mark for shots on goal in one season. He is second overall in the AHL with 249 shots. In 2009-10, left wing Francis Wathier posted 159 shots on goal. Rallo is tied for second in the league with seven game-winning goals this season. The fifth-year pro has career highs for goals (26), assists (27) and points (53). He is the only remaining skater to have suited up in all 76 games played this year. The fifth-year pro is second all-time among Texas skaters with 145 games played and first all-time with 45 goals. Rallo is three points ahead of Travis Morin for the team's all-time lead with 97 points.

The Peoria Rivermen

Peoria welcomes its 17th coach in team history for the 2010-11 season after Jared Bednar was hired this past summer.

Bednar was an Assistant Coach in Abbotsford last season and from 2007-09 he was the Head Coach of the ECHL's South Carolina Stingrays. Bednar led the Stingrays to the 2009 Kelly Cup, a team that included Stars forward Travis Morin.

Veterans Graham Mink and T.J. Hensick lead the way for Peoria. Hensick leads the squad with 45 assists and 65 points in 56 games played. Hensick is 11th in the AHL for points this season and 24 power-play assists lead the club. Mink's 50 points (24g-25a) are second on the team in 69 games played. Mink's 24 tallies lead the team and he is tied for second on the squad with 25 power-play points. Right wing Derek Nesbitt has 38 points in 52 games after the Rivermen added him on November 11th. Nesbitt is among the club leaders with 17 goals and is tied for fifth among active players in scoring with 38 points. Right wing David Spina is tied for fifth among team skaters with 38 points in 72 games played. Spina's 27 assists are third best on the club. Defenseman Nathan Oystrick is among the top scoring defenders in the league. Oystrick's 13 goals are tied for fifth in the AHL for blue-liners and his 42 points in 58 games place him 13th overall in the league among defenders.

In net, the Rivermen pair Beau Erickson and Jake Allen, who was named a Western Conference All-Star. Allen is among the league leaders in goals against average, shutouts and save percentage. In 44 games, the rookie is 23-18-3 with a 2.51 goals against average and a .919 save percentage. His six shutouts are tied for second in the AHL. St. Louis made him their second-round selection in 2008. Ben Bishop (17-14-2) is out with an injury after posting a 2.55 goals against average and a .914 save percentage. Erickson was added to replace Bishop. Erickson went 11-12-3 with Ontario of the ECHL, posting a 3.39 goals-against average.

Special Teams

After finishing second overall last season on the penalty kill, the Texas Stars penalty kill is 25th overall at 80.2%. Texas ranks 20th best in the AHL, converting on 17.4% of its power plays. The Rivermen are seventh overall on the power play, converting 19.4% of the time. Peoria is sixth overall on the penalty kill, stopping 85.0% of their opponents' power plays.

Offense and Defense

The Texas Stars are ninth overall in team defense, allowing 2.66 goals against per game. Texas is ranked 22nd out of 30 teams, scoring an average of 2.74 goals per game. Peoria's defense ranks 11th overall with a 2.73 goals against per game. The Rivermen sit 20th offensively, averaging 2.75 goals per game.

Check out the Texas Stars Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from April 6, 2011


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