ECHL ECHL

Gladiators surge to top of Eastern Conference

Published on December 19, 2011 under ECHL (ECHL) News Release


Winning three games in three nights last week, the Gwinnett Gladiators have moved into a tie with Kalamazoo for the most points in the Eastern Conference. Gwinnett enters the week 13-8-8 for 34 points, and enjoys a three-point lead over Greenville for first place in the South Division.

Gwinnett opened last week with a 4-2 home win against Florida on Thursday. Cody Brookwell broke a 2-2 tie with his first goal of the season midway through the third period and Chris Clackson scored an insurance goal with just under four minutes remaining.

On Friday, the Gladiators traveled to South Carolina and skated away with a 2-1 win over the Stingrays. Bryan Brutlag assisted on both Gwinnett goals while Clackson notched the eventual game-winning goal seven minutes into the final period. Jeff Jakaitis stopped 29 of 30 South Carolina shots to record the win in goal.

The Gladiators ended the week with another low-scoring game on Saturday, downing South Carolina 1-0. Will Colbert scored the lone goal of the contest less than a minute into the third period and Jakaitis notched his second shutout of the season with 23 saves.

Gwinnett boasts a balanced offense as no Gladiator ranks in the top 24 in the league in scoring. Joey Haddad paces the club with 11 goals and 26 points while seven others on the team have double digit point totals.

Jakaitis, who is 5-1-1 in his last seven appearances, has been solid between the pipes for the Gladiators, as he is tied for the league lead with a .941 save percentage, is tied for second with two shutouts and is third with a 1.90 goals-against average.

Gwinnett has surged to the top of the conference standings despite playing just 11 home games, the second fewest among all Eastern Conference teams. The Gladiators are 8-4-6 on the road, and their eight road wins are tied for the most in the ECHL.

The Gladiators are in action once this week, as they wrap up their three-game series in South Carolina against the Stingrays tomorrow. Gwinnett will open a five-game home stand next Monday against South Carolina.

Divisions

ATLANTIC DIVISION

- Elmira has power-play goals in seven consecutive games.

- Louie Caporusso registered his first career hat trick on Saturday.

- The Jackals are at Wheeling on Wednesday.

- The Royals improved their road record to 7-4-2-1.

- Yannick Tifu recorded his first goal as a Royal by scoring the game-winning goal on Friday against Wheeling on a short-handed penalty shot.

- Reading is in Greenville for games on Thursday and Friday.

- Trenton is 5-0-0-1 when leading after one period.

- Andy Bohmbach is tied for the ECHL lead with seven power play goals.

- Trenton is at Florida on Thursday and Friday.

- The Nailers' 380 penalty minutes are the third fewest in the Eastern Conference.

- Paul Crowder is on a four-game goal scoring streak, and has scored multiple points in all four contests.

- Wheeling hosts Elmira on Wednesday.

NORTH DIVISION

- Chicago is tied for third in the league with six shorthanded goals.

- Aaron Marvin had a five game point streak (3g-8a) end on Saturday.

- The Express are in Cincinnati on Thursday.

- Cincinnati is 7-1-2 at home this season.

- Brian Foster recorded his first shutout of the season Saturday against Chicago.

- The Cyclones host Kalamazoo on Wednesday and Chicago on Thursday.

- The K-Wings lead the ECHL's on the power play at 24.4 percent (29-for-119).

- Taylor Ellington had four assists on Friday against Cincinnati, the most for a K-Wings player in a single game this season.

- Kalamazoo is at Cincinnati on Wednesday and hosts Toledo on Friday.

- Toledo is 3-2-0 in its last five road games.

- Chris DiDomenico has two goals and six assists in his last three games.

- The Walleye are at Kalamazoo on Friday.

SOUTH DIVISION

- The Everblades are 10-4-1 when scoring first.

- David Rutherford is tied for the ECHL lead with seven power-play goals.

- Florida hosts Trenton on Thursday and Friday.

- The Road Warriors are 9-2-1 when scoring first.

- Marc-Olivier Vallerand has 14 points (8g-6a) over his eight-game point streak.

- Greenville hosts Reading on Thursday and Friday.

- The Gladiators have taken an ECHL-leading 10 games to overtime this season.

- Jeff Jakaitis leads the ECHL with a save percentage of .941, and is second with two shutouts.

- Gwinnett is at South Carolina on Tuesday.

- South Carolina is second in the ECHL with 2.37 goals-against per game.

- Sean Dolan leads ECHL rookies with five power-play goals.

- The Stingrays host Gwinnett on Tuesday.

MOUNTAIN DIVISION

- The Aces are outscoring their opponents 30-9 in the first period.

- Gerald Coleman leads the ECHL with 15 wins and three shutouts, and is second with a 1.84 goals-against-average.

- Alaska is at Idaho on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

- The Eagles lead the ECHL with 3.85 goals-per game.

- Chad Costello 's 42 points (15g-27a) lead the ECHL.

- Colorado is in Las Vegas on Tuesday, Bakersfield on Wednesday, and hosts Utah on Friday.

- Idaho has gone 10-6-3 in their last 19 games.

- Chad Klassen leads ECHL rookies and is tied for fourth overall in the ECHL in scoring with 29 points (11g-18a).

- Idaho visits Utah on Monday and hosts Alaska on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

- The Grizzlies are 8-0-0 when leading after two periods.

- Mitch Fadden has 28 points (9g-19a), tied for seventh in the ECHL.

- Utah hosts Idaho on Monday and Las Vegas on Wednesday, and is at Colorado on Friday.

PACIFIC DIVISION

- The Condors lead the league with eight shorthanded goals.

- Robby Dee, who had the first hat trick of the season for the Condors on Friday, has six goals and nine points in eight games with the Condors.

- Bakersfield hosts Colorado on Wednesday.

- The Wranglers' penalty kill leads the ECHL at 86.3 percent (88-for-102).

- Mike Madill is tied for the ECHL lead with three shorthanded assists.

- Las Vegas hosts Colorado on Tuesday and is at Utah on Wednesday.

- The Reign's penalty kill is fourth in the league at 84.2 percent (101-for-120).

- Adrian Van de Mosselaer had 3 assists in a 4-1 win over Alaska on Saturday, the first points of his professional career.

- Ontario is off until Dec. 26.

- Stockton has scored a power play goal in five consecutive games.

- Dan Ringwald had a career high three points (1g-2a) on Saturday against Idaho.

- The Thunder are off until Dec. 26.

Check out the ECHL Statistics

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



ECHL Stories from December 19, 2011


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.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central