NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, CFL stats



Hamilton Hosts Abbotsford For Two North Division Tilts This Week

December 7, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hamilton Bulldogs News Release


The Hamilton Bulldogs (American Hockey League affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens) will host the Abbotsford Heat (American Hockey League affiliate of the Calgary Flames) for a pair of games at Copps Coliseum this week. The first meeting between the North Division foes is scheduled for Wednesday, December 9th at 7:30 pm. The teams will then resume hostilities in the Dog Pound four days later on Sunday, December 13th, for an afternoon matchup at 4:00 pm.

Last week, Hamilton took three of a possible four points from the Toronto Marlies (American Hockey League affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs) in a home and home series which began at Copps Coliseum Friday night, and concluded at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto Saturday afternoon. In the first matchup, Hamilton set a new franchise record with a 3-0 shutout victory over the Marlies. The win marked the third straight shutout for the 'Dogs, who saw their team shutout streak improve to 198 minutes and 51 seconds - a new franchise record. The win marked the first time in franchise history that the Bulldogs recorded back-to-back-to-back shutouts. In the latter of the two contests, Toronto was able to solve Hamilton's defence, and pulled out a 6-5 overtime victory that saw Viktor Stalberg net the winner. Hamilton's record shutout streak was snapped at 207 minutes and 21 seconds.

THIS WEEK AT THE DOG POUND

Fans will be able to purchase hot dogs for $1 at Copps Coliseum this Wednesday as part of the "Recession Wednesdays" promotion. Also at Wednesday's game, any fans with a Shoppers Drug Mart optimum card can enter into a draw for a chance to take part in a shootout during the second intermission. The winner of the shootout will win $100,000 worth of Shoppers optimum points.

STUFFED TOY TOSS NIGHT The Hamilton Bulldogs will be hosting their annual "Stuffed Toy Toss Night" at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 13th, 2009 when the club hosts the Abbotsford Heat at Copps Coliseum. Fans attending the game are asked to bring a stuffed toy to throw onto the ice when the Bulldogs score their first goal.

HAMILTON BULLDOGS SALVATION ARMY FOOD DRIVE Volunteers of the Salvation Army will have collection boxes in the main entrance of Copps Coliseum. Fans are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items to donate to the Salvation Army. The Hamilton Bulldogs Organization has been involved in community food drives for a number of years and is excited about the prospect of lending a hand to the community once again. Please help stock food bank shelves in time for the holiday season. The Food Drive will run until Tuesday, December 15th.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Friday, December 4th, 2009 - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 3 vs. TORONTO MARLIES 0

Copps Coliseum- Hamilton, ON

Hamilton Goals: Brock Trotter*, P.K. Subban (2)

Toronto Goals: No Scoring

Goaltending: Hamilton - Cedrick Desjardins (W, SO - 15 shots, 15 saves) / Toronto - Adam Munro (L - 30 shots, 28 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 0-4 / Toronto 0-4

Attendance: 6,092

*- Game winner

Saturday, December 5th, 2009 - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 5 @ TORONTO MARLIES 6 (OT)

Ricoh Coliseum- Toronto, ON

Hamilton Goals: J.T. Wyman, Mike Glumac, Ryan Russell, David Desharnais, Eric Neilson

Toronto Goals: Viktor Stalberg (2), Andre Deveaux (2), Troy Bodie, Greg Scott

Goaltending: Hamilton - Curtis Sanford (L - 27 shots, 21 saves) / Toronto- Andrew Engelage (W- 47 shots, 42 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 1-3 / Toronto 1-3

Attendance: 3, 266

BULLDOGS NOTES:

- Hamilton set a new franchise record last week, with the team's longest shutout streak ending at 207 minutes and 21 seconds. The previous record was 158 minutes and 21 seconds.

- The Bulldogs earned their 500th regular season victory with a 3-0 win over the Lake Erie Monsters on Saturday, November 28th.

- Bulldogs D P.K. Subban has scored five goals and three assists for eight points in his last eight games. This offensive surge has seen the rookie defenseman move into a tie with Ben Maxwell for 2nd on the Bulldogs in scoring with six tallies and eight helpers for 14 points on the year. Subban also has the best +/- rating on the team at +9.

- Hamilton D Andre Benoit recorded his 50th career AHL assist on Friday, December 4th as the Bulldogs defeated the Toronto Marlies 3-0 at Copps Coliseum. In the same game, D Yannick Weber scored his 50th career AHL point as he assisted on Brock Trotter's game-winning goal.

- Hamilton goaltender Cedrick Desjardins earned his second shutout in as many games this past week, as the Bulldogs defeated the Toronto Marlies 3-0 on Friday, December 4th. The pair of goose-eggs pushed Desjardins' individual shutout streak to 158 minutes and 51 seconds, a new franchise record. The shutouts also lowered Desjardins' goals against average to 1.61, which ranks him 2nd in the AHL in that category. The native of Edmundston, New Brunswick has also managed an excellent 0.937 save percentage thus far this season, currently the 3rd-best total in the league.

- Hamilton C David Desharnais scored a goal and an assist in the Bulldogs' 6-5 overtime loss to the Toronto Marlies on Saturday, December 5th. Since returning from a foot injury that kept the reigning co-rookie of the year out of the lineup for the first 13 games of the season, Desharnais has managed to score at least one point in nine of the eleven games he has suited up for. Desharnais is currently tied for 4th in team scoring with six goals and seven assists for 13 points.

- Bulldogs C Ryan White was re-assigned to Hamilton after a 13-game stay with the club's NHL affiliate, the Montreal Canadiens. The Bulldogs welcomed White back to the lineup on Saturday, December 5th, as Hamilton fell to the Toronto Marlies in overtime, 6-5.

- The Bulldogs assigned forward Maxime Lacroix to the team's ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones. Hamilton also released forward Mathieu Curadeau from his P.T.O.

UPCOMING GAMES:

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9TH - HAMILTON BULLDOGS vs. ABBOTSFORD HEAT - 7:30 PM EST

COPPS COLISEUM - HAMILTON, ON

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 13TH - HAMILTON BULLDOGS vs. ABBOTSFORD HEAT - 4:00 PM EST

COPPS COLISEUM - HAMILTON, ON

- This pair of games will be the fourth and fifth of eight contests between the Canadian counterparts this season

- In their last meeting, the Bulldogs burned the Heat and came away with a narrow 2-1 victory in Abbotsford

- Abbotsford currently ranks 4th in the North Division with a 14-11-2-2 record and 32 points

- Last season, when the Heat played out of Quad City and were known as the Flames, the Bulldogs could not manage a victory, earning an 0-1-1-0 record

- LW Jason Jaffray (10-14-24) currently leads the Heat in scoring with 10 goals and 14 assists for 24 points in 28 games played this season... Jaffray also leads the Heat with a +11 rating

- C John Armstrong (Unionville), and D Matt Pelech (Toronto) are the only two Ontario natives currently listed on the Abbotsford roster

ALUMNI WATCH: There are more than 40 former Bulldogs on 2009-2010 National Hockey League rosters. Over 60 percent of all former 'Dogs have played in at least one NHL game. Here are a few highlights and accomplishments of ex-'Dogs from this past week:

Montreal G Carey Price made 37 saves on 38 shots as the Canadiens cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Boston Bruins on the Habs' Centennial celebration night (Dec. 4) Minnesota RW Antti Miettinen had an outstanding week, as the native of Finland scored a goal, added three shots on net, and finished +1 in a 5-4 overtime victory over Nashville (Dec. 2)... Two nights later, Miettinen scored two goals, dished out one assist, fired three shots on the cage, and finished +2 while also scoring in the shootout as the Wild got past the Anaheim Ducks 5-4 in a shootout (Dec. 4)... Miettinen capped off the week by scoring yet another goal and finishing +1 in a 5-3 victory over the Predators (Dec. 5) Montreal LW Andrei Kostitsyn collected one assist, had a shot on goal, and finished +1 as the Canadiens defeated Boston 5-1 (Dec. 4) Chicago G Cristobal Huet made 20 saves in regulation and overtime, and then saw 11 shootout attempts, only letting one get past him, as the Blackhawks soared to a 4-3 shootout victory over Columbus (Dec. 1) Edmonton RW Zack Stortini had one assist and two shots on net along with a +2 rating as the Oilers were victorious over Detroit 4-1 (Dec. 3) Montreal C Tomas Plekanec had an assist and finished +1 as the Canadiens beat up on Boston 5-1 (Dec. 4) Nashville G Dan Ellis stopped 34 of 35 Chicago shots to lead the Predators to a 4-1 win over the Blackhawks (Dec. 4) New York Rangers LW Chris Higgins scored a goal and finished +1 as the Rangers bulled over the Sabres 2-1 (Dec. 5)... One night later, Higgins found himself on the score sheet once again with an assist and four shots on net as the Rangers fell to Detroit 3-1 (Dec. 6) Toronto D Francois Beauchemin dished out one assist, was +1, and had two shots on net as the Leafs beat the Canadiens 3-0 (Dec. 1)... Beauchemin had another assist in the Leafs' 7-2 loss to the Bruins (Dec. 5) Edmonton LW Jean-Francois Jacques had one assist and finished +2 as the Oilers beat Detroit 4-1 (Dec. 3) Boston RW Michael Ryder collected an assist, fired three shots on goal, and was +1 as the Bruins blew away the Leafs 7-2 (Dec. 5) St. Louis G Ty Conklin had a 32-save performance against the NHL's 1st-place team, the San Jose Sharks, and stopped two of three shootout attempts to earn the 3-2 shootout win (Dec. 3) Los Angeles C Jarrett Stoll continued his strong season, scoring four more points last week with an assist and five shots in the Kings' 4-3 win over Anaheim (Dec. 1), a helper and three shots in a 6-3 win over Ottawa (Dec. 3), and a goal and an assist with four shots and a +3 rating in a 5-4 loss to St. Louis (Dec. 5) Columbus LW Raffi Torres dished out an assist, had two shots on net, and was +1 as the Blue Jackets defeated the Blues 5-2 (Nov. 30) Dallas C Mike Ribeiro had one assist and two shots in a 3-1 victory over Anaheim (Dec. 3)... Two nights later, Ribeiro picked up another assist and three shots on net with a +1 rating and the Stars fell to the Oilers 3-2 in a shootout (Dec. 5) Columbus LW Jason Chimera scored a goal, had four shots on net, and was +1 as the Blue Jackets were downed by the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-3 (Dec. 3)... The Edmonton, Alberta native then had a goal and an assist with four shots and a +2 rating in a 3-2 loss to Colorado (Dec. 5) Detroit RW Dan Cleary had three goals last week with singles in a 4-1 win over Dallas (Nov. 30), a 4-1 loss to Edmonton (Dec. 3), and a 3-1 win over the New York Rangers (Dec. 6) Montreal LW Matt D'Agostini collected an assist in a 6-2 loss to Buffalo, and added another helper in the Canadiens' 5-1 victory over the Bruins Toronto C Mikhail Grabovski had two assists and a +2 rating in the Leafs' 6-3 win over Columbus (Dec. 3), and picked up a goal with four shots on net while finishing +1 as the Leafs fell to Boston 7-2 (Dec. 5) Columbus D Jan Hejda had one assist and a +2 rating as the Blue Jackets were a shade better against the Blues and took a 5-2 victory (Dec. 30)... Three nights later, Hejda scored a goal and added another helper with two shots on net in a 6-3 loss to the Maple Leafs Boston G Tim Thomas made an impressive 39 saves to earn the win as the Bruins beat Tampa Bay 4-1 (Dec. 2) Montreal C Max Pacioretty collected an assist and had four shots on net while finishing +2 in the Habs' 5-1 victory over Boston (Dec. 4) Atlanta C Marty Reasoner dished out an assist and was +2 as the Thrashers defeated the Florida Panthers 4-3 (Nov. 30) Dallas D Trevor Daley had one assist in a 4-1 loss to Detroit (Nov. 30) Edmonton G Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers made 27 saves and picked up a 4-1 victory over Detroit (Dec. 3)... two nights later, Deslauriers had a 33-save performance and turned away four of five shootout attempts as Edmonton defeated Dallas 3-2 in a shootout (Dec. 5)

TUNE IN TO Every Game on the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network AND CABLE 14:

Fans can listen to every 'Dogs game this season on the flagship station of the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network, 'TALK 820'. Fans can also listen or watch at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com by clicking on the 'AHL Live' or 'TALK 820' icon on the Bulldogs website. All regular-season radio and online broadcasts will begin with a pre-game show 30 minutes prior to each scheduled game-time. Ellery Award-winning broadcaster Derek Wills calls the play-by-play of all 80 regular season games, while Al Craig provides the colour commentary for all home games and select road games.

In addition Cable 14 will air live broadcasts 13 of club's 38 home games at Copps Coliseum. In a joint venture with Mohawk College, Cable 14 will also broadcast the 25 Hamilton Bulldogs' home games not being shown live in their entirety as 'Dogs-in-an-Hour at 11:00 p.m. on the night of the game.

Cable 14 will also carry Rogers Television's live coverage of six Hamilton Bulldogs versus Toronto Marlies games at Ricoh Coliseum.

For a full listing of all the games broadcast on Cable 14 follow this link: http://www.hamiltonbulldogs.com/page/broadcast_1019#Live%20Broadcast%20Schedule

GET YOUR TICKETS!:

Hamilton Bulldogs season tickets, flex tickets, min pack tickets, group tickets and tickets are now on sale! Individual game tickets are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office (in-person sales only), all Ticketmaster outlets and online at ticketmaster.ca or call 905-527-7666. For information on season tickets, flex tickets, mini pack tickets and group tickets visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com, or call (905) 529-8500 or 1-866-364-7849.

GET YOUR BULLDOGS MERCHANDISE AT THE "DAWG HOUSE": Fans can purchase Bulldogs merchandise during all home games at the "Dawg House" store located behind section 114 on the concourse level at Copps Coliseum.

In the store, fans can find hats, t-shirts, jackets, replica jerseys, foam fingers, foam 'Bone Heads', and other select novelty items for sale.

HAMILTON BULLDOGS SCHEDULE THIS WEEK:

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9TH - HAMILTON BULLDOGS vs. ABBOTSFORD HEAT - 7:30 PM EST

COPPS COLISEUM - HAMILTON, ON

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 13TH - HAMILTON BULLDOGS vs. ABBOTSFORD HEAT - 4:00 PM EST

COPPS COLISEUM - HAMILTON, ON

MOLSON CUP - THREE STAR LEADERS: (1st Star - 5pts, 2nd Star - 3pts, 3rd Star - 1pt)

Player : Points :

1. Cedrick Desjardins 18

2. Curtis Sanford 17

3. Mathieu Darche 15

3. Brock Trotter 15

5. Sergei Kostitsyn 9

6. Mike Glumac 8

6. Tom Pyatt 8

8. Ryan White 6

9. Mathieu Carle 5

9. Ryan Russell 5

11. Ben Maxwell 4

12. David Desharnais 2

12. P.K. Subban 2

14. J.T. Wyman 1

FLAMBORO DOWNS WORKHORSE OF THE GAME LEADERS: (10 pts. - Hardest working Hamilton Bulldogs player)

Player: Points:

1. Brock Trotter 40

2. Tom Pyatt 20

2. Andre Benoit 20

2. J.T. Wyman 20

2. Alex Henry 20

6. Marc-Andre Bergeron 10

6. Cedrick Desjardins 10

6. Shawn Belle 10

6. Ryan White 10

6. Curtis Sanford 10

6. David Desharnais 10

6. Chad Anderson 10

6. Mike Glumac 10

6. Mathieu Carle 10

6. Yannick Weber 10

6. Andrew Conboy 10

6. Grant Stevenson 10

6. Eric Neilson 10

• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...

American Hockey League Stories from December 7, 2009


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.

Other Recent Hamilton Bulldogs Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central