Knights coming off two win week

Published on October 31, 2005 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Abbotsford Heat News Release


Omaha, NE - The Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights enter a new month with the same old goal-win games and move up in the West Division standings. The Knights earned four of a possible six points last week with wins over Iowa and Chicago and a loss to Milwaukee. Omaha begins the week in third place in the division with a record of 4-4-0-2, good for ten points. The Knights look ahead to another three-game week as they host Milwaukee on Wednesday and then visit the Peoria Rivermen for games on Friday and Saturday. Tickets for Wednesday's game with Milwaukee are on sale all week at the Omaha Civic Auditorium box office from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 422-1212 and at Ticketmaster.com. The box office is open through the opening face-off on game nights.

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS:

Tuesday, October 25: Ak-Sar-Ben Knights 2, Iowa Stars 0

The Ak-Sar-Ben Knights rode the hot goaltending of Brent Krahn and got a third period goal from Carsen Germyn to beat the Iowa Stars 2-0 at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. The game was scoreless after one period in spite of a 15-6 shot edge for the Stars. They built that advantage thanks to three consecutive powerplays that gave them a man advantage for nearly a six-minute stretch of the stanza. The second period was equally goal free thanks in large part to Krahn and Dan Ellis of the Stars. Krahn was the more severely tested, facing 12 shots. His toughest stop came in the waning minutes when David Oliver got free for a breakaway. Krahn kicked out his wrister to keep the game tied. That save came just moments after Dave Moss got loose in the Iowa end, breaking in for a backhander that was poked off his stick by Ellis. The Knights began to apply more pressure in the third period and took advantage of a line change for the deciding goal. With Iowa in the midst of getting fresh players on the ice, Germyn got free down the right wing off a feed from Brandon Prust and blew a shot past Ellis for his third goal of the season. Tomi Maki added an empty net got with four seconds left to cement the 2-0 win. Krahn finished the game with 34 saves as the Knights were outshot 34-21.

Friday, October 28, 2005: Ak-Sar-Ben Knights 7, Chicago Wolves 6 SO With their biggest offensive output of the season, the Ak-Sar-Ben Knights got a hat trick from Carsen Germyn and a shootout goal from Dave Moss to beat the Chicago Wolves 7-6 at the Civic Auditorium. The Knights erased a two-goal, third period deficit to win back-to-back games for the first time this season. The Wolves had a 2-0 lead just 90 seconds into the game. Braydon Coburn and Kevin Doell scored even strength goals 36 seconds apart to put the visitors ahead. The Knights responded on the powerplay. Germyn finessed a backhander past goalie Michael Garnett on a powerplay at 8:12 of the first period. Moss than finished off a rush with a backhander that beat Garnett during a five-on-three advantage for his third goal of the season. Before the period was over, the Wolves would answer back. Ramzi Abid beat goalie Brent Krahn with a shot off a face-off in the Omaha zone to put Chicago up 3-2 after one. The Knights tied the game at three at 13:10 of the second. Playing in his first game of the season after an injury suffered in the preseason, Brantt Myhres tipped in a shot by Brandon Rogers. Cam Cunning also picked up an assist, his first pro point. But just 13 seconds later, Scott Barney beat Krahn with a wrist shot and then Abid would add a powerplay goal with 1:01 remaining the period to give Chicago a 5-3 lead at the break. The Knights stormed their way back in the third. First, Germyn scored his second of the night during a five-on-three powerplay at 8:33. He completed the hat trick, the first in Knights' history, with another big blast during a four-on-three man advantage to tie the game at five. Just 41 seconds later, the Knights had their first lead of the game. Eric Nystrom carried the puck down the left wing, drew the defense to him and then passed back to a trailing Brandon Prust who rammed the puck into a half-empty net for his first professional goal. The lead held up until a late Chicago powerplay. Pat Dwyer finished off a netmouth scramble for his second goal of the season at 17:02. The game stayed 6-6 in overtime in spite of a Knights' powerplay. In the shootout, Chicago's Doell scored in the first round, a goal that was originally waved off by referee Brian Pochmara who conferred with linesman Scott Bokal before signaling a goal. The Knights got a goal from Richie Regehr in the third round to tie it. When Abid was turned aside by Krahn in the fifth round, that set the stage for Moss who slipped the puck between the pads of Garnett to give the Knights the 7-6 win.

Saturday, October 29, 2005: Milwaukee Admirals 4, Ak-Sar-Ben Knights 0

The Milwaukee Admirals got 16 saves from Pekka Rinne and four powerplay goals to beat the Ak-Sar-Ben Knights 4-0 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, WI. The game was the first meeting of ten between the two West Division rivals. The teams played a scoreless first period even though both had two powerplays. Brent Krahn was the busier of the two netminders, stopping ten shots. The Admirals used the powerplay to seize the lead early in the second. First, rugged defenseman Sheldon Brookbank slipped down the slot and converted a feed from Scottie Upshall for his first goal of the season. A little more than three minutes later, Upshall one-timed a feed from Darren Haydar during a five-on-three advantage to boost the Admirals lead to 2-0. The Knights began the third period with two minors to kill. They could only snub one. Kris Beech scored during the five-on-three just 42 seconds into the stanza to make it 3-0. Shea Weber scored his first pro goal on a powerplay later in the period for the final goal. The Admirals 4-0 win marks the first time the Knights have been shutout this season..

THE WEEK AHEAD:

DAY/DATE EVENT TIME BROADCAST

Mon., Oct. 31 Practice 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Tues., Nov. 1 Practice 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Wed., Nov. 2 Morning Skate 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. Game vs. Milwaukee 7:00 p.m. 590 AM, Web, B2

Thurs., Nov. 3 Practice 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Fri., Nov. 4 Morning Skate 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Game @ Peoria 7:30 p.m. 1420 AM, Web, B2

Sat., Nov. 5 Game @ Peoria 7:00 p.m. 1420 AM, Web, B2

Sun., Nov. 6 Day Off

Web-Free live audio broadcast of game at omahaaksarbenknights.com (Choose "Listen Live" link from home page)

B2-B2 Networks live, pay-per-view webcast, available at omahaaksarbenknights.com for $6 per game by clicking on B2 Networks link.

OPPONENTS THIS WEEK:

Wednesday, November 2: vs. Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville Predators), 7:00 p.m.

Second meeting of ten; first of five in Omaha The Ak-Sar-Ben Knights and the Admirals finish off the protracted home-and-home series with a rematch at the Civic Auditorium. The win over the Knights gave the Admirals two wins in a row while the Knights' two-game win streak was snapped. Kris Beech leads the Admirals in scoring with four goals and seven points. He had a goal in the win over the Knights last Saturday. Goaltender Pekka Rinne improved his standing with last Saturday's shutout. The rookie ranks fifth-best in the AHL with a 1.76 goals-against average. The Admirals are in seventh place in the West Division with a record of 2-3-0-1 but have played the second-fewest games in the entire AHL (6).

Friday & Saturday, November 4 & 5: @ Peoria Rivermen (St. Louis Blues), 7:30 p.m. (Fri.), 7:00 p.m. (Sat.)

First two meetings of ten; first two of five in Peoria, IL Friday will mark the first of ten meetings between the Knights and the Rivermen who will play back to back games at Carver Arena. The top prospects of the St. Louis Blues lead the West Division with a record of 8-2-0-0, good for 16 points. That total is also second best in the AHL behind Wilkes-Barre/Scranton which is off to a 9-0-0-0 start. The Rivermen are coming off a three-game sweep of San Antonio and Houston last weekend in which they outscored their opponents a combined 15-1. The Rivermen's special teams have been a big key to their success. They rank fifth on the powerplay (21.3%) and fourth on the penalty kill (89.9%). Peter Sejna leads the Rivermen in scoring with nine goals and seven assists for 16 points. He is tied for fourth in scoring in the AHL. Mike Glumac is right behind with five goals and eight assists for 13 points. Jason Bacashihua and Curtis Sanford have split the time in net with each man playing five games. Bacashihua is 5-0-0 and has a 1.80 goals-against average, sixth best in the league. The Rivermen do not play before hosting the Knights.

Saturday, October 29: @ Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville Predators), 7:00 p.m.

First meeting of ten; first of five in Milwaukee, WI The Ak-Sar-Ben Knights will play the Admirals for the first time this season. The Nashville Predators' top development team still is looking for its first win of the 2005-2006 season. Milwaukee is 0-3-0-1 and in seventh place in the West Division. They last played on Friday, October 21, a 3-2 loss at Iowa. The Admirals have had the lightest schedule in the division to start the season. By the end of the month, they will have played only six games. By comparison, the Knights will have played ten. Scottie Upshall leads the Admirals in scoring with a goal and three assists for four points in four games. Brandon Segal leads the team with three goals. Pekka Rinne has seen most of the time in the Milwaukee net, posting a 2.45 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage in four games. The Admirals host Houston on Friday before welcoming the Knights.

KNIGHTS NOTES:

Goaltender Brent Krahn earned his second shutout of the season with 34 saves in a 2-0 win at Iowa on October 25th. Both of Krahn's shutouts have come at Iowa where he has stopped all 70 shots he has faced at Wells Fargo Arena this season.

Forward Carsen Germyn recorded the first hat trick in Ak-Sar-Ben Knights' history when he scored three against the Chicago Wolves in a 7-6 shootout win on October 28th. He also had an assist in that game.

Germyn and defenseman Mark Giordano set the franchise record for points in a game with four. In addition to Germyn's (3-1-4) total, Giordano had four assists in the game against the Wolves.

The shootout win by the Knights was their first ever after two losses.

The Knights set another franchise mark on October 28, scoring four powerplay goals in the win against Chicago

TRANSACTIONS:

10/24/05 ADD Thomas Bellemare (RW), recalled from loan to Las Vegas (ECHL)

IN THE COMMUNITY:

Radio Appearance, Tuesday, November 1: Knights' play-by-play man Dave Ahlers will be appearing on Pinnacle Sports Network's "Sports Nightly" program (KFAB AM 1110 in Omaha) on Tuesday at 7:40 p.m. He will speak on the Knights' season to date and look forward to the three important division games this week.

Speakers Bureau, Friday, November 4:

Knights' Vice President of Sales and Marketing Brad Haynes will be appearing at the meeting of the Omaha Sertoma Club at noon at the Westside Community Center. Haynes will speak about the on-going business and community efforts being undertaken by the Knights.

The Ak-Sar-Ben Knights' Speakers Bureau is available to provide speakers to local businesses, civic and church groups and other interested organizations holding weekly or monthly meetings and special events. There is no charge for this program. For more information on the Speakers Bureau or to schedule an appearance for your group's next meeting, call Dave Ahlers at (402) 344-GOAL or contact him by e-mail at dahlers@omahaaksarbenknights.com.

BROADCAST CHANGE:

Wednesday's game against the Milwaukee Admirals will be heard on Big Sports 590 AM, sister station to the Knights' Flagship Station, 1420 AM. The change will occur only for Wednesday's game. Knights' broadcasts return to 1420 AM for the weekend. All games also can be heard on the internet at omahaaksarbenknights.com and can be viewed on the web site for a $6 charge by clicking the link to B2 Networks.

OMAHAAKSARBENKNIGHTS.COM

The Ak-Sar-Ben Knights' official web site, omahaaksarbenknights.com, is the comprehensive source for all information about the Knights during the season. Log on for player bios and stats, game recaps, a list of community appearances, stats, photos, great downloads and live links to listen to and watch Ak-sar-ben Knights' hockey all season.

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American Hockey League Stories from October 31, 2005


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