AHL Norfolk Admirals

Lightning Bolster Admirals Roster with Desjardins, Durno and Harju

Published on October 5, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


TAMPA BAY, Fla. - The Tampa Bay Lightning, NHL parent club of the Norfolk Admirals, have assigned forwards Chris Durno and Johan Harju and goaltender Cedrick Desjardins to the Admirals, Lightning Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced today.

Desjardins, 6-foot, 192-pounds, started two games for the Lightning this preseason, recording a 1-0-1 record with a 2.88 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage. He has played in 90 career AHL games - all with the Hamilton Bulldogs - recording a 49-27-5 record, 2.34 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage. Last season, Desjardins established career-highs for games played with 45, wins with 29, minutes with 2,576, shutouts with six, goals-against average with 2.00 and tied his best for save percentage with .919.

Last season he led the AHL in goals-against average, ranked second in shutouts, fourth in wins and was tied for sixth in save percentage. His success earned him an appearance in the 2010 AHL All-Star Classic, in which he was named top goaltender during the skills competition, as well as landed him on the 2010 AHL Second All-Star Team following the season.

Desjardins has also played in 66 career ECHL games, all with the Cincinnati Cyclones, posting a 40-23-3 recording a .908 save percentage. During the 2008 ECHL playoffs he was named the finals MVP and won the Kelly Cup. Desjardins was also named to the ECHL All-Rookie Team in 2007.

A native of Edmunston, New Brunswick, Desjardins played in 128 QMJHL games with the Rimouski Oceanic and Quebec Remparts during his junior career, posting a 67-47-4 record. In 2006, he helped backstop Quebec to the CHL's Memorial Cup by posting a 3-1 record with a .926 save percentage en route to being named top goaltender and to the Memorial Cup All-Star Team. Desjardins also aided the Oceanic, along with Sidney Crosby, to the 2005 Memorial Cup where they fell to the London Knights.

Desjardins went undrafted and was signed as a free agent by Montreal on March 7, 2008.

Durno, 6-foot-5, 223 pounds, skated in two games with Tampa Bay during the 2010 preseason and recorded one assist with seven penalty minutes. He played in 41 games with the Colorado Avalanche last season, recording four goals and eight points with a plus-3 rating. He set NHL career highs for games played, goals, assists, points and shots on goal. Durno also appeared in one Stanley Cup Playoff Game with the Avalanche. He has played in 43 career NHL games with Colorado during the previous two seasons.

The Scarborough, Ontario native has played in 293 career American Hockey League games with the Norfolk Admirals, Milwaukee Admirals, Portland Pirates, San Antonio Rampage and Lake Erie Monsters. He has amassed 89 goals and 175 points. He scored 20 goals or more on two occasions (2005-06, 2007-08). Durno played in 17 games with Lake Erie last season, notching 10 goals and 18 points.

Durno has also played in 147 career ECHL games with the Gwinnett Gladiators, registering 52 goals and 124 points. Before joining the professional ranks, Durno played his college career at Michigan Tech where he played in 130 games, recording 22 goals and 48 points.

An undrafted free agent, Durno was originally signed as a free agent by Chicago by the Chicago Blackhawks on September 25, 2006. He was then traded to Anaheim by the Blackhawks with Sebastien Caron and Matt Keith in exchange for Pierre Parenteau and Bruno St. Jacques on December 28, 2006. Durno was then sent to Nashville by Anaheim in exchange for Shane Endicott on January 26, 2007. He was then signed by Colorado on July 3, 2008.

Harju, 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, played in four preseason games with the Lightning, recording one assist with a plus-one rating. He played in 55 regular season games with the Moscow Dynamo of the Kontinental Hockey League last season, recording four goals and 18 points. He also played two playoff games with Moscow, recording a goal and eight penalty minutes.

A native of Overtarnea, Sweden, Harju spent the previous three seasons solely in the Swedish Elite League with Lulea. He notched a career-high 27 goals in 55 games during the 2008-09 season. He recorded a total of 47 goals in his final two seasons in the Swedish Elite League. During his career with Lulea he amassed 62 goals and 103 points in 204 career games. Harju also totaled 48 goals and 82 points in 92 games with Lulea's junior team from 2002-06.

Harju, 23, also represented Sweden at the 2009 World Championships in Switzerland, recording two goals and four points. He was selected by the Lightning in the sixth round, 167th overall, of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

The Admirals now have 24 players on their training camp roster with fourteen forwards, seven defensemen and three goaltenders. A complete training camp roster is attached to this press release.

Norfolk's regular season opens in Binghamton, New York, as they take on the Senators on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. The Admirals' regular season home opener will take place on Friday, October 15, as the Worcester Sharks invade Scope.

Individual tickets for all regular season games start at just $12. Tickets are available now at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com.

Don't miss a minute of the action by purchasing your 2010-11 season tickets today. Season tickets start at just $350 while 10-Packs are available for as little as $110. Stop by the Admirals' Administrative Offices at Scope, call (757) 640-1212 weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or visit norfolkadmirals.com anytime!

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