MALLARDS SET SIGHTS ON WINS RECORD, TARRY CUP

Published on March 18, 2002 under United Hockey League (UHL)
Quad City Mallards News Release


A 3-0 Week Brings Quad City Six Straight 50-Win Seasons

Moline, IL – The defending United Hockey League Colonial Cup champion Quad City Mallards swept their three-game weekend series of games to reach 50 regular season wins for a sixth consecutive year, a feat unmatched in professional hockey history. This week, the Mallards can clinch their third straight Tarry Cup by winning three of four games, guaranteeing home ice advantage throughout the Colonial Cup playoffs. Twice before, the Mallards have won 55 games in a season, the most in UHL history. This year's team can own the record by winning six of its final eight games.

LAST WEEK (3-0-0)
Friday, Mar. 8 – Quad City 7, (at) Rockford 4
Saturday, Mar. 9 – (at) Quad City 6, Asheville 4
Sunday, Mar. 10 – (at) Quad City 5, Knoxville 1

THIS WEEK (all times Central)
Wednesday, Mar. 20 – Adirondack at Quad City, 7:00 p.m. – Defenseman John Batten, a member of the 1996-97 Colonial Cup champion Mallards, returns to face his former team
Friday, Mar. 22 – Flint at Quad City, 7:00 p.m. – Group Appreciation Night – If you booked a group with the Mallards earlier this season, call (309) 764-7825 for special discount pricing
Saturday, Mar. 23 – Quad City at Missouri, 7:15 p.m.
Sunday, Mar. 24 – Kalamazoo at Quad City, 6:00 p.m.

STANDINGS
The Mallards are 50-14-2, a .773 winning percentage. With 102 points, they are in first place in the Western Conference, ten points ahead of the Muskegon Fury (44-18-4). They are also in first place overall in the UHL. The Mallards need six wins in their final eight games to set an all-time UHL record for wins in a season. The current record of 55 is shared by the 2000-01 and 1997-98 Mallards and the 1996-97 Flint Generals.

PERSONNEL
3/12 – Traded F Brandon Merli to Missouri for River Otters' fifth round selection in North American Amateur Draft
3/16 – Added C Kevin St. Jacques to active roster
3/16 – F Kyle Kidney recalled to Hershey Bears (AHL), a Mallards affiliate
3/17 – Activated LW Brian McCullough from injured reserve
C Jason Ulmer remains on callup with the AHL's Portland Pirates, a Mallards affiliate. Ulmer has 22 points (7 goals, 15 assists) and a +8 plus/minus rating in 62 games with Portland.

PLAYOFF TICKET PACKAGES ON SALE
The 11-game playoff ticket package is now on sale, only at The MARK box office. It has the advantage of guaranteeing the same seat location throughout the postseason. The Mallards could host up to 11 playoff games, including three in the best-of-five Western Conference semifinals (to be scheduled April 2-9), four in the best-of-seven Western Conference finals (to be scheduled April 11-22), and four in the best-of-seven championship series (to be scheduled April 24-May 5). If the Mallards host fewer than 11 games, refunds will be available upon the conclusion of the playoffs.

MAGIC NUMBERS
The Mallards have mathematically clinched finishing ahead of every UHL team except Muskegon and Elmira. To clinch finishing ahead of Elmira, the "magic number" of points is 5. To clinch finishing ahead of Muskegon, the magic number of points is 6. That is based on Quad City holding the tiebreaker advantage over the Fury, by virtue of winning their season series, 5 games to 2. The magic number is any combination of Quad City standings points plus opponent "points not earned". An opponent loss equals two points not earned. An opponent shootout loss equals one point not earned. All three teams have 8 games remaining.

THIS WEEK'S UPCOMING GAMES

Adirondack IceHawks at Quad City Mallards, Wed., Mar. 20, 7:00 p.m. (CST) at Moline, IL
This is the only meeting this regular season between the IceHawks and Mallards. Adirondack (34-27-6 pending Tuesday's game at Muskegon) begins the week in second place in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of the B.C. Icemen. The IceHawks are winless in their last three after an 11-game winning streak. LW Hugo Belanger, the reigning UHL Most Valuable Player, leads the league with 75 assists and 107 points. LW Dominic Chiasson leads the team in goals with 38. The IceHawks roster includes D John Batten, a member of the Mallards when they won their first championship in 1996-97, and C Keli Corpse, acquired from the Mallards last week in the Kevin St. Jacques trade. D Garry Gulash, also involved in that trade, was recently called up to the AHL's Saint John Flames, and has three fights and a –1 rating in three games, after earning a –2 rating in one game with the IceHawks. Patrick Couture, who joined the team Feb. 1, has solidified the goaltending, going 11-5-1 with a 2.83 GAA and a .913 Sv%. Ex-Mallard Sergei Zvyagin began the year as the starter, but went 4-8-2 and was released in early December.

Flint Generals at Quad City Mallards, Fri., Mar. 22, 7:00 p.m. (CST) at Moline, IL
Series records: QC: 4-3-2, 3.89 goals per game FLT: 5-3-1, 4.00 goals per game
Leading scorers in the season series: QC: Steve Gibson (6g, 3a), Patrick Nadeau (2g, 7a), 9 pts each FLT: Bobby Reynolds (7g, 7a), 14 pts
The Mallards won't have to face LW Jim Duhart, who has scored nine goals against them this season, including two hat tricks. The night of the second hat trick, Mar. 4 in Flint, Duhart had his jaw broken by a puck on a teammate's deflected slap shot. He is out of action for at least the rest of the regular season. The Generals (36-25-6 pending Wednesday's game vs. Port Huron) are 0-4-1 in the games Duhart has missed, endangering their playoff hopes. They have scored more than two goals in a game only once in the five-game slide. C Dale Greenwood (23g, 48a, 71pts) is also injured, leaving the bulk of the scoring to veterans Bobby Reynolds (43g, 47a, 90pts, 3rd in UHL in goals and points) and Scott Hollis (30g, 38a, 68pts). Martin Woods leads all UHL defensemen with 22 goals, 60 assists, and 80 points. Recently acquired G Brad Guzda has played two games for Flint, going 0-1-1 with a 4.00 GAA and an .805 Sv%.

Quad City Mallards at Missouri River Otters, Sat., Mar. 23, 7:15 p.m. (CST) at St. Charles, MO
Series records: QC: 10-2-0, 4.25 goals per game MIS: 2-8-2, 2.33 goals per game
Leading scorers in the season series: QC: Patrick Nadeau (3g, 9a), 12 pts MIS: Dustin Whitecotton (5g, 6a), 11 pts
The return of leading scorer C Dustin Whitecotton to the Missouri lineup has boosted their once-fading playoff chances. The River Otters had gone 9-4-1 in the 14 games prior to his callup to Grand Rapids (AHL). They went 3-5-2 while he was gone and are 2-0-0 since his return, with Whitecotton scoring 6 points (1g, 5a) in the two games. Missouri (34-23-9, pending Wednesday's game vs. Missouri and Friday's game at Fort Wayne) begins the week in fifth place in the Western Conference, just one point behind fourth-place Flint, with a game in hand. The River Otters have compiled their winning record despite being outscored 232-226 this season. Missouri has performed well in tight games, going 11-1-9 in one-goal contests and 10-2-3 in games tied after two periods. No team besides Asheville has played as many games against Knoxville this season as the Otters. Missouri has benefited, going 9-1-1 vs. the Speed. G Brian Regan (13-11-4, 3.45 GAA, .887 Sv%) continues to struggle to find the form that made him league MVP in 1999-00. He shares time with Aaron Vickar (21-12-5, 3.21 GAA, .894 Sv%).

Kalamazoo Wings at Quad City Mallards, Sun., Mar. 24, 6:00 p.m. (CST) at Moline, IL
Series records: QC: 3-3-0, 2.83 goals per game KAL: 3-2-1, 3.17 goals per game
Leading scorers in the season series: QC: Steve Gibson (3g, 2a), 5 pts KAL: Randy Holmes (4g, 5a), 9 pts
Any playoff hopes Kalamazoo had were dashed by the team's 2-6-2 run over its last ten games. The Wings (29-33-5, pending Wednesday's game at Missouri, Friday's game vs. Port Huron, and Saturday's game vs. Fort Wayne) have had their offense hampered by January's season-ending injury to veteran former NHL-er Mark Lawrence (38GP, 15g, 19a, 34pts) and by chronic knee problems for C Steve Moore (58GP, 17g, 27a, 44pts), which likely have forced him out of the lineup for the balance of the season. Their leading scorers are Randy Holmes (26g, 31a, 57pts) and ex-Mallard Jimmy Brown (22g, 33a, 55pts). Kalamazoo has used strong defense to combat the Mallards this season, holding the Ducks more than a goal per game below their season scoring average. The Wings are the only team besides Flint to have a winning record against Quad City. Coach Dennis Desrosiers resigned in mid-February and was replaced by Lawrence. An announcement of the pending sale of the team to the Parfet family, which founded the IHL Wings and operated the team through the 1999-00 season, was announced in early March.

LAST WEEK'S GAMES

Quad City Mallards 7, Rockford IceHogs 4 – Fri., Mar. 15, at Rockford, IL
Six different Mallards scored goals, making Quad City 13-0-0 against their in-state rivals this season, with one meeting left, in Rockford on Mar. 29. Andy Fermoyle broke a 4-4 tie with the game winner with 26 seconds remaining in the second period, off a feed from Steve Gibson. Jesse Rooney scored two, including an empty-netter in the final minute. The other Mallards scorers were Hugo Proulx, who added two assists, Gibson, Nick Ganga, and Patrick Nadeau. Kyle Kidney earned a season-high +4 plus/minus rating. Joe Dimaline made 28 saves.

Quad City Mallards 6, Asheville Smoke 4 – Sat., Mar. 16, at Moline, IL
The Mallards scored three power play goals, including rookie Jesse Rooney's game winner with 11:02 to play. The Mallards controlled the first period, getting an early goal from Brandon Sampair, followed by power play tallies from Steve Gibson and Patrick Nadeau. But Asheville fought back, tying the game off a steal in the opening minute of the third. But the Mallards broke the tie as Kevin St. Jacques' shot was stopped by goalie Mark Scally, but Rooney knocked in the rebound. Hugo Proulx added an empty net goal on a chip shot from center ice.

Quad City Mallards 5, Knoxville Speed 1 – Sun., Mar. 17, at Moline, IL
Steve Gibson scored his 14th career hat trick, and Brian McCullough scored a goal and an assist in his return from a 57-game stay on the injured reserve list. But overshadowing the individual accomplishments was the Mallards reaching the 50-win mark for the sixth season in a row. Gibson opened the scoring just 41 seconds into the game, rifling a shot from the right circle off a feed from Andy Fermoyle. Fermoyle earned three assists for the first three-point game in his pro career. The Mallards stretched the lead to 3-0 with two power play goals in the second period, by Hugo Proulx and McCullough. McCullough added an assist on Gibson's third goal of the night, with 7:47 remaining in the game.

UPCOMING SPECIAL EVENTS AT MALLARDS HOME GAMES

Group Appreciation Night
Fri., Mar. 22, 7 pm vs Flint
All groups who arranged a night with the Mallards during the season are eligible for special ticket pricing!
Call (309) 764-7825 for details

Hospitality Night
Wed., Mar. 27, 7pm vs Port Huron
Group discounts available for members of the hospitality industry: Restaurants, taverns, clubs, hotels, airlines
Call (309) 764-7825 for details

Casino Rock Island Joe Dimaline Bobblehead Night
IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union
Fan Appreciation Night
Sat., Mar. 30, 7 pm vs Fort Wayne
The first 5,000 fans get a Joe Dimaline bobblehead doll!
Win a game worn jersey, designed by a Mallards fan!

50 AGAIN
With Sunday's 5-1 win over Knoxville, Quad City extended to six years its already unprecedented record of consecutive regular seasons of 50 or more wins. No other professional hockey team has ever won 50 or more regular season games for more than four consecutive seasons.

POWERING UP
The Mallards have scored on the power play in eight of their last nine games. They are 13-for-42 (31.0%) over that stretch.

FERMOYLE'S WINNING WAYS
D Andy Fermoyle has had a busy week. In addition to earning three assists on Sunday for his first career three-point game, he scored the game winning goal in Friday's 7-4 win at Rockford. Of the six goals he has scored for the Mallards in his two-year pro career, three have been game winners. Producing in the clutch is nothing new for Fermoyle, who scored two of the biggest goals in Minnesota State University-Mankato hockey history. He scored in overtime to give the Mavericks their first and only win over Minnesota, Jan. 29, 2000. He also scored in overtime in Mankato's 3-2 win over #1-ranked North Dakota in the WCHA playoffs, Mar. 12, 1999.

HE SCORES, WE WIN
Hugo Proulx scored a goal in all three wins this past weekend. The Mallards are 18-0-0 this season when Proulx scores at least one goal.

STREAKING
The Mallards' current ten-game home winning streak is the longest in the UHL this season. The all-time record is 14, set by the Flint Generals in 1996-97. The Mallards' overall five-game win streak marks the fifth time this season they have won at least five straight. Steve Gibson has at least one assist in nine straight games, tied for the second longest streak this season. He and Hugo Proulx each have at least one goal in five straight games. Proulx has a 12-game point streak, while Jesse Rooney has at least one point in ten straight games.

ALMOST THERE
On Sunday, Joe Dimaline came within 38 seconds of helping the Mallards tie the all-time UHL record of eight shutouts in one season, set by the Missouri River Otters in 1999-00. But Matt Holmes scored on a breakaway for the only Knoxville goal at 19:22 of the third period. Dimaline, the all-time UHL shutout leader with 14, has five this season. Brant Nicklin has two.

UNSCHEDULED LEAK
This Wednesday's scheduled Elmira vs. Fort Wayne game was postponed because of a freon leak at Fort Wayne's Allen County Memorial Coliseum. The game will be made up next Tuesday, Mar. 26. As a result, Elmira will play five games in the final six days of the regular season, while the Komets will close the season with seven games in nine days. The same problem caused an 86-minute delay of the start of Sunday's 4-2 Komets win over Asheville.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK
LW Steve Gibson is the Mallards nominee for Sher-Wood UHL Player of the Week. In three games, he scored 8 points, on 5 goals and 3 assists, and earned a +6 plus/minus rating. He scored an unassisted goal and added an assist in Friday's 7-4 win at Rockford. He had another two-point game, with a goal and an assist, in Saturday's 6-4 win over Asheville. Sunday, Gibson scored three goals and added an assist in the 5-1 win over Knoxville. It was his first hat trick since Dec. 9, 2000, and the 14th of his career. Gibson leads the Mallards with 28 goals this season, despite having missed 14 games during two stints on the injured reserve list. He is second in the UHL with a +37 plus/minus rating.

GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK
Joe Dimaline is the Mallards nominee for UHL Goaltender of the Week. He was 2-0-0 for the week, with a 2.50 goals against average and a .914 save percentage. He made 28 saves in Friday's 7-4 win at Rockford. He stopped 25 shots in Sunday's 5-1 win over Knoxville, holding the Speed scoreless until a breakaway goal with 38 seconds left in the game. For the season, Dimaline ranks second in the UHL with 34 wins and a 2.13 goals against average, and fourth with a .915 save percentage.

WEBBED FEATS
Hugo Proulx scored the game winning goal Sunday and needs one more to tie Glenn Stewart for the all-time franchise record of 29. Mark McFarlane needs one assist to tie Carl LeBlanc (133) for fifth place in franchise history.

DUCK TALK
The Mallards weekly radio show and player appearance is at Beaver's East, corner of 53rd and 18th St. in Bettendorf, tonight from 7 to 8 p.m. Guests are Dylan Mills, Patrick Nadeau, Kevin St. Jacques, and coach Paul MacLean. Fans are invited to meet the players and get their autographs between 7 and 8 p.m., in addition to enjoying Beaver's East's great food and drink specials. The show airs live on WOC TalkRadio 1420, with questions called in by listeners. The scheduled guests for next Monday, Mar. 25, are Andy Fermoyle, Frederick Jobin, and Brian McCullough.

TICKETS AVAILABLE
Playoff ticket packages will go on sale for current season ticket holders this Thursday at 10:00 a.m. at The MARK box office. Playoff packages go on sale to the general public Saturday at noon. The Mallards will make an announcement about playoff ticket availability later this week. Tickets for all Mallards home games are available from The MARK box office, at all area Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at (563) 326-1111, or online at ticketmaster.com. Groups of 20 or more receive ticket discounts and unique Mallards merchandise if they are booked through the Mallards office. Call Jason Penning at (309) 764-7825.

ON THE AIR
All Mallards games, home and away, are broadcast live on WOC TalkRadio 1420. Fans can also hear the game through the Mallards web site, qcmallards.com. Fans in The MARK can tune their headset radios to 106.9 FM to hear the in-house broadcast feed.

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United Hockey League Stories from March 18, 2002


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