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Mallards Weekly Update

March 4, 2013 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Quad City Mallards News Release


QUACK TRACKS

Movin' On Up

With yesterday's 3-2 shootout win over Fort Worth, the Mallards climbed past Bloomington and Arizona into seventh place in the CHL. The Mallards are one point ahead of the eighth place Sundogs and two points clear of the ninth place Blaze.

Back-to-Back

The Mallards have won their last two games (both in the shootout). That pair of wins is the Mallards' first set of consecutive victories in just over a month since the Flock put together successive wins over Bloomington on January 28 and Missouri on February 2.

Home Stretch

The Mallards play ten of their remaining 11 games against either Bloomington (six more meetings) or Missouri (four). The Mallards lone remaining match-up with an opponent other than the Blaze or Mavericks is a March 19 tussle with Denver. The Mallards have seven home games left and four road games remaining.

.500

With yesterday's victory the Mallards also moved over .500 for the first time since a 9-6 win over Bloomington on February 8 lifted them to 20-19-5. The Mallards have not been more than a game over .500 all season. They have gone 18-13-3 over their last 34 games after going 7-11-3 in their first 21 outings.

400

With yesterday's win, Mallards coach Terry Ruskowski became the fourth bench boss in league history to reach 400 Central Hockey League victories. Ruskowski joins Doug Sauter (544), Scott Muscutt (435) and Chris Stewart (415) in the CHL's 400-win club. Ruskowski piloted the Laredo Bucks to 343 wins over nine seasons and guided the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees to 32 victories last year before taking over the Mallards this season.

On the Road

The Mallards last Friday in Missouri defeated the Mavericks 3-2 in a shootout to close out their longest road trip of the season with a record of 3-2-0.

The Mick

Mickey Lang yesterday joined Denver's A.J. Gale as the second player in the CHL to reach 30 goals this season.

Give 'Em Hellyer

Mike Hellyer leads CHL rookies in points (49) and has produced 22 points (seven goals and 15 assists) in his last 18 games.

Special Teams

The Mallards have gone 4-for-43 on the power play over their last 11 games. The Mallards rank ninth in the league on the power play (14.4 percent). They lead the league in shorthanded goals (12) and rank fourth in penalty killing (84.8 percent).

Leaders

Lang leads the league in shorthanded goals (5), is tied for the league lead in game winning goals (6), ranks second in goals (30), is tied for sixth in points (66) and power play goals (9) and ranks tenth in assists (36). Bob Preece is tied for ninth in plus/minus rating (+14). Among rookies, Hellyer leads the league in points (49), ranks second in assists (30) and ranks fifth in goals (19) while Mike Stinziani is tied for third in goals (20), ranks fourth in points (40) and ranks fifth in assists (20). Matt Duffy is tied for fifth among defensemen in points (35), ranks sixth in assists (28), and, along with Preece, is tied for ninth in goals (7). Neil Conway ranks eighth in goals against average (2.64) and is tied with John Murray for ninth in save percentage (.909).

Milestones

Terry Ruskowski yesterday became the fourth coach in league history to reach 400 CHL wins...Jason Kostadine played his five hundredth career game last Tuesday at Rapid City... Gabriel Boutin-Gagnon has played 98 career games.

Head-to-Head

The Mallards are 4-5-0 against Missouri and have gone 2-3-0 at home. The Mallards have gone 11-11-1 against the Mavs in three seasons since entering the CHL...The Mallards have gone 5-7-1 against the Blaze so far this season and have gone 3-3-0 at home. All-time, the Mallards are 38-20-3 against Bloomington.

Ins and Outs

Kostadine was suspended from last Thursday's game at Bloomington after being assessed a major penalty for boarding and a game misconduct in last Tuesday's game at Rapid City...Boutin-Gagnon (lower body injury) returned to the lineup last Thursday at Bloomington after missing seven games while on injured reserve...Patrik Levesque (upper body injury) has missed the Mallards' last seven games and has been placed on 14-day injured reserve retroactive to February 16...Cory McGillis (concussion) is on 30-day injured reserve.

UPCOMING HOME GAMES

Saturday, March 9, 7:05 p.m. - Mallards vs. Missouri Mavericks

Mo Mallard Bobblehead Giveaway Presented by KWQC-TV

The traditional bobblehead giveaway will return to honor the longest-serving Mallard of them all, mascot Mo, when the Mallards take on the Mavericks Saturday. The fun-loving waterfowl will be honored with his very own bobblehead for the first time. The first 1,000 fans through the doors for the game will receive free bobbleheads.

Sunday, March 10, 4:05 p.m. - Mallards vs. Bloomington Blaze

Family Skate Day Presented by Genesis Health System

Fans will have the chance to join all their favorite players on the ice immediately after the end of the Mallards' game against the Blaze.

Post-Game Event: Rivals Sports Bar and Grill

Fans can join the Mallards after Sunday's game at a postgame event at Rivals Sport Bar and Grill. Rivals is located at 1720 East Kimberly Road in Davenport.

ON THE AIR

Fox Sports Radio 1230 is the radio home of the Mallards. Mallards games broadcast on AM 1230 also stream live online at www.wfxn.net. A limited number of Mallards games will not air on Fox Sports Radio 1230 due to conflicts with

University of Illinois basketball and football. Free audio webcasts of games that do not air on AM 1230 are available at myqcmallards.com. CHL-TV pay-per-view video webcasts of all Mallards games are also available at myqcmallards.com.

TICKETS

Single Game Tickets

Single game tickets for all Mallards regular season contests are now available. Fans can contact the Mallards at (309) 277-1364 or tickets@myqcmallards.com for more information about both season and single game tickets. Single game tickets are also available at the i wireless Center box office, at Ticketmaster outlets, through www.ticketmaster.com or through Ticketmaster charge-by-phone toll free. The box office is open weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and on game days from 10:00 a.m. until the start of the second period. Individual game tickets are available for $13 in the upper level, $18 in the lower level and $25 for the first row along the glass for adults. Tickets for kids 12 and under are available for $5 off adult rates.

Group Tickets

Groups of at least ten can receive savings off the walk-up price and a host of other great group benefits. Mallards group tickets are a great fit for youth organizations, friends, co-workers, family groups, religious groups, school functions and business events. For more group ticket information, fans can contact the Mallards at (309) 277-1364 or tickets@myqcmallards.com .

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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.

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