AHL Toronto Marlies

Marlies Continue Home Stand With Three Games This Week

Published on February 10, 2009 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Toronto Marlies News Release


Opponents This Week:

(Feb. 11): The Marlies host the Syracuse Crunch - AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets - on Wednesday with a special 11:30 a.m. start time at Ricoh Coliseum. This will mark the fifth of eight meetings between the two clubs this season. Toronto dropped their previous matchup, 4-1 at Ricoh on last Saturday night. Jiri Tlusty scored the lone goal for the Marlies; while Maksim Mayorov had a goal and an assist for Syracuse. The Crunch owns a 3-1-0-0 record against Toronto this season and has outscored them 14-7. The Marlies defeated the Crunch last season in Game Seven of the Semi-Finals, advancing to the Western Conference Finals. Syracuse currently ranks fourth (tie) in the North Division with a 24-21-3-2 record for 53 points through 50 games. They sit two points behind the Marlies for fourth place in the division. The Crunch are 12-13-2-2 on the road this season and 5-4- 1-0 in their past 10 games overall. Mike York leads all Crunch players with 34 points (eight goals, 26 assists). Jon Mirasty ranks first on the Crunch and third in the AHL with 183 penalty minutes. Syracuse is the second most penalized team in the AHL averaging over 24 minutes in penalties per game. The two teams will meet again on Wednesday, February 18 at 7:00 pm at Ricoh Coliseum.

(Feb. 14): The Marlies host the Grand Rapids Griffins - AHL affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings - on Saturday afternoon at Ricoh Coliseum. This will be the fifth of eight meetings between the two clubs. The Marlies defeated the Griffins 10-5 last Sunday at Ricoh Coliseum. Both Tim Stapleton (four goals) and Andre Deveaux recorded hat-tricks in the game. Eight different Marlies players notched multi-point games, including Jiri Tlusty's four assist game. Griffins' forward Francis Lemieux recorded two goals and an assist in the game. Grand Rapids currently rank second in the North Division with a 31-11-6-4 record for 72 points. The Griffins have a road record of 12-7-3-0 so far this season. Grand Rapids has a record of 6-2-1-1 in their past 10 games and but have dropped their past two games. The Griffins rank first in the AHL in penalty killing (86.7%), despite allowing five power play markers against the Marlies on Sunday afternoon. The Marlies rank fourth in the AHL on the power play (20.3%). Darren Haydar leads the Griffins with 46 points (19 goals, 27 assists). Darren Helm played in each of the final 18 games for the Detroit Red Wings last season, helping them win the Stanley Cup. The Marlies hold a slight advantage over Grand Rapids in their all-time record games played, 14-12-0. Their next meeting is on Sunday, March 1 at Ricoh Coliseum for a 4:00 pm puck-drop.

(Feb. 15): The Marlies battle the Springfield Falcons - AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers - on Sunday afternoon at Ricoh Coliseum. The two teams previously met on December 20 in Springfield with the Marlies coming out on top 3-1. Tim Stapleton, Alex Foster and Brent Aubin each scored for the Marlies and Jiri Tlusty picked up two assists in the victory. Taylor Chorney scored the lone Falcons goal on Marlies goalie Adam Munro who picked up the win. Springfield currently ranks seventh in the Atlantic Division with a 16-27-6-1 record for 39 points. The Falcons are 7-14-3-1 on the road this season. Ryan Potulny ranks eighth (tie) in the American Hockey League with 22 goals and has a team-high 36 points (22 goals, 14 assists). Potulny represented the Falcons as a member of the Planet USA team in this years AHL All-Star game. Rob Schremp led the Falcons in scoring last season with 76 points in 78 games and was Edmonton's first-round draft pick in 2004. Toronto is 2-0-1-0 all-time against the Falcons. This is the last meeting this season between the Marlies and Falcons.

MARLIES HEADLINES:

A Franchise Night: Last Sunday the Marlies had a franchise game when they defeated the Grand Rapids Griffins 10-5 at Ricoh Coliseum. The 10 goals the Marlies scored was a franchise-high and their five first period tallies was a season- high. Tim Stapleton set a franchise mark with four-goals in the game, three of which came in a span of four minutes and forty seconds. Andre Deveaux also scored a hat-trick in the game, his second of the season. In all, eight different Marlies players registered a multi-point game. Jiri Tlusty had a season-high four assists. The Marlies five power play goals was also an all-time high.

Home Ice Advantage: The Marlies set a franchise record on Friday, January 30 with their seventh consecutive home victory over the Hamilton Bulldogs, 4-2. Toronto's only lost two home games since December 14, 2008 when their winning streak was snapped on last Saturday against the Rockford IceHogs. The Marlies have out-scored their opponents at Ricoh Coliseum, 45-27 during a 10-game stretch. Toronto has average 4.5 goals per game over their past 10 contests. The Marlies hold a 14-8-0-2 record at home on the season. The Marlies play their sixth game of their 11- game home stand on Wednesday versus the Crunch.

Tim Becoming a Staple: Tim Stapleton set the Marlies franchise record with four goals in a game last Sunday versus the Grand Rapids Griffins. He recorded the hat-trick in the first period, with all three goals coming just under five minutes apart. Stapleton is currently on a four-game point streak, registering 10 points over that stretch (seven goals, three assists). The American Hockey League named Stapleton the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for period ending February 1, 2009. The Oak Park, Illinois native ranks first on the Marlies and third (tie) in the AHL with 20 power play assists. Stapleton ranks first in the AHL with seven shootout goals. In 44 games this season, Stapleton has 46 points (13 goals, 33 assists) including two game-winning tallies. Stapleton's 33 assists rank 10th (tie) in the league. Stapleton ranks first on the Marlies in goals, assists and points.

On A Roll: Since November 19, 2008 the Marlies are 20-12-2-3 and have earned at least a point in 25 of 37 games (0.676 points percentage). Toronto's won four out of their past seven games decided by a shootout, despite losing their past two. Their home record since November 19 is 10-5-0-0.

Devo Time: Andre Deveaux notched his second hat-trick of the season on Sunday afternoon against the Griffins in the Marlies 10-5 win. Two of his three goals came on the power play. Deveaux is the Marlies active leader with six power play tallies. Deveaux scored his first career AHL hat-trick on October 26, 2008 versus the Houston Aeros. The Freeport, Bahamas native skated in 20 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier this season and registered his first career NHL point (assist) on December 23, 2008 against the Dallas Stars. He made his NHL debut on November 27, 2008 at Ottawa.

Jiri Powering Up: Jiri Tlusty registered a Marlies season-high, four assists on Sunday against the Griffins and was named the game's second star of the night. Tlusty is currently on a four-game point streak (three goals, five assists). In 39 games with the Marlies this season, Tlusty has racked up 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists); with 16 of his points coming on the power play. Tlusty ranks second on the team in points and third in assists.

For Whom The Bell Tolls: Mark Bell has recorded at least a point in six of his past 10 games (five goals, one assist). He set a Marlies season-high with a five-game goal scoring streak which began on January 14 at Chicago and was snapped on January 24 versus the Wolves. The Marlies forward ranks second (tie) on the team with 12 goals and fourth in points with 25. Bell's five power play goals rank second (tie) among active Marlies. In 49 games, he's collected 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists).

Shooting For The Stars: The Marlies rank in the top-five in the AHL in both shots for and shots against this season. The Marlies average 31.9 shots per game against their opponents (fifth in the AHL) and rank third for shots against with 26.8 per game. The Marlies have greatly out-shot their opponents in the second period, 581-456. Tim Stapleton set a Marlies single-season high with 10 shots on goal on January 31 versus the Rockford IceHogs.

Special Teams:

Power Play: The Toronto Marlies power play set a Marlies record for five goals last Sunday versus the Grand Rapids Griffins when they went an impressive 5-for-7 in the game. The Marlies power play has clicked for 34 goals in their past 35 games. The Marlies have registered nine, multi-power play goal games so far this season. Toronto's power play currently ranks fourth in the AHL with a 20.3% success rate. Their power play on the road ranks sixth overall at 20.7%. They've scored at least one power play goal in 17 of 26 road games. Tim Stapleton leads all Marlie skaters with 24 power play points.

On The Road: The Marlies finished their season-high, nine-game road trip with a 2-3-2-2 record for eight points on January 23 at Syracuse. They opened their road swing with a 3-2 shootout victory over the Milwaukee Admirals. Justin Pogge and Adam Munro had a combined 2.26 goals-against average and 0.918 save percentage on the road trip. Pogge started six games and Munro three. Maple Leafs prospect Nikolai Kulemin made his AHL debut on Thursday, January 8 in Milwaukee. Bates Battaglia and Alex Foster each scored a shorthanded goal on the trip.

Multi-Point Games: Tim Stapleton leads the team with 12 multi-point games this season. The Marlies had eight different players chip in with multi-point games on Sunday (Ryan, Hamilton, Deveaux, Stapleton, Foster, Sifers, Stralman and Tlusty). Stapleton now has three games with three or more points.

Multi-Point Games
Stapleton 12
Newbury 7
Williams 5
Tlusty 5
Battaglia 4
Foster 4
Bell 3
Kronwall 3
Boyce 3
Giliati 2
Devereaux 2
Petiot 2
Taylor 2
Aubin 2
Sifers 2
Deveaux 2
Ondrus 1
Ryan 1
Hamilton 1
Stralman 1

Making Their Debut: The Marlies have dressed 12 new players through their first 50 games this season. Ryan Hamilton suited up for his first game with the Marlies on Friday, January 23 in Syracuse, becoming the 12th new player to dress for the club. Defensemen Richard Petiot, Andy Schneider, Joey Ryan, Juha Uotila and Josef Boumedienne; forwards Andre Deveaux, Nikolai Kulemin, Tim Stapleton and Mark Bell have all seen action in at least one game for the Marlies. Newcomer, Tim Stapleton scored the Marlies first goal of the 2008-09 season in the third period of their home opener on October 10 against the Binghamton Senators.

Reading Report: The Toronto Maple Leafs ECHL affiliate, the Reading Royals currently rank seventh in the American Division with a 15-29-2-2 record for 34 points. Tyler Doig ranks second the Royals with 36 points (11 goals, 25 assists). Doig has recorded 20 points in his past 19 games (seven goals, 13 assists). Doig ranks first on the Royals in power play goals (five) and power play assists (14). Dan Rudisuela has 11 goals and 11 assists in 48 games. Maple Leafs prospect, Michael Ouzas who is currently playing for the Royals, has a record of 15-12-1 with a 2.93 goals- against average and 0.908 save percentage, including three shutouts.

Unveiling the Banner: The Marlies opened up the 2008-09 season by unveiling their North Division championship banner from the year before. The Marlies won their division with a 50-21-3-6 record for 109 points, nine more points then next closest Syracuse (100 points). Toronto has 15 players that helped them to their title berth on the opening day roster.

MARLIES QUICK HITS:

- The Marlies currently rank fourth in the North Division with a 24-19-2-5 record for 55 points through 50 games. They sit seven points behind third place Hamilton and two points ahead of Syracuse.

- On Tuesday, the Marlies signed defenceman Josh Engel to a professional try-out contract.

- Joe Ryan registered his first career AHL multi-point game on Sunday when he collected two assists.

- Forward Ryan Hamilton registered his first points in a Marlies uniform on Sunday afternoon. Hamilton recorded two assists in Toronto's 10-5 victory.

- Justin Pogge registered his first career AHL point on Sunday when he recorded an assist on Alex Foster's second goal of the game.

- Anton Stralman was reassigned by the Maple Leafs last Saturday and scored a goal and added an assist on Sunday afternoon.

- Richard Petiot has recorded three assists in his past four games.

- The Marlies have played the most overtime games so far this season in the AHL with 14. Toronto has three wins in overtime and four shootout victories.

- Darryl Boyce ranks first on the team with 110 penalty minutes and Phil Oreskovic has a team-high, plus-10 rating.

- The Marlies are 17-0-1-1 when taking a lead into the third period this season and are 16-4-1-1 when they record the game's first goal. When Toronto scores three or more goals, they own a record of 24-5-0-1.

Reebok/AHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE

For the week ending February 8, 2009, the Toronto Marlies nominated forward Tim Stapleton for consideration as the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for the second straight week. The Oak Park, IL native set a Marlies franchise record with four goals in a single game yesterday in Toronto's 10-5 victory over the Grand Rapids Griffins. He netted the hat- trick in a four minute, forty second span in the first period of Sunday's game. In two games last week, Stapleton registered five points (four goals, one assist). In Friday night's game, Stapleton collected his 20th power play assist which ranks him third (tie) in the league.

IN THE BOOTH:

The Marlies and Rogers Cable TV announced their 29 game broadcast schedule, which will comprise of Friday, Saturday and Sunday home dates. The television play-by-play duties will be handled by the voice of the Marlies, John Bartlett, who returns for his fourth season with the organization. Former NHLer and Toronto Maple Leaf, Bob McGill, will join Bartlett in the booth for all 29 games.

The Marlies announced on Friday, October 10 in conjunction with the FAN 590, that all 80 regular season games will be live on the FAN 590. Marlies play-by-play announcer John Bartlett, along with colour commentator, Bob McGill will provide the live action for Marlies fans this season. Fans can also tune into all of the action on the Marlies official website, torontomarlies.com

MARLIES ON THE WEB Follow the Marlies all season long for the latest, most up-to-date information on their official web site, torontomarlies.com

MARLIES UPCOMING PROMOTIONS:

Sunday, February 15 vs. Springfield Falcons - Matt Stajan Bobblehead Day
Friday, February 20 vs. Hamilton Bulldogs - Pay Day Friday's presented by Ricoh
Saturday, February 21 vs. Rochester Americans - Don Cherry Cap & Salute to the Troops Night
Sunday, March 1 vs. Grand Rapids Griffins - Vesa Toskala Bobblehead Day

MARLIES RECAP:

Saturday, February 7 vs. Syrcacuse

Marlies Dropped By Crunch, 4-1
Marlies Goal: Tlusty (10)
Crunch Goals: Filatov (8), Mayorov (10), Vigilante (7), MacKenzie (14)
Three Stars: 1. Mayorov (SYR), 2. Filatov (SYR), 3. Dahm (SYR)

Recap: Despite out-shooting the Crunch on Saturday night, the Marlies fell 4-1 to their division-rivals. After two first period goals from Syracuse, the Crunch opened the second period by adding to their lead with a John Vigilante tally just three minutes into the frame. The Marlies out-shot the Crunch, 29-12 after two periods of play. Jiri Tlusty tipped in his 10th of the season on a Toronto power play five minutes into the third period. Tim Stapleton and Mark Bell each collected assists on the goal. That is as close as the Marlies would get, with Syracuse adding an empty net goal. Adam Munro made 11 saves in the loss.

Sunday, February 8 vs. Grand Rapids

Marlies Out-Score Grifs, 10-5
Marlies Goals: Stapleton 4 (13), Deveaux 3 (9), Foster 2 (9), Stralman (2),
Griffins Goals: Brophey (10), Radja (10), Blackwater 2 (3), Hjalmarsson (2), Brent (12)
Three Stars: 1. Stapleton (TOR), 2. Tlusty (TOR), 3. Deveaux (TOR)

Recap: The Marlies set a franchise record with 10 goals in a game when the defeated the Grand Rapids Griffins, 10-5 on Sunday afternoon. Grand Rapids opened the scoring five minutes into the game, but that was followed by five straight Marlies goals. Tim Stapleton scored three of his four goals in the game in a span of four minutes and forty seconds mid-way through the first frame. Toronto kept pouring on the goals with three more tallies early in the second period. Alex Foster scored his second goal of the game and Andre Deveaux and Anton Stralman each registered second period tallies. Deveaux completed the hat-trick with under a minute remaining in the game. Jiri Tlusty had four assists and Jaime Sifers collected three assists. The Marlies power play went 5-for-7 in the game.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 10, 2009


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