AHL Toronto Marlies

Marlies Continue Three Game Road Swing; Return Home On Weekend

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


Opponents This Week:

(Mar.11): The Marlies visit the Syracuse Crunch - AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets - on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. at Oncenter Arena. This will mark the seventh of eight meetings between the two clubs this season. Toronto downed Syracuse in their last meeting on February 18 with an 8-5 win. Jiri Tlusty led the way with a franchise record, five goals; while five other Marlies players finished with two or more points. Mike York of the Crunch had one goal and one assist in the loss. Adam Munro made 33 saves for his eighth win of the season. The Crunch owns a 3-3-0-0 record against Toronto this season and has outscored them 22-21. The Marlies defeated the Crunch last season in Game Seven of the Semi-Finals, advancing to the Western Conference Finals. Syracuse currently ranks fifth in the North Division with a 30-28-4- 2 record for 66 points through 64 games. The Crunch sits five points behind the Marlies in the division. The Crunch are 17-10-2-0 at home this season and 4-5-1-0 in their past 10 games overall. Mike York leads all Crunch players with 47 points (10 goals, 37 assists). Jon Mirasty ranks first on the Crunch and fourth in the AHL with 217 penalty minutes. Syracuse is the most penalized team in the AHL averaging over 24 minutes in penalties per game. The two teams will meet again on Sunday, March 29 at 4:00 p.m. for the final time this season in Toronto.

(Mar. 13): The Marlies visit the Rochester Americans - AHL affiliate of the Florida Panthers - on Friday, March 13 at 7:35 p.m. at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, NY. The Marlies downed the Americans in their last meeting on February 22, 6-2 at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester. Jiri Tlusty had two goals and one assist and Ben Ondrus had a pair of goals. Adam Munro got his ninth win of the season, stopping 30 shots. Rochester currently ranks seventh in the North Division with a 24-36-0-5 record for 53 points. Michal Repik paces the way for the Amerks with 41 points (18 goals, 23 assists). Toronto native Michael Duco leads the Americans with 135 penalty minutes. Panthers prospect Kenndal McArdle was drafted in the first round (20th overall) by Florida in the 2005 Entry Draft. Shawn Matthias, a Mississauga-native, was originally drafted in the second round (47th overall) by Detroit in the 2006 Entry Draft and has eight goals and six assists in 41 games with Rochester. Matthias helped lead Canada to a 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship Gold Medal, scoring five points in the tournament. The two teams meet for the last time this season on April 8 in Toronto at Ricoh Coliseum.

(Mar. 14): The Marlies play their eighth and final meeting of the season against the Lake Erie Monsters - AHL affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche - on Saturday afternoon at Ricoh Coliseum. The Marlies were shutout by the Monsters in their last meeting in Lake Erie on February 27 by a score of 2-0. Justin Pogge made 26 saves on 28 shots in the loss. The Monsters own a 5-2-0-0 record this season against Toronto. The Monsters currently sit in sixth place in the North Division with a 30-30-1-5 record for 66 points. Chris Durno paces the Monsters with 38 points (14 goals, 24 assists) and has a team-high 123 penalty minutes. Durno was part of the Rampage last season when the Marlies played San Antonio in the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs. Last season the Marlies owned a 6-1-0-1 record against Lake Erie. Tom Fristche played last season at Ohio State University where he recorded 19 points (five goals, 14 assists). He was drafted by Colorado in the second round (47th overall) of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft and is the younger brother of Minnesota Wild forward Dan Fritsche. Lake Erie is currently on a three-game winning streak and are 8-2-0-0 in their past 10 games.

(Mar. 15): The Marlies take on the Manitoba Moose - AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks - on Sunday at Ricoh Coliseum. Manitoba ranks first in the North Division with a 43-17-0-5 record for 91 points. Toronto is 2-2-0-0 against their division-rival this season, winning back-to-back games in Toronto in late-December. Bates Battaglia has recorded three assists in two games against the Moose this season. Manitoba's 0.700 points percentage ranks first in the AHL. The Moose are 21-7-0-3 away from the MTS Centre, ranking first in the league with only seven road losses. Jason Krog paces the way for the Moose with 66 points (22 goals, 44 assists). Michael Grabner was drafted in the first round (14th overall) by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Manitoba captain Mike Keane is a three-time Stanley Cup winner. He won with the Montreal Canadiens in 1993, the Colorado Avalanche in 1996 and the Dallas Stars in 1999. He is a veteran of 1161 NHL games where he recorded 470 points (168 goals, 302 assists). Jason Krog won the Calder Cup last season with the Chicago Wolves and was named the playoff MVP and regular season MVP of the league. He became only the third player in AHL history to lead the league in goals, assists and points. Krog and Andre Deveaux were teammates with the Chicago Wolves last season. Moose goaltender, Karl Goehring was a member of the Syracuse Crunch last season and played against the Marlies in the second-round of the Calder Cup playoffs. Manitoba ranks first overall in the AHL (tie) on the penalty kill with an 86.8 % success rate.

MARLIES HEADLINES:

Jiri On Fire: Jiri Tlusty set the Marlies franchise record with six points in one game on Wednesday night with two goals and four assists. Tlusty's six-point game is the AHL season-high so far this season. He's recorded 16 points in his past eight games (five goals, 11 assists). Tlusty set the Marlies franchise record with his five-goal night on February 18 versus Syracuse, also setting the Marlies season-high with a plus-six rating. He has notched eight multi-point games in his past 15 contests. Tlusty has registered at least a point in 15 of his last 18 games. He registered a Marlies season- high, four assists on Sunday, February 8 against Grand Rapids. Tlusty had his nine-game point streak (11 goals, nine assists) come to an end on February 21 against Rochester. In 53 games with the Marlies this season, Tlusty has racked up 58 points (23 goals, 35 assists); with 27 of his points coming on the power play. Tlusty ranks second on the team in points and first in goals.

Free Willy: Jeremy Williams scored his first hat-trick of the season on Sunday afternoon in Toronto's 4-3 win in Hamilton. He has registered a goal in eight of his past 12 games. He had his five-game goal streak snapped on Friday night. In 31 games this season he has recorded 21 goals and nine assists and has a club-high, six game-winning goals. Williams ranks first on the Marlies and third (tie) in the AHL with 15 power play tallies. He ranks sixth (tie) in the AHL in game-winning goals. Williams is the Marlies all-time leader in goals (65) power play goals (31) and game- winning goals (19). Tim Becoming a Staple: Tim Stapleton has notched 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists) over his past 15 games. Stapleton made his NHL debut on February 26 against the New York Islanders and scored his first career NHL goal last Saturday at Ottawa. The Oak Park, Illinois native ranks first on the Marlies and seventh (tie) in the AHL with 41 assists. Stapleton ranks first in the AHL with seven shootout goals. In 55 games this season, Stapleton has 60 points (19 goals, 41 assists) including three game-winning tallies. The American Hockey League named Stapleton the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for period ending February 1, 2009. He had a season-high, eight game point streak from Jan. 30 to Feb. 18.

Home Ice Advantage: Toronto's only lost six home games since December 14, 2008. The Marlies have won their past six of 10 games at home. Toronto has out-scored their opponents 82-62 at Ricoh Coliseum during a 19-game stretch. The Marlies hold a 19-12-0-2 advantage at home on the season. The Marlies set a franchise record on Friday, January 30 with their seventh consecutive home victory when they defeated the Hamilton Bulldogs, 4-2. The Marlies finished their season-high, 11-game home stand on February 21 with a 7-4-0-0 record.

Bates On The Board: Bates Battaglia has recorded 18 points in his last 17 contests (two goals, 16 assists). He's totaled six assists in his past six games. Battaglia had his six-game assist streak snapped on February 21 against Rochester. In 43 games this season, he ranks third on the team in points with 37 (13 goals, 24 assists). His plus-11 rating ranks second on the Marlies.

A Month to Remember: Jiri Tlusty was named the CCM/AHL Player of the Month for February. In 11 games in February, Tlusty notched 12 goals and 11 assists while recording a plus-11 rating. Tlusty began the month by scoring Toronto's only goal in a 4-1 loss to Syracuse on Feb. 7, and then matched a franchise record with four assists in a 10-5 win over Grand Rapids the next day. He had his biggest game of his young career on Feb. 18, scoring five goals on five shots and posting a plus-six rating. Tlusty had a season-high, nine-game point streak during the month.

On A Roll: Since November 19, 2008 the Marlies are 28-18-2-3 and have earned at least a point in their past 33 of 51 games (0.647 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 15-9-0-0.

Devo Time: Andre Deveaux has recorded 11 points (five goals, six assists) in his past 13 games. Deveaux ranks third (tie) in the AHL (active players) with a .204 shooting percentage (11 goals on 54 shots). He notched his second hat- trick of the season on Sunday, February 8 against the Griffins in the Marlies 10-5 win. Two of his three goals came on the power play. Deveaux ranks second on the club with eight power play tallies. Deveaux scored his first career AHL hat-trick on October 26, 2008 versus the Houston Aeros. In 27 games with the Marlies this season, he's tallied 19 points (11 goals, eight assists).

A Franchise Night: On Sunday, February 8 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 led the way 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.

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 31.7 shots per game against their opponents (fourth in the AHL) and rank first for shots against with 26.4 per game. The Marlies have greatly out-shot their opponents in the second period, 704-572. Tim Stapleton set a Marlies single-season high with 10 shots on goal on January 31 versus the Rockford IceHogs.

Special Teams: Power Play: Toronto's power play currently ranks second in the AHL with a 21.2% success rate. Over their past six games they've scored 13 power play goals. On Sunday afternoon the Marlies struck for three goals while on the man- advantage. Jiri Tlusty has registered 10 power play points (one goal, nine assists) in his past six games. Their power play set a franchise record with five goals on Sunday, February 8 versus the Grand Rapids Griffins when they went an impressive 5-for-7 in the game. The Marlies have registered 14, multi-power play goal games so far this season. Their power play on the road ranks fifth (tie) overall at 21.0%. They've scored at least one power play goal in 19 of 30 road games. Tim Stapleton leads all Marlie skaters with 30 power play points.

Multi-Point Games: Tim Stapleton leads the team with 16 multi-point games this season. This past week, Stapleton, Jeremy Williams (twice), Bates Battaglia, Jiri Tlusty, Jaime Sifers and Anton Stralman each recorded at least two points in a game.

Multi-Point Games
Stapleton 16
Tlusty 12
Williams 9
Newbury 7
Battaglia 7
Foster 6
Stralman 4
Boyce 4
Sifers 3
Devereaux 3
Bell 3
Aubin 3
Kronwall 3
Hamilton 3
Deveaux 3
Giliati 2
Petiot 2
Taylor 2
Ondrus 2
Ryan 1
Engel 1

Blue & White: So far this season there has been 14 different players to suit-up for both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Marlies. Most recently Phil Oreskovic made his NHL debut on Monday night against the Ottawa Senators. Joining Phil are Justin Pogge, Jaime Sifers, Nikolai Kulemin, Andre Deveaux, Kris Newbury, Anton Stralman, Jeremy Williams, Jiri Tlusty, Boyd Devereaux, Tim Stapleton, Ben Ondrus and Ryan Hollweg who have all seen action with both clubs.

Making Their Debut: The Marlies have dressed 15 new players through their first 64 games this season. Rob LaLonde suited up for the Marlies on February 20 and made his debut, becoming the 15th new player to dress for the club. Defensemen Richard Petiot, Andy Schneider, Josh Engel, Joey Ryan, Juha Uotila and Josef Boumedienne; forwards Andre Deveaux, Ryan Hamilton, Nikolai Kulemin, Ryan Hollweg, 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 20-36-2-2 record for 44 points. Dan Rudisuela has 17 goals and 19 assists in 60 games. Rudisuela has registered seven points (four goals, three assists) in his past four games, including a three-point game on Friday night. Maple Leafs prospect James Reimer has a 10-7-2-1 record with a .904 save percentage. Reimer made 31 saves in the Royals 5-2 win over Cincinnati on Friday night.

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.

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 32-25-2-5 record for 71 points through 64 games.

- Jeremy Williams' three-goal game on Sunday afternoon was the Marlies first hat-trick on the road since Robbie Earl scored three times on December 21, 2007.

- Phil Oreskovic made his NHL debut last night with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

- Ben Ondrus was recalled by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday afternoon and appeared in his first NHL game of the season at Washington.

- Bates Battaglia moved into third place (surpassing Colin Murphy) on the Marlies all-time points list with 129 on Sunday afternoon.

- Phil Oreskovic and Anton Stralman were both recalled by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday morning.

- In the Marlies 4-3 win over the Hamilton Bulldogs on Sunday afternoon, all four Marlie goals were scored on special teams. Jeremy Williams netted three power play goals and Ryan Hamilton added a shorthanded tally.

- Darryl Boyce ranks first on the team with 116 penalty minutes and Phil Oreskovic has a team-high, plus-15 rating.

- The Marlies are 23-2-1-1 when taking a lead into the third period this season and are 23-4-1-1 when they record the game's first goal. When Toronto scores three or more goals in a game, they own a record of 32-7-0-1.

Reebok/AHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE For the week ending March 8, 2009, the Toronto Marlies nominated forward Jiri Tlusty for consideration as the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week. Tlusty started the week with a Marlies franchise record setting six points in one game on Wednesday night in Toronto's 6-4 win over Providence. He notched two goals and had four helpers for six points, also an AHL season-high. Tlusty registered assists on both Saturday and Sunday. In four games this week, he recorded eight points (two goals, six assists).

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:

Saturday, March 14 vs. Lake Erie Monsters - Lunch Tin Giveaway Day
Sunday, March 15 vs. Manitoba Moose - Nickelodeon Family Fun Day
Sunday, March 22 vs. San Antonio Rampage - Joe Nieuwendyk Bobblehead Day

MARLIES RECAP:

Wednesday, March 4 vs. Providence

Marlies Dump Bruins, 6-4
Marlies Goals: Tlusty 2 (23), Stapleton 2 (18), Stralman (7), Williams (18)
Bruins Goals: Lehtonen 2 (23), Marchand (16), Sobotka (14)
Three Stars: 1. Tlusty (TOR), 2. Stapleton (TOR), 3. Lehtonen (PRO)

Recap: Jiri Tlusty set a Marlies franchise record with his six-point night on Wednesday in Toronto's 6-4 win over Providence. Tlusty scored the game's opening goal, but the Bruins tied the game late in the first period. Tim Stapleton responded just 10 seconds into the second period and would finish the game with four points (two goals, two assists). Tlusty scored his second of the night in the second period. Anton Stralman, Jeremy Williams and Stapleton all scored third period goals to give Toronto the 6-4 win. Bates Battaglia collected three assists in the game. Justin Pogge made 26 saves in the win.

Friday, March 6 at Hamilton

Marlies Shutout by Dogs, 2-0
Marlies Goals: None
Bulldogs Goal: Maxwell (17), Russell (13)
Three Stars: 1. Desjardins (HAM), 2. Maxwell (HAM), 3. Kostitsyn (HAM)

Recap: The Marlies fired 26 shots at Bulldogs starting goalie Cedrick Desjardins but couldn't beat him as Toronto fell in Hamilton 2-0 on Friday night. After two scoreless periods, Benny Maxwell beat Marlies starting goalie Justin Pogge five-hole to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead at the 4:06 mark of the third period. Hamilton would add a late empty-net goal with one second remaining in the game to seal the 2-0 win. Tyler Doig had a game-high, 16 penalty minutes and Anton Stralman led all Marlie players with four shots on goal. Pogge made 15 saves in the loss.

Saturday, March 7 vs. Hershey

Bears Maul Marlies 6-1
Marlies Goal: Stapleton (19)
Bears Goals: Bouchard 2 (14), Giroux 2 (45), Aucoin (22), Mink (28)
Three Stars: 1. Giroux (HER), 2. Aucoin (HER), 3. Bouchard (HER)

Recap: The Marlies scoring funk continued on Saturday afternoon as they were only able to muster one goal against the Hershey Bears. After a scoreless first period, Tim Stapleton tied the game at 1-1 three minutes into the second period on the power play. Jeremy Williams and Jiri Tlusty each collected assists on the play. After that, it was all Bears. Alexandre Giroux and Francois Bouchard each chipped in with two goals and Keith Aucoin and Graham Mink score the other two Hershey goals. Adam Munro made 23 saves in the Marlies loss.

Sunday, March 8 at Hamilton

Marlies Sneak by Hamilton 4-3
Marlies Goals: Williams 3 (21), Hamilton (12)
Bulldogs Goal: Kostitsyn (3), Glumac (23), Wyman (4)
Three Stars: 1. Williams (TOR), 2. Sifers (TOR), 3. Wyman (HAM)

Recap: Toronto's three power play goals proved to be too much for the Bulldogs on Sunday afternoon as the Marlies pulled off a 4-3 win. Hamilton took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission, but Jeremy Williams responded on the power play with his first of three goals early in the second period. Ryan Hamilton tied the game at 2-2 when he broke in all alone while the Marlies were killing a penalty. The Bulldogs went up 3-2 early in the third period, but again Williams tied the game at 3-3 and late in the third he put the Marlies ahead for good 4-3 to complete the hat-trick. Jaime Sifers collected two assists and Justin Pogge made 18 saves for his 21st win of the season.

Check out the Toronto Marlies Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from March 10, 2009


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