AHL Toronto Marlies

Marlies Hit The Road On Boxing Day; Host Two Games This Weekend

Published on December 23, 2008 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Toronto Marlies News Release


Opponents This Week:

(Dec. 26): The Marlies play their sixth of eight meetings against the Lake Erie Monsters - AHL affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche - on Friday night at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, OH. The Marlies defeated the Monsters for the first time in five meetings last Wednesday night at Ricoh Coliseum. The Marlies were led by Jiri Tlusty (three assists) and Bates Battaglia (two goals, one assist), as Toronto used a seven-round shootout to knock off their division- rival, 5-4. The Monsters currently sit in sixth place in the North Division with an 11-12-1-5 record for 28 points. Chris Durno paces the Monsters with 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) and Jesse Boulerice has a team-high 70 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. Darryl Boyce scored the Marlies first shorthanded goal of the season in their first matchup of the season on Sunday, October 12. 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 New York Rangers forward Dan Fritsche. Avalanche prospect T.J. Hensick led all NCAA Division I college players in points in 2006-07 with 69 (23 goals, 46 assists) while playing at the University of Michigan.

(Dec. 27 & 28): The Marlies take on the Manitoba Moose on Saturday and Sunday at Ricoh Coliseum. Manitoba ranks first in the North Division with a 21-8-0-0 record for 42 points. Toronto is 0-2-0-0 against their division-rival this season, losing back-to-back games in Manitoba in mid-November. Mark Bell leads all Marlie players with two points (two assists) against the Moose this season. Manitoba's 0.724 points percentage ranks second in the AHL. The Moose are 8-3-0-0 away from the MTS Centre, ranking first in the league with only three road loses. Jason Krog paces the way for the Moose with 27 points (eight goals, 19 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. 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 on the penalty kill with an 88.0 % success rate.

MARLIES HEADLINES:

Jiri Powering It Up: Jiri Tlusty has recorded at least a point in each of his past four games (seven assists). On Wednesday, December 17 against the Monsters, Tlusty registered a season-high three assists. In his past 15 games, Tlusty has registered 15 points (five goals, 10 assists). In 23 games this season, the Slany, CZE native has collected 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) with 12 of those points coming on the man-advantage. He ranks third on the Marlies in points and assists. Tlusty has also appeared in nine games this season with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Tim Becoming a Staple: Tim Stapleton has recorded at least a point in 12 of his past 17 games (five goals, 13 assists). In that span, Stapleton has notched five multi-point games. This past week he recorded four points (two goals, two assists) in four games and was named the game's third star on Friday and Saturday night. The Oak Park, Illinois native ranks first (tie) on the Marlies and second in the AHL (tie) with 13 power play assists. In 30 games this season, Stapleton has 27 points (six goals, 21 assists) including one game-winning tally. Stapleton ranks first on the Marlies in points and assists.

Reim Time: Maple Leafs prospect, James Reimer was recalled on Sunday morning and was on the bench for their game against the Hartford Wolf Pack. In 11 games with the Reading Royals (ECHL), Reimer had a record of 5-3-1 and a 0.905 save percentage. Reimer was selected in the fourth round, 99th overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Bates On The Board: Bates Battaglia has registered almost a point per game this season. In nine games, he's tallied four goals and three assists. Last Wednesday night, he had a season-high three points (two goals, one assist) and was named the game's first star. Battaglia's scored a point in each of his past two games and has five points in his last four games.

Captain Benny: Ben Ondrus has scored six goals over his past nine games. On Saturday, December 13 in Syracuse the Marlies captain scored a season-high two goals in Toronto's 4-2 win. Ondrus has appeared in all 30 games this season for the Marlies and has collected nine points (seven goals, two assists) and 40 penalty minutes.

All-Time Leader: Kris Newbury has potted 23 points over his past 18 games for the Marlies. During that stretch, he's scored six goals and added 17 assists. Newbury currently ranks second on the team in points (23) and second in assists (17). 13 of his 17 assists have come on the man-advantage, ranking third (tie) in the AHL. Newbury is the Marlies all- time leader in points (162), goals (56), assists (106), penalty minutes (429) and shorthanded goals (tie) with five.

Special Teams:

Power Play: The Toronto Marlies power play has clicked for 16 goals in their past 16 games. The Marlies have registered six, multi-power play goal games so far this season. Toronto's power play currently ranks sixth (tie) in the AHL with a 19.5% success rate. Their power play on the road ranks first overall at 25.0%. They've scored at least one power play goal in 13 of 16 road games. Kris Newbury and Tim Stapleton lead all Marlie skaters with 14 power play points each. Jeremy Williams paces the club with nine power play tallies.

Munny In The Bank: Adam Munro picked up his fourth win of the season on Saturday against the Springfield Falcons. He turned aside 24 shots in the Marlies 3-1 win. Munro shutout the Binghamton Senators on Friday, November 21 for his first shutout in a Marlies uniform, making 25 saves in the victory. He currently has a record of 4- 4-0 and has a 2.73 goals-against average and 0.904 save percentage. He is the first Marlies goalie to earn a shutout on the road since Justin Pogge on October 27, 2006 in Grand Rapids.

Max Is Back: The Marlies recalled Max Taylor on December 17 from Reading. In his second game back with the Marlies, he scored his first goal of the season. In four games with Toronto, he has one goal and a plus-two rating. The Ottawa, Ont. native recorded five goals in just four games while he was with the Reading Royals. On Friday, December 12, Taylor registered a hat trick in the Royals 3-2 win over Elmira.

Multi-Point Games: Tim Stapleton leads the team with seven multi-point games this season. This past week, Jiri Tlusty notched two multi-point games. Kris Newbury has tallied five, three-point games so far this season. The only other players to record three-point nights are Andre Deveaux, Jeremy Williams, Jiri Tlusty, Bates Battaglia and Tim Stapleton.

Multi-Point Games
Stapleton 7
Newbury 6
Williams 5
Tlusty 3
Boyce 3
Aubin 2
Bell 2
Kronwall 2
Sifers 1
Foster 1
Deveaux 1
Giliati 1
Petiot 1
Devereaux 1
Boumedienne 1
Ondrus 1
Battaglia 1
Schneider 1

Making Their Debut: The Marlies have dressed 10 new players through their first 30 games this season. James Reimer backed up Adam Munro on Sunday afternoon against Hartford, becoming the 10th new player to dress for the club. Joey Ryan made his AHL debut on Saturday, December 13 against the Syracuse Crunch. Defencemen Richard Petiot, Andy Schneider, Juha Uotila and Josef Boumedienne; forwards Andre Deveaux, 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 and also scored in the shootout on Friday night against the Binghamton Senators.

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.

Reading Report: The Toronto Maple Leafs ECHL affiliate, the Reading Royals currently rank seventh in the American Division with an 8-20-0-2 record for 18 points. Tyler Doig leads the Royals with 17 points (five goals, 12 assists). Dan Rudisuela has seven goals and seven assists in 30 games. Maple Leafs prospect, Michael Ouzas who is currently playing for the Fresno Falcons (ECHL) has a record of 10-6-1 with a 2.68 goals-against average and 0.905 save percentage.

MARLIES QUICK HITS:

- Tim Stapleton leads the team with 27 points and Ben Ondrus is the Marlies active goal scoring leader with seven tallies.

- Darryl Boyce ranks first on the team with 72 penalty minutes and Stefano Giliati and Phil Oreskovic share the team lead with a plus-four rating.

- Richard Petiot scored his second goal of the season on Sunday afternoon against the Hartford Wolf Pack. Petiot has recorded two points (one goal, one assist) in his past three games. Andy Schneider registered his first multi- point game (two assists) of the season on Sunday. - The Marlies are 10-0-0-0 when taking a lead into the third period this season and are 10-3-0-0 when they record the game's first goal. When Toronto scores three or more goals, the own a record of 13-2-0-1.

- Justin Pogge earned his first career NHL win in his first start last with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Pogge made 19 saves in the Leafs 6-2 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers. The last Leaf goaltender to start in his NHL debut and win: Damian Rhodes on March 22, 1991 at Detroit (3-1 W)

- Jaime Sifers registered his first career NHL point (assist) in the Maple Leafs 7-3 victory in Pittsburgh on Saturday night. Jeremy Williams continues his scoring touch with the Maple Leafs, collecting five goals in six games and now has seven points and a plus-six rating since being called up. John Mitchell recorded an assist last night in Atlanta and now has nine points (two goals, seven assists) in 28 games with the Leafs.

- The Marlies travel to Cleveland, OH to take on the Lake Erie Monsters for the sixth time this season at Quicken Loans Arena on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. Toronto then returns home on Saturday (7 pm) and Sunday (4 pm) to host the Manitoba Moose.

- The Marlies currently rank fourth in the North Division with a 14-13-0-3 record for 31 points through 30 games.

- The Marlies won the North Division last season with a record of 50-21-3-6 for 109 points. The 109 points set a Maple Leafs affiliate record.

Reebok/AHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE

For the week ending December 22, 2008, the Toronto Marlies nominated forward Jiri Tlusty for consideration as the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week. The Slany, CZE native registered six assists in four games this past week. Last Wednesday night, Tlusty had a season-high, three assists in the Marlies 5-4 shootout win. He scored twice in the Marlies seven-round shootout victory over the Lake Erie Monsters.

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, December 27 vs. Manitoba Moose - Curtis Joseph Bobblehead Day
Sunday, December 28 vs. Manitoba Moose - Nickelodeon Family Fun Day
Friday, January 2 vs. Iowa Chops - Pay Day Friday's presented by Ricoh
Saturday, January 3 vs. Philadelphia Phantoms - Anton Stralman Bobblehead Day

MARLIES RECAP:

Wednesday, December 17 vs. Lake Erie

Marlies Scare Monsters, 5-4
Marlies Goals: Ondrus (7), Giliati (2), Battaglia 2 (3), Tlusty (SOW)
Monsters Goals: Burki (3), Durno 2 (8), Cumiskey (2)
Three Stars: 1. Battaglia (TOR), 2. Cumiskey (LEM), 3. Giliati (TOR)

Recap: The Marlies won their second shootout of the season in the seventh round, behind Jiri Tlusty's two shootout goals and Justin Pogge's winning glove save. After a scoreless first period, the Monsters got on the board but Ben Ondrus tapped home his seventh of the season on a Toronto power play. Stefano Giliati gave the Marlies a 2-1 lead with under three minutes remaining in the second frame. The Monsters snuck back and took a 3-2 lead, but Bates Battaglia scored twice in the third, including a goal with 1:11 remaining in regulation. However, 13 seconds later, Chris Durno tied the game at 4-4 forcing overtime. After a scoreless extra period, the Marlies defeated the Monsters in the seventh round of the shootout, 5-4. Justin Pogge made 19 saves in the win and Jiri Tlusty added three assists.

Friday, December 19 at Providence

Bruins Squeak by Marlies, 4-3
Marlies Goals: Taylor (1), Bell (4), Stapleton (5)
Bruins Goals: Hamill (3), St. Pierre (10), Knackstedt (3), St. Pierre (SOW)
Three Stars: 1. St. Pierre (PRO), 2. Knackstedt (PRO), 3. Stapleton (TOR)

Recap: The Marlies played in their second consecutive shootout, but fell to the Bruins 4-3. This was the first time these two clubs have ever met. Max Taylor scored his first goal of the season to tie the game at 1- 1 mid-way through the second period. Toronto fell behind 2-1, but Mark Bell's fourth of the season tied it at 2-2 late in the second stanza. While the Marlies were on a 5-on-3 advantage, Tim Stapleton fired home the game-tying goal in the dying minutes of the third period, tying the game at 3-3. In the sixth round of the shootout, Martin St. Pierre beat Justin Pogge to give the Bruins the victory.

Saturday, December 20 at Springfield

Marlies Rally Past Falcons, 3-1
Marlies Goals: Stapleton (6), Foster (5), Aubin (3)
Falcons Goals: Chorney (1)
Three Stars: 1. Foster (TOR), 2. Chorney (SPR), 3. Stapleton (TOR)

Recap: The Marlies fell behind 1-0 nine minutes into the first period to the Springfield Falcons, but battled back for a 3-1 win. Tim Stapleton netted his sixth of the season, tying the game just 1:47 after the Falcons opened the scoring. Alex Foster and Brent Aubin each scored goals in the third period to give Toronto their second win in three games. Jiri Tlusty had his third multi-point game of the season, collecting two assists and Adam Munro won his fourth game of the season, making 24 saves on 25 shots.

Sunday, December 21 at Hartford

Wolf Pack Comeback and Defeat Marlies, 4-3
Marlies Goals: Petiot (2), Battaglia (4), Foster (6)
Wolf Pack Goals: Pyatt (6), Owens (6), Stefanishion (1), Moore (10)
Three Stars: 1. Pyatt (HFD), 2. Owens (HFD), 3. Anisimov (HFD)

Recap: Richard Petiot scored his second goal of the season just 1:46 into the game but Hartford responded five minutes later, tying the game at 1-1. Just before the first intermission, Bates Battaglia found the back of the net on a Marlies power play, giving Toronto a 2-1 advantage. Alex Foster extended the Marlies lead to two goals with his sixth of the season. However, the Wolf Pack battled back, scoring three unanswered second period goals, securing them the 4-3 victory.

Check out the Toronto Marlies Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from December 23, 2008


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.

OurSports Central