Mechanics and Outlaws break through the competition

January 19, 2005 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2) News Release


LAKE ST. LOUIS, MO – Two teams that have struggled this season came out on top this week defeating both Western division leaders on Friday night.

Mechanics Take a Wrench to the Komets In their last of three visits to Fort Wayne this season, the Motor City Mechanics led after the first session with three goals. Newcomer Chris Gignac posted a shorthanded goal, unassisted at 5:32 into the first. Right wing Dan Price posted two goals and an assist, and Wade Paterson netted his first game-winning goal of the season in the 4-2 victory.

The Mechanics are currently 9-25-6 on the season with a 2-4-4 record in their last ten games.

Kemper Cookout The Kansas City Outlaws were first on the board with a Scott Kirton power play goal in the first. Rockford struck back with two goals early into the second to build a 2-1 lead. Mark Lee and Scott Kirton responded with goals in the second and third periods. Only :18 seconds after Kirton's power play goal, Jason Ralph tied the game at three. After seven minutes tied at 3-3, Outlaws winger Jason Ruff scored on Rockford goaltender Michel Robinson. To seal the victory, All-Star Joe Seroski tapped in an empty netter with :34 seconds remaining in the third. Maxime Gingras got the victory in net for Kansas City as he turned away 38 of 41 shots.

The Kansas City Outlaws, coached by Darryl Williams, are 13-26-2 on the season with a 3-7-0 record in their last ten games.

AROUND THE LEAGUE
EASTERN GP W L SOP PTS
Danbury 42 27 13 2 56
Adirondack 40 24 10 6 54
Richmond 42 19 20 3 41
Elmira 45 18 22 5 41

CENTRAL

Muskegon 41 26 10 5 57
Kalamazoo 41 24 14 3 51
Flint 40 20 13 7 47
Port Huron 39 18 19 2 38
Motor City 40 9 25 6 24

WESTERN

Rockford 41 26 10 5 57
Fort Wayne 43 26 13 4 56
Missouri 40 20 15 5 45
Quad City 37 16 15 6 38
Kansas City 41 13 26 2 28




Adirondack Frostbite - (4-0-0) – Saturday against Richmond, Marc Potvin coached in his 300th professional game, a 1-0 shootout win...Adirondack is on five-game winning streak. They have won their last four games by one goal, including two in shootouts...Adirondack has the second best road record in the league at 13-6-2...Sunday against Danbury, the Frostbite won their first game when trailing after two periods...Rookie left wing Ryan Bennett scored his third shorthanded goal of the season on Wednesday night against Elmira...Center Sylvain Cloutier is on a ten-game home point streak...Wednesday against Elmira, Derek Gustafson faced his first penalty shot in the third period and stopped right wing Carl Drakensjo to preserve the Frostbite's 4-3 victory.

Danbury Trashers - (2-1-1) – Defenseman Nick Bilotto signed a PTO with Bridgeport last week, making him the fourth Trashers player this season to suit up with the SoundTigers...The Trashers signed Bilotto's younger brother Anthony Bilotto to a PTO prior to the January 15th game, where he notched an assist in his UHL debut...In the month of January, Danbury's special teams have scored 22.2% (8-36) on the power play, while killing off 89.2% of their opposition with a man-advantage...The Trashers have added five shorthanded goals this month for 11 on the season tying Fort Wayne for the most in the UHL...The Trashers dressed assistant coach Bobby Stearns on January 15th and 16th against Flint and Adirondack.

Elmira Jackals - (1-3-0) – Rookie forward Derek Campbell passed rookie defenseman Chris Shaw to take the team lead in penalty minutes...Netminder Kevin Kurk stopped 8-of-9 attempts in his shootout win over Fort Wayne on Sunday. Turning away 12-of-14 this season in two shootouts, he is second in the UHL with a.857 shooting percentage...Left wing Jamie Thompson has the longest road game point scoring streak in the UHL. Thompson has scored 13 points in his last ten road games, dating back to November 3rd at Richmond...The Elmira Jackals are 3-7-0 in three-goal games...Elmira has been out-scored 59-33 in the middle frame this season.

Flint Generals - (0-3-0) – Bobby Reynolds recorded the Generals second hat trick of the year (first on the road) in the 8-6 loss at Danbury. Reynolds also scored a shorthanded goal and figured in five of the six goals in the contest...Flint will play three of the next four games at Perani's Arena...Right wing Rob Valicevic had eight goals, twelve assists for twenty points and has scored at least one point in ten of his last 12 games...Dan McIntyre continues to lead all goaltenders in save percentage (.928)...The Generals are fourth on the power play (42-228) scoring at 18.8 percent...The Generals are third in penalty killing (170-198) allowing 28 power play goals, killing penalties at 85.9 percent.

Fort Wayne Komets - (1-1-1) – Right wing Chris Grenville has 199 UHL career goals...Defenseman Rob Guinn has 99 UHL career points...Left wing P.C. Drouin is riding a nine-game point streak (5g, 77a, 12pts)...Center Colin Chaulk is riding a five-game assists and point streak (9a, 10pts) and has an eight-game home assist and point streak (12a, 13pts)...Left wing Sean Venedam has six goals in three straight games...

Kalamazoo Wings - (3-0-0) – The K-Wings have won nine straight games, one shy of the club record...Forward Gray Shaneberger is one game shy of 100 on his career...Center Yannick Carpentier is one point shy of passing Richard Keyes for third place on the K-Wings All-Time points list. He is also three assists shy of tying Matt Loen for third place on the K-Wings All-Time assist list...Chad Alban has won his last nine starts...The K-Wings are 2-0-0 in their current four-game home stand...Kalamazoo has won their last four shootouts. On the season, Kalamazoo is 7-3 in the extra session.

Kansas City Outlaws - (2-1-0) – The Outlaws have won two of their last three games played, registering a 5-3 win over the divisions top seed, the Rockford IceHogs...Right wing Jay Murphy has 8 points in 7 games with the Outlaws this season...Overall, the Outlaws are 8-2-0 when leading after the first period and 6-0-0 at home... Kansas City is 8-9-1 at home this season...Left wing Mark Lee has posted three goals and eight assists in his last ten games...Right wing Jay Murphy has netted two goals and tallied four assists in his last five games.

Missouri River Otters - (0-3-0) – Center Chris Bell played in his last game Saturday against Muskegon. He left the team to join the Royal Canadian Mounted Police...The River Otters are 12-7-3 at the Family Arena this season...The River Otters are mired in their longest winless streak of the year with seven straight losses...The River Otters have outscored their opponents 49-29 in the second period this year...The River Otters are one of only two teams in the league (along with Adirondack) that is undefeated when leading after the first period.

Motor City Mechanics - (1-0-2) – Mechanics collected four of possible six points this week...Rookie center David Bonk and right wing Joe Burton, each picked up four points in three games this week. Burton's shootout goal on Saturday versus Kalamazoo was his fifth of the season...Forward Joe Burton leads the Mechanics with 124 shots on goal, and forward Brad Cruikshank with 155 penalty minutes...Defenseman Kevin Hansen will make his first all-star appearance in Glens Falls, New York on Monday January 24th.

Muskegon Fury - (2-0-0) – The Fury's current nine-game win streak is a new club record for the regular season. During this streak, center Jeff Nelson reached 800 points and right wing Jason Lawmaster had three game-winning goals...Against their own Central Division, the Fury are 16-3-0 overall and 10-0-0 at home...Both the Fury power play and the penalty kill are ranked number one in the league...The Fury have the UHL's best home record (15-2-3) with their two home losses as the least in the UHL.

Port Huron Beacons – (1-2-0) – The Beacons have won seven out of their last ten games...They have gone from 16-7-1 since starting the season with a 2-12-1 record...Left wing Joe Sewell has posted seven goals and nine assists in his last ten games, four goals and three assists in the month of January...Gabriel Proulx is tied for second in league defensemen with eight goals...Left wing David Beauregard continues to lead the league with twenty-eight goals.

Quad City Mallards - (2-0-1) – The Mallards are on a two-game winning streak...On Wednesday night, the Mallards recorded fewest shots in the second period with one...Quad City is 7-1-1 when leading after the first period and 11-0-1 when leading after the middle session...In his last ten games, center Mike Kompon has scored five goals and tallied eleven assists for sixteen points.

Richmond RiverDogs – (1-1-1) – Richmond and Adirondack played a 0-0 regulation game Saturday with no penalties called on either team. This was the first penalty-free game in 'Dogs history. It was Richmond's third 0-0 regulation game in club history and their second in a week...The eleven round shootout Saturday was the 'Dogs longest of the season, and second longest since their thirteen round shootout last February versus Fort Wayne...The 'Dogs are 2-1-1 on a seven-game home stand...Nathan Grobins has registered two shutouts in three starts with Richmond. Richmond has played four straight games decided by one goal. The 'Dogs took only their second regulation one goal loss of the season Friday vs. Adirondack. Friday night Netminder Brent Belecki made his 'Dogs debut and right wing Trevor Senn returned from the IR.

Rockford IceHogs - (2-1-0) – Winger J.F. Dufour had a point in eight straight games dating back to December 31st. During his hot streak, the Hogs leading scorer has had four goals, nine assists and thirteen points for a plus-seven rating...The IceHogs are tied for the league lead with a goals against average of 2.44...Rookie defenseman Steve Pelletier leads all UHL rookies with plus-22 rating...Center Olivier Proulx is tied for the league lead with five game-winning goals...Rockford's power play is four for sixteen in the teams last three games.


2005 Pepsi UHL All-Star Classic LIVE!!!

The All-Star Classic will be held on January 24, 2005 in Glens Falls, New York. The Alumni Charity game will begin at 6:00 p.m. with the All-Star Classic to follow at 7:45 p.m. Both events will be broadcast over the Internet via the B2 Networks Webcast. In order to access the live feed, viewers will be asked to submit their email address and zip code, with the option of receiving a newsletter exclusive to the fans of the UHL.

The Adirondack Red Wing Alumni and the UHL Commissioner's Team will duke it out to benefit the Ronald McDonald House and the Tri-County United Way. Following the UHL All-Star Classic, Red Wing Alumni game-worn jerseys will be auctioned off to fans.

Tickets for the 2005 UHL All-Star Classic being held at the Glens Falls Civic Center are on sale now by calling 518-798-0202 or by stopping by the Civic Center Box Office between the hours of 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Ticket prices include admission for both the Alumni and All-Star Games. Special rates are also available for groups of 10 or more. Contact the Frostbite main office (518) 926-7825 for additional information.

Wine with the Wings Tickets for the Wine Tasting event with the Adirondack Red Wings, open to the public, are $20 for season ticket holders and $30 for the general public. The Wine Tasting Event will follow the Adirondack Frostbite game against the Motor City Mechanics on January 22, 2005. The event will be held in the lobby of the Queensbury Hotel and will feature twenty different wine vendors, a variety of foods and your own wine guide to take home at the end of the night. All proceeds from the event will go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation of Glens Falls.


LEADING SCORERS

POINTS TEAM GP G A PTS
Chaulk, Colin FW 42 14 48 62
Reynolds, Bobby FLT 40 16 42 58
Bouchard, Robin MUS 41 25 31 56
Belanger, Hugo P. ADI 39 21 35 56
Venedam, Sean FW 43 26 28 54
Koehler, Greg ELM 38 25 29 54
Kelly, Justin ADI 40 20 30 50
Blackned, Brant MUS 41 15 34 49
Valicevic, Rob FLT 38 20 28 48
Nelson, Jeff MUS 41 11 37 48
Sessa, Jason ELM 41 26 20 46
Dufour, J.F RCK 38 14 31 45
Beauregard, David PH 37 28 14 42
Ruid, J.C. RCK 35 22 20 42
Turner, Mark RMD 41 15 2 42
Richardson, Bruce DAN 39 13 29 42
Hymovitz, David RMD 42 11 31 42
Proulx, Olivier RCK 41 17 23 40
Kompon, Mike QCY 37 12 28 40


SHER-WOOD PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Danbury forward Mike Bayrack completed the week with nine points (5g, 4a) in four games. On Wednesday, he notched a goal on the power play against Richmond, and on Friday tallied an assist against the Generals. With two shorthanded goals in the 8-6 victory over Flint on Saturday, Bayrack is tied for first in the league with four shorthanded goals. For the 2004-05 season, he has netted twenty-four goals and fifteen assists with a plus-eleven rating. Bayrack has also notched five power play goals and four game-winning goals.

In the 2000-01 and 2001-02 season, he split time with the Missouri River Otters (UHL) and Muskegon Fury (UHL) earning 105 points in 133 games. He spent four seasons in the WHL (1995-99) of the Canadian Hockey League, and has made recent appearances with the AHL Bridgeport Sound Tigers and Norfolk Admirals. The 26-year-old Edmonton, Alberta native is in his sixth professional season, third in the UHL and first with the Trashers.

Other players nominated for the Sher-Wood UHL Player of the Week include: Adirondack center Sylvain Cloutier, Elmira center Carl Drakensjo, Flint right wing Bobby Reynolds, Fort Wayne center Colin Chaulk, Kalamazoo right wing Tim Krueckl, Kansas City right wing Jay Murphy, Missouri center Chris Bell, Motor City forward Chris Gignac, Muskegon right wing Rustyn Dolyny, Port Huron defenseman Rico Fatticci, Quad City right wing Joe Dusbabek, Richmond center Mark Turner, and Rockford right wing Chris Gobert.


SOUTHERN SPORTS SUPPLY UHL GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK

Adirondack's Derek Gustafson finished the week with a 4-0-0 record, 2.25 GAA, and a .917 save percentage. On Wednesday he made twenty saves on twenty-three Jackals shots, and on Friday, stopped thirty-one Richmond shots with three goals against. On Saturday he registered his third shutout of the season versus the RiverDogs stopping twenty-one shots on goal. The 4-3 shootout victory over the Trashers on Sunday moved him into first, leading the league with twenty-three wins. He posts a 23-8-5 record, holding second in minutes (2,107), fifth in saves (888), and tied for first with five shootout wins.

In 2003-04 he was a runner up for ECHL goalie of the year with the Louisiana IceGators with a .927 save percentage and a 28-14-0 season record. In the 1999-00 season, he led St. Lawrence to the ECAC Championship, was named ECAC Rookie of the Year, Tournament MVP and NCAA East Regional Tourney MVP. Most recently, the 25-year old Gresham, Oregon native made appearances with the AHL Houston Aeros (2001-02, 2002-03) and the NHL Minnesota Wild (2000-01, 2001-02).

Other players nominated for the Southern Sports Supply UHL Goaltender of the Week include: Danbury's Scott Stirling, Elmira's Kevin Kurk, Flint's Dan McIntyre, Fort Wayne's Kevin St. Pierre, Kalamazoo's Chad Alban, Kansas City's Maxime Gingras, Missouri's Kevin Reiter, Motor City's Rod Branch, Muskegon's Sylvain Daigle, Port Huron's Daniel Berthiaume, Quad City's Robert Gherson, Richmond's Nathan Grobins, and Rockford's Michel Robinson.


ON THE UP AND UP

Kalamazoo left wing Ryan Barnes continues to play for the Grand Rapid Griffins with three points (3g, 2a) in 28 games played...Kalamazoo center Kory Karlander has been with the Griffins since late September posting one goal and two assists in twenty-five games played...Muskegon center Todd Robinson, also with the Griffins, has notched nineteen points in twenty-nine games (6g, 13a)...Kalamazoo left wing Nick Bootland, who was reassigned to the Cleveland Barons in late September, has four goals and six assists (40gp) with a plus-two rating...Flint left wing Jay Henderson, who was called-up to the Providence Bruins at the start of the UHL season, has notched four goals and six assists in thirty-nine games played...Rockford defenseman Tim Wedderburn has played twenty games with the Chicago Wolves earning three assists with a plus-five rating (26gp)...Rockford defenseman Kevin Klein returned to the Milwaukee Admirals in early December notching eight points (3g, 5a) in twenty-three games...Danbury's J.F. David has played in two games with the Hershey Bears, and Kalamazoo defenseman Greg Labenski was reassigned to Cleveland playing in sixteen games with two assists...Danbury forward John Morlang has played fourteen games (1g, 1a), and defenseman Nick Bilotto three games, with the Bridgeport SoundTigers.



International Hockey League 2 Stories from January 19, 2005


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.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central