AHL Manchester Monarchs

Monarchs Report

Published on December 20, 2004 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Manchester Monarchs News Release


LAST WEEK'S HIGHLIGHTS

At Norfolk (12/15): Norfolk goaltender Michael Leighton stopped three of four shots in the shootout as the Norfolk Admirals held off the Monarchs, 5-4, at the Norfolk Scope on Wednesday afternoon. The Monarchs had goals from center Yanick Lehoux, left wing Jeff Giuliano and two from right wing Tom Kostopoulos. The Admirals lit the lamp with goals from left wing Quintin Laing, left wing Matt Ellison, right wing Shawn Thornton and defenseman Anton Babchuk. Manchester goaltender Mathieu Garon (14-3-1) made 29 saves in the game and took the Monarchs first shootout loss of the season. Admirals goaltender Leighton (4-7-1) earned his fourth win of the season stopping 11 of the Monarchs season low 15 shots. Manchester went 1-5 on the power play and Norfolk was 2-4 on the power play.

At Philadelphia (12/17): Former Los Angeles Kings left wing Jon Sim scored the lone goal as the Philadelphia Phantoms shut out the Monarchs, 1-0, at the Wachovia Spectrum on Friday night. Monarchs goaltender Mathieu Garon (14-4-1) made 21 saves in the game and took his fourth loss of the season. Phantoms goaltender Antero Niittymaki (14-5-0) earned his 14th win and second shutout by stopping all 24 Monarchs shots. Manchester went 0-4 on the power play and Philadelphia was 0-3 on the power play.

At Hershey (12/18): Center Eric Perrin scored on the power play 1:05 into overtime as the Hershey Bears edged the Manchester Monarchs, 3-2, at Giant Center on Saturday night. Center Yanick Lehoux and right wing Tom Kostopoulos scored power play goals for the Monarchs. The Bears had tallies from right wing Marek Svatos and left wing Mathieu Darche. Monarchs goaltender Adam Hauser took his second loss of the season, stopping 26 shots. Bears goaltender Peter Budaj earned the victory making 26 saves. Manchester went 2-4 on the power play and Hershey was 1-6 on the power play. At Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (12/19): Left wings Dustin Brown and Noah Clarke and center Yanick Lehoux each collected second period goals for the Manchester Monarchs, who closed a difficult mid-Atlantic road trip with a 3-1 win over the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at the Wachovia Arena at Casey Plaza on Sunday night. The lone Penguins goal came from left wing Ramzi Abid 7:32 into the third period. Monarchs goaltender Mathieu Garon earned his 15th win, stopping 19 shots. Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury took his fifth loss by stopping 16 Monarchs shots. Manchester went 1-6 on the power play and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was 1-5 on the power play.

MONARCHS TRANSACTIONS

12/20/04: The Manchester Monarchs (AHL) loaned left wing Connor James to the Bakersfield Condors (ECHL).

MONARCHS INJURY REPORT

12/19/04: Michael Cammalleri is day-to-day with an upper body injury.
12/15/04: Tim Gleason is day-to-day with an upper body injury.
12/13/04: Greg Hogeboom is out 10-12 weeks after undergoing wrist surgery.
12/03/04: Brad Smyth is day-to-day with flu-like symptoms.
11/27/04: Ryan Flinn is out 6-8 weeks after undergoing Achilles Tendon surgery.
11/18/04: Scott Barney is out 10 weeks after undergoing abdominal surgery.

News & Notes

Center Yanick Lehoux helped the Manchester Monarchs snap a five-game road winless streak (0-3-1-1) and a three-game winless streak overall (0-1-1-1) by scoring one goal and one assist in the Monarchs 3-1 win over the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Sunday night.

Now with 43 points (19-24=43) on the season, Lehoux ranks second only to teammate Michael Cammalleri (22-22=44) in the American Hockey League's scoring race.

Lehoux's 43 points represent a new career high for the third-year pro. Selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the third round (86th overall) in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Lehoux's previous highwater mark for points in a season was 42 (14-28=42), set last year in 66 games.

Lehoux has scored in 24 of the 28 games he's appeared in this season.

Lehoux has four goals and five points (4-1=5) in two games against the Penguins this season.

Lehoux, a 22-year-old native of Repentigny, Quebec, collected his first professional hat trick against the Penguins in a 7-3 Monarchs win at the Verizon Wireless Arena on October 16.

Lehoux's next goal will be his 50th as a Monarch. Only three players have scored 50 or more goals as a Monarch. The list includes former right wing Pavel Rosa (67), former left wing Eric Healey (66) and former center Steve Kelly (50).

Lehoux moved past former Monarchs defenseman Tomas Zizka into third place on the team's all-time assist list with an assist against the Hershey Bears on Saturday night. With 73 career assists, Lehoux ranks behind only Kelly (114) and Rosa (84) in career assists as a Monarch.

Veteran left wing Chris Schmidt appeared in his 400th AHL game on Saturday night against the Bears. Schmidt, originally selected by the Kings in the fifth-round (111th overall) in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft, has 161 points (70-91=161) in 401 AHL contests.

Schmidt, who ranks second only to defenseman Joe Rullier (226) in games played as a Monarch, skated in his 198th Monarchs game on Sunday night against the Penguins.

Goaltender Mathieu Garon snapped a personal two-game winless streak (0-1-1) by earning his 15th win (15-4-1) of the season on Sunday night against the Penguins.

Garon shares the league lead with 15 wins and four shutouts, ranks seventh in the league with a goals -against-average of 2.00 and eighth in the circuit with a save-percentage of .933.

The 26-year-old Garon, a native of Chandler, Quebec, has a career record in the AHL of 98 wins, 84 losses and 21 ties.

Goaltender Adam Hauser (7-2-0), who experienced just his second loss of the season on Saturday night against the Bears, ranks second in the league with a save-percentage of .940 and fifth in the league with a goals -against-average of 1.86.

In 54 career AHL appearances, Hauser has a save-percentage of .928 and a goals -against-average of 1.94.

The Monarchs, who lead the league in goals (114), assists (205), points (319), power play goals (38), and goals -per-game-average (3.93), were shutout for the first time on Friday night against the Philadelphia Phantoms.

The Phantoms edged the Monarchs, 1-0, in a match-up featuring the two teams with the two best records in the league.

The last time the Monarchs were shutout before Friday night's game? The Providence Bruins beat the Monarchs, 1-0, at the Verizon Wireless Arena on March 20, 2004.

Along with their 38 power play goals, the Monarchs lead the league with a 21.47 success rate on the power play (38 for 177).

Defenseman Denis Grebeshkov leads all AHL defensemen with 20 assists.

Grebeshkov, selected by the Kings in the first-round (18th overall) in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, had two assists against the Penguins on Sunday night.

The 21-year-old Grebeshkov ranks third overall in AHL defensemen scoring with 21 points (1-20=21) in 29 games.

Grebeshkov also has a plus/minus rating of plus-12, which ranks seventh best among league blue liners.

Defenseman Tim Gleason, originally selected by the Ottawa Senators in the first-round (23rd overall) in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, has a plus/minus rating of plus-13 rating. That ranks fourth best in the circuit.

Everybody in the league is looking up to Rullier when it comes to plus/minus. Rullier, selected by the Kings in the fifth-round (133rd overall) in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft, is the league's plus/minus leader with a plus-21 rating.

Veteran defenseman Jason Holland returned to the Monarchs line-up on Saturday night against the Bears.

Holland, originally selected by the New York Islanders in the second-round (38th overall) in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft, had three goals, six points (3-3=6) and 24 penalty minutes in 52 games with the Kings during the 2003-04 season.

Holland, who began the season in the Italian Hockey League with HC Alleghe, has 58 points (13-45=58) in 134 career games with the Monarchs.

Monarchs Events

Second Annual Rock & Talk Blood Drive - Join Max, Rock 101 (WGIR-FM) and New Hampshire's Information Station (WGIR-AM) for the second annual Rock & Talk Blood Drive, scheduled for Monday, December 20 at the PAL (Police Athletic League) Center, located at the corner of Lake Avenue and Beech Street in Manchester. The blood drive is scheduled to last from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. For more information, call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE.

Monarchs Promotions

Trading Card/Union Leader Family Value Night - The first 5,000 fans attending the Monarchs game against the Portland Pirates on Sunday, December 26 will receive a free set of Monarchs trading cards courtesy of the NH Tobacco Prevention & Control Program.

Also, fans are encouraged to look for a Union Leader Family Value Night order form in the state's most-read paper starting two weeks out from the game date. Families pay for the tickets and the Union Leader pays for the food. Great Value!

2005 Dodge AHL All-Star Classic

The 2005 Dodge AHL All-Star Classic will be held in Manchester on February 13-14, 2005. Manchester and the Ve rizon Wireless Arena will provide the stage for the best young hockey players in the world to showcase their talents.

Tickets for the 2005 Dodge AHL All-Star Classic are on sale now at the Verizon Wireless Arena box office, at all TicketMaster outlets, by phone at 603-868-7300 and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Fewer than 500 tickets remain for this marquee event.

Tickets Prices: $49 for the Gold (lower) level $39 for the Silver (upper) level

(The price includes one ticket to the AHL All-Star Skills Competition and one ticket to the AHL All-Star Game).

After the AHL All-Star Skills Competition on February 13, come celebrate with AHL players, guests and fans from around the league. The Center of New Hampshire - Radisson Hotel, Manchester (located across the street from the arena) will play host to the AHL All-Star Party Palooza, which will begin at 9:00 p.m.

Tickets for the AHL All-Star Party Palooza, a fun-filled evening featuring three separately themed parties rolled into one, are also on sale now. The parties will include musical entertainment from Beatle Juice, The Fat City Band and Hot Like Fire.

AHL All-Star Party Palooza tickets are $30 and can be purchased at the Verizon Wireless Arena box office, at all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 603-868-7300 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

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American Hockey League Stories from December 20, 2004


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