Moose Weekly

Published on January 31, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Manitoba Moose News Release


This weekend, Sergei Shirokov made his second straight AHL All-Star Classic appearance as the Russian forward also participated in his rookie season. Shirokov has improved upon an impressive rookie year with a team leading 33 points (16g, 17a) in 42 games highlighted by a 12-game point streak that lasted from Dec. 17-Jan. 15. The streak set a Manitoba Moose franchise record surpassing former IHL player Brett Hauer and Bill Bowler.

THE ROOKIES ARE ALL RIGHT: It's often impossible to predict how a rookie will adapt in his first pro season but Manitoba has received significant contributions from nearly all rookies. In goal, Eddie Lack was a bit of an unknown coming over from Sweden but the rookie goaltender earned his 15th win of the season on Saturday and was the AHL's goalie of the month in December. Meanwhile defenceman Kevin Connauton sits tied for second among all AHL d-men with 10 goals. Bill Sweatt has made a huge impact up front with 29 points (11g, 18a) midway through his first AHL season.

CRUTHERS EARNING HIS KEEP:

Forward Ryan Cruthers was signed by the Moose to a pro tryout on Jan. 7 and has definitely impressed in recent games. He scored his first AHL goal against Toronto on Jan. 19 and now has three goals in his past six games. Cruthers had an eventful first period on Saturday in Toronto with the game's first goal, followed by a fight, then he took a teammate's stick to the nose requiring medical attention.

For those players who aren't selected to participate in the annual AHL All-Star Classic, the showcase weekend provides a brief rest period. The challenge for some coaches is keeping their team focused leading up to that mini-break. The Moose played three road games last week taking on the Hamilton Bulldogs, Rochester Americans, and Toronto Marlies before Sergei Shirokov joined the rest of the AHL's best in Hershey.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011: Manitoba 0, Hamilton 3 The Hamilton Bulldogs hosted their first ever School Day Game welcoming over 10,000 kids to Copps Coliseum for a 10:30 a.m. local game time. The rare morning start was the first a.m. game for the Moose since December of 2008. The only player on either team to light the lamp was Hamilton forward Dustin Boyd who counted all three goals in the game. He opened the scoring midway through the second period and added two more in the third while the Moose couldn't solve their former 'tender Curtis Sanford.

Friday, January 28, 2011: Manitoba 1, Rochester 2 After being blanked in Hamilton on Wednesday, the Moose were desperate to get on the board early. They poured on 21 shots through 40 minutes but were down 1-0 heading into the third. Finally Garth Murray scored for the Moose on a shorthanded breakaway but Rochester answered back with the eventual game winner at 10:17 of the third.

Saturday, January 29, 2011: Manitoba 3, Toronto 1 In their final game before the AHL All-Star Classic, the Moose were starved for a win after dropping consecutive games to North Division rivals. Manitoba's Ryan Cruthers scored just three minutes into the game before Jordan Schroeder and Kevin Connauton followed up and put the Moose up 3-0 by the first intermission. The Marlies swapped goaltenders but couldn't dig themselves out of a three-goal deficit. Toronto did manage to break Eddie Lack's shutout bid with a third period goal by defenceman Korbinian Holzer.

The Moose resume their road schedule this weekend with a game on Friday in Wilkes-Barre Scranton, then Hershey on Saturday and Sunday. Manitoba's next home game is slated for Feb. 11 when they host the San Antonio Rampage.

Rookie defenceman Kevin Connauton scored his 10th goal of the season on Saturday against the Toronto Marlies... In a 3-0 shutout loss on Wednesday, Connauton was one of three players to finish with an even-rating... He is tied for second among all AHL defencemen with 10 goals this season.

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American Hockey League Stories from January 31, 2011


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