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Rampage in town tonight

November 24, 2006 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Houston Aeros News Release


Eight things you need to know
- The Aeros have just two home regulation losses against the Rampage in 25 attempts (21-2-2-0), including an unbeaten in regulation 14-0-2-0 mark since the last regulation loss, a 6-3 decision 1/16/04. The 16-game home unbeaten in regulation mark is the longest in Aeros' team history against one opponent. Houston has outscored San Antonio 64-26 at home in the last 16 meetings. Aeros G Josh Harding is 11-3-1 with a 2.05 gaa and a .931 save pct. in his career against the Rampage, but at home he has been even better, going 6-0-0 with a 1.13 gaa and a .944 save pct. Five of the nine goals he has yielded to the Rampage at Toyota Center came in one game, 10/7/05. He has allowed just one goal in four other meetings, plus a shutout.
- Hardly a week goes by without another milestone for Aeros veteran D Curtis Murphy, and tonight could be a monumental one at Toyota Center. Murphy enters play tonight with 399 points (123-276=399) in 611 professional games. Murphy is the Aeros' all-time leader among defensemen in goals (51), assists (126) and points (177). Counting the post-season, Murphy has played in 238 consecutive games since missing the 2003-04 season opener to attend Dan Snyder's funeral. He has played in 475 of a possible 476 games, counting both the regular and post-seasons, since the 2001-02 season. Murphy is tied for 17th among AHL blueliners this season with nine points (2-7=9), although he has been held without a point in each of his last three games, tying his longest run without a point this season.
- The Aeros have killed off 73-of-76 shorthanded chances (96.1 percent) in the last 12 games to move up to 89.3 percent, second-best in the AHL. Houston is a perfect 30-of-30 on the PK in the last six games. Five of the Houston's 13 PPG allowed have come on 5-on-3's, including two of the three PPG in the current run So, the Aeros have allowed just one 5-on-4 PPG in the last 12 contests.
- Aeros third-year G Josh Harding has played in all but one of the Aeros' first 19 games. Harding ranks first in the AHL in games played (18), minutes (1,068), shots faced (551) and saves (508), and is tied for fourth in wins (seven). He has 35 more saves than the second place netminder, Manchester's Jason LaBarbera. Harding ranks tied for 10th in the AHL in gaa (2.42), and tied for eighth in save pct. (0.922). He has allowed two or less goals in nine of his last 13 games. Harding is 7-4-0 with a 2.08 gaa and a .933 save pct. in his last 11 appearances. Counting back to last season and including the playoffs, Harding has appeared in 27-of-28 games. The Aeros' record for most games played by a goalie in one season is 72 - set by Frederic Chabot in 1996-97 in an 82-game season. The AHL record is 74 - set by Baltimore's Mike O'Neill in 1995-96. O'Neill also made an AHL record 2,005 saves that season. Harding has played in 99 games with the Aeros. Only Chabot (224) has reached the 100-games played mark in an Aeros sweater.
- Aeros rookie LW Benoit Pouliot was recalled by the NHL Minnesota Wild on Tuesday afternoon, but that didn't stop two other first-year Aeros from having big nights in San Antonio. RW Danny Irmen and C Ben Thomson each tallied a goal and an assist. Irmen is third on the team in scoring with 11 points (6-5=11). Thomson is tied for fourth with nine points (5-4=9), and his plus-five ranks just behind Pouliot (plus-six) for the team lead. Pouliot has four points (2-2=4) in the last two games alone, and five points (3-2=5) in the last four games. Twenty-five of Houston's 51 goals have come from rookies.
- Houston RW Matt Foy, who earlier this month became the 24th player to reach 100 points as an Aero, is a single PIM away from becoming the seventh player in team history with 100 points and 300 PIM's. Foy has 104 points (44-60=104) in 188 games with Houston, and would become the 16th player overall with 300 PIM's.
- Houston has allowed a goal in the opening 2:34 of a period in each of its last four games, and it is just 1-3-0-0 in those contests. Last Friday, San Antonio's Randall Gelech scored 2:34 into the game. Saturday, it was Omaha's David Moss at 2:04. Sunday, Greg Moore gave Hartford an early lead at 2:03 of the opening period. Tuesday in San Antonio, Gelech scored a tie-breaking goal 1:12 into the second period.
- Just two games after setting a new team AHL record for fewest shots in a game (14) in Omaha, the Aeros racked up a road team record 57 shots Tuesday in San Antonio, only to see rookie G Josh Tordjman stop 55 in his third career AHL start. The previous record was 53, most recently set at AT&T Center, when G David LeNeveu pitched a 53-save shutout - the most saves ever against the Aeros in a shutout - 3/18/06. Houston's team record for shots overall is 59, set 3/9/03, also against the Rampage. Tjordman didn't allow Houston a goal in parts of two pre-season games either, stopping all 29 shots sent his way.

Rampage at Aeros (Aeros are 33-9-6-3 overall, Aeros are 21-2-2-0 at Houston)
- Tonight is the 52nd all-time meeting between the teams - 26th in Houston.
- The Aeros are 18-4-2-1 in the last 25 overall meetings.
- Since a three-game winless slide in the series 12/27/03-1/17/04, the Aeros have unleashed a 23-5-3-2 mark.
- Houston got two goals and an assist from LW Benoit Pouliot in a 4-1 win over San Antonio at Toyota Center last Friday. The Rampage rebounded with a 4-2 victory this past Tuesday at AT&T Center, thanks to 55 saves from rookie G Josh Tordjman.

Scouting the Aeros
The Aeros (8-10-0-1) have lost three in a row for the first time since its six-game winless streak (0-5-0-1) to begin the season...The Aeros play a Friday home game, Saturday road game and Sunday home tilt for the second straight weekend...Rookie LW Benoit Pouliot (11-4=15) was recalled by NHL Minnesota on Tuesday, so RW Matt Foy (6-9=15) has the team scoring lead...D Curtis Murphy paces the blueline with nine points (2-7=9)...G Josh Harding is 7-9-1 with a 2.42 gaa and a .922 save pct. this season...Rookie G Tony Quesada, a Holy Cross product, is 0-1-0 with a 2.01 gaa and a .944 save pct.

Scouting the Rampage
San Antonio (7-11-0-0), AHL affiliate of the Phoenix Coyotes, has won two in a row - both at home, but has lost three straight on the road and is an AHL-worst 1-7-0-0 on the road this season...Tonight's game is one of just two road tilts for the Rampage over a 13-game stretch...C Yanick Lehoux leads San Antonio with 18 points (8-10=18), ahead of rookie RW Bill Thomas (5-9=14)...The Rampage got reigning league MVP C Donald MacLean down from NHL Phoenix on Tuesday...D Bryan Helmer paces the blueline with six points (4-2=6), but has missed seven games due to injury...Helmer could return tonight...G Josh Tordjman, summoned from ECHL Phoenix last week, has been stellar, with a 2-1-0 mark, a 2.00 gaa and a .944 save pct...G Mike Morrison, who has appeared in one game, is 0-1-0 with a 12.01 gaa and a .758 save pct.

2006-07 meetings (4th of 12 meetings, Aeros are 1-1-0-1 overall, Aeros are 1-0-0-0 at Houston)
October 15 Houston 4 at San Antonio 5 (SO)
November 17 San Antonio 1 at Houston 4
Tuesday Houston 2 at San Antonio 4
Tonight San Antonio at Houston
December 14 Houston at San Antonio
December 26 San Antonio at Houston
December 29 Houston at San Antonio
December 30 San Antonio at Houston
January 7 San Antonio at Houston
January 14 Houston at San Antonio
April 14 Houston at San Antonio
April 15 San Antonio at Houston

Tuesday's game
Rookie Josh Tordjman was brilliant, stopping 55 shots in his third AHL start and Bill Thomas and Yanick Lehoux scored 16 seconds apart in the third period, as the San Antonio Rampage sent the Houston Aeros to their third straight loss, 4-2 at AT&T Center. Daniel Winnick and Randall Gelech also scored for San Antonio, which has won four in a row at home. Rookies Danny Irmen and Ben Thomson scored a goal apiece and Josh Harding made 20 saves for Houston

Quick Hits
- Aeros D Shawn Belle has posted assists in back-to-back games and has seven points (1-6=7) in 18 games in this, his second season. That betters his point total (2-3=5) in 61 games for Iowa and Houston last season.
- The Aeros recalled C Marco Rosa from ECHL Texas and signed him to a PTO yesterday. Rosa attended the Aeros' training camp in September, and his 18 points (8-10=18) in 11 games currently rank him tied for ninth in the ECHL.The 6-foot-1, 185-pound native of Scarborough, B.C., posted four points (2-2=4) in 27 games for AHL Milwaukee.
- All but four of Houston's 17 games have been decided by one or two goals. The Aeros are 4-4-0-1 in one-goal games., and every game has typically been a nailbiter Houston has played 1155 minutes this season - and for 870 of those minutes (75.3 percent), it has been either a tie game, or one team has held a one-goal lead.
- San Antonio entered last Friday's meeting allowing a league-worst 4.27 goals per game, but has yielded seven in the last three games, all started by rookie G Josh Tordjman.
- The Aeros are 5-5-0-1 on the road, but just 3-5-0-0 at Toyota Center.

Power play update
- Houston is 25th in the AHL with the man advantage at 12.0 percent.
- The Aeros are an improved 4-for-27 (14.8 percent) in the last five games overall.
- San Antonio is 23rd in the AHL on the penalty kill at 78.4 percent, having allowed a league-high 27 PPG.
- The Rampage has allowed 12 PPG on 51 chances in its last seven games for just a 76.5 percent PK rate. San Antonio had yielded at least one PPG in six straight games until the Aeros went 0-for-7 Tuesday.
- Houston is 3-for-20 (15.0 percent) with the man advantage versus the Rampage this season, and went 2-for-6 in the lone meeting at Toyota Center.

Penalty kill update
- Houston is up a season-high second in the AHL on the PK at 89.6 percent.
- The Aeros have killed off 73-of-76 shorthanded chances in the last 12 games for a stellar 96.1 percent PK rate. Houston has outscored its opponents 11-3 with the man advantage in that span, and two of the three PPG's allowed were on 5-on-3's.
- In the last six games, Houston has killed off all 30 of its shorthanded opportunities.
- San Antonio ranks seventh in the AHL on the power play at 19.6 percent
- The Rampage is 5-for-23 (21.7 percent) on the power play in the last six games.
- San Antonio is 2-for-12 (16.7 percent) with the man advantage versus the Aeros this season, but 0-for-4 at Toyota Center.

Aeros/Rampage connections
- Rampage D Matt Jones enrolled at the University of North Dakota in 2001-02, a season after Aeros C Bryan Lundbohm left campus, and four after Aeros D Curtis Murphy graduated.
- Rampage D Travis Roche spent three seasons (2001-04) with the Aeros, winning a Calder Cup in 2003. Roche put up 120 points (35-85=120) in 185 games with Houston. Roche also went to UND, at the same time as Aeros C Bryan Lundbohm.
- Rampage D Nick Martens is an alum of the University of Michigan, as is Aeros assistant coach Cam Stewart.
- Houston D Shawn Belle, C Alex Leavitt and San Antonio LW Tyson Nash all hail from Edmonton, Alta.
- Aeros C Wyatt Smith attended the University of Minnesota from 1995-99, and then Rampage C Jeff Taffe was a Gopher from 1999-2002. Smith was also drafted in the ninth round by Phoenix in 1997.
- Houston LW Josh Olson played for San Antonio from 2002-05, while RW Joey Tetarenko skated with the Rampage in 2002-03.



American Hockey League Stories from November 24, 2006


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