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November 5, 2008 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Marquette Rangers News Release


Marquette - The welcome mat at Lakeview Arena will be busy this weekend for the Marquette Rangers hockey club.  The team will entertain the Alpena IceDiggers for three games this Thursday, Friday and Saturday; and will also introduce some newly acquired players to fans of the tier II Junior squad.

Defenseman Reed Rushing has been acquired in a trade with the Motor City Machine, along with the rights to Motor City forward Andy Inderieden.  The Rangers have also acquired the rights to goaltender Dan Sullivan from the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League. 

Both Rushing and Sullivan are expected to be in the lineup this weekend against Alpena.

The Machine received forward Josh Bussell from Marquette in the deal, along with a third round draft pick in the upcoming 2009 North American Hockey League draft.  Sullivan comes to Marquette for future considerations between the Rangers and the Lancers.

"We've said from the beginning that we needed to shore things up in our own end," said Rangers head coach Kenny Miller. "Reed Rushing was an all-star defenseman last year and has proven he can play at a high level, so he'll be a good compliment to our young guys and be a leader on the blue-line. Sullivan has been a Junior player for a couple of years, has experience in the E.J. and the U.S.H.L. who's numbers speak for themselves so we're excited to add these guys to our lineup."

Rushing, from Seattle, Washington has scored two goals and five assists on the season for seven points. Sullivan, a native of York, Pennsylvania sports a goals-against average of 3.77 with a saves percentage of .889 after four games in net for Omaha.  Both are veterans of Junior hockey, something coach Miller says is a real plus.

"As young as we are, adding players who understand what it takes to compete and be successful at this level is important if we're going to start a run heading into the middle part of our season. These guys are leaders who we're confident will make a big difference for our club."

The Rangers are hoping for continued success on home ice this weekend, as the team is 3-0 at Lakeview Arena this season; including a 4-3 win over NAHL North Division leader Traverse City on September 26th. 

Marquette (5-8-3, 13pts.) will be looking for some separation from Alpena in the standings as the Rangers lead the IceDiggers by a single point for fourth place in the NAHL North Division.  So far this season, the IceDiggers hold a 2-1 advantage over the Rangers in head-to-head competition, with one of those wins coming in a shootout on October 11th.

Something else the Rangers will try and change this weekend will be Alpena IceDigger success above the bridge.  Since joining the league in 2006 - 07, the Rangers have struggled at home against the IceDiggers with Alpena winning 11 games at Lakeview Arena, Marquette has won only three.

Marquette continues to be lead in scoring by James Gallagher (5g 10a, 15pts.) and Chad Pietila (4g 9a, 13pts.) with Aaron Pietila a close third on the team with 12 points (6g 6a.)  Three Rangers players have nine points heading into the weekend.

Alpena has only one player with double-digit scoring so far this season:  Erik Peterson who has totaled 11 points on four goals to go with seven assists.  The big addition to the IceDigger lineup has been the re-acquisition of goaltender Nick Graves from the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL.  So far Graves is 2-1 in his second tour with Alpena, and boasts a GAA of 2.77 to go along with a .922 saves percentage.

Face off each night is at 7:30.  For ticket information visit the teams' website www.marquetterangers.com.

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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.

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