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Shark Warning in Atlantic - Worcester Sharks Weekly

March 20, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


Shark Snap Shot: The Worcester Sharks (30-27-3-1, 64pts) chomped six out of a possible six points last week (3-0-0-0) in three games which marked the first time the Sharks have ever swept back to back consecutive 3-in-3 weekends. The Sharks currently sit in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, which is 11 points behind the 8th and final playoff spot held by the Providence Bruins (Sharks have three games in hand with 15 games remaining). Head Coach Roy Sommer is expected to tie Frank Mathers (1256 games coached) for the most games coached in AHL history on Sunday afternoon in Providence.

The Sharks began the week with their 1st overtime victory of the season in a 4-3 come from behind win in Providence on Friday. Worcester dominated on Saturday night in Bridgeport with their 2nd shutout of the season in a 4-0 victory before closing out the weekend in convincing fashion with a 5-1 win over the top ranked Monarchs at the DCU Center on Sunday.

Just about everything was clicking for Worcester last week as the Sharks outscored their opponents 13-4. Daniil Tarasov had a pair of two goal games last week which included the overtime game winner on Friday in Providence, while new comer Brock Higgs (RPI) recorded a point in his first three professional games (3-2-5) for Worcester. A number of Sharks players are riding nice point streaks as Dan DaSilva (1-4-5) and Rylan Schwartz (1-3-4) are each riding four game point streaks while Konrad Abeltshauser (1-4-5) and Travis Oleksuk (1-4-5) each have three game streaks. Called up from the Ontario Reign (ECHL), defenseman Kyle Bigos made his AHL debut and recorded an assist and was +4 in two games while Mike Pereira (U-Mass Amherst) scored his first professional goal on Sunday in his 2nd professional game. Both Harri Sateri and Troy Grosenick are riding three game winning streaks as the Sharks ride the longest current winning streak in the AHL into this week at six games (6-0-0-0).

There was some action off the ice as well, as the San Jose Sharks reassigned defenseman Nick Petrecki to Rochester (AHL) at the AHL Trade deadline on March 12 and the Sharks signed three players to ATO's: Brock Higgs (RPI), Mike Pereira (U-Mass Amherst), and Adam Schmidt (Holy Cross). In addition, Worcester recalled Kyle Bigos from the Ontario Reign (ECHL).

The Worcester Sharks player of the week nominee is forward Brock Higgs. The 21-year-old rookie from Kingston, ON recorded five points (3-2-5), a power play goal, a game winning goal, eight shots, and was +4 in his first three professional games last week to lead the way offensively for the Sharks.

MILESTONE ALERT:

Head Coach Roy Sommer is THREE games away from tying Frank Mathers (1256 games coached) for the most games coached in AHL history. Coach Sommer has coached 1253 AHL games - all with the SJ Sharks AHL affiliates. Coach Sommer will tie the record on Sunday, March 23 at Providence and break the record on Wednesday, March 26 in Lewiston vs. the Pirates.

Forward Dan DaSilva ranks 2nd in franchise history with 136 points - trailing only the late Tom Cavanagh (138pts) by two points for the most points in Worcester Sharks history.

LOOKING AHEAD:

Friday, the Sharks welcome the Springfield Falcons at 7:30pm! Make sure to wear your Red Sox gear as the World Series trophy will be available for pictures inside the DCU Center concourse from 6:30-8:30pm! Enjoy $2 hot dogs, popcorn, and soda for every Friday night game with tickets as low as $10! The game will be shown live on Charter TV-3 with coverage beginning at 7:30pm.

Saturday, the Sharks host the Hershey Bears at 7pm. Doors open at 1:30pm for the Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association High School All-Star Games presented by Shriners beginning with a 1:45pm start for the girl's game followed by a 4pm puck drop for the boys. The All-Star Games will feature the state's top 92 high school senior boys and girls from MIAA schools, as selected by the MSHCA.

Sunday, the Sharks close out the 3-in-3 weekend vs. the Bruins in Providence at 3:05pm.

Few things to know....

* The Worcester Sharks are currently in 4th place (30-27-3-1, 64pts) in the Atlantic Division and 10th place overall in the Eastern Conference. - the Sharks trail the 8th and final playoff spot by 11 points with three games in hand over the Providence Bruins.

* The San Jose Sharks currently have 11 players on their roster that have spent time in Worcester (Couture, Desjardins, Pavelski, Sheppard, Wingels, Braun, Demers, Stalock, Irwin, Vlasic, Nieto).

* The San Jose Sharks are in 2nd place in the Pacific Division and 3rd place in the Western Conference with 97 points and a 45-18-7 record.

* The Worcester Sharks are an impressive 9-1 in the shootout this season! 30.0% of the Sharks wins this season have come in the shootout!

* Forward Dan DaSilva has 29pts (13-16-29) in 46 games this season and is now 2nd all-time in Worcester Sharks history with 136 points (56-80-136) in 224 games.

* Veteran Bracken Kearns played in his 500th AHL game on Dec 28 vs. the IceCaps and then was recalled by the SJ Sharks on Dec 28 and scored his 1st NHL goal in a 3-1 win over the Ducks on Dec 29. Bracken had three goals and an assist in 22 games with the SJ Sharks this season and was loaned back to Worcester on Feb 25.

* John McCarthy returned to action on March 2 after missing seven games due to injury. J-Mac has five points (3-2-5) in ten games with Worcester after appearing in 36 games with the SJ Sharks (1-1-2).

* 2nd year pro Freddie Hamilton leads the club with 18 goals, 1st with 35 points (18-17-35), and tops with nine 1st goals. Hamilton has already surpassed his point total from last season in just 51 games (76gp, 13-13-26) and has skated in 11 games with the SJ Sharks this season and is still looking for his 1st NHL point.

* Worcester Sharks alumni Matt Nieto (Oct 8 vs. NYR), Matt Pelech (Oct 10 at VAN), Bracken Kearns (Dec 29 vs. ANA), and Eriah Hayes (Jan 30 at CLG) each have scored their first career NHL goals for the SJ Sharks this season.

* Worcester Sharks alumni Alex Stalock is an impressive 11-4-1 with the San Jose Sharks this season with a 1.91 GAA and a .931 save %. Stalock picked up his first NHL shutout with a 24 save performance in 3-0 win at Florida on Jan 16 and followed it up with a 1-0 shutout win a 1-0 win over the Jets on Jan 23 in San Jose. Stalock set the SJ Sharks franchise record for a 178:55 shutout streak this season.

* Current SJ Sharks forward and #WorSharks alum Joe Pavelski was named to the US Olympic men's hockey team and leads the Sharks with 34 goals in 70 games.

* Coach Roy Sommer currently ranks 4th in the AHL with 570 wins in his career (16th season) and 2nd in games coached in the AHL with 1253.

Top 3... Last Week!

1. Daniil Tarasov scored twice, including the 1st overtime game winner of the season for Worcester in the Sharks 4-3 overtime victory in Providence on Friday!

2. Harri Sateri made 25 saves for his 15th win and first shutout of the season in the Sharks 4-0 win at Bridgeport on Saturday!

3. Travis Oleksuk extended his point streak to three games with three points (1-2-3) in the Sharks 5-1 win over Manchester on Sunday!

Last Week: (3-0-0-0) 6pts, 3gp

Fri. 3/14 OTW Worcester SHARKS 4 @ Providence Bruins 3 - OT

Sat. 3/15 W Worcester SHARKS 4 @ Bridgeport Sound Tigers 0

Sun. 3/16 W Manchester Monarchs 1 @ Worcester SHARKS 5

This week:

Fri. 3/21 Springfield Falcons @ Worcester SHARKS - 7:30pm

Sat. 3/22 Hershey Bears @ Worcester SHARKS - 7pm

Sun. 3/23 Worcester SHARKS @ Providence Bruins - 3:05pm

Rewind the Tape:

3.14.14 - Providence 3 - Worcester 4 - OTW - Dunkin Donuts Center - Providence, RI

Daniil Tarasov scored twice including the game winner in overtime as the Worcester Sharks (28-27-3-1, 60ts) won their 4th straight game with a 4-3 come from behind overtime win over the Providence Bruins (32-21-2-7, 73pts) in front of 8,038 fans at the Dunkin Donuts Center on Friday evening. The Sharks led 1-0, 2-1, but trailed 3-2 headed into the third period as Brodie Reid (1-1-2), Daniil Tarasov (2-0-2), and Dan DaSilva (0-2-2) all recorded multi point games for Worcester and Troy Grosenick stopped 24 in net for his 14th win of the season. Rob Davison scored a 1st period goal as the Sharks won their fourth straight 1-goal game overall.

3.15.14 - Bridgeport 0 - Worcester 4 - W - Webster Bank Arena - Bridgeport, CT

The Worcester Sharks (29-27-3-1, 62pts) won a season high fifth straight game with a 4-0 victory over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (26-29-2-4, 58pts) in front of 4,135 fans at the Webster Bank Arena on Saturday evening. Brock Higgs (RPI) scored his 1st two professional goals while Dan DaSilva (13th) and Konrad Abeltshauser (1-1-2) each scored power play goals for Worcester. Harri Sateri made 25 saves in net for his 1st shutout of the season as Dylan Demelo and John McCarthy each picked up two assists as the Sharks continue to charge up the Eastern Conference playoff picture.

3.16.14 - Manchester 1 - Worcester 5 - W - DCU Center - Worcester, MA

The Worcester Sharks (30-27-3-1, 64pts) topped the Manchester Monarchs (40-17-2-6, 88pts) 5-1 before 4,645 fans as they played the final of three consecutive weekend games Sunday afternoon at the DCU Center. With the win, the Sharks swept the weekend, earning 6-of-6 points for the second weekend in a row. The Sharks racked up four goals the second period on just nine shots - the first time the Sharks have scored four goals in a period all season. The Monarchs put up the first tally of the night with a goal by Andrew Crescenzi, but the Sharks answered with five of their own, including two on the power play. The Sharks' four second period goals were netted by Travis Oleksuk (1-2-3), Mike Pereira (1-0-1), Daniil Tarasov (2-0-2), and Brock Higgs (1-1-2). Tarasov scored again in the third, solidifying the game at 5-1. In the win, tender Harri Sateri put on a solid performance making 26 saves.

Sharks in the Atlantic:

The Sharks (30-27-3-1, 64pts in 61gp) are currently in 4th place in the Atlantic Division; which is 24 points behind the 1st place Monarchs (88pts in 65gp), 16 points behind the 2nd place IceCaps (80pts in 62gp), 11 points behind the 3rd place Bruins (75pts in 64gp), and 10 points ahead of the 5th place Pirates (54pts in 62gp) to round out a very choppy Atlantic Division.

Coaching Milestones....

*1000 GAMES... With the 3-1 victory at Springfield on January 14, 2011, head coach Roy Sommer became just the 4th coach in AHL history to reach the 1,000 games plateau.

*1200 GAMES... With the 5-1 loss in Lewiston, ME vs. the Pirates on November 8, 2013, head coach Roy Sommer became just the 2nd coach in AHL history to reach the 1,200 games plateau.

*500 WINS!.... With a 3-2 shootout victory in Hershey on February 11, 2012, head coach Roy Sommer became just the 4th coach in AHL history to reach the 500 win plateau.

*400 WINS.... With a 4-3 victory over the Portland Pirates on Jan 12, 2014, associate coach David Cunniff picked up his 400th win an assistant/associate coach with the SJ Sharks top AHL affiliates.

AHL COACHING WINS - ALL-TIME

1. Fred "Bun" Cook 1937-56 19seasons 1,171GP 636 WINS

2. Frank Mathers 1956-85 18seasons 1,256GP 610 WINS

3. John Paddock 1981-2010 16seasons 1,125GP 589 WINS

4. Roy Sommer 1998-current 16seasons 1,253GP 570 WINS

*Worcester Sharks Head Coach Roy Sommer, who plays a major role in developing players for the San Jose Sharks, is currently the longest-tenured coach (16th season) in the American Hockey League. His current regular season record is now: 570-527-48-55-53. (W-L-T-OTL-SOL)

*In Coach Sommer's first AHL victory.... The Kentucky Thoroughblades defeated the Albany River Rats 6-4 at the Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky on October 17th 1998. Coincidentally, Associate Coach David Cunniff recorded an assist as a member of the River Rats in the hockey game.

*Associate Coach David Cunniff has joined Coach Sommer in 413 of the 570 victories (72%).

*ECHL... Coach Sommer also has 176 wins in the ECHL coaching in five seasons with Roanoke Valley and Richmond.

Shark Bites:

*Captains for the 2013-14 season: Rob Davison was named the Sharks 6th captain in team history on October 12, 2013. Alternate captains for this season: Bracken Kearns and Jimmy Bonneau. - Brodie Reid, Marek Viedensky, Freddie Hamilton, Sena Acolatse, Dan DaSilva, and Taylor Doherty have also worn the A this season.

*From east to west..... The Worcester Sharks have already had eight players (17 call-ups) receive at least one call up to the San Jose Sharks already this season. (Pelech, McCarthy, Kearns, Hamilton, Nieto, Hayes, Tennyson, and Doherty)

*Breaking down October... The Sharks had a 2-3-0-0 (4pts in 5gp) record in October with 12 GF and 14 GA. PP was 5-27 (18.5%); opponents PP was 2-for-22 (9.0%), and the Sharks had 10 fighting majors in October.

*Breaking down November... The Sharks had a 6-5-1-0 (13pts in 12gp) record in November with 26 GF and 35 GA. PP went 7-for-51 (13.7%); opponents PP went 11-for-60 (18.3%), and the Sharks had 18 fighting majors in November.

*Breaking down December... The Sharks had a 5-5-1-1 (12pts in 12gp) record in December with 29 GF and 33 GA. PP went 6-for-54 (11.1%); opponents PP went 8-for-48 (16.7%), and the Sharks had 10 fighting majors in December.

*Breaking down January.... The Sharks finished with a 8-5-1-0 (17pts in 14gp) record in January with 41 GF and 38 GA. PP went 14-50 (28.0%); opponents PP went 12-53 (22.6%) and the Sharks had eight fighting majors in January.

*Breaking down February.... The Sharks finished 2-8-0-0 (4pts in 10gp) record in February with 19 GF and 44 GA. PP went 4-38 (10.5%); opponents PP went 7-50 (14.0%) and the Sharks had 13 fighting majors in February.

*Breaking down March.... The Sharks are 7-1-0-0 (14pts in 8gp) record in March with 28 GF and 16 GA. PP is 7-34 (20.6%); opponents PP is 2-27 (7.4%) and the Sharks have six fighting majors in March.

*Streakers... the Sharks have won a season high six straight games.... Dan DaSilva (1-4-5) and Rylan Schwartz (1-3-4), each have a four game point streak....Konrad Abeltshauser (1-4-5), Brock Higgs (3-2-5), Travis Oleksuk (1-4-5), and Brodie Reid (2-2-4) each have a three game point streak... Troy Grosenick and Harri Sateri have each won three straight games in net.

*Shot Clock.... The Sharks fired a season high 50 shots in their 3-1 loss to the IceCaps on Feb 22. Worcester held a 17-1 advantage just 6:45 into the hockey game. Goaltender Michael Hutchinson made 49 saves for St. John's.

*Shot Clock X2.... Worcester allowed a season low one shot on goal in the first period at Manchester on Feb 23. - but it was a goal. The Sharks lost the game 4-2 despite outshooting the Monarchs 32-19.

*Shot advantage... Worcester had outshot their opponents 252-152 in during a seven game stretch (Feb 22 - March 8) averaging 36.0 shots per game and allowing just 21.7 shots against per game.

*11... the Sharks allowed a franchise low 11 shots in a 2-1 loss to the Falcons on March 2 which included one shot against in the third period.

*Improving!.... Several players have already matched or surpassed their point totals from last year for the Worcester Sharks!

* Freddie Hamilton (18-17-35pts in 51gp) has already surpassed his 13-13-36pts in 76gp last year!

* Travis Oleksuk (13-14-27pts in 59gp) has already surpassed his 3-10-13pts in 60gp last year!

* Taylor Doherty (3-9-12pts in 57gp) has already surpassed his 1-9-10pts in 40gp last year!

* Jimmy Bonneau (2-2-4pts in 37gp) has already surpassed his 1-1-2pts in 26gp last year!

* Marek Viedensky (6-13-19 in 46gp) has a career high in points already this season!

*Odd Numbers.... Worcester is 22-12-1-0 when they score a power play goal.... 10-4-1-0 when they score a power play goal on the road.... The Sharks are 14-1-0-0 when they score at least four goals in a game.... Worcester is 14-3-0-0 when they allow two goals or less.... The Sharks are 21-11-3-1 in games that are decided by two goals or less... but 8-15-0-0 in games decided by three goals or more.

*3 is the magic number.... The Sharks are 26-5-0-1 when they score at least three goals in a hockey game....BUT.... the Sharks are 6-24-2-1 when they allow three or more goals in a hockey game.

*What a crowd (s)!.... the Sharks welcomed 9,055 fans at the newly renovated DCU Center on Jan 25th in a 3-2 loss to the Bruins. - it was the 3rd largest crowd in franchise history! In addition, another 5,091 fans came the very next day to cheer the Sharks to a 4-3 shootout victory over the Monarchs. 14,146 fans enjoyed the two Sharks games on Jan 25 and 26!

*What a crowd Take 2... the Sharks welcomed 7,966 fans at the DCU for the 3rd annual PINK in the RINK game vs the Bruins on Feb 1!

*TRADE!!!!.... The Sharks traded Curt Gogol and Riley Brace to the Minnesota Wild organization for Chad Rau on Feb 6. Rau, a 27-year-old forward from Eden Prairie, MN was a teammate of Dan DaSilva last year in Houston (AHL) and joined the Sharks with 299 games in the AHL with 147 points (63-84-147) - in addition to nine games with the Minnesota Wild in 2011-12 (2-0-2). Chad played four productive years at Colorado College and was originally drafted by the Maple Leafs in 2005. Rau has played 13 games in Worcester (0-3-3) and wears #20 for Team Teal.

*3-in-3 Sweep... the Sharks swept a 3-in-3 weekend on Jan 10-12 (3-1W vs HFD, 5-1W vs. NOR, 4-3W vs. POR) - it was the first six point weekend since April 11-13 of 2010!

*3-in-3 Sweep X2... the Sharks swept their 2nd 3-in-3 weekend on March 7-9 (5-4SOW at PRO, 3-2W vs. POR, 4-3SOW vs. Albany)

*3-in-3 Sweep X3... the Sharks swept their 2nd consecutive 3-in-3 weekend on March 14-16 (4-3OTW at PRO, 4-0W at BRI, 5-1W vs. Manchester)

*3-in-3 Sweep - Reversed.... The Sharks were swept in a 3-in-3 weekend on Feb 14-16. (5-1L at MCH, 8-0L at BNG, 4-1L at SPR) - it was the 6th time in franchise history and the 2nd time this year (Nov 8-11)

*3-in-3 Sweep - Reversed X2 ... the Sharks were swept in a 3-in-3 weekend on Feb 21-2. (5-1L vs. STJ, 3-1L vs. STJ, 4-2L at MCH) - it was the 7th time in franchise history and the 1st time ever the Sharks have been swept in two consecutive 3-in-3 weekends.

*Shutout Streak.... The Sharks went a franchise record of 163:12 without scoring a goal but broke the streak in the 2nd period on Dec 27- and then the Sharks scored three goals in a 3:16 spell late in the second period vs. the St. John's IceCaps.

*No Lead streak...the first goal by Freddie Hamilton at 5:38 of the 1st period on March 1 at Bridgeport snapped a 425 minute and 37 second span that the Sharks had not have a lead.

*Solved the Bruins....Worcester started the season 0-5-0-1 vs. the Bruins this season and were outscored 9-26 in the process before the Sharks took game 7 on Feb 1 by the score of 3-2. The Sharks have defeated the Bruins in the last three games with the two teams meeting three more times this season including March 23 at Providence.

*Sharks win close games... Worcester is 17-7-3-1 in 1-goal games this season - nine of the 17 wins have come in the shootout!

*More Goals Late.... the Sharks have scored 38 goals in the 1st, 52 in the 2nd, and 56 goals in the 3rd period this season... the Sharks have allowed 48 goals in the 1st, 64 in the 2nd, and 66 goals in the 3rd.

*Battling Back... six of the 30 wins for the Sharks this season have occurred when the team was trailing after 40 minutes of play.

*Barely outshot... Worcester has only been outshot 16 times this season... the fewest in the AHL this season.

*8 Goal Explosion!... the Worcester Sharks scored eight goals vs. the Portland Pirates on Dec 6 - setting a franchise record for most goals scored at the DCU Center! - heading into that game (18th game), the Sharks had not scored more than three goals in a game!

*Monster Night.... The line of Freddie Hamilton (2-1-3), Matt Nieto (2-3-5), and Daniil Tarasov (1-2-3) combined for 11 points, 18 shots, and a combined +12 in the Sharks 8-2 win over the Pirates on Dec 6.

*Monster Night Take 2....The line of Travis Oleksuk (1-2-3), Dan DaSilva (3-1-4), and Yanni Gourde (0-4-4) combined for 11 points, 13 shots, and a combined +11 in the Sharks 6-3 win at Portland on Jan 21

*Allowing 8... the Sharks allowed eight goals in a 8-2 loss in Providence on Jan 5 - tying a franchise record for most goals allowed in a game.

*Allowing 8 x2... Worcester suffered their worst loss in franchise history in an 8-0 loss in Binghamton on Feb 15.

*Multi-Point Game....Tough Guy Jimmy Bonneau had two assists in the Sharks 8-2 win over the Portland Pirates on Dec 6... his 1st multi point game as a member of the Sharks in game #88.

*Welcome Back... Dan DaSilva returned to the Worcester Sharks on Nov 20 after leading the ECHL with 26 points (7-19-26) in just 14 games for the Ontario Reign and was named the ECHL Player of the Week for Nov 11-17. DaSilva currently ranks 2nd all-time in Worcester Sharks history with 136 points (56-80-136) in 224 games for Team Teal and is the franchise leader in playoff points with 18 (5-13-18) in 23 Calder Cup playoff games. A member of the original Crazed Rats Line with John McCarthy and Andrew Desjardins; DaSilva had his best professional season with the Sharks in 2010-11 as he set career highs in points (53), goals (21), assists (32), and was +23 as the Sharks won the regular season Atlantic Division title with a 49-25-0-6 record. DaSilva was signed to a standard player AHL contract on Dec 12 for the rest of the season.

*Shooting %... the Sharks as a team have a 7.4% shooting percentage which is 30th in the AHL.

*3 in the 1st....it took 43 games but the Sharks finally scored three goals in the 1st period in their 5-2 win over the Falcons on Jan 31.

*Games past regulation.... Worcester has an AHL best .714 win percentage in games that are decided after 60 minutes of play (24 of 28 possible points).

*Thanks Ballou... despite being 9-1 in the shootout this season, the Sharks are just 30W-44L overall (38.9%)

*Shootout Success... the Sharks are 9-1 in the shootout this season with a 41% scoring percentage (4th) and an 81.1% saves percentage (2nd). Dan DaSilva is 5-for-7 in the shootout with three game winners - the three game winners are tied for the most in the AHL.

*Oh boy...Troy in the Shootout!.... goaltender Troy Grosenick is 5-0 this season in the shootout - 2nd most shootout wins in the AHL.... Troy has stopped 20 of 23 shootout attempts (.870%).

*Home shutout... the 27 save shutout by Troy Grosenick on Nov 2 vs. the St. John's IceCaps at the DCU Center was the 1st shutout on home ice for the Sharks in almost a year. Alex Stalock had the last shutout on Nov 4, 2012 vs. the Manchester Monarchs in a 1-0SOW. Coincidentally, Stalock also made 27 saves in the victory.

*Score first... the Sharks have scored FIRST 28 times in 61 games this season (22-4-1-1) - Freddie Hamilton 9, Daniil Tarasov 2, Rylan Schwartz 1, Brodie Reid 1, Bracken Kearns 1, Eriah Hayes 1, Dan DaSilva 3, Lane Scheidl 2, Jimmy Bonneau 1, Travis Oleksuk 2, Konrad Abeltshauser 1, Marek Viedensky 1, Rob Davison 1, and Brock Higgs 1.

*Just like in college.... Sharks rookie forward Eriah Hayes led the NCAA last season with 186 shots on goal with Minnesota State - Mankato... Hayes is 6th on the Worcester Sharks with 115 shots on goal through 44 games this season. Hayes also has a goal and 16 shots in 15 games for the SJ Sharks this season.

*Pro Debuts: Konrad Abeltshauser (Oct 12 at SPR), Troy Grosenick (Oct 20 vs. WBS), Brock Higgs (Mar 14 at PRO), and Mike Pereira (Mar 15 at BRI).

*3-for-3!...veteran defenseman Rob Davison became the second player (Jonathan Cheechoo is the other) to play for the SJ Sharks AHL affiliate in three different cities after his game for Worcester on Oct 12 at Springfield. Davison played 72 games for the Kentucky Thoroughblades in 2000-01 and 112 games for the Cleveland Barons in 2001-03! Davison has played 725 games in his professional career.

*2 National Champions... The Sharks have three players that have won the NCAA Division 1 Championship.... Travis Oleksuk with University Minnesota Duluth in 2011... John McCarthy was co-captain for Boston University in 2009. *Memorial Cup... rookie defenseman Konrad Abeltshauser won the Memorial Cup in 2013 with the Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) and was named to the 2013 Memorial Cup All-Star Team.

*Young Guns... the Sharks have dressed 11 rookies already this season. (Troy Grosenick, Konrad Abeltshauser, Eriah Hayes, Rylan Schwartz, Riley Brace, Dylan Demelo, Tyler Gron, Lane Scheidl, Scott Fleming, Brock Higgs, and Mike Pereira)

*Tallest Shark.... Worcester Sharks rookie defenseman Taylor Doherty is the tallest player in team history standing at 6'7" 235lbs.... Doherty scored his first professional goal in game #70 and added an assist in the Sharks 3-2OTL to the IceCaps on Nov 3, 2012. Doherty has four goals in 163 games with the Worcester Sharks.... Doherty is 2nd on Worcester with 107 penalty minutes and 3rd with seven fighting majors.... Doherty scored his 1st professional game winning goal in the 4-3W vs. Portland on Jan 10 and received his 1st NHL recall on Jan 21 and did not dress in two games for the SJ Sharks before getting assigned back to Worcester on Jan 26.

*Four straight seasons with 20?.... Forward Bracken Kearns scored his 21 goals last season and hit the 20 goal plateau for the third straight season having scored 20 and 22 goals the previous two seasons with San Antonio.... Bracken has five goals and 14 assists in 35 games this season. Kearns played in his 500th AHL game in the Sharks 5-2 win vs. St. John's on Dec 27 and then scored his 1st NHL goal in the SJ Sharks 3-1 win vs. Anaheim Ducks on Dec 29. - Kearns has three goals in the NHL this season in 22 games.

*First Pro Goals this season... Konrad Abeltshauser scored his 1st pro goal (JF Berube) in 2-1SOW at Manchester on Dec 8....Dylan Demelo scored his 1st (Malcolm Subban) in 8-2L at Providence on Jan 5.... Brock Higgs scored his 1st (Kevin Poulin) in 4-0W at Bridgeport on Mar 15.... Mike Pereira scored his 1st (JF Berube) in 5-1W vs. Manchester on Mar 16.

*Sharks in the Atlantic... Worcester went 19-14-3-4 in the Atlantic Division in 2012-13 and is 18-18-1-1 vs. the Atlantic this season.

*Massachusetts!... the Sharks have one player that hails from Massachusetts that suited up for the team this season (John McCarthy - Andover) In addition, associate coach David Cunniff hails from South Boston.

*Hockey East Alumni!... the Worcester Sharks have had four players from Hockey East Schools; (McCarthy - BU, Reid - NU, Petrecki - BC, Stalberg - Vermont)

*I'll take a draft... Ten Worcester Sharks players were drafted by the San Jose Sharks. (Abeltshauser, Davison, Hamilton, Doherty, McCarthy, Nieto, Petrecki, Sateri, Viedensky, and Crane)

*NHL Experience.... The Sharks have nine players on their roster with NHL experience led by Rob Davison with 219.... Breaking down the rest....John McCarthy 83, Matt Pelech 13, Bracken Kearns 27, Matt Tennyson 4, Freddie Hamilton 11, Matt Nieto 50, Nick Petrecki 1, Eriah Hayes 15, and Chad Rau 9.

*Keeping your hat on (Thanks Ballou)... Worcester had gone 263 games without one of its players recording a hat trick before Daniil Tarasov scored three goals in Springfield on Oct 26. That was easily the longest active streak in the AHL. The Sharks' last hat trick had belonged to Dan DaSilva, who scored three times in Manchester during a 5-2 Worcester victory in Manchester on Feb. 14, 2010. No Worcester player has recorded a hat trick on home ice in more than three years, or since P.J. Fenton had one on Feb. 28, 2009 in the Sharks' 7-3 victory over Springfield. The home-ice drought has lasted for 193 games. In all, Worcester players have recorded hat tricks only nine times in the franchise's 565 games. The Sharks are 9-0 in those games and 1-15-3 in the 19 games in which the opposition has had a hat trick.

* Brothers... Sebastian Stalberg is the younger brother of Viktor Stalberg, who currently plays with the Nashville Predators.... Freddie Hamilton is the older brother of Dougie Hamilton, who currently plays with the Boston Bruins.... Rylan Schwartz is the younger brother of Jayden Schwartz, who currently plays for the St. Louis Blues.

*200/50.... John McCarthy played in his 200th game for the Sharks on Jan 26, 2013... J-Mac scored his 50th goal as a member of the Worcester Sharks joining Riley Armstrong, Mike Iggulden, Graham Mink, and Brandon Mashinter as the only five players to score 50+ goals as a member of the Worcester Sharks... JMac has played 36 games (1-1-1) this season for the SJ Sharks this season and is 3-2-5pts in 10 games with Worcester.

*Piling up the PIMS with Pelech... Forward/Defenseman Matt Pelech played in his 300th AHL game on Oct 20, 2012 vs. the Devils. The 6-foot-4 bruising defenseman turned forward from Toronto, ONT has accumulated 1,045 penalty minutes and 82 fighting majors in 364 AHL games. "Pelly" led the Sharks with 238 penalty minutes last season in 58 games. #23 is only the 2nd player in Worcester Sharks history to hit the 200 pim plateau (Evans 211 in 2007-08). Matt led the Worcester Sharks with 17 fighting majors and had one fighting major (Jared Boll) in two games last year with the SJ Sharks in 2012-13... Pelech has 22 penalty minutes and his 1st NHL goal in six games with San Jose this season.... With his two game suspension this season by the AHL, Pelech has missed 19 games due to suspension in the last 28 months with the Worcester Sharks. Pelech missed 25 games due to a broken hand suffered in a fight with Bobby Robins on Jan 3 and returned to the lineup on March 7.

*Major Bonneau... Worcester Sharks tough guy Jimmy Bonneau has racked up 48 fighting majors in 117 games for the Worcester Sharks. Bonneau has set the Worcester Sharks record for most fighting majors in a season in 2011-12 with 22, surpassing Frazer McLaren (21 in 2008-09). Jimmy has 120 fighting majors in 312 AHL games along with 899 penalty minutes.... Jimmy has 15 fighting majors and 97 penalty minutes through 37 games this season.... Bonneau scored his 2nd goal of the season in his 300th AHL game in the Sharks 4-3SOW vs. Manchester on Jan 26.

*Five for fighting... The Sharks have 66 fighting majors through 61 games and rank 12th in the AHL (Kearns 4, Bonneau 15, Davison 5, Gogol 9, Doherty 7, Pelech 5, Tarasov 2, Hayes 1, Demelo 1, Brace 1, Tennyson 1, Viedensky 1, Acolatse 6, Petrecki 4, DaSilva 2, Schwartz 1, Scheidl 1). The Sharks had 84 fighting majors in 2012-13, 120 fighting majors in 2011-12 (1st in AHL), 81 fighting majors in 2010-11, 73 fighting majors in 2009-10, 78 fighting majors in 2008-09, 68 fighting majors in 2007-08 and 54 in 2006-07.

*The East is Tough... the top 8 teams in the AHL in fighting majors all hail from the Eastern Conference. Hamilton ranks 9th with 68 fights this season.

Season by the numbers... Record: 30-27-3-1, 64 points - 4th in Atlantic Win percentage: .525% - 18th in AHL, 10th in East Home Record: 15-12-0-1 Away Record: 15-15-3-0 Attendance: 111,233 through 28 games this season - 3,973 average - 24th in AHL Goals Scored: 156, 2.56 goals per game, 24th in AHL Goals Allowed: 182, 2.98 goals against per game, 21st in AHL Shots per game: 32.67 - 4th in AHL Shots allowed per game: 27.74 - 3rd in AHL Score 1st: 22-4-1-1 when scoring first (.821%) - 3rd in AHL 1 goal games: 17-7-3-1 in one goal games PP: 16.9%, 15th in AHL (43-255) PK: 83.3%, 12th in AHL (43-258) SHG - 5 shorthanded goals scored SHGA - 9 shorthanded goals allowed PIMS - 18.16 penalty minutes per game, 13th in AHL Fighting Majors: 66 - 12th in AHL OT Games - 14 - (1-3 record in OT) SO Games - 10 - (9-1 record in SO) Roster Players - the Sharks have used 33 players this season Goalies - the Sharks have used 2 goaltenders this season Players receiving call-ups to San Jose - 8 NHL debuts - 2 Worcester Sharks alumni making their NHL debuts this season Call-ups to San Jose - 18 different call-ups to San Jose this season

Coming and goings from the Shark Tank: 03/19/2014

Adam Schmidt (RW)

Worcester

ADD Signed to ATO

03/15/2014

Mike Pereira (LW)

Worcester

ADD Signed to ATO

03/14/2014

Bracken Kearns (C)

Worcester

DEL Recalled from loan by San Jose (NHL)

03/14/2014

Bracken Kearns (C)

Worcester

ADD Returned on loan from San Jose (NHL)

03/14/2014

Brock Higgs (C)

Worcester

ADD Signed to ATO

03/14/2014

Kyle Bigos (D)

Worcester

ADD Recalled from loan to Ontario (ECHL)

03/12/2014

Nick Petrecki (D)

Worcester

DEL Reassigned by San Jose (NHL) to Rochester (AHL)

Top Worcester Sharks: o Goals Hamilton (18) o Game Winners Tarasov (3) o Assists Gourde (20) o Points Hamilton (18-17-35) o Power play Points Tarasov (7-6-13) o Shots DaSilva (132) o PIM Gogol (149) o Fighting Pen. Bonneau (15) o Plus/Minus Tarasov and Higgs (+4) o Wins Sateri (16) o G.A.A. Grosenick (2.67) o Save % Grosenick (.903) o Shutouts Grosenick and Sateri (1)

Sharks in the NHL:

The San Jose Sharks sit in 2nd place in the Pacific Division and 3rd place in the Western Conference with 97 points and a 45-18-7 record.

Worcester Sharks alumni include: Logan Couture, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Tommy Wingels, Jason Demers, Matt Nieto, Matt Irwin, Andrew Desjardins, Justin Braun, James Sheppard, and Alex Stalock.

Week ahead for the SJ Sharks;

Thu. 10:30pm (EST) vs. Anaheim

Sat. 10:30pm (EST) vs. Washington

Mon. 9pm (EST) at Calgary

Coming Up for the Worcester Sharks:

Friday, the Sharks welcome the Springfield Falcons at 7:30pm! Make sure to wear your Red Sox gear as the World Series trophy will be available for pictures inside the DCU Center concourse from 6:30-8:30pm! Enjoy $2 hot dogs, popcorn, and soda for every Friday night game with tickets as low as $10! The game will be shown live on Charter TV-3 with coverage beginning at 7:30pm.

Saturday, the Sharks host the Hershey Bears at 7pm. Doors open at 1:30pm for the Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association High School All-Star Games presented by Shriners beginning with a 1:45pm start for the girl's game followed by a 4pm puck drop for the boys. The All-Star Games will feature the state's top 92 high school senior boys and girls from MIAA schools, as selected by the MSHCA.

Sunday, the Sharks close out the 3-in-3 weekend vs. the Bruins in Providence at 3:05pm.

Score a Family Fun Pack (4 tickets, 4 hotdogs, and 4 sodas) for any Friday, Saturday, or Sunday game starting at just $79!

Bring a group to sing the national anthem, book a fundraising event, host a birthday party, or have a blast in the high fin tunnel.... secure your personalized Sharks experience today!

Contact Worcester Sharks account executives Kristyn Galante, Erin Croce, Sean West, Amanda Perkins, Peter Kelly, Andrew Nawn, and Mike Connole today! Jump in today and save up to 40% off box office prices! Some of the exclusive benefits for full season ticket holders will include:

* Guaranteed same seat for all 38 home dates and playoff home games at the DCU Center

* Priority access to purchase tickets to other DCU Center events (subject to availability)

* Seven FREE friends and family vouchers

* Exclusive events with Sharks players

* Merchandise discounts and much, much, more!

Season ticket packages and group tickets for the 2014-15 are already on season are on sale now by contacting the Worcester Sharks Office at 508.929.0500 or by crashing the net at www.SharksAHL.com.

Socialize with the Worcester Sharks all year long! Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WorcesterSharks, follow us on Twitter @WorcesterSharks, and download the Worcester Sharks App for free on your Droid or iPhone today!

All games can be heard live on 580AM and 94.9FM WTAG, as well as online through AHL Live, by following the link on the Sharks website at www.SharksAHL.com.

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