Sharks busy week closes with three wins in five games
January 5, 2009 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release
Rewind the Tape:
12.29.08 - Worcester 3 - Portland 2 - DCU Center
Ryan Vesce scored two goals and added an assist while Lukas Kaspar scored his 6th goal and set up Vesce twice in a 3-2 win over Portland on Monday at the DCU Center. Taylor Dakers made 22 saves in net for the Sharks as Worcester out shot the Pirates 34-24. The Sharks are 3-3-0-0 vs. the Pirates as they battle for the Unum Cup.
12.31.08 - Worcester 1 - Houston 2 - DCU Center
Former Shark Nolan Schaefer made 40 saves in net for the Aeros as the Sharks fell 2-1 on NYE at the DCU Center. Mike Moore scored a late goal for the Sharks and Taylor Dakers made 19 saves in net. It was the first time in three tries that Houston beat the Sharks at home.
1.2.09 - Worcester 5 - Norfolk 1 - DCU Center
Riley Armstrong recorded his first career hat trick and the two teams combined for 96 penalty minutes in a nasty affair at the DCU Center on Friday. Matt Fornataro and Ryan Vesce scored the other tallies for Worcester in a game that featured four fights. Andrew Desjardins picked up three assists and 15 penalty minutes and T.J. Fox dropped the gloves in a spirited bout. Thomas Greiss was sharp making 27 stops in net.
1.3.09 - Worcester 3 - Lowell 2 - DCU Center
The Sharks trailed early but scored three straight goals and held on to defeat the Lowell Devils 3-2 at the DCU Center on Saturday night. Riley Armstrong became the first Shark to score four goals in a two game span while Lukas Kaspar and Claude Lemieux also lit the lamp. Thomas Greiss made 18 saves for his second straight victory.
1.4.09 - Worcester 2 - Hershey 7 - DCU Center
Alexandre Giroux scored four goals and added an assist as the Sharks got clawed by the best team in the AHL 7-2 at the DCU Center on Sunday afternoon. Giroux scored on the games first shot just :15 seconds into the first period. Hershey's Keith Aucoin added to his AHL best point total with four points (2-2-4) and rookie net minder Simeon Varlamov made 35 saves. Ryan Vesce scored to extend his point streak to five games and Lukas Kaspar recorded his 3rd goal of the home stand.
Sharks in the Atlantic...
The Sharks (19-17-0-1) swim in 3rd place in the Atlantic Division with 39 points, seven points behind the first place Providence Bruins and four points behind the 2nd place Portland Pirates. Just 5 points separate 3rd place (Worcester) and 6th place (Lowell) in a very choppy Atlantic Division.
Shark Bites:
*Cory Larose (3-4-7) is currently riding a five game point streak.
*Worcester leads the AHL with shots per game (35.92) and first in shots against per game (24.86)
*Derek Joslin made his NHL debut Saturday in San Jose's 5-3 victory over the NY Islanders. Joslin played 12:33 of ice time recording one shot and a roughing minor in the third period.
*Ryan Vesce has 24 points (11-13-24) in his last 20 gp and is riding a five game point streak (4-4-8)
*Riley Armstrong scored his first professional hat trick with three goals on Friday vs. Norfolk and became the first Shark to have four goals in a two game span.
*The Sharks have 43 fighting major penalties this season through 37 games this season. 12 different players have dropped the gloves already this season (Frazer McLaren (12), Westgarth (11), Moore (3), Staubitz (6), Demers (2), Cavanagh, McGinn (2), Dan DaSilva, Andrew Desjardins (2), Kyle McLaren, Brendan Buckley, and TJ Fox.
*Frazer McLaren is 3rd among AHL rookies with 12 fighting major penalties.
*Steven Zalewski ranks 13th in the AHL among rookies in points (7-14-21) and 2nd with 101 shots on goal.
*Claude Lemieux has seven points (3-5-8) in 18 games along with 14 penalty minutes and is +4 since his return to professional hockey with the Sharks on 11.28.08.
Roster Moves:
The San Jose Sharks returned rookie forward Jamie McGinn to the Worcester Sharks on Thursday and recalled defenseman Derek Joslin for his first professional recall to the NHL. At the time of his recall, Joslin was ranked 7th in the AHL among defenseman with 20 points (7-13-20) and second in shots with 107.
Also, the San Jose Sharks recalled forward Brad Staubitz for the third time this season on Sunday. In 23 games with Worcester, Staubitz had one assist, 58 penalty minutes, and six fighting majors.
Top Sharks:
o Goals Armstrong (14)
o Assists Vesce (24)
o Points Vesce (36)
o Shots Armstrong, Joslin, Vesce (107)
o PIM F. McLaren (86)
o Fighting Pen. F. McLaren (12)
o Plus/Minus Armstrong, Buckley, Moore (+7)
o Wins Greiss (11)
o G.A.A. Greiss (2.65)
o Save % Greiss (.893)
Worcester to host the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Charter Communications!
The Sharks and the city of Worcester will host the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Charter Communications on January 25th and 26th at the DCU Center. Tickets are on sale to the general public now. The 2009 event in Worcester will mark the fourth time since it was revived in 1995 that the AHL All-Star Classic will take place in New England. The AHL All-Star Classic was last held in Massachusetts in 1959 at the Eastern States Coliseum in West Springfield.
Coming Up:
The Sharks continue their season long seven game home stand at the DCU Center with two games this weekend.
Friday - Albany River Rats at 7:05p.m - College Night - student tickets just $9.
Saturday - Lowell Devils at 7:05p.m. - Worcester Sharks team poster giveaway with full team autograph session after the game! Pick up your Family Fun Pack with a ticket, hot dog, and soda for just $15.25 each when buying a minimum of four tickets.
Be sure not to miss any of the action of the 2008-09 Worcester Sharks season and buy your tickets today! Fans can also purchase tickets to the 2009 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Charter Communications. Purchases can be made by visiting the box office, contacting the Worcester Sharks office at 508.929.0500, or by crashing the net at www.sharksahl.com.
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.
Worcester Sharks Media Contact: Eric Lindquist (508) 929.0525 elindquist@sharksahl.com
American Hockey League Stories from January 5, 2009
- Four Kings Prospects Win Medals At World Junior Championship - Manchester Monarchs
- Admirals Set to Drop Puck on Nine-Game Homestand - Norfolk Admirals
- Canucks Assign Hansen To Moose - Manitoba Moose
- Phantoms Weekly - Adirondack Phantoms
- Pittsburgh Trades Kemp To Montreal - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Pirates At Home This Weekend - Portland Pirates
- Hamilton Hosts Philadelphia and Lake Erie - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Montreal Acquires T.J. Kemp from Pittsburgh - Hamilton Bulldogs
- River Rats Ring In 2009 With Three-Game Winning Streak - Albany River Rats
- Amerks Hit the Community the First Week of the New Year - Rochester Americans
- Rome Conquering; Rookie Defensemen Improving; Details of Tully's Good Times Air Hockey Tournament - Syracuse Crunch
- Rookie AHL Bench Bosses Making an Impact - AHL
- Marlies Weekly - Toronto Marlies
- Amerks Open January Home Slate this Weekend - Rochester Americans
- Hurricanes Reassign Brett Bellemore To OHL - Albany River Rats
- Rampage Weekly - San Antonio Rampage
- Devils Win Two of Three As Calendar Turns - Albany Devils
- Canucks Re-assign Schneider to Moose - Manitoba Moose
- Wolves Weekly - Chicago Wolves
- Two Sell Outs Highlight Five Games Week for IceHogs - Rockford IceHogs
- Flames Continue Home Stand this Week - Abbotsford Heat
- Moose Drop Three Games In Week 13 - Manitoba Moose
- Houston Aeros Weekly - Houston Aeros
- Portland Pirates Costa Vida Passion Packs On Sale Now - Portland Pirates
- Rivermen Weekly - Peoria Rivermen
- Crunch Announce Details of Tully's Good Times Air Hockey Tournament â January 13 - Syracuse Crunch
- Falcons sign Patrick Bordeleau to PTO contract - Springfield Falcons
- Mihalik and Wishart Return to Norfolk; Ganzak Released - Norfolk Admirals
- Admirals Kick Off Nine-Game Homestand with Exciting Promotions and Community Efforts - Norfolk Admirals
- Falcons Postpone Meet The Players Event Originally Scheduled For January 14 - Springfield Falcons
- Bears Left Wing Alexandre Giroux Named Player Of The Week - Hershey Bears
- Bears' Giroux named Reebok/AHL Player of the Week - AHL
- Brock Hooton Released From PTO - Providence Bruins
- Wolf Pack Weekly - Connecticut Whale
- Woods And French To Coach In All Star Classic - Hershey Bears
- Sharks busy week closes with three wins in five games - Worcester Sharks
- Flames Reassign Forward Jamie Lundmark - Abbotsford Heat
- Admirals Riding High At Home - Milwaukee Admirals
- Monarchs Weekly Report - Manchester Monarchs
- Carolina Reassigns Pat Dwyer To Albany - Albany River Rats
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