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Sharks Hit Groove North of the Border

November 18, 2013 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


Shark Snap Shot: The Worcester Sharks (5-7-1-0, 11pts) chomped five out of a possible six points in three games last week in St. John's, NFLD. After not appearing in a single overtime game in the first 10 games of the season, the Sharks played three straight games past regulation last week winning two games in the shootout and falling in overtime to the IceCaps.

The Sharks began their first ever three game regular season series with a 3-2 overtime loss in St. John's on Wednesday to extend their losing skid to four games (0-3-1-0). Worcester bounced back with a 3-2 shootout win on Friday vs. the IceCaps and followed up on Saturday with a 2-1 shootout victory in St. John's to close out the three game set 2-0-1-0.

The Worcester Sharks player of the week nominee is goaltender Harri Sateri. The 24-year old third year pro was named the #1 star in back-to-back games last week with a 27 save/7-for-9 in shootout performance in 3-2 shootout win on Friday followed by a 24 save/4-for-5 in shootout performance in 2-1 shootout win on Saturday in St. John's.

Few things to know....

* The Worcester Sharks are currently in 5th place (5-7-1-0, 11pts) in the Atlantic Division and 15th place overall in the Eastern Conference.

* The San Jose Sharks currently have 12 players on their roster that have spent time in Worcester (Couture, Desjardins, Pavelski, Sheppard, Wingels, Braun, Demers, Stalock, Irwin, Vlasic, Nieto, and McCarthy).

* The San Jose Sharks are currently in 2nd place in the Pacific Division and 3rd place in the Western Conference with 31 points and a 13-3-5 record.

* After becoming the final team in the AHL to play an overtime game on Wednesday, the WorSharks have currently played a franchise high three straight games that have ended in either overtime or the shootout (2-0-1-0).

* The Worcester Sharks have won two straight games for the 1st time since March 10 and 13 of last season and currently have a three game point streak (2-0-1-0).

* Daniil Tarasov leads the club with seven goals and 12 points (7-5-12) through just 10 games. Tarasov leads the entire AHL with three game winning goals.

* Sena Acolatse and Adam Comrie co-lead Worcester d-men with six points (1-5-6) each.

* Worcester Sharks alumni Matt Nieto (Oct 8 vs. NYR) and Matt Pelech (Oct 10 at VAN) each have scored their first career NHL goals for the SJ Sharks this season

* Worcester Sharks alumni Alex Stalock is a perfect 3-0-0 with the San Jose Sharks this season with a 1.41GAA and a .952 save %.

* Coach Roy Sommer currently ranks 4th in the AHL with 545 wins in his career (16th season) and 2nd in games coached in the AHL with 1205.

* The Sharks play three games this week, including a pair of games at the DCU Center this weekend.

o Friday at 7pm the Sharks visit the Manchester Monarchs.

o Saturday at 7pm the Sharks host the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Teddy Bear Toss Night presented by Bay State Savings Bank!

o Sunday at 3pm the Sharks host the Manchester Monarchs on $5 Kids Sunday!

Top 3... Last Week!

1. Harri Sateri made 27 saves and was 7-for-9 in the shootout in the Sharks 3-2 shootout win at St. John's on Friday!

2. Harri Sateri made 24 saves and was 4-for-5 in the shootout in the Sharks 2-1 shootout win at St. John's on Saturday!

3. Travis Oleksuk scored his 1st goal of the season and scored in the shootout in the Sharks 2-1 win at St. John's on Saturday!

Last Week: (2-0-1-0) 5pts, 3gp

Wed. 11/13 OTL Worcester SHARKS 2 @ St. John's IceCaps 3

Fri. 11/15 SOW Worcester SHARKS 3 @ St. John's IceCaps 2

Sat. 11/16 SOW Worcester SHARKS 2 @ St. John's IceCaps 1

This week:

Fri. 11/22 Worcester SHARKS @ Manchester Monarchs - 7pm (EST)

Sat. 11/23 Bridgeport Sound Tigers @ Worcester SHARKS - 7pm (EST)

Sun. 11/24 Manchester Monarchs @ Worcester SHARKS - 3pm (EST)

Rewind the Tape:

11.13.13 - St. John's 3 - Worcester 2 - OTL - Mile One Centre

The Worcester Sharks (3-7-1-0, 7pts) squandered a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes of play and eventually fell in overtime to the St. John's IceCaps (7-7-1-0, 15pts) by the count of 3-2 in front of 6,287 at the Mile One Centre on Wednesday night to kick off a three game series north of the border in St. John's. Rylan Schwartz scored his 1st goal of the season for the Sharks while Daniil Tarasov scored his team leading 7th goal to lead the way offensively as Worcester dropped their fourth straight game. Andrew Gordon and Jerome Samson scored in the third period for the IceCaps to force overtime before Samson won the game at: 26 for St. John's in the extra frame.

11.15.13 - St. John's 2 - Worcester 3 - SOW - Mile One Centre

Defenseman Sena Acolatse scored in round 9 of the shootout as the Worcester Sharks (4-7-1-0, 9pts) snapped a four game skid (0-3-1-0) with a 3-2 shootout victory over the St. John's IceCaps (7-7-1-1, 165pts) in front of 6,287 at the Mile One Centre on Friday night in game two of a three game series north of the border in St. John's. Harri Sateri was brilliant in net earning the games 1st star with 27 saves and seven more stops in the shootout while Brodie Reid and Freddie Hamilton scored for the Sharks in the win. Jason Jaffray and Jerome Samson scored for the IceCaps as St. John's battled back from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to force overtime in the second straight game.

11.16.13 - St. John's 1 - Worcester 2 - SOW - Mile One Centre

For the second time in 24 hours the Worcester Sharks (5-7-1-0, 11pts) defeated the St. John's IceCaps (7-7-1-2, 17pts) in the shootout in front of 6,287 at the Mile One Centre on Saturday night in game three of a three game series north of the border in St. John's. With the 2-1 victory, the Sharks picked up five out of a possible six points and won back-to-back games for the 1st time since early March. Harri Sateri was brilliant in net once again earning the games 1st star with 24 saves and four more stops in the shootout while Travis Oleksuk scored in the third period to force overtime. Jerome Samson scored early on the power play for the IceCaps; his 4th goal of the series but it was all St. John's would muster.

Sharks in the Atlantic:

The Sharks (5-7-1-0, 11pts in 13gp) are currently in 5th place in the Atlantic Division; which is 14 points behind the 1st place Monarchs (25pts in 17gp), six points behind the 2nd place Bruins (17pts in 15gp), six points behind the 3rd place IceCaps (17pts in 17gp), and thee points behind the 4th place Pirates (14pts in 13gp) 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.

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 1,205GP 545 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: 545-477-49-52-52. (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 390 of the 545 victories (71%).

*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 and Marek Viedensky have also worn the A this season.

*From east to west..... The Worcester Sharks have already had four players (4 call-ups) receive at least one call up to the San Jose Sharks already this season. (Pelech, McCarthy, Kearns, and Hamilton)

*Breaking down October... The Sharks went 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 are 3-4-1-0 (7pts in 8gp) record in November with 17 GF and 27 GA. PP is 6-for-38 (15.7%); opponents PP is 11-for-53 (20.7%), and the Sharks have 11 fighting majors in November.

*Firsts last week... Travis Oleksuk scored his first goal of the season, the Sharks player their first overtime and shootout games of the season, the Sharks won back-to-back games for the first time this season, the Sharks player the same opponent (IceCaps) in three straight games for the first time in franchise history, and the Sharks won for the 1st time this season when trailing after the first period and/or the second period of play this season.

*5 goals / 5 points... despite just scoring five goals in regulation play in three games at St. John's last week, the Worcester Sharks were still able to take five points in three games (2-0-1-0) in St. John's on Nov 12, 15, and 16.

*OT... the Sharks were the last team to play an overtime game in the AHL in their 3-2 OTL at St. John's on Nov 13. However, the Sharks have now played three straight games (franchise record) past regulation (OTL, SOW, SOW).

*Dirty Harri... goaltender Harri Sateri was brilliant in St. John's on Nov 15 and 16 posting back-to-back shootout wins. Sateri allowed just three goals on 54 shots (.944%) and went 11-14 in the shootout (78.5%).

*Sateri like St. John's... goaltender Harri Sateri is 5-1-0 in St. John's with a .932 save % in six starts on the Rock.

*Sharks in St. John's... Worcester is 7-1-1 in nine games at the Mile One Centre in St. John's.

*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 5 times in 13 games this season (3-1-1-0) - Freddie Hamilton 1, Daniil Tarasov 2, Rylan Schwartz 1, and Brodie Reid 1.

*Tough scoring goals... the Sharks have scored just 29 goals this season (2.23 per game - 29th in AHL) through 13 games. Worcester has scored 11 goals on the PP, 2 shorthanded, 1 empty netter, 2 team shootout goals, and just 13 goals when at even strength this season... the Sharks have yet to score four goals in a game this season.

*3-for-5.... The Sharks may only have five wins this season, but Daniil Tarasov leads the AHL with thee game winning goals.

*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 2nd on the the Sharks with 35 shots on goal through 13 games this season.

*Streakers... the Sharks have a point in three straight games (2-0-1-0)... the Sharks have won two straight games....Daniil Tarasov has a three game point streak (1-2-3).... Adam Comrie has a two game point streak (0-3-3).

*Pro Debuts: Konrad Abeltshauser (Oct 12 at SPR) and Troy Grosenick (Oct 20 vs. WBS).

*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!

*3 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... and Nick Petrecki with Boston College in 2008. *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 six rookies already this season. (Troy Grosenick, Konrad Abeltshauser, Eriah Hayes, Rylan Schwartz, Riley Brace, and Dylan Demelo)

*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 one goal in 119 games with the Worcester Sharks.... Doherty leads Worcester with 52 penalty minutes, four fighting majors, and a +2 rating.

*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 three goals in 13 games this season.

*First Pro Goals this season... still waiting!

*Sharks in the Atlantic... Worcester went 19-14-3-4 in the Atlantic Division in 2012-13 and are 4-4-1-0 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 had four players from Hockey East Schools; (McCarthy - BU, Reid - NU, Petrecki - BC, Stalberg - Vermont)

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

*NHL Experience.... The Sharks have seven players on their roster with NHL experience led by Rob Davison with 219.... Breaking down the rest....John McCarthy 64, Matt Pelech 12, Bracken Kearns 7, Matt Tennyson 4, Freddie Hamilton 4, and Nick Petrecki 1.

*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 belongs 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 171 games. In all, Worcester players have recorded hat tricks only eight times in the franchise's 557 games. The Sharks are 8-0 in those games and 1-11-3 in the 15 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.

*Franchise Player... Sharks defensemen Nick Petrecki is 2nd in Sharks history with 248 games played (Mike Moore had 253)... Nick also ranks 2nd in penalty minutes with 489 (Frazer McLaren had 577).... Nick made his NHL debut in San Jose's 3-2SOW over the Anaheim Ducks on 1/29/13 and played 11:58... the 216 games before his first NHL game was the most of any Worcester Sharks graduate to San Jose.

*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 is currently on recall with the San Jose Sharks.

*Like Father, Like Son... Rookie Curt Gogol finished 2nd on the Sharks with 139 penalty minutes in just 38 games in 2012-13... his father Brent racked up 892 penalty minutes in 157 professional games in the IHL, CHL, EHL, and the AHL including 380 pims in 1978-79 in 57 games with the Flint Generals.... Gogol has 4 fighting majors and 46 penalty minutes in 12 games this season.

*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 1,027 penalty minutes and 80 fighting majors in 357 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 five 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 25 months with the Worcester Sharks.

*Major Bonneau... Worcester Sharks tough guy Jimmy Bonneau has racked up 36 fighting majors in 84 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 108 fighting majors in 277 AHL games along with 821 penalty minutes.... Jimmy has 3 fighting major and 19 penalty minutes through 4 games this season.

*Five for fighting... The Sharks have 21 fighting majors through 13 games and rank 5th in the AHL (Kearns 3, Bonneau 3, Davison 3, Gogol 4, Doherty 4, Pelech 3, and Tarasov 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.

Season by the numbers... Record: 5-7-1-0, 11 points - 5th in Atlantic Win percentage: .423% - 27th in AHL Home Record: 2-5-0-0 Away Record: 3-2-1-0 Attendance: 22,423 through seven games this season - 3,203 average - 24th in AHL Goals Scored: 29, 2.23 goals per game, 29th in AHL Goals Allowed: 41, 3.15 goals against per game, 22nd in AHL Shots per game: 31.35 - 12th in AHL Shots allowed per game: 26.85 - 5th in AHL Score 1st: 3-1-1-0 when scoring first (.700%) 1 goal games: 3-3-1-0 in one goal games PP: 16.9%, 14th in AHL (11-65) PK: 82.7%, 18th in AHL (13-75) SHG - 2 shorthanded goals scored SHGA - 3 shorthanded goals allowed PIMS - 27.54 penalty minutes per game, 1st in AHL Fighting Majors: 21 - 5th in AHL OT Games - 3 - (0-1 record in OT) - SO Games - 2 - (2-0 record in SO) Roster Players - the Sharks have used 24 players this season Goalies - the Sharks have used 2 goaltenders this season Players receiving call-ups to San Jose - 4 NHL debuts - 1 Worcester Sharks alumni making their NHL debuts this season Call-ups to San Jose - 5 different call-ups to San Jose this season

Coming and goings from the Shark Tank: No transactions last week

Top Worcester Sharks: o Goals Tarasov (7) o Game Winners Tarasov (3) o Assists Kearns (8) o Points Tarasov (7-5-12) o Power play Points Kearns (3-4-7) o Shots Reid (41) o PIM Doherty (52) o Fighting Pen. Doherty and Gogol (4) o Plus/Minus Doherty (+3) o Wins Sateri (3) o G.A.A. Grosenick (2.36) o Save % Grosenick (.918) o Shutouts Grosenick (1)

Sharks in the ECHL: The San Francisco Bulls are 4-7-1-1, 10pts through 13 games this season which is good for 3rd place in the Pacific Division.

Sharks players under an AHL contract currently playing in San Francisco include: Forward Chris Crane (4-3-7) in 13gp Defenseman Kyle Bigos (2-3-5) in 13gp Goaltender JP Anderson - 0-3-0, 2.35 .899% Forward Ryan McDonough (0-1-1) in 8gp Defenseman Steve Tarasuk (0-0-0) in 12gp

Week ahead for the Bulls: Wed. Nov 20 at 10:30pm (EST) at Stockton Fri. Nov 22 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. Idaho Sat. Nov 23 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. Utah

Sharks in the NHL:

The San Jose Sharks are currently in 2nd place in the Pacific Division and 3rd place in the Western Conference with 31 points and a 13-3-5 record.

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

Week ahead for the SJ Sharks;

Thur. Nov 21 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. Tampa Bay

Sat. Nov 23 at 10:30pm (EST) vs. New Jersey

Coming Up for the Worcester Sharks:

The Sharks look to build on their three game point streak (2-0-1-0) with a 3-in-3 weekend which includes a pair of games at the DCU Center!

On Friday, the Sharks close out their four game road trip with a 7pm start vs. the Monarchs in Manchester.

On Saturday, the Sharks host the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at 7pm on Teddy Bear Toss Night presented by Bay State Savings Bank!

On Sunday, the Sharks host the Manchester Monarchs at 3pm on $5 Kids Sunday! Kid's tickets are just $5 with the purchase of a full priced adult ticket!

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