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Sharks Swim on Top of the Atlantic - Worcester Sharks Weekly

November 10, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Worcester Sharks News Release


Shark Snap Shot:

The Worcester Sharks (7-3-1-0, 15pts) chomped four out of a possible four points last week after two third period comebacks on home ice (2-0-0-0). The Sharks began the week with a 4-3 victory over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Wednesday followed by a 4-2 win over the Providence Bruins on Saturday in front of 5,310 fans at the DCU Center.

Worcester sits in 1st place in the Atlantic Division with 15 points (7-3-1-0) and have the 3rd best winning percentage in the Eastern Conferenced (.682).

Highlights from the week include the AHL debut by Chris Tierney on Saturday as he recorded his first professional goal and added two assists in Worcester's 4-2 victory over the Bruins. Troy Grosenick picked up his AHL leading 6th and 7th wins of the season in goal and Ryan Carpenter rides a three game goal scoring streak (3-0-3). Jeremy Langlois scored his first two goals of the season on Wednesday and Matt Taormina picked up three assists in two games last week. The Sharks have scored a power play goal in eight straight games and outscored their opponents 5-1 in the third period last week.

Rookie Chris Tierney was loaned to Worcester from San Jose on Nov 6 after appearing in 11 games for the SJ Sharks (0-2-2). Forward Chris Crane was reassigned from Worcester to Missouri (ECHL) on Nov 6 and Tyler Shattock was released from his PTO on Nov 10 after appearing in three games for the Sharks (0-0-0).

The Worcester Sharks player of the week nominee is forward Ryan Carpenter. The 23-year-old from Oviedo, Florida scored the game winning goal on Wednesday, a shorthanded tally at 9:52 of the third period and scored an insurance goal at 17:21 of the third period in the victory on Saturday.

Ryan finished the two game week with two points (2-0-2), fired five shots on goal, and currently has a three game goal scoring streak (3-0-3).

COMING UP:

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

On Tuesday, the Sharks travel to Springfield to battle the Falcons at 3pm. The game will be shown live on www.AHLLive.com but will air on delay on WTAG after the Jordan Levy Show at 6pm.

On Friday, the Sharks host the Manchester Monarchs at 7:30pm. Miss Massachusetts Caroline Lunny and Miss Teen Massachusetts will sign autographs and drop the ceremonial first puck! Every Friday night enjoy $2 hot dogs, popcorn, and soda all night long!

On Saturday, the Sharks host the Springfield Falcons at 7pm. Bring a teddy bear to toss onto the ice after the Sharks score their first goal of the game for the annual teddy bear toss presented by Bay State Savings Bank! Season ticket holders are invited to stick around after the game for an exclusive full team autograph session! Score a family fun pack which includes 4 tickets, 4 hot dogs, and 4 sodas, starting at just $79! Call 508-929-0500 to score your tickets!

MILESTONE ALERT:

Head Coach Roy Sommer surpassed Frank Mathers (1256 games coached) for the most games coached in AHL history on March 26 in the Sharks 5-3 win in Lewiston, ME over the Portland Pirates. Coach Sommer has coached 1279 AHL games - all with the SJ Sharks AHL affiliates. In total, Coach Sommer has been a head coach in 1,613 games in the AHL and ECHL. Roy needs 6 more wins to tie John Paddock (589) for the 3rd most wins in AHL history.

Few things to know....

- The Worcester Sharks are in 1st place (7-3-1-0, 15pts) in the Atlantic Division and 3rd place overall in the Eastern Conference. The Sharks have the 3rd best winning percentage (.682) in the Eastern Conference.

- The San Jose Sharks currently have 13 players on their roster that have spent time in Worcester (Couture, Desjardins, Pavelski, Sheppard, Wingels, Braun, Demers, Stalock, Irwin, Vlasic, Nieto, Mueller, and Kennedy).

- The San Jose Sharks are in 5th place in the Pacific Division and 8th place in the Western Conference with 18 points and an 8-6-2 record.

- Rookie Chris Tierney scored his first professional goal and added two assists in his AHL debut on Nov 8 in the Sharks 4-2 win over the Bruins.

- Freddie Hamilton (5-5-10) leads the Worcester Sharks with 10 points in 11 games.

- Micheal Haley is tied for the team lead in goals (5), leads the club in fighting majors (3), and tops in penalty minutes (29).

- Goaltender Troy Grosenick has started ten of the first 11 games for Worcester and has posted a 7-2-1-0 this season, ranks 1st in the AHL with seven wins, 2nd in AHL with 615:44 minutes played, and 2nd with 276 saves.

- Rookie Ryan Carpenter is tied for 9th among AHL rookies with eight points (4-4-8) and currently has a three game goal scoring streak.

- The Worcester Sharks are the least penalized team in the AHL with only 10.45 penalty minutes per game.

- Nine of the Sharks 11 games this season have been decided by a single goal.

- Worcester has a power play goal in eight straight games (8-for-38 at 21%).

- Coach Roy Sommer currently ranks 4th in the AHL with 583 wins in his career (17th season) and 1st in games coached in the AHL with 1279.

Top 3... Last Week!

1. Chris Tierney scored his first professional goal and added two assists in his AHL debut in 4-2 win over the Bruins on Saturday!

2. Jeremy Langlois scored his first two goals of the season the Sharks 4-3 win over the Phantoms on Wednesday!

3. Ryan Carpenter scored a shorthanded goal at 9:52 of the third period for the game winner in the 4-3 win over the Phantoms on Wednesday!

Last Week: (2-0-0-0) 4pts, 2gp

Wed. 11/5 W Lehigh Valley Phantoms 3 @ Worcester SHARKS 4

Sat. 11/8 W Providence Bruins 2 @ Worcester SHARKS 4

Next Week:

Tue. 11/11 Worcester SHARKS @ Springfield Falcons - 3pm

Fri. 11/14 Manchester Monarchs @ Worcester Sharks - 7:30pm

Sat. 11/15 Springfield Falcons @ Worcester SHARKS - 7pm

Rewind the Tape:

11.5.14 - Lehigh Valley 3 - Worcester 4 - W - DCU Center - Worcester, MA

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

The Worcester Sharks (6-3-1-0, 13pts) held on for a wild 4-3 victory over the visiting Lehigh Valley Phantoms (4-4-1-0, 9pts) in front of 1,585 fans at the DCU Center on Wednesday evening. Trailing 3-2 midway through the third period, the Sharks scored twice within 62 seconds as Daniil Tarasov tied it at 8:51 and Ryan Carpenter netted the game winner with a shorthanded tally at 9:52. The Phantoms hit the cross bar while shorthanded late in the third period with the goaltender pulled, the Sharks benefited from a possible icing waved off late, and Darroll Powe received a match penalty after the final horn after a late hit on Melker Karlsson. Jeremy Langlois scored his first two goals of the season, Freddie Hamilton extended his point streak to six games with a pair of assists, and Troy Grosenick picked up his AHL leading 6th win of the season with 32 saves in the Worcester cage.

11.8.14 - Providence 2 - Worcester 4 - W - DCU Center - Worcester, MA

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

The Worcester Sharks (7-3-1-0, 15pts) scored three goals in the third period to defeat the visiting Providence Bruins (6-4-1-0, 13pts) by the score of 4-2 in front of 5,310 fans at the DCU Center on Saturday evening. Chris Tierney recorded three points (1-2-3) in his AHL debut for the Sharks while Bryan Lerg (0-2-2), Eriah Hayes (1-1-2), and Melker Karlsson (1-1-2) all had multi point games for Worcester. Ryan Carpenter added an insurance goal late in the third period to extend his personal scoring streak to three games and Troy Grosenick picked up his AHL leading 7th win with 23 saves in goal for the Sharks as Worcester improved to 3-0-0-0 vs. the Bruins this season.

Sharks in the Atlantic:

The Worcester Sharks (7-3-1-0, 15pts in 11gp) are in 1st place in the Atlantic Division; which is percentage points ahead of the 2nd place Bruins (15pts in 12gp), one point ahead of the 3rd place Pirates (14pts in 12gp), three points ahead of 4th place Monarchs (12pts in 10gp), and five points ahead of the 5th place IceCaps (10pts in 15gp) to round out a very choppy Atlantic Division.

Coaching Milestones....

*1257 GAMES.....With the 5-3 win in Lewiston, ME vs. the Pirates on March 26, 2014, head coach Roy Sommer surpassed Frank Mathers (1,256 games) for the most games coached in the AHL.

*1,600 GAMES... With the 3-0 loss vs. the Norfolk Admirals on April 12, 2014, head coach Roy Sommer coached in his 1,600th professional game.

*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 17seasons 1,279GP 583 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: 583-537-48-57-54. (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.

Shark Bites:

*Captains for the 2014-15 season: No captain has been named.... Taylor Fedun, Dylan Demelo, and Travis Oleksuk all wore the "A" on the road while Dylan Demelo, Bryan Lerg, and Matt Taormina have worn the "A" at the DCU Center this season.

*OT... the Worcester Sharks won just one overtime game in 2013-14, but are already 2-1 in overtime through 11 games this season.

*8 straight... the Sharks have a power play goal in eight straight games (8-for-38 at 21%).

*Shots on goal... Worcester has outshot their opponents in eight of the first 11 games this season and rank 2nd in the AHL with 35.18 shots per game.

*Home cooking... the Sharks average 3.75 goals per game scored at the DCU Center.

*Lead after 20... the Sharks are a perfect 4-0-0-0 when leading after the first period of play this season.

*Allow 3 (still not that bad!)... the Sharks are 2-0-1-0 when they allow three goals in a hockey game... Worcester went 7-6-3-1 last year when allowing three goals in a game.

*Super Saturdays!.... the Sharks are a perfect 4-0-0-0 on Saturday nights this season!

*Home games... the Sharks have played the most home games in the AHL this season (8) and have a 5-2-1-0 record at the DCU Center this season.

*3rd period goals... Worcester has outscored their opponents 17-7 (+10) in the third period this season...only Rockford 19-7 (+12) has a better goal differential this season.

*House of Horrors... with the 4-3 loss in Hartford on Nov 2...the Sharks have lost nine of their last 10 games at the XL Center...In all, the Wolf Pack have won 16 of the last 20 games vs. the Sharks.

*Quick Strikes (thanks Ballou)... On Oct 29 vs the Pirates, the first-period goals by Matt Tennyson and Micheal Haley, one at 16:37 and the next at 16:53, were four seconds shy of the team record. Garrett Stafford and Tomas Plihal scored 12 seconds apart in the second period on Feb 2, 2007 against Bridgeport at the DCU Center. It was only the fourth time in nine seasons the Sharks have scored goals less than 20 seconds apart.

*League Leaders.... Troy Grosenick is 1st in AHL in wins (7), 2nd in saves (276), and 2nd in minutes played (615:44).... Ryan Carpenter is 9th among AHL rookies with eight points (4-4-8).

*Good Boys... the Worcester Sharks are the least penalized team in the AHL averaging 10.56 minutes per game.

*Pro Debuts: Gus Young (Yale) mad his professional debut in the Sharks 4-1 win over the Portland Pirates on Oct 26.

*Odds and ends...Worcester has scored the 3rd most first period goals (14) in the AHL but have allowed the 3rd most first period goals (16) this season....the Sharks have scored the 2nd fewest second period goals (5).... But have scored the 2nd most third period goals (17).

*Close Games... nine of the first 11 Sharks games have been decided by a single goal...Worcester is 5-3-1-0 in games decided by one goal this season.

*Northeast has been tough... the Sharks are 0-3-0-0 vs. the Northeast Division this season but 7-1-0-0 vs. the rest of the Eastern Conference.

*Score first... the Sharks have scored FIRST 7 times in 11 games this season (5-1-1-0) - Ryan Carpenter 1, Petter Emanuelsson 2, Taylor Doherty (1), Konrad Abeltshauser (1), and Daniil Tarasov (1) and Melker Karlsson (1).

*Big third period... Freddie Hamilton (3-0-3), Daniil Tarasov (0-3-3), and Evan Trupp (1-2-3) all recorded three points in the third period in the Sharks 4-1 win over the Pirates on Oct 26.

*Big third period X2... the four goals scored by the Sharks in the third period in 4-1 win vs. Portland on Oct 26 was just the 4th time this season a team has scored four goals in a period this season in the AHL.

*Thanks Ballou... despite going 10-2 in the shootout last season, the Sharks are just 31W-45L overall (40.7%).

*AHL First... Matt Taormina became the first player to score a 3-on-3 OT goal under the new overtime format in the AHL in the Sharks 3-2 overtime win in Binghamton on Oct 11. The goal came at 6:34 assisted by Evan Trupp and Taylor Fedun.

*Deja-Vu (almost).... Dylan Demelo scored at 6:33 of overtime on Oct 18.... Exactly one week after defenseman Matt Taormina scored at 6:34 of overtime on Oct 11.

*Breaking down the roster.... The Sharks opening roster featured 11 Americans, nine Canadians, two Swedes, one German, and one Russian.

*Oh boy...Troy in the Shootout!.... goaltender Troy Grosenick went 6-0 last season in the shootout - tied for most shootout wins in the AHL.... Troy stopped 25 of 28 shootout attempts (.892%) and was the only goalie to have at least six wins in the shootout without a shootout loss!

*3 National Champions... The Sharks have three players that won the NCAA Division 1 Championship.... Gus Young was captain with Yale University in 2013....Travis Oleksuk with University Minnesota Duluth in 2011...Bryan Lerg with Michigan State in 2007.

*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.

*Swedish Elite League Championship.... both Melker Karlsson and Petter Emanuelsson won back-to-back championships with Skelleftea AIK in the SWEHL in 2013 and 2014.

*Young Guns... the Sharks have dressed 6 AHL rookies already this season. (Ryan Carpenter, Jeremy Langlois, Evan Trupp, JP Anderson, Gus Young, and Chris Tierney)

*Tallest Shark.... Worcester Sharks rookie defenseman Taylor Doherty is the tallest player in team history standing at 6'8" 235lbs.... Doherty has six goals, 28 assists, and 268 penalty minutes in 186 games with the Worcester Sharks. Taylor has yet to make his NHL debut.

*First Pro Goals this season... Ryan Carpenter scored his 1st pro goal (Andrew Hammond) in 3-2OTW at Binghamton on Oct 11...Chris Tierney scored his 1st (Malcolm Subban) in 4-2W vs. Providence on Nov 8.

*Sharks in the Atlantic... went 21-22-1-2 vs. the Atlantic in 2013-14 and are 4-1-0-0 in divisional play this season.

*Massachusetts!... the Sharks have one player that hails from Massachusetts this season (Gus Young - Dedham).

*I'll take a draft... six Worcester Sharks players were drafted by the San Jose Sharks. (Abeltshauser, Hamilton, Doherty, Crane, Demelo, and Tierney)

*NHL Experience.... The Sharks have nine eight players on their roster with NHL experience... Matt Taormina 56, James Sheppard 328, Matt Tennyson 4, Freddie Hamilton 11, Eriah Hayes 19, Taylor Fedun 4, Micheal Haley 52, Tyler Kennedy 441, and Chris Tierney 11.

*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. Freddie Hamilton scored the first home hat trick in 206 games with three goals in a 5:12 span in the third period in a 4-1 win over the Pirates on Oct 26, 2014. It was the first home hat trick since P.J. Fenton had one on Feb. 28, 2009 in the Sharks' 7-3 victory over Springfield. In all, Worcester players have recorded hat tricks only ten times in the franchise's 640 games. The Sharks are 10-0 in those games and 1-15-3 in the 19 games in which the opposition has had a hat trick.

* Brothers... 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.

*Major Bonneau... Worcester Sharks tough guy Jimmy Bonneau has racked up 51 fighting majors in 129 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 123 fighting majors in 325 AHL games along with 920 penalty minutes.

*Five for fighting... The Sharks have 7 fighting majors through 11 games this season (Bonneau 2, Haley 3, Shattock 2)....The Sharks had 70 fighting majors in 2013-14, 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: 7-3-1-0, 15 points - 1st in Atlantic

Win percentage: .682% - 8th in AHL, 3rd in East

Home Record: 5-2-1-0

Away Record: 2-1-0-0

Attendance: 23,804 through 8 games this season - 2,976 average

Goals Scored: 38, 3.45 goals per game, 6th in AHL

Goals Allowed: 32, 2.91 goals against per game, 14th in AHL

Shots per game: 35.18 - 2nd in AHL

Shots allowed per game: 29.27 - 15th in AHL

Score 1st: 5-1-1-0 when scoring first (.786%) - 7th in AHL

1 goal games: 5-3-1-0 in one goal games

PP: 16.3%, 18th in AHL (8-49)

PK: 85.7%, 10th in AHL (5-35)

SHG - 1 shorthanded goals scored

SHGA - 2 shorthanded goals allowed

PIMS - 10.45 penalty minutes per game, 30th in AHL

Fighting Majors: 7 - 26th

OT Games - 3 - (2-1 record in OT)

SO Games - 0 - (0-0 record in SO)

Roster Players - the Sharks used 23 players this season

Goalies - the Sharks used 2 goaltenders this season

Players receiving call-ups to San Jose - 3

NHL debuts - 0 Worcester Sharks alumni making their NHL debuts this season

Call-ups to San Jose - 3 different call-ups to San Jose this season

TRANSACTIONS:

Date Player Team Transaction

11/10/2014 Tyler Shattock (RW) Worcester DEL Released from PTO

11/07/2014 Chris Crane (RW) Worcester DEL Reassigned by San Jose (NHL) to Missouri (ECHL)

11/06/2014 Chris Tierney (C) Worcester ADD Loaned from San Jose (NHL)

Top Worcester Sharks:

o Goals Hamilton and Haley (5)

o Game Winners Taormina, Emanuelsson, Demelo, Hamilton, Haley, and Carpenter (1)

o Assists Tarasov and Taormina (6)

o Points Freddie Hamilton (5-5-10)

o Power play Points Hamilton (2-1-3) and Taormina (0-3-3)

o Shots Tarasov (32)

o PIM Haley (29)

o Fighting Pen. Haley (3)

o Plus/Minus several tied at (+3)

o Wins Grosenick (7) - leads AHL

o G.A.A. Grosenick (2.73)

o Save % Grosenick (.908)

o Shutouts N/A

Sharks in the NHL:

The San Jose Sharks currently have 13 players on their roster that have spent time in Worcester (Couture, Desjardins, Pavelski, Sheppard, Wingels, Braun, Demers, Stalock, Irwin, Vlasic, Nieto, Mueller, and Kennedy).

The San Jose Sharks are in 5th place in the Pacific Division and 8th place in the Western Conference with 18 points and an 8-6-2 record.

Upcoming San Jose Sharks schedule: (all times are Eastern)

TUE Nov 11 @ Florida 7:30pm

THU Nov 13 @ Tampa Bay 7:30pm

SAT Nov 15 @ Columbus 7pm

SUN Nov 16 @ Carolina 5pm

Coming Up for the Worcester Sharks:

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

On Tuesday, the Sharks travel to Springfield to battle the Falcons at 3pm. The game will be shown live on www.AHLLive.com but will air on delay on WTAG after the Jordan Levy Show at 6pm.

On Friday, the Sharks host the Manchester Monarchs at 7:30pm. Miss Massachusetts Caroline Lunny and Miss Teen Massachusetts will sign autographs and drop the ceremonial first puck! Every Friday night enjoy $2 hot dogs, popcorn, and soda all night long!

On Saturday, the Sharks host the Springfield Falcons at 7pm. Bring a teddy bear to toss onto the ice after the Sharks score their first goal of the game for the annual teddy bear toss presented by Bay State Savings Bank! Season ticket holders are invited to stick around after the game for an exclusive full team autograph session! Score a family fun pack which includes 4 tickets, 4 hot dogs, and 4 sodas, starting at just $79! Call 508-929-0500 to score your tickets!

Worcester celebrates 20 years of AHL hockey!

The 2014-15 season marks the 20th season of AHL action at the DCU Center in the city of Worcester. Over 3.8 million fans have attended either an IceCats (11 seasons) or Sharks (9th season) game in downtown Worcester since 1994.

Score a 20 Flex Pack with a commemorative puck!

In honor of 20 years of AHL action in Worcester, the Sharks are offering fans a special ticket package that includes 20 vouchers redeemable in any combination to any regular season home games plus a commemorative puck. Redeem your vouchers to Worcester IceCats night, Worcester Hockey Alumni doubleheader game or any of the other great promotional nights! Call for details 508-929-0500.

2014-15 Flex ticket packages are on sale now! Score your 40 or 12 ticket flex package by contacting the Sharks front office at 508-929-0500. You decide how many tickets and how many games YOU want to attend while saving $$$ off box office pricing! It is that EASY!

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!

Season ticket packages and group tickets for the 2014-15 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!

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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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