AHL Texas Stars

Stars Weekly - Texas Sets New Record with Seven-Game Home Winning Streak

Published on December 31, 2013 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Week 13 Recap:

Texas continued to collect points in December and against San Antonio, taking three of a possible four points in a home-and-home series with the Rampage following the AHL's holiday break. Friday night at AT&T Center Brett Ritchie scored his first power play goal of the season, his fifth goal overall, just 4:55 into the first period to give Texas an early lead. Greg Rallo tied the game with a one-timer from the left circle just 1:19 into the second period and Wade Megan gave the Rampage at 2-1 lead at 5:50 of the third period. With time winding down, Ryan Button scored the equalizer with a mere 1:40 left in regulation, his second career AHL goal. Denny Urban and Bobby Butler scored in the shootout and Rampage goaltender Jacob Markstrom stopped all four attempts he faced to beat Texas 3-2. The Stars are now 0-3 in shootouts this year, going just 3-for-21 (0.143) in shootout attempts, which ranks 28th in the league, and they are one of only four AHL teams without a shootout victory this season. Maxime Fortunus had his five-game assist streak snapped in the game; he had seven points (1 goal, 6 assists) during that streak. Jamie Oleksiak recorded the primary assist on Button's game-tying goal in the third period, snapping an 11-game scoring drought; Oleksiak's last point came when he scored a goal on November 9th versus Milwaukee.

Saturday at Cedar Park Center, the Stars set a new franchise record by winning their seventh consecutive home game, beating the San Antonio Rampage 5-2. Travis Morin opened the scoring with a power play goal at 6:26 of the first period, but Steve Pinizzotto tied the game 25 seconds later and Bobby Butler scored on a penalty shot late in the frame to give San Antonio a 2-1 lead. That score remained intact until Brett Ritchie tied the game at two with 5:12 remaining in the third period, igniting a wild four-goal flurry by the Stars in the span of 4:39 as Texas took a 5-2 lead, with a goal by Brandon Ranford and two strikes from the AHL's leading goal-scorer, Colton Sceviour. The game grew nastier in the third, as the two teams combined for 38 of the game's 68 penalty minutes in the final period. Sceviour (2 goals, 1 assist), Morin (1 goal, 2 assists) and Curtis McKenzie (3 assists) all posted three-points in the game. Goaltender Cristopher Nilstorp improved to 5-1-1 in December, with a 2.11 GAA and a 0.934 SV%, after going 4-8-1 with a 3.16 GAA and a 0.893 SV% in the first two months of 2013-14.

Week 14 Preview:

The Stars will close out the 2013 calendar year and ring in 2014 with a three-game road trip this week. Texas will face the Oklahoma City Barons on New Years' Eve for a 6:00 p.m. faceoff at Cox Convention Center. The Stars enter Tuesday's game with an 8-1-0-1 record (0.850) and 17 points in the month of December. They have already guaranteed to set a new club record for the best point percentage for December, regardless of the outcome of Tuesday's game. The team's best point total was 20 points in 15 games in December 2010, when they went 8-3-2-2 (0.667). It is the fourth game for Texas at OKC in December and the fifth of six trips to the Barons' home rink this year. The Stars will not return to Cox Convention Center until Wednesday, April 16th; they do have four remaining home games against Oklahoma City at Cedar Park Center.

Texas then travels to North Carolina for a two-game series against the Charlotte Checkers at Time Warner Cable Arena on Thursday, January 2nd and Friday, January 3rd; both games begin at 6:00 p.m. CT. This will be the first two games of the 2013-14 season between the Stars and Checkers and they will play an eight-game season series.

C Travis Morin (16-23-39) leads the AHL in points, is second in the league in assists, is tied for second in goals and has 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists) and a +1 rating in his last seven games. RW Colton Sceviour (20-13-33) leads the AHL in goals, is second in shots (120), is tied for second in points and has eight points (5 goals, 3 assists) and a +3 rating in his last four games. C Chris Mueller (12-17-29) is tied for eighth in the AHL in points and has seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) and a +1 rating in his last seven games. LW Curtis McKenzie (11-17-28) is tied for 12th in the league in points, ranks second in the AHL in rookie points and has nine points (3 goals, 6 assists) and a +1 rating in his last six games; he has five assists in his last three games.

Week 14 Schedule:

(All games are broadcast LIVE over the Internet at www.TexasStarsHockey.com and the free radio button of www.ahllive.com and can be viewed via internet pay-per-view video on www.ahllive.com. All times listed in Central Time)

Tuesday, December 31 - 6:00 p.m. - Cox Convention Center - Oklahoma City, OK

at Oklahoma City Barons (11-17-0-5, 27 pts.)

Tied-Fourth Place, West Division

Team Notes: The Oklahoma City Barons are currently on a three-game losing streak; they have just one win in their last eight games (1-5-0-2) and in the month of December they have just six points (2-7-0-2) in their 11 games, a 0.273 point percentage. Oklahoma City has not won back-to-back games since mid-October, when the team won a season-high three straight games. After shutting out Texas 2-0 on December 20th, the Barons have been out-scored 16-5 during their current three-game skid. Goaltender Richard Bachman has made five-straight starts and six of the team's last seven games, posting a 1-4-1 record during that span. Taylor Fedun has missed the last eight games due to injury and Oklahoma City is currently without three of the team's top four scorers: Linus Omark was traded to Buffalo, while captain Anton Lander and defenseman Martin Marincin are currently in the NHL with Edmonton.Leading Scorer: Linus Omark (LW) - 29 points (14 goals, 15 assists) and a -7 in 29 GP.Leading Goaltender: Richard Bachman (G) - 2.94 GAA, 0.910 save pct., 4-8-2, 1 SO in 14 GP.Who's Hot: D Brad Hunt (3-12-15) leads all Barons defensemen in points, is tied for fourth on the team in points, is tied for second in assists and has nine points (2 goals, 7 assists) in his last 10 games. LW Ryan Hamilton (4-8-12) has seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) in his last seven games. D Martin Gernat (0-9-0) has five assists and a +1 rating in his last six games.

Thursday, January 2 - 6:00 p.m. - Time Warner Cable Arena - Charlotte, NC

at Charlotte Checkers (14-17-0-1, 29 pts.)

Third Place, West Division

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Thursday, January 2 - 6:00 p.m. - Time Warner Cable Arena - Charlotte, NC

at Charlotte Checkers (14-17-0-1, 29 pts.)

Third Place, West Division

Team Notes: The Charlotte Checkers went 7-12-0-1 in the first two months of the season, but have since have turned things around with a solid December, going 7-4-0-0 (14) in the final month of 2013. The Checkers and Stars meet for the first time this season and four of Charlotte's next six games are against Texas, all at Time Warner Cable Arena. Their first trip to Cedar Park Center will not be until Friday, February 21st. Eight different goaltenders have played for Charlotte so far this season, with the newest arrival being Anton Khudobin, who recovered from injury and was loaned by the Carolina Hurricanes for a conditioning assignment. The Checkers have lost co-leading scorer Zach Boychuk to an NHL call-up with the Hurricanes; Boychuck was on a five-game point streak with eight points (5 goals, 3 assists) at the time of his call-up. With Boychuk gone, Charlotte has signed Matthew Pistilli to a PTO, calling him up from the Florida Everblades, where he was leading the ECHL with 36 points (16 goals, 20 assists) in 28 games.Leading Scorer: Zach Boychuk (LW) - 27 points (14 goals, 13 assists) and a -14 in 29 GP & Aaron Palushaj (RW) - 27 points (9 goals, 18 assists) and -4 in 32 GP.Leading Goaltender: John Muse (G) - 2.46 GAA, 0.918 save pct., 11-7-0, 2 SO in 19 GP.Who's Hot: RW Aaron Palushaj (9-18-27) is tied for the team lead in points, leads thea team in assists, ranks third in goals and is currently on a four-game assist streak, with seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) and a +3 rating during that span. D Matthew Corrente (2-6-8) ranks second on the team in penalty minutes (55) and has three points (2 goals, 1 assist) and a +4 rating in his last three games. C Brett Sutter (2-12-14) is tied for third on the team in assists, ranks sixth in points and has four points (1 goal, 3 assists) in his last four games.

Week 13 Game Results:

December 27, 2013 Texas 2 @ San Antonio 3 - SO

December 28, 2013 San Antonio 2 @ Texas 5

Stars Player of the Week: (Week 13)

Brett Ritchie - RW - #20 2 GP, 2 points (2 G, 0 A), +1, 7 PIMs

Rookie right wing Brett Ritchie entered Week 13 on an 11-game goal drought. The Orangeville, Ontario native snapped that streak by scoring in both games to help lead Texas to three points out of four against the San Antonio Rampage. Friday night at AT&T Center, Ritchie scored his first power play goal of the season, his fifth goal overall, when he one-timed a rebound past goalie Jacob Markstrom early in the first period in the Stars' 3-2 shootout loss. He came up with another big goal against Markstrom on Saturday, this time he scored the game-tying goal with 5:12 remaining in the second period, sparking a four-goal outburst from Texas that lead to a 5-2 win. On the season, Ritchie ranks 14th amongst all AHL rookies with 20 points (6 goals, 14 assists), along with 31 penalty minutes, and he is one of just two players to play in a 33 of Texas' games so far this year.

Stars Quick Hits:

- A NEW TEAM RECORD - The Texas Stars set a new club record by winning their seventh consecutive home game on Saturday, December 28th, a 5-2 victory over the San Antonio Rampage. Texas also has points in eight straight games at Cedar Park Center (7-0-0-1, 15 pts.) which is two games shy of the franchise record ten-game home winning streak set last season. In ten games from December 29, 2012 vs. Charlotte to February 15, 2013 vs. Oklahoma City the Stars posted a record of 8-0-0-2 (18 pts.).

- ON A RAMPAGE - Texas is currently carrying a 20-game point streak against San Antonio (15-0-2-3), taking 35 points out of 36 (0.889). The last time the Stars lost a regular season game to the Rampage in regulation was on March 10, 2012, a 4-3 loss at Cedar Park Center.

- CEDAR PARK STRONGHOLD - The Texas Stars are 13-2-0-1 at Cedar Park Center this season after beating San Antonio 5-2 last Saturday, extending their current home winning streak to seven games and their current home point streak to eight games (7-0-0-1, 15 pts.). The Stars lead the AHL in points on home ice (27), home wins (13), home point percentage (0.844) and home goal differential (+29).

- DIDN'T MISS A BEAT - Stars' right wing Colton Sceviour missed six straight AHL games due to his first NHL call up of the season in Dallas. The Red Deer, Alberta native was leading the AHL in goals before he went to the NHL and when he returned last Saturday he was still on top, but his margin had dwindled. Sceviour picked right back up where he left off, notching an assist and scoring twice to become the first AHL player to reach the 20-goal mark this year. He has a four-goal cushion over the second best goal-scorer in the league.

- LOTS OF ADVANTAGES - The Stars had a season-high nine power play chances during last Saturday's 5-2 win over San Antonio. Texas scored three times during the game to improve their AHL-leading power play percentage to 29.5% (110-for-110). The previous season-high came on October 20th when the team went 5-for-8 with the man-advantage during a 9-3 win over Abbotsford at Cedar Park Center.

- RECORD PACE - Right wing Colton Sceviour hit the 20-goal mark with two goals last Saturday against San Antonio. His career-high for goals in one season is 21, which he accomplished each of the last two seasons. Sceviour is currently on pace to shatter his career best by more than double.

- PENALTY KILL ROLLING - Texas is currently on a penalty kill streak, successfully killing off their last 15 power plays against, which spans the team's last four games. The Stars have only allowed one power play goal against in their last 25 times being shorthanded (96.0%), over the last eight games. Texas currently ranks fifth in the AHL in penalty kill percentage (86.9%).

- LOTS OF GOALS - The Stars went 3-for-9 on the power play in Saturday's 5-2 win over the San Antonio Rampage at Cedar Park Center, marking the 10th time in 33 games this season that they have scored two or more power play goals in a game. Texas has gone 6-for-17 on the power play (35.3%) in its last three games and leads the AHL in power play percentage (29.0%) and total power play goals (40).

- DOWLING-CENTENNIAL - Stars center Justin Dowling played in his 100th career AHL game on Friday at San Antonio. The Cochrane, Alberta native has 47 points (20 goals, 27 assists) in 101 career AHL games while playing for Texas and the Abbotsford Heat.

- BUTTON STREAK - Defenseman Ryan Button had to wait 69 games before he scored his first career AHL goal on December 21st at Oklahoma City. The Edmonton, Alberta native did not have to wait long for his second career goal, as he scored in his very next game, the game-tying goal with 1:40 left in the third period on December 27th at San Antonio, helping Texas rally to earn a point in a 3-2 shootout loss. Button has five points (2 goals, 3 assists) in 71 career AHL games with Texas and the Providence Bruins.

- FOUR HUNDRED AND COUNTING - Center Chris Mueller played in his 400th career professional hockey game on Saturday against San Antonio at Cedar Park Center. Currently in his sixth full season as a pro, the West Seneca, New York native has played in 354 career AHL games, 38 NHL games and eight ECHL games. Entering Week 14 action, Mueller is third on the Stars and tied for seventh in the AHL with 29 points (12 goals, 17 assists).

- CORNER ON STARS - Texas currently features four of the top 12 point leaders in the AHL. Travis Morin leads the league with 39 points, while Colton Sceviour is tied for second (33 pts.), Chris Mueller is tied for eighth (29 pts.) and Curtis McKenzie is 12th (28 pts.). McKenzie is the newest addition to the list; the rookie's three-assist game against San Antonio last Saturday help vault him into 12th overall, while he also is second in the AHL in rookie points.

- APPROACHING STARS MILESTONES - D Maxime Fortunus is 2 GP away from his 300th career game with Texas and 6 GP away from his 600th career AHL game; he is 4 pts. away from his 200th career AHL point. C Travis Morin needs 3 pts. to record his 250th career AHL point. D Jyrki Jokipakka is 4 GP from his 100th career pro game. C Toby Petersen is 5 GP shy of his 550th career AHL game and 7 GP shy of his 950th career pro game. D William Wrenn is 6 GP away from his 100th career pro game. LW Mike Hedden needs 9 GP to reach his 300th career pro game and needs 7 pts. to reach his 100th career AHL point.

Stars Week 13 Transactions:

December 28 - ADD - Colton Sceviour (RW) - Returned on loan from Dallas (NHL).

December 27 - ADD - Brock Montgomery (LW) - Recalled from loan to Idaho (ECHL).

December 26 - ADD - Josh Robinson (G) - Recalled from loan to Idaho (ECHL).

December 24 - ADD - Maxime Fortunus (D) - Loaned by Dallas (NHL).

Texas Stars Team Leaders:

Games Played: Justin Dowling & Brett Ritchie (33)

Goals: Colton Sceviour (20)

Assists: Travis Morin (23)

Points: Travis Morin (39)

Plus/Minus: Chris Mueller (+13)

Penalty Minutes: Curtis McKenzie (51)

Power Play Goals: Chris Mueller & Colton Sceviour (7)

Short Handed Goals: Five Players Tied (1)

Game-Winning Goals: Colton Sceviour (3)

Shots: Colton Sceviour (120)

Shooting Percentage: Travis Morin (17.8%)

Saves: Cristopher Nilstorp (539)

Wins: Cristopher Nilstorp (9)

GAA: Jack Campbell (1.40)

Save Percentage: Jack Campbell (0.947)

Shutouts: Josh Robinson & Allen York (1)

The Stars begin a three-game road trip by taking on the Oklahoma City Barons tonight at 6:00 p.m. at Cox Convention Center. Texas will return home to face the Abbotsford Heat on Friday, January 10th with a 7:30 p.m. face off at Cedar Park Center. The January 10th game against the Heat is a $3 Draft Beer and $4 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Wine Night and is the Stars Cell Phone Dot giveaway. Pro-rated full and partial 2013-14 Texas Stars Season Tickets are on sale now. For more information on Texas Stars season tickets call (512) GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit www.TexasStarsHockey.com .

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American Hockey League Stories from December 31, 2013


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