AHL Syracuse Crunch

Week 21 - Holzapfel's Hot Start

Published on February 20, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


Center Riley Holzapfel missed a significant part of the first half of the season with a broken cheekbone that he sustained during a practice with the St. John's IceCaps. He was subsequently traded to the Anaheim organization for Maxime Macenauer on February 13. He saw his first action with the Crunch on February 15 at Albany. He helped the Crunch defeat the Devils 7-1 with a pair of assists. On Friday, he chipped in with two goals and on Saturday registered two assists. In three games with the Crunch he has six points (2g, 4a). In 29 games with St. John's this season, the Regina, Saskatchewan, native recorded 15 points (8g, 7a).

GORDON STRIKES TWICE: After beginning the season with the Anaheim Ducks, right wing Andrew Gordon had a difficult time regaining his scoring touch at the AHL. Prior to this season, Gordon had 224 points in 267 AHL games. After 14 games with the Crunch, Gordon had five assists, and no goals. On Saturday, Gordon pitched in, in a big way, scoring his first two AHL goals of the season to give the Crunch a 2-0 lead over Norfolk. The Crunch would ultimately lost 3-2 in a shootout, but Gordon helped Syracuse earn an important point.

TRANSACTIONS: Nate Guenin has been loaned to the Crunch by the Anaheim Ducks. He has four assists in 23 games with the Crunch and one goal in 10 games with Anaheim. Kyle Cumiskey has been recalled by Anaheim. He has 16 points (2g, 14a) in 36 games with the Crunch this season.

UPCOMING OPPONENTS:

WORCESTER (SAN JOSE SHARKS): The Crunch face the Worcester Sharks for the second and final time this season on Tuesday. They fell to Worcester, 3-2, in a shootout on January 15. The Crunch have failed to defeat Worcester in their three meetings all-time. Since their last meeting, Worcester has gone 5-6-2 to sit in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. Crunch goaltender Antero Niittymaki played in five games earlier this season for Worcester, and is still a member of the San Jose Sharks organization.

ALBANY (NEW JERSEY DEVILS): Wednesday marks the sixth of 10 meetings of the season between the Crunch and the Albany Devils. The Crunch are 3-2-0-0 against Albany this season, capturing the latest meeting, 7-1, at the Times Union Center on Wednesday. In the game, Patrick Maroon and Kyle Palmieri each recorded two goals and an assist to help the Crunch snap their seven-game losing streak. Following their loss to the Crunch, the Devils responded with back-to-back wins against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Binghamton over the weekend.

WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON (PITTSBURGH PENGUINS): The Crunch meet the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the eighth and final time this season. The Penguins have won four of the seven meetings this season. The latest game saw the Penguins win 4-3 at the War Memorial on January 22. Kyle Palmieri scored twice in the losing effort. The Penguins are tied with Hershey for second in the East Division, having lost three out of their last four games. The face Portland and Manchester this week prior to hosting the Crunch.

ADIRONDACK (PHILADELPHIA FLYERS): The Crunch take on the Adirondack Phantoms for the sixth time this season on Sunday. The two teams haven't played since December 17, a 4-3 win by Adirondack. Since then, the Phantoms have gone 9-15-1 and find themselves at the bottom of the Northeast Division standings. Rookie Jason Akeson leads the Phantoms with 41 points, while veteran Denis Hamel paces the team with 16 goals.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS:

TIME WARNER CABLE BUY ONE GET ONE: The Crunch's February 21st match-up against the Worcester Sharks is a buy one get one night courtesy of Time Warner Cable. Fans that purchase any regularly priced ticket, will receive an additional ticket, or equal or lesser value free of charge.

TURNING STONE FAN APPRECIATION NIGHT: The Syracuse Crunch have announced that the club's Friday, Feb. 24 game against the Albany Devils is a Turning Stone Resort and Casino Fan Appreciation Night. Fans can redeem their 2/24 ticket stub at the Diamond Card Desk at Turning Stone Resort and Casino for five days and receive either a $10 free play or $10 meal voucher.

CRUNCHABLES: Ryan O'Marra, acquired in a trade on Friday for Bryan Rodney, made his Crunch debut on Saturday...Mark Fraser is the Crunch's team leader at +13...On Saturday, Iiro Tarkki made his first start since February 3...

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American Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2012


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