AHL Syracuse Crunch

Week Eighteen: J.P. Slamming the Door

Published on February 7, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Syracuse Crunch News Release


Crunch goaltender J.P. Levasseur started both games for the Crunch last week, going 2-0-0 with a 1.00 goals against average and .971 save percentage, stopping 67 of 69 shots. Levasseur was brilliant on Friday at the Glens Falls Civic Center, earning first star of the game honors after stopping all 31 Adirondack shots he faced in a 5-0 win. The shutout was Levasseur's fourth of the season, tying him for fifth in the AHL and fifth on the Crunch's all-time list in that category.

Levasseur was solid again the following night, helping the Crunch to their second straight victory and third win in five games against the AHL-leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this season. He denied 36 of 38 Penguins shots and was named the game's third star for his effort. Levasseur has appeared in 30 games for the Crunch this season, going 8-14-3 with a 2.81 goals against average and .917 save percentage.

SUPER SPECIAL TEAMS: The Crunch are coming off back-to-back wins against Adirondack and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this past weekend, and the club's special teams is a huge reason why. On Friday at Adirondack, the Crunch had perhaps their best special teams effort of the season, scoring three times on six power play advantages while killing off all eight penalties against them.

On Saturday vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the Crunch matched their total from the night before with three man-advantage markers on five power play opportunities and killed off three of four penalties they took. Overall, the Crunch are 6-for-11 on the power play (54.5%) and have killed off 11 of 12 penalties against (91.7%) over the past two contests. With their recent efforts, the Crunch climbed to tenth in the AHL on the man advantage (19.4%) and 20th in the league on the penalty kill (81.3%).

TRICKY TRIO: With all of the injuries and call-ups this season, Crunch Head Coach Mark Holick has had to juggle his lines around quite a bit. Over the last two games, one trio that has stood out and been extremely productive since being assembled has been the Matt Beleskey-Nick Bonino-Kyle Palmieri combination.

Over the last two contests, Beleskey (2g, 2a, +1), Bonino (2g, 0a, +2) and Palmieri (1g, 4a, +3) have combined for 11 points (5g, 6a) and a plus-6 rating. Two of the three in the trio (Bonino and Palmieri) are AHL rookies, and the three players combined average just 21.3 years of age.

ANAHEIM SIGNS GOALTENDER RAY EMERY: The Syracuse Crunch announced today that the Anaheim Ducks have signed goaltender Ray Emery to a one-year, two-way contract. If Emery passes through waivers by 12 p.m. (EST) on Tuesday, February 8, the Ducks will assign him to Syracuse.

Emery, 28, has appeared in 157 combined AHL contests with Binghamton and Adirondack, going 77-50-18 with a 2.52 goals against average. In his first AHL season in 2002-03, he earned All-Rookie Team honors, while ranking second in the AHL in wins (27), tied for first in shutouts (7) and fourth in minutes (2924). Emery has also appeared in 163 career NHL games with Ottawa and Philadelphia since the 2002-03 season, going 87-51-15-11 with a 2.70 goals against average .907 save percentage and 11 shutouts. He skated in 29 games with the Flyers last season, going 16-11-1-3 with a 2.64 goals against average and .905 save percentage before getting sidelined with a hip injury.

A native of Cayuga, Ontario, Emery was selected by Ottawa in the fourth round, 99th overall, in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. Prior to turning pro, Emery appeared in 127 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) games with Sault Ste. Marie from 1999-2002. He was named the OHL and CHL Goaltender of the Year in 2001-02 after going 33-17-9 with a 2.73 goals against average and .914 save percentage for the Greyhounds.

UPCOMING GAMES:

NORFOLK ADMIRALS (TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING): The Crunch hit the road for three straight, beginning with back-to-back games on Friday, February 11 and Saturday, February 12 vs. Norfolk at the Scope. The Crunch have taken three of the first four meetings against the Admirals this year, most recently a 3-2 win at The Oncenter War Memorial on January 22. Syracuse will play Norfolk two more times after this weekend's games. Nicolas Deschamps (2g, 2a) and David Laliberte (3g, 1a) lead the Crunch in scoring against the Admirals this season with four points each, netminders J.P. Levasseur and Timo Pielmeier have combined to go 3-1-0 with a 1.98 goals against average. For Norfolk, Marc-Antoine Pouliot leads his club and all players in the season series with five points (4g, 1a), while teammate Blair Jones is right behind him, racking up four assists against the Crunch this year.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS:

CRUNCH OFFER POP STAR CHRISTINA AGUILERA CHANCE FOR REDEMPTION: The Syracuse Crunch announced today that they will invite pop star Christina Aguilera to sing the National Anthem at an upcoming home game for a chance to redeem herself after flubbing the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner at Super Bowl XLV yesterday at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas.

Aguilera, 30, is a five-time Grammy Award-winner and came to prominence in 1999 following her debut album, Christina Aguilera, which spawned three number one singles including, Genie in a Bottle, What a Girl Wants, and Come on Over Baby (All I want is you). After getting through the first three lines of the song flawlessly, Aguilera stumbled and mistakenly sang "What so proudly we watched" in place of the correct line, "O'er the ramparts we watched."

CRUNCH IN THE COMMUNITY:

CRUNCH PLAYERS TO SIGN AUTOGRAPHS AT BRADLEY'S JEWELERS: The Syracuse Crunch announced today that Crunch players Stefan Chaput and John Mitchell will be appearing at Bradley's Jewelers in Liverpool on Wednesday, February 9. Chaput and Mitchell will be signing autographs from 4 - 5 p.m. Bradley's Jewelers is located at 309 Vine St. in Liverpool. For directions please call (315) 471-4822. Players are subject to change.

CRUNCH PLAYERS TO SIGN AUTOGRAPHS AT TOPS FRIENDLY MARKETS: The Syracuse Crunch announced today that Crunch players Nick Bonino and Mat Clark will be at the Nestle display at the Camillus TOPS Friendly Markets on Wednesday, February 9. Bonino and Clark will be signing autographs from 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. The TOPS Friendly Markets location in Camillus is located at 5301 West Genesee St. For directions, please call (315) 487-0787. Players are subject to change.

LABATT'S CELEBRITY BARTENDING SERIES CONTINUES:

FEBRUARY 8 AT RUBY TUESDAY: The Labatt's Celebrity Bartending series will continue on Tuesday, February 8 at Ruby Tuesday. Crunch players Joe DiPenta, David Laliberte and Maxime Macenauer will serve as celebrity bartenders at Ruby Tuesday from 5-7 p.m. on Tuesday, February 8. Ruby Tuesday is located at 6405 Yorktown Circle in East Syracuse. For directions call (315) 414-0450. Players are subject to change. All tips generated by the players that night will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

FEBRUARY 9 AT QUAKER STEAK AND LUBE: The Labatt's Celebrity Bartending series will continue on Wednesday, February 9 at Quaker Steak and Lube. Crunch players Nate Guenin, Leigh Salters and MacGregor Sharp will serve as celebrity bartenders at Quaker Steak and Lube from 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, February 9. Quaker Steak and Lube is located at 3535 Walters Rd. in Syracuse. For directions call (315) 701-2337. Players are subject to change. All tips generated by the players that night will be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

CRUNCHABLES: The Crunch's back-to-back wins this past weekend were the first for the club since January 1 and 2 against Rochester and Albany, respectively.Nicolas Deschamps is tied for 14th in the AHL in rookie scoring with 25 points (9g, 16a).After the Crunch complete their upcoming three-game road trip, the club will play 16 of its final 27 games at The Oncenter War Memorial Arena.Nate Guenin had his four-game point streak snapped Saturday vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 7, 2011


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