Winning streaks collide in Milwaukee

Published on November 15, 2006 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Houston Aeros News Release


Seven things you need to know
- Aeros third-year G Josh Harding ranks first in the AHL in games played (14), minutes (828), shots faced (445) and saves (413). He has a whopping 115 more saves than the second place netminder, Manchester's Jason LaBarbera. In the last two weeks, Harding has moved from a tie for 17th in the AHL in gaa to seventh place (2.32), and 17th place in save pct. to fourth place (0.928). He has allowed three or fewer goals in nine straight games, and two or less in seven of his last nine. Harding is 5-2-0 with a 1.70 gaa and a sparkling .950 save pct. in his last seven games, and 3-0-0 with a 1.62 gaa and a .961 save pct. in his last three. Harding's 14 consecutive games played are the most for an Aeros goalie since Mike Smith's franchise record of 19, set from 11/26/04-1/25/05, while Harding was injured. Other goalies have accumulated just 21 minutes in net for Houston this season. Counting back to last season and including the playoffs, Harding has appeared in 23 straight games, including 22 starts. The Aeros' record for most games played by a goalie in one season is 72 - set by Frederic Chabot in 1996-97 in an 82-game season. The AHL record is 74 - set by Baltimore's Mike O'Neill in 1995-96. O'Neill also made an AHL record 2,005 saves that season. Frederic Cassivi led the AHL in games played last season with 61.
- Hardly a week goes by without another milestone for Aeros veteran D Curtis Murphy, and this week should be no different. Murphy enters play tonight with 398 points (123-275=398) in 606 professional games. Murphy is the Aeros' all-time leader among defensemen in goals (51), assists (125) and points (176). Counting the post-season, Murphy has played in 233 consecutive games since missing the 2003-04 season opener to attend Dan Snyder's funeral. He has played in 469 of a possible 470 games, counting both the regular and post-seasons, since the 2001-02 season. Murphy is tied for 13th among AHL blueliners this season with eight points (2-6=8).
- Tonight's game features possible intriguing matchups in the goaltending department. Aeros G Josh Harding is just 3-2-0 in his career in the regular season against Milwaukee, but each of the three wins have come via shutout, as three of his six career whitewashings have come versus the Admirals. His 1.00 gaa versus Milwaukee is his lowest against any team. However, Harding went 0-4-0 with a 5.48 gaa and a .826 save pct. in the Ads' four-game sweep in the 2006 West Division Finals. Meanwhile, Milwaukee G Karl Goehring is 2-0-0 with a 1.15 gaa and a .966 save pct. with two no decisions in four career games against Houston. Ads G Scott Reid is 1-0-0 with a 0.68 gaa and a .975 save pct. versus the Aeros.
- The Aeros have killed off 53-of-56 shorthanded chances (94.6 percent) in the last seven games to move up to fifth in the AHL at 87.6 percent. Houston has been shorthanded 105 times - fourth most in the league. Houston has actually been much better than fifth in the league when just down a single man. Five of the Aeros' 13 PPG allowed have come on 5-on-3's. Houston killed off the final 5:10 of 5-on-3 time in their two-game set against Iowa last week.
- The Aeros have won four straight road games after an 0-3-0-1 start to their away campaign. Houston hadn't won back-to-back road games since a season-best five-game road winning streak 2/15-2/26/06. Houston has won three in a row overall and is 6-2-0-0 in its last eight after beginning the season 0-5-0-1. The Aeros return home Friday to try to better a 2-4-0-0 mark at Toyota Center.
- All but two of Houston's 14 games have been decided by one or two goals. The Aeros are 4-3-0-1 in one-goal games. Six of Houston's last seven road games have been decided by one goal. Houston has played 855 minutes this season - and for 680 of those minutes (79.5 percent), it has been either a tie game, or one team has held a one-goal lead.
- Houston has been outshot 89-45 in its last two games, and shot totals in the first and third periods have been alarming recently. The Aeros have been outshot 38-8 in the third period over their last two games, and 47-12 in the last three. In the first period, Houston's opponents hold a 49-19 shot advantage in the last three games.

Aeros at Admirals (Aeros are 33-36-7-2 overall, Aeros are 15-20-3-0 at Milwaukee)
- The historic rivals meet for the 79th time tonight. The Aeros have only played Chicago (83) more times.
- Milwaukee swept the Aeros in four games in the 2006 West Division Finals. Houston carried a 3-2 lead into the final five minutes of Game 1 at Bradley Center, but then allowed the next two goals, before apparently sending the game into OT with 1:48 remaining. But Milwaukee's Jordin Tootoo scored the GWG with 13.9 ticks left for a 5-4 decision. The Ads rolled 7-0 in Game 2 at Bradley Center, and completed the sweep with a pair of victories at Toyota Center.
- The teams split eight regular season meetings, although the Aeros (4-3-0-1) out-pointed the Admirals (4-4-0-0) because one of Milwaukee's wins came in a shootout.
- Houston won three of the last four regular season meetings, including a two-game series sweep in Milwaukee 2/25-2/26/06.
- Since winning 5-1 at Milwaukee 10/17/03, the Aeros are 7-16-2-2 in the last 27 regular season meetings overall.
- Houston is 3-8-2-0 in its last 13 trips to Bradley Center since the aforementioned win 10/17/03, and 3-10-2-0 in 15 games counting the playoffs.
- The teams don't meet again until 1/21 in Houston. From 1/21 until 2/28, the Aeros play six of their 16 games versus the Admirals.
- Milwaukee is the lone active AHL opponent that the Aeros hold an overall losing record against, with at least four meetings.

Scouting the Aeros
The Aeros (6-7-0-1) have won three straight overall and are playing the finale of a four-game road trip before hosting San Antonio on Friday...RW Matt Foy leads the Aeros in scoring with 12 points (4-8=12), ahead of rookie RW Danny Irmen (5-4=9) and rookie LW Benoit Pouliot (7-2=9)...D Curtis Murphy paces the blueline with eight points (2-6=8)...G Josh Harding is 5-7-1 with a 2.32 gaa and a .928 save pct. this season...Rookie G Tony Quesada, a Holy Cross product, has backed up Harding in the last seven games.

Scouting the Admirals
Milwaukee (5-4-1-0), AHL affiliate of the Nashville Predators, won its third straight, 8-1, in Grand Rapids yesterday afternoon...Rookie sensation RW Alexander Radulov tallied a goal and five helpers, D Sheldon Brookbank scored his first two goals of the season and added an assist, and C Cal O'Reilly supplied a goal and three helpers...Milwaukee, which has played a league-low nine games, is 2-4-1-0 at home, having been outscored 23-15...Radulov has played just seven games, but has 16 points (4-12=16)...D Ville Koistinen paces the blueline with nine points (4-5=0)...G Scott Reid is 3-3-0 with a 2.09 gaa, while G Karl Goehring is 2-2-0 with a 3.68 gaa.

2006-07 meetings (1st of 8 meetings)
Tonight Houston at Milwaukee
January 21 Milwaukee at Houston
January 23 Milwaukee at Houston
February 1 Milwaukee at Houston
February 2 Houston at Milwaukee
February 25 Milwaukee at Houston
February 28 Houston at Milwaukee
April 10 Houston at Milwaukee

Friday's game
Josh Harding made 19 of his season-high 48 saves in a perfect third period and helped kill off all 10 Iowa power plays, and former Star Shawn Belle broke a tie with a man advantage goal early in the second period, as the Houston Aeros earned their fourth straight road win, 3-1 over Iowa at Wells Fargo Arena. Erik Reitz and Josh Olson also scored for Houston.

Quick Hits
- The Aeros have used the same lineup in each of the last two games - the first time all season they've done that.
- Aeros D Shawn Belle has five points (1-4=5) in 13 games in this, his second season. That matches his point total (2-3=5) in 61 games for Iowa and Houston last season. Belle has posted three points (1-2=3) in his last four games alone, including his first goal of the season, last Friday in Iowa. The PPG broke a tie and was the eventual GWG in the 3-1 win over the Stars.
- The Aeros rank sixth in the AHL in average attendance, at 6,568 per game. Houston is up 39.2 percent over the first six games of the 2005-06 season.
- Houston won 11/9 in Iowa despite getting outshot 40-16, tied for its fewest number of shots since moving to the AHL in 2001. The Aeros last had 16 shots in a game 1/28/06 against Chicago - also a win, 5-4. The minus-24 differential in shots was the most since Toronto outshot Houston 58-25 on 1/10/06, a 4-2 Aeros victory behind a franchise-record 56 saves from G Josh Harding.
- Seventeen of Houston's 38 goals have been scored by rookies. Aeros LW Benoit Pouliot has seven, including five in his last six games, and RW Danny Irmen has five goals and matches Pouliot's team rookie leading total of nine points.
- On 11/9, RW Matt Foy became the 24th player in Aeros history to reach the 100-point plateau. Foy has 101 points (42-59=101) in 183 games with Houston. Foy is also seven PIM's away from becoming the 16th player in team history with 300 PIM's. Foy would become just the seventh player in Aeros history to reach 100 points and 300 PIM's. Foy has a four-game point streak (1-3=4) heading into play tonight, the longest run by an Aero this season.

Power play update
- Houston is 26th in the AHL with the man advantage at 11.2 percent.
- The Aeros are 5-for-47 (10.6 percent) on the power play in eight road games.
- Milwaukee is first in the AHL on the penalty kill at 93.3 percent. The Admirals have allowed just three PPG all season, while scoring three SHG.
- The Admirals have killed off 19-of-20 (95.0 percent) of their shorthanded chances in the last five games.

Penalty kill update
- Houston is up to fifth in the AHL on the PK at 87.6 percent.
- The Aeros have killed off 53-of-56 shorthanded chances in the last seven games for a stellar 94.6 percent PK rate.
- Milwaukee is seventh in the AHL on the power play at 17.0 percent. The Admirals moved up from 13th in a single day after a 3-for-10 performance in Grand Rapids yesterday.
- The Admirals are 8-for-30 (26.7 percent) with the man advantage in the last five games.

Aeros/Admirals connections
- The Aeros face one of their former friends as a foe tonight, Lane Lambert serves as an assistant coach with the Admirals. Lambert spent parts of three seasons with the Aeros, helping the team to a Turner Cup title in 1999 along with current Aeros assistant coach Cam Stewart.
- Houston D Curtis Murphy and C Bryan Lundbohm were each on the Admirals' 2004 Calder Cup winning team. Lundbohm was injured. Murphy played for the Ads for that one season, while Lundbohm spent four (2001-05) in a Milwaukee sweater.
- Aeros C Wyatt Smith and Admirals LW Ramzi Abid played the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons together in AHL Springfield.
- Admirals LW Paul Brown and Aeros D Shawn Belle and C Alex Leavitt all hail from Edmonton, Alta.
- Aeros D Peter Ratchuk and Admirals C Shane Endicott were teammates in AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2001-02.
- Admirals G Karl Goehring attended the University of North Dakota from 1997-98. He was Aeros D Curtis Murphy's teammate in 1997-98, and Aeros C Bryan Lundbohm's teammate from 1998-2001.
- Milwaukee D Alex Henry was a member of the Minnesota Wild organization from 2003-06, serving as captain at one point.
- Aeros assistant coach Cam Stewart and Milwaukee D Kevin Klein and D T.J. Reynolds all hail from Kitchener, Ont.
- Aeros RW Joel Ward and Milwaukee C Cal O'Reilly are both from Toronto, Ont.

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from November 15, 2006


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.

OurSports Central