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Wolves at the door again in West Division

Published on December 14, 2004 under American Hockey League (AHL) News Release


SPRINGFIELD, Mass. ... It may not seem possible for a franchise that has experienced as much success as the Chicago Wolves to be flying under the radar, but the 2004-05 version of the burgundy and gold are have quietly done just that.

With a 15-8-2-1 record, Chicago enters the week two points out of first place in the West Division as co-leaders Milwaukee and Grand Rapids have been grabbing the headlines. The Wolves, who have won three league championships in the last seven years under head coach John Anderson, are on a four-game winning streak and have gone 10-2-1-0 in their last 13 contests.

Kari Lehtonen, the second overall pick in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, has been a workhorse in net for Chicago this season, leading the AHL in minutes played (1,311) and saves (674) while starting 22 of the team's 26 games. The 21-year-old Lehtonen has a record of 13-8-1 with a 2.24 goals-against average, a .932 save percentage and three shutouts.

J.P. Vigier, one of five Wolves remaining from their 2002 Calder Cup championship club, has tallied 18 points (7g, 11a) along with a plus-15 rating in his last 15 games. An AHL All-Star in 2002, Vigier played 70 NHL games with Atlanta in 2003-04, recording 10 goals and eight assists. He scored 25 and 29 goals in his two previous full seasons with the Wolves. Captain Steve Maltais, who has been Chicago's points leader six times in his first 10 seasons with the team, is back in his familiar place atop the scoring page with 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points. Maltais is 25 points shy of 500 for his AHL career, and is two goals shy of 600 as a professional.

Travis Roche ranks second among all AHL defensemen with 21 points on the year. Roche, who spent his first three pro seasons in the Minnesota Wild organization, was a member of the Houston Aeros' Calder Cup-winning team in 2003. Cory Larose, another former Aero and a 2002 AHL All-Rookie Team selection, has added 20 points in 26 games. Second-year pro Karl Stewart is second on the team with nine goals and first with 116 penalty minutes.

Chicago, which ranks third in the AHL in average attendance drawing 8,700 fans per game at Allstate Arena, plays 11 of its next 15 on home ice, beginning Wednesday evening against Cincinnati.

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BEARS END PHANTOM CURSE ... Carl Corazzini broke a tie with 12:14 left in regulation on Friday night and the Hershey Bears held on for a 4-3 victory over Philadelphia at the Wachovia Center. It was the Bears' first win over the Phantoms since Apr. 5, 2003. Under head coach Paul Fixter, Hershey had been 0-for-16 against its biggest rival before Friday's triumph, which also marked Philadelphia's first regulation loss in 14 home games this season.

The Bears rallied from three separate one-goal deficits, getting two goals on the night from Corazzini and one each from 2004 Calder Cup champion Mathieu Darche and rookie forward Ryan Steeves. Peter Budaj finished with 29 saves, including 14 in the third period.

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OFF THE ICE ... A ceremony on Dec. 8 honored the late Hockey Hall of Famer and AHL alumnus Eddie Shore with a plaque at the entrance of the Eastern States Coliseum in West Springfield, Mass., former home of Shore's Springfield Indians... Glenn Stanford, vice president of hockey operations for the St. John's Maple Leafs, has been named Volunteer of the Year by the Canadian Special Olympics National Sports Celebrities Festival... During their Dec. 15 game, the Utah Grizzlies will be giving away three pairs of tickets to the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, where the University of Utah will face Pittsburgh on New Year's Day... The Worcester IceCats raised more than $34,000 for the Worcester Fire Fighters Memorial Fund in an auction of their commemorative jerseys honoring six fallen city firefighters.

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ETC. ... After losses to Hartford and Bridgeport last week, Manchester is 1-2-1-0 against teams from Connecticut this year, and 20-1-0-0 against the rest of the AHL... In his first 79 career AHL games (just shy of the equivalent of one season), the Monarchs' Mike Cammalleri has 47 goals and 101 points... Manitoba swept a two-game series in Edmonton to stay atop the North Division by one point over St. John's... Lowell's Cam Ward stopped 81 of 82 shots in three games over the weekend, earning his first professional shutout in a 4-0 win over Hershey on Sunday... Neil Little skated in his 400th career AHL game on Sunday; the 2002 AHL All-Star and 1998 Calder Cup champion owns a lifetime record of 194-140-41 with 15 shutouts... After missing the first 23 games of the season, Albany winger Ahren Nittel scored twice in three contests last week... Worcester goaltender Jason Bacashihua needed just 14 saves to post a 1-0 win over Springfield on Saturday night... Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's Kris Beech has a point in six straight games (2g, 8a), while teammate Michel Ouellet has scored a goal in four straight (6g)... Hamilton goaltender Dan Ellis, who lost his first nine decisions this year, is 3-0-0 with a 0.97 GAA and .968 save percentage in his last three starts... Cincinnati forward and 2004 AHL All-Star Chris Kunitz returned to the lineup Friday after missing 19 games with a broken jaw and scored twice against Grand Rapids... Four Providence defensemen – Darrel Scoville, Kevin Dallman, Jay Leach and Jayme Filipowicz – all scored their first goals of the season in a two-game span last week... Binghamton ranks 27th in the league in penalty killing, but is tops with seven shorthanded goals scored; Manchester ranks first on the power play, but has allowed an AHL-high eight shorthanded goals... Hershey will play three home games in three nights this weekend, the first such stretch in the franchise's 67-year history... Of the 360 games played in the AHL through Sunday, 187 (51.9 percent) have been decided by a single goal.

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American Hockey League Stories from December 14, 2004


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