Advertising Opportunities

Writer's Note: My apologies for those interested in events between Dec.2 and Dec. 8. My computer decided to corrupt the disk containing the column and no other computer will touch it, so we will have to live with my column as it existed on Dec. 2, the last time the disk functioned.

Player of the Week (Nov. 29): Philadelphia didn't have any trouble putting away all of its opponents during the week, largely due to the fact Richard Park wasn't having any trouble putting the puck away in the net. Park had eight points (3-5-8) in the Phantoms' three games, including a short-handed goal and a pair of three-point games. Park presently stands third overall in AHL scoring but isn't even first on his own team - Jim Montgomery leads the Phantoms and the AHL.

Player of the Week (Dec. 6): Maybe he should have his face smashed open on the ice more often. Portland's Jean-Pierre Dumont was slammed into the ice by St. John's Greg Smyth on Nov. 29, but then proceeded to rack up six goals plus a pair of assists in his next three games. Dumont had the assists and a hat trick for a five-point game against Saint John, then posted three more goals in two games against St. John's to finally start to look like the sniper he's reputed to be.

John Nabokov by Meredith Martini

Goaltender of the Month (Nov>):Last season Kentucky's Kazakhstani goaltender John Nabokov changed his first name from the less pronounceable Evgeny, but he still couldn't get the hang of North American hockey or of English. This year he has a firm grasp on both. Nabokov was 4-2 in November, including a pair of shutouts against Cincinnati, a sub-2.00 GAA and a greatly improved save percentage. Nabokov's GAA for this season is nearly two goals a game less than last season.

Rookie of the Month: Phantom Brian Boucher couldn't have gotten injured at a worse time for him or a better time for Jean-Marc Pelletier. Pelletier was 7-0-1 for November, with a 1.57 GAA and his first professional shutout and was named the rookie of the month. Hope Boucher wasn't expecting his job back soon, because Pelletier is now third in the AHL in GAA, wins and save percentage and almost a lock for the All-Star team. Not bad for a guy who had to quit college to get playing time since he was stuck behind another goaltender - Adirondack's Jason Elliott, who was also nominated for the award.

Ka-Boom!: Ya want offense, here's your offense. 14-2 good enough for ya? The Providence Bruins set a new AHL record Nov. 25 when they scored ten - yes, ten - goals...in one period. No team in the history of the AHL had ever gotten more than nine before. And along with Syracuse's measly one goal, the teams were but a goal short of tying the AHL record for combined goals in a period. But this was a night for the P-Bruins - by the end of the first period, six Bruins already had three or more points, Cameron Mann had five points, and Randy Robitaille had a cycle hat trick - he scored at even strength, on the power play and while short-handed.

Robitaille would finish the game with five goals, when he entered the game with two on the season, and set a new franchise record. Robitaille and Landon Wilson each had seven points in the game, tying the franchise record, and Wilson had a hat trick. Andre Savage had two goals; Mann and Antti Laaksonen had four assists each in the first period. The Bruins were up 6-0 with just over five minutes gone in the game. Syracuse netminder Mike Valley was yanked after allowing two goals in just over two minutes, but wound up back in the net later the same period after Craig Hillier gave up eight goals during his time before the firing squad.

Mann finished the game an amazing plus-six, while Aaron Downey was the only P-Bruin to finish even. Beats being on the other side though - Robert Dome finished at minus-seven, while captain Mark Wotton was at minus-six. Surprisingly, there were but three fights in the rout.

Get Out and Vote: This just in, the All-Star Game scheduled for Philadelphia in 1999 has been cancelled and...oh. Sorry. That was the NBA All-Star Game. The AHL All-Star Game is still happening, since the AHL has a vastly superior quality of players and owners who can get along with each other for ten minutes at a time.

The AHL began fan balloting for the All-Star Game on Nov. 30. The game will once again be Canada vs. PlanetUSA (aka everybody else), and the top vote getters at each position for each team will start the game. The good news - you can vote online at the AHL's web site as well as at the games, and the ballots will give you a pretty good idea of who's worthy and which team they qualify for. Be careful though - there's at least one Canadian listed for the PlanetUSA team and a Slovakian on the list for Canada. The bad news - you get to vote for one guy. That's it. Not even one for each team. Pick one. The coaches will pick the rest of the teams. Oh yeah, the game is on January 25 (skills competition is January 24), both to take place at the First Union Center in Philadelphia. Use the acronym of your choice for the arena's name.

Bill Barber automatically coaches Canada as the leader of the reigning Calder champs; the PlanetUSA team coach will be determined on Dec. 13 by best point percentage. Catch is, the coach with the best point percentage to date is - Barber. Well, second best percentage then. And presently in second is Providence's Peter Laviolette, who would be most appropriate as coach for PlanetUSA since he's American. Other possibilities include Lowell's Frank Anzalone, Albany's John Cunniff, Rochester's Brian McCutcheon and Kentucky's Roy Sommer.

And with the 1999 All-Star Game still over a month away, the AHL has named the site for the 2000 Game. Rochester takes the honors with the newly renovated Blue Cross/Blue Shield Memorial Arena. Date still to be announced.

Ted Crowley by Meredith Martini

Define Fight: Apparently that's what rookie ref Stephane Auger needed to do when he was in charge of Lowell and Hershey Nov. 28. Lowell's Ryan Huska and Hershey's Ted Crowley had been pushing and shoving for most of the shift and when Huska planted himself in front of Marc Denis, Crowley planted his stick in Huska's sunshine. Huska, unamused, dropped the gloves, as did Crowley, and the two had at it for a few punches before both reported to the penalty boxes and five minutes were posted for each player.

Not so fast. After conferring with the linesmen, Auger told Huska to go back to the bench - no penalty. And Auger commuted Crowley's sentence to a two minute minor - for tripping. Sure looked like a fight to the rest of us, but...

The Almighty Dollar: The Syracuse Crunch thought the Pittsburgh Penguins were going to assign Brian Bonin to them again this season, but instead the Pens loaned him to the IHL's Kansas City Blades. The bankrupt Pens made the move because the Blades were willing to pay Bonin's salary, a whole whopping $75,000 (makes you wonder how they pay Jagr...).

The Crunch, desperately needing a player on their roster old enough to shave, called Pittsburgh and offered to pay part of Bonin's salary to get him back in Syracuse. No deal, said Craig Patrick. Then the Adirondack Red Wings called Pittsburgh and offered to pay all of Bonin's salary - and now Bonin plays for one of the Crunch's biggest rivals. The Crunch are unamused, Bonin is baffled and it's a good thing the Penguins weren't going to be in Syracuse next season, because they aren't welcome back now.

In Decline: The AHL may have reached the million mark at its earliest point in the season, but that doesn't mean attendance figures are good. Only four teams - Philadelphia, Rochester, Albany and Fredericton - have posted significant gains and Fredericton's gain is strictly a function of a few games at Molson Centre. Meanwhile, nine teams - that's half the league, gang - have seen significant downturns, particularly Portland and St. John's, who are seeing the smallest crowds in their histories, and Kentucky, with a 30% drop in attendance. The AHL as a whole has shown a 3% drop, bolstered only by the addition of Lowell - and the ostensibly successful expansion team is only ahead of Fredericton in average attendance.

Jurisprudence: The AHL had to get busy and sit some people down of late. Albany's Scott Daniels picked up a two-game break for sucker-punching Syracuse's Bert Robertsson, while Fredericton's Terry Ryan also got a pair for giving the finger - with both hands - to the crowd in Saint John Dec. 4. Ever notice that all the obscenity/spitting/gross behavior is perpetrated by Fredericton? Springfield's Sean Gagnon got a four-game vacation for slamming Ryan Johnson's head into the glass, but Johnson was injured so badly he won't be back until at least 1999. Gagnon is also being investigated for two incidents against Providence's Marquis Mathieu which could net him more free time.

Greg Smyth by Meredith Martini

A guy with a ton of free time now is, big surprise here, St. John's Greg Smyth. Smyth would lead the league in penalties if he weren't suspended all the time. This time, he gets the longest suspension doled out by the AHL in some years - ten games - for attacking Portland's Jean-Pierre Dumont with one second remaining in St. John's Nov. 29 loss to Portland. Smyth knocked off Dumont's helmet, then repeatedly slammed Dumont's head against the ice. The Leafs and Smyth appealed the suspension, but the AHL upheld it. Let's face it - when you're cracking down on deliberate attempts to injure and late game incidents, and a chronic offender with a penchant for embarrassing the league in all manner of ways commits both offenses at the same time - Smyth's lucky he gets to play again this season.

Minor Penalties: St. John's Shawn Thornton, who needed more than a full season to score his first goal, scored his third in three games to give the Leafs an OT win over Hamilton Nov. 25...

Martin Biron picked up his third zero of the season against Adirondack, stopping 30 shots Nov. 25 while Matt Davidson scored both Amerk goals...

Also getting a zero that night - for the first time in his pro career - was Worcester's Brent Johnson, who stopped 22 Albany shots while Marty Reasoner picked up three points...

The well-traveled Bobby House, now with Springfield, had a three- point night for the Falcons over New Haven Nov. 25...

The Hershey Bears still haven't won in division and Philadelphia still hasn't lost in division, as the Phantoms whacked the Bears 5-2 Nov. 25...

On Nov. 25, Portland's Mike Rosati came within a goal of a shutout. The next night, he got his goose egg stopping 17 from Fredericton and boosting the Pirates out of the AHL cellar for the first time this season...

You know what Providence did on Thanksgiving Eve? On Thanksgiving, they spotted Hartford a goal then scored four goals on eight shots to chase JF Labbe. Then the WolfPack came back to win the game 5-4...

Kentucky went up on Lowell 3-1 Nov. 26, but the Lock Monsters picked up three goals in the last period for a 4-3 victory, the winning goal being banked in off of Mark Lawrence's face. John Nabokov faced only 16 shots and stopped only 12 of them...

Marc Beaucage by Meredith Martini

The battle of New Brunswick went Fredericton's way for a change Nov. 27, as Marc Beaucage scored the winning goal with less than two minutes left. Saint John has lost five straight on the road...

Mike Harder had three points and Martin Biron stopped 36 of 37 shots against St. John's Nov. 27, all the better since they were playing in front of the largest crowd in Rochester hockey history, 11,065...

Turnabout is fair play, so Cincinnati slapped Kentucky 5-1 Nov. 27 in partial retribution for prior defeats and Jamie Ram's first win over his old team...

And then Kentucky turned around and shut out Cincinnati the next night on a 27-save performance from John Nabokov...

Lowell, one of the league's best teams, just can't beat Hershey, one of the worst. Hershey shut out Lowell in their lone trip to the Tsongas Arena, then held off the Monsters 6-4 at home Nov. 28...

Adirondack briefly dipped into last place in the league before Phil Audet racked up three points and the Red Wings beat Hamilton 5-2 Nov. 28...

St. John's allowed Springfield to come back from down 4-2 in the third period, giving up the winning goal to Donald MacLean with just eight seconds left in the game Nov. 28. All four of the Leafs' goals were on the power play...

Portland scored three power-play goals in the first period, two from Kent Hulst, en route to beating St. John's 3-1 Nov. 29...

The Hershey Bears took a 4-1 lead over Springfield into the third period and blew it. Joe Dziedzic finished the Falcons' comeback with the tying, power-play goal in the last minutes of the game...

In seven regular season games in the Hartford Civic Center, the Beast of New Haven have never had so much as a lead. On Nov. 30, Bob Errey and Daniel Goneau had goals just 30 seconds apart as the WolfPack remained perfect in division with a 4-3 win over their neighbors...

Mark Greig and Richard Park both had three points for the Phantoms as they routed Lowell 7-2 Nov. 30...

The Providence Bruins posted the best month in the team's history in November, going 10-2-1...

Providence wasn't the only team enjoying November. Kentucky also posted the best month in their history at 8-3...

The AHL hit the one million mark on Nov. 28, the earliest date for that mark in the league's history...

We know the Phantoms lead the league in attendance. Wanna guess which team is second? How about Rochester? The Amerks are averaging 8,338 per game, up almost a third from their usual average and good enough for second...

Meanwhile an ownership change appears to have done the River Rats good. Their attendance average is up over a thousand per game from last season...

Hershey led the league in sellouts last year, with 12. They posted two Thanksgiving week for three on the season...

New Haven's power play remains the league's best at a 25.4% success rate and accounting for half the team's goals this season. But it's Syracuse who's scored the most power play goals...

Fredericton and Portland have both decided to play respectably and both crawled out of the AHL cellar, booting Hershey and Adirondack into it...

Chris O'Sullivan by Meredith Martini

Saint John defenseman Chris O'Sullivan leads the Flames in scoring, the only blueliner in the league to lead his team. O'Sullivan is also the only d-man in the league's top 20 scoring list and is second in the AHL for assists...

Cincinnati has only dropped one game and home, but haven't won and have a whopping one point on the road...

Pelletier isn't the only green backstopper having a good time. Albany's Frederic Henry also lost but one game in November and had a .947 save percentage, a 1.82 GAA and his first shutout as well...

The Adirondack Red Wings are one of the AHL's oldest franchises, so when the Wings were shut out in consecutive games for the first time in their history, that meant something...

Hamilton hasn't won a overtime game yet, in four tries...

Rochester's Martin Biron leads the AHL in shutouts with three, and is already third on the Amerks' all-time list. Just ahead of him is some guy named Gerry Cheevers...

The Amerks are the AHL's only remaining team without a loss at home...

The Rochester Americans are also the only team in the AHL without a minus player...

Despite a side trip to Pittsburgh, Syracuse rookie Martin Sonnenberg is topping the AHL with eight power-play goals...

The Portland Pirates killed 33 consecutive penalties over eight games, a team record...

Rochester's Steffon Walby, who played for St. John's the first three years of his career, returned to the Rock for the first time in three years Dec. 1 and scored two goals including the game-winner. He repeated the performance the next night...

The Amerks defeated the Maple Leafs three times in five days...

St. John's has now lost 11 straight games at home and it's starting to show up in attendance figures...

The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim extended their affiliation agreement with Cincinnati, with options that could keep the team there through 2005. The deal also increases the team's marketing tie-ins with the Disney company...

Springfield's Sean Gagnon picked 14 minutes in penalties in 'fights' with Providence's Marquis Mathieu in two games. Both time, Gagnon was hit with an instigating minor and a fighting major, Mathieu got zip...

A sample of Fredericton's problems - in their Dec. 2 tilt with Worcester, the young Habs totalled all of three shots against Brent Johnson in the first period. Worcester won 4-1...

A battle of division leaders Dec. 2 and Lowell finally got off the schneid and ended their five-game losing streak, defeating Providence 5-3...

[ issues | stats | nhl archive | home | nhl history | about us | search | comments ]