Austin Smith & Jack Campbell Interviews on Austin Radio Station

As the newest members of the Dallas Stars Org. both Jack Campbell & Austin Smith were interviewed on Austin's KLBJ 93.7 which is one of Austin's best known Classic Rock Stations earlier this afternoon.

It was only a few minutes but it gives listeners a vision of what they were coming through as they were on their way to the Professional game as both players will be looking to make their Professional Debut on Friday against the Oklahoma City Barons.

He was interviewed on the B-DOE Show which comes on from 3-7 PM Weekdays on 93.7 KLBJ, Austin's Classic Rock.

Here's the Austin Smith &; Jack Campbell Interviews

93.7 KLBJ FM Classic Rock Austin

Aeros Goalie Joe Fallon named AHL Player of the Week

After having to come in after Matt Hacket was called up to the Minnesota Wild, Joe Fallon has been called upon to keep the Aeros in the race for the 4th & Final Spot for home ice advantage in the AHL Western Conference Playoff Race with basically a dozen games to go in the AHL Regular Season.

Fallon has had a fresh start after basically having a cup of coffee with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers where he played just one game back in December when he was in net for the 3rd period of a game against the Springfield Falcons where he made 6 of 7 shots in relief in a Sound Tigers loss. Since arriving in Houston back on March 3rd by signing a Professional Tryout Out Deal (PTO) after having a very impressive showing with the Las Vegas Wranglers in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL).

He has been very strong with a 5-1-0 record in 9 games played where he has a respectable 2.10 GAA & a .929 SV%. His strongest performances came against the Abbotsford Heat back on St. Patricks Day and has kept opponents to one goal on 4 other occassions' in his short time with the Aeros so far.

He's already beginning to put the pressure on current Aeros backup Darcy Kuemper who hasen't played in a single game since March 3rd and is looking to at least grab the back up spot from Kuemper if and when Hackett gets back (Possibly for an AHL Calder Cup Playoff Run) and look to show that he can make some crucial saves at big moments that could play a huge role when the AHL Playoffs begin next month.

With Minnesota in 13th Place & 14 Points back of the 8th & Final Playoff Spot, this is an option that you have got to think they are looking at as the Wild will once again will most likely be out of the playoffs. And the Aeros will once again will be looking to finish some unfinished business by looking to get back to the Calder Cup after reaching the Final last year, the Wild are will be looking to load up for the AHL Playoffs as the Aeros will look to have another crack at bringing the AHL Calder Cup for the first time since the 2002-2003 season.

AHL Press Release

Joe Fallon Player Profile

Here's a look at the remaining Houston Aeros Schedule

3/23: @ Rockford Ice Hogs  7:05 PM

3/24: @ Rockford Ice Hogs  7:05 PM

3/25: @ Chicago Wolves  3:00 PM

3/28: @ Milwaukee Admirals  7:00 PM

3/29: VS. Lake Erie Monsters  7:05 PM

3/31: VS. Hamilton Bulldogs  7:35 PM

4/6: VS. Chicago Wolves  7:35 PM

4/7: VS. Peoria Rivermen  7:35 PM

4/8: VS. Milwaukee Admirals  5:05 PM

4/13: @ Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

4/14: VS. San Antonio Rampage  7:35 PM

4/15: VS. Texas Stars  5:05 PM

The American Hockey League announced today the Houston Aeros goaltender Joe Fallon has been selected as the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending on March 18, 2012.

Fallon made four starts during a critical week for Houston and led the team to it's first four game winning streak of the season, allowing just five goals on 125 shots (4-0-0, 1.20 GAA, .960 SV%) and helping to keep the Aeros above the fray in the wild Western Conference Playoff Race.

Fallon began the week with a 26 save effort to lead Houston to a 4-1 win over Abbotsford on Tuesday Night. He made 26 more stops in a 4-3 victory over Rockford on Friday before putting fourth a perfect performance in a rematch with the Heat on Saturday, stopping all 32 shots through regulation and overtime and denying all six shootout attempts to give Houston a 1-0 victory. Making his third start in as many days on Sunday, Fallon closed out the week with a 36 saves and making a 5-for-7 shootout effort as the Aeros downed conference leading Oklahoma City 2-1.

Fallon has a record of 5-1-0 with a 2.05 GAA and a .931 SV% in eight apperances since joining Houston on March 3. The fourth year pro from Bemidji, Minnesota, was orginally drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2005 and has a career record of 27-24-1 with three shutouts in 63 AHL Apperances over four professional seasons.

In recognition of his achievement, Fallon will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Aeros Game.



San Antonio Squanders 3rd period lead

After having a solid 4-1 lead going into the 3rd period last night against the Grand Rapids Griffins, Rampage Head Coach Chuck Weber said it best when he said, "The 3rd period was a perfect ten for being disappointed", said Coach Weber. This was after the Rampage squandered a 4-1 lead to allow the Griffins tied the game at 4-4 in just a 2:07 time span in the 3rd period where Griffins Forward Tomas Tatar scored his 16th & 17th goals of the year where Chris Minard also scored his 2nd of the game during the early portion of the 3rd period as well.

After the Griffins made it 4-4, Coach Weber felt that the Rampage made a strong chance to comeback to regain the lead but were unable to find a game leading goal, "From the opening drop of the 3rd period till it was 4-4, it was ugly hockey by us. ", Weber in his frustration's of the team's play in the 3rd period that lead to the Shootout Loss.

After the Rampage & Griffins played in a frantic OT where neither side was able to score on their 4 SOG. It was Chris Minard who scored a Shootout Goal in addition to his 2 in the game while Louis-Marc Aubry that put the game away when he put it past Rampage Goalie Jacob Markstrom to earn a, 5-4, win that put the Rampage in a 3 way tie for the 8th & Final Playoff Spot in the Western Conference with the Rochester Americans (13 GR) who thanks to having a game in hand over San Antonio (12 GR) & two games in hand against Lake Erie (11GR). Rochester currently holds down the 8th & Final Playoff spot with the Rampage having just 12 games left in the regular season.

Instead of being in a tie for 7th with Charlotte where they would be firmly in the playoffs at this point as it's beginning to look like teams like the Abbotsford Heat (Currently 6th), Peoria Rivermen (Currently 5th) & Houston Aeros (Currently 4th) are looking to officially pull away from this pack and firmly secure their playoff spots with a dozen games left in the season.

If that comes scenario happens, you could have a situation where San Antonio will be battling Rochester (currently 8th), Charlotte (currently 7th) & Lake Erie (currently 10th) as the 4 teams are fighting for the final 2 playoff spots with the possibility of Grand Rapids (currently 11th) who are looking to get into this battle as the Griffins have been playing red hot hockey by winning 4 of their last 5 games including an impressive 5-2 win over Houston back on March 11.

San Antonio & Grand Rapids will play again in San Antonio tomorrow night. After tomorrow night, the Griffins will continue their Southwest Road Trip when they head North to Oklahoma City for a pair of games against the Barons Saturday, March 24 & Sunday, March 25.

Grand Rapids Griffins 5  San Antonio Rampage 4  (SO)  (0-2, 1-2, 3-0, 0-0, 1-0)

San Antonio Rampage Video

Click on the Game Highlights & Post Game Comments for Info on last night's Game.

San Antonio Rampage Post Game Press Release

Here's the San Antonio Rampage Remaining Regular Season Schedule

3/22: VS. Grand Rapids Griffins  7:00 PM

3/24: @ Abbotsford Heat  9:00 PM

3/25: @ Abbotsford Heat  3:00 PM

3/28: VS. Hamilton Bulldogs  7:00 PM

3/31: @ Rockford Ice Hogs  7:05 PM

4/1: @ Peoria Rivermen  5:00 PM

4/4: VS. Chicago Wolves  7:00 PM

4/7: VS. Milwaukee Admirals  7:00 PM

4/10: VS. Milwaukee Admirals  7:00 PM

4/13: VS. Texas Stars  7:00 PM

4/14: @ Houston Aeros  7:35 PM

4/15: VS. Oklahoma City Barons  3:30 PM

From San Antonio, Texas: The San Antonio Rampage were defeated by the Grand Rapids Griffins 5-4 in a shootout at the AT&T Center on Tuesday Night. The Rampage received multi point effort from forwards Bill Thomas (2G 1A), and Mark Cullen (two assists) in the loss.

San Antonio forward Bracken Kearns scored a power play goal 6:32 into the opening frame to put the Rampage ahead 1-0. He corralled the rebound of his own shot and deposed the puck behind Grand Rapids backstop Tom McCollum for his 16th marker of the year of the year. Thomas Cullen picked up assist on the play.

The Rampage extended their lead to 2-0 with a goal from Thomas at 12:57 of the first. He registered his 21st goal of the year on a shot from the left circle that soared past McCollum's left arm. Defensemen Colby Robak notched the lone helper on the Thomas marker.

Right wing Michael Repoik potted his 13th goal of the year on a one-timer to give San Antonio a 3-0 edge at the 2:31 mark of the second period. He took a pass from center Joe Matsumoto and fired a shot past McCollum's glove for the score. Left wing Ondrej Roman recorded the secondary assist on the third San Antonio goal.

Grand Rapids answered with a tally of their own nearly two minutes later when Griffins cashed in a two-on-one rush. Left Wing Chris Minard received a pass from inside the crease from center Jamie Johnson and the tucked the puck behind Rampage netminder Jacob Markstom for his 14th goal of the campaign. The secondary assist on the play went to right wing Chris Conner.

The Rampage restored their three goal lead 11:03 of the second period with Thomas' second goal of the contest. His backhander from the slot found its way past McCollum and put San Antonio ahead 4-1. Cullen and Caruso were credited with the assists on Thomas' 22nd goal of 2011-2012.

Griffins left wing Tomas Tatar at the 4:44 mark of the third to make it a 4-2 count in favor of San Antonio. Tatar recorded his 16th goal of the year with a wrister from the top of the crease that snuck through Markstorm's legs. Center Joakim Andersson and right wing Francis Pare picked up the helpers with the Tatar score.

Minard's second goal of the evening came at the 5:59 mark of the final frame brought the Griffins to within one goal, at 4-3. He took a pass from Johnson and ripped a shot over Markstorm's left shoulder for his 15th marker of the season. Defenseman Gleason Fournier tallied the secondary assist on the play.

The Griffins scored the third goal of the in a 2:07 span to knot the score at 4-4. Andersson found a cutting Tatar in the slot and Tatar buried a one timer into the net to record his 17th goal of 2011-2012. Pare notched his second assist of the game with the alternate helper on the Tatar score.

After a scoreless OT Period, Griffins center Louis-Marc Aubry recorded the game winning goal in the seventh round of the shootout to hand the Griffins the victory.

McCollum made 41 saves on 45 Rampage shots for his seventh win of the season. He also stopped six of the seven shots he faced in the shootout. Markstom denied the Griffins 30 of 34 attempts and made five stops on seven shots in the shootout.

San Antonio (33-26-5, 71 PTS) and Grand Rapids face off again at the AT&T Center on Thursday at 7:00 PM (CST) to conclude their two game set.







Texas losses 5th Straight VS. Abbotsford, 5-2

It was another lack luster night at the Cedar Park Center as the Texas Stars lost their 5th straight and ended a 7 game home stand with a lack luster 2-5-0 record that on a team that is last in the Western Conference and has been out of the playoff race for a while now. Many players are looking to count down the number of days to end the regular season and get on with the off-season.

After one of the few big highlights of the night that included Colton Sceviour which scored both goals (Including a Penalty Shot late in the first) but other then that it was Abbotsford's Night with huge games from the likes of Ryan Howse who scored twice and almost had a hat trick at one point, as well as Andy Brandt & Leland Irving who didn't have a great night but made the critical saves that kept the Stars out of the game at huge portions of it.

Other then Sceviour they were very few other players that had strong nights, even players like Matt Fraser who had a 4 game goal scoring streak that was snapped back on back on March 13rd against the Oklahoma City Barons and Scott Glennie who despite getting an assist on Sceviour's 2nd goal, still finished the night with a -1 rating.

After a couple of days of practice coming up this week, Friday Night will most likely see the introduction of  both Jack Campbell & Austin Smith will both be looking to make their Pro Hockey Debut after seeing their NCAA & OHL Season's wrap up last weekend. Campbell is looking to put a rough Junior Season behind him that saw the Greyhounds finish 9th in the OHL West and missed the playoffs. While Smith is looking to continue what's been a very strong season included being the nation's leading goal scorer and looking to win the Hobey Baker Award when the Top 3 is announced next Thursday with the Winner being announced on April 6.

Abbotsford's Victory saw the Heat move up to 5th Place in the very tight AHL Western Conference Playoff Race by overtaking the Peoria Rivermen. If the AHL Playoffs started today, the Heat would come down to Texas to play the Houston Aeros in the AHL Western Conference Quarterfinals in the #4 VS. #5 Series.

Abbotsford Heat 5  Texas Stars 2  (0-1, 3-1, 2-0)

Texas Stars Head Coach Jeff Pyle Post-Game Comments

Colton Sceviour Post Game Comments

Texas Stars Press Release

From Austin, Texas: The Texas Stars (27-33-4, 58 Points, 15th Place) were defeated by the Abbotsford Heat (34-25-7, 75 Points, 5th Place) 5-2 at the Cedar Park Center on Monday Night. Left Wing Ryan Howse registered two goals for Abbotsford, including the game winner at 5:04 of the second period. Right wing Andy Brandt notched a goal and an assist while Center Brian Walter and defensemen Joe Piskula each added two assists. Forwards Adam Estoclet and Dustin Sylvester also scored as the Heat finished 6-2-0 against the Stars.

Abbotsford goalie Leland Irving stopped 22 shots, taking the team's road record to 22-11-3. Stars right wing Colton Sceviour put up both goals for the home team. Texas Goalie Tyler Beskorowany (10-18-0) stopped 26 saves in the loss. Texas travels to Oklahoma City on Friday, March 23rd at 7:30 PM.

The Stars got on the board late in the first period with a penalty shot from right wing Colton Sceviour. Sceviour's 18th tally of the season went in with 2:10 remaining in the first period and gave Texas a 1-0 lead.

The Heat tied the game 1-1 in the second period with a goal from center Dustin Sylvester. Sylvester found the back of the net with help from right wing Akim Aliu and defensemen Brian Connelly just 40 seconds into the second frame. Abbotsford jumped out to a 2-1 lead at 5:04. Left wing Ryan Howse beat Texas Goalie Tyler Beskorowany with assists from defensemen Clay Wilson and center Ben Walter. The Heat continued the scoring, generating a 3-1 lead with 6:44 left in the second period. Center Adam Estoclet snapped a wrist shot in for his fifth goal of the year. Walter and defensemen Joe Piskula added an assist on the club's third goal of the night.

The Stars cut into the Heat's Lead with 3:03 remaining. Right wing Colton Sceviour netted his second goal of the night as he poked the puck past Abbotsford Goalie Leland Irving. Left wing Francis Wathier and Center Scott Glennie each provided an assist on the tally that made it 3-2.

Abbotsford strengthen it's lead at 2:09 of the third period. Left wing Ryan Howse notched his second goal, giving the Heat a 4-2 lead. Defensemen Jon Piskula and and right wing Andy Brandt each supplied an assist. The Heat struck again with 6:03 to go in the final frame. Brandt tapped in his first goal of the season for a 5-2 lead. Forwards Carter Bancks and Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond set up the play.

Texas stars a three game road trip on Friday, March 23 at Oklahoma City at 7:00 PM. The Stars then travel to Toronto for a 2 PM Faceoff against the Marlies on Sunday, March 25th. The Trip concludes on Tuesday March 27th at 6:00 PM against the Lake Erie Monsters. Texas returns home to face the Hamilton Bulldogs on Thursday, March 29th at 7:30 PM. Thursday's Game is a 3-2-1 night, featuring $3 Domestic Drafts, $2 Sodas & $1 Hot Dogs.

Individual tickets for all games are on sale now. Tickets are available at the Texas Stars Website or by calling 512-GO-STARS (467-8277). 2012-13 Season seat packages are on sale now. For more information on Texas Stars Season Tickets packages are on sale now. For more information on Texas Stars Season Tickets call (512) GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit www.texasstarshockey.com. Anyone interested in purchasing season tickets, suites, group tickets or mini plans may call the Texas Stars Front Office.

Austin Smith should make Pro Debut on Friday VS. Oklahoma City

After Austin Smith's Colgate Career came to an end this past weekend with losses to Union College & Cornell in the ECAC Hockey Conference Championships, Austin according to several sources including Brandon Worley of Defending Big D saying that Smith signed a 2 Year Entry Level Contract last night and will be looking to make his Pro Debut on Friday Night when the Stars head North to play the Western Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons when the Stars begin a 3 game road trip that will also include games against the Toronto Marlies on Sunday & against the Lake Erie Monsters in Cleveland on Tuesday Night.

Photo of Austin Smith: Courtesy of the Colgate Raiders & Alliance Bulldogs Website.



This will make him the first Texan to ever make his Pro Debut and only the 2nd Player overall to make his Debut after Edmond's Matt Donovan made his AHL Debut last spring around this time and is in the middle of his first full AHL Season with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NY Islanders Affiliate).

Smith is ending a very long 5 year journey that was filled with doubts and him looking to presence of looking to show that he is a worthy prospect in the Dallas Stars Sizes. Doubts contained everything from his size where he was a very small but very fast 5'5" frame when he was playing for Gunnery Prep School in Connecticut during his Junior & Senior Years of High School before he was taken in the 2007 NHL Draft by the Stars. The doubts continued over the course of his career while at Colgate which isn't known as a great hockey team for the most part & including Smith never getting the Raiders to the NCAA Hockey Tournament during his Career.

After playing his final games of his NCAA Career at the ECAC Hockey Conference Championship and his frustrations when the game began to slip for the Colgate Raiders in their Conference Semifinal against the Eventual Champion Union College describing what his emotions were at that time. "I've never given up in a game before, ever. I always compete to the end," said Smith. "When it hit 5-1, I was trying to hold the tears back. The rest of the game I was circling and I had a million things going in my head. I wasn't very effective."

He told the College Hockey News' Rob Moore after the game ended. Smith went on to say, "I thought we dominated the first period and were with them for most of the second period. When we got that goal to make it 2-1, I believed more then anyone that we could win," said Smith. "By the middle of the third period though, he was beginning to think different thoughts. "That [fifth goal] was the goal for me where I realized it was the end of my career."

If Smith is looking to show the Stars that he is a strong prospect going forward, he needs to have a strong end to the American Hockey League Season where the Texas Stars are out of the playoff race and have been at or near the Bottom of the Western Conference for most of the last 2 months by providing a fresh energy and challenging some of the team's top prospects like Brendan Dillion & Matt Fraser as well as others like Colton Sceivour who's been getting the bill as one of the more underrated players in the AHL this season.

He will have 12 games to show the Stars that he can thrive in the Pro Game and be a force to be reckon with at the AHL Level and looking to show that he can be worthy of a Call Up next season. With the Stars having nothing to play for the rest of the season, Smith needs to show that he can make the Stars a hard team to play against as the Stars lost their 5th in a row with a 5-2 loss against Abbotsford last night and went just, 2-5, on the 7 game home stand that wrapped up last night.

Even though it took 5 years to get him from the Draft to signing with the Stars, he's still got a mountain of a journey in front of him as he looks to shine in Austin and show the Stars that he is worthy of playing for Dallas in the near future. With upcoming prospects like Rielly Smith, Scott Glennie, Jack Campbell, Matt Frasier & Brendan Dillion possibly on the horizon.

He will really have to work hard to stand out among the Stars improving Prospect Pool to earn a spot in Dallas in the future. With Austin's Speed, determination & scoring ability, he has spent his entire career to this point defining the odds and proving people wrong and he is looking forward to doing it again to play for his hometown Stars.

Here's the Remaining Texas Stars Schedule

3/23: @ Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

3/25: @ Toronto Marlies  2:00 PM

3/27: @ Lake Erie Monsters  6:00 PM

3/29: VS. Hamilton Bulldogs  7:30 PM

3/31: VS. Lake Erie Monsters  7:00 PM

4/1: VS. Lake Erie Monsters  5:00 PM

4/4: @ Grand Rapids Griffins  6:00 PM

4/5: @ Peoria Rivermen  7:00 PM

4/10: VS. Chicago Wolves  7:30 PM

4/13: @ San Antonio Rampage  7:00 PM

4/14: VS. Oklahoma City Barons 7:00 PM

4/15: @ Houston Aeros  5:05 PM

Hockey's Future has him ranked #13

Yesterday, Hockeys Future came out with their Dallas Stars Top 20 Prospects for the Spring as the NCAA & Canadian Hockey League Season is coming to an end. Smith has taken a strong jump from #18 to #13 after his strong season and being a Top 10 Candidate for the Hobey Baker Award which will be cut from 10 to 3 on March 29.

Here's Hockey's Future comments from Mike Farkas. You can see the Full Top 20 & comments on each player by clicking on the Hockey's Future Link. Here's the Austin Smith Comments.

"What a year it has been for senior Austin Smith at Colgate University. After posting a career worst 10 goals last season, Smith exploded this season for a nation high 36 goals and a career best 57 points (four off the country's top spot). After offseason surgery, Smith has comeback healthy and confident and flying. He continues to be an all situation player with good speed and tremendous work rate, he has skated circles around the ECAC This season.

While he's not projected to be an elite scorer at the NHL level by any stretches of the imagination, he has a future as a quality utility man. He's not particular big or strong but he makes up for it with world class determination and a swagger that's hard to match. Smith will also certainly be signed after his collegiate career ends and will likely finish the year in Texas if the Stars management so chooses."





San Antonio grinds out Comeback Win in Chicago

In a game that was mostly uneventful up in Chicago as the Rampage were wrapping up their Rodeo Road Trip against the Chicago Wolves last night. The Rampage had a grind out a 2-1 victory in a critical game against a Wolves Team that is looking to stay in the race for the 4th & Final Home Ice Spot in the AHL Western Conference Playoff Race. Like in the NHL, the AHL Western Conference Playoff Race gap from 4th Place Chicago all the way down to 10th Place Rochester is just 4 points as most teams have around 20 games left in the regular season.

San Antonio has had a bit of a up and down Rodeo Road Trip but they have ramped it up in the 2nd half of the Road Trip by winning 4 of their last 5 in very low scoring fashion recently. All 4 of their wins have had them scoring 2 or fewer goals in all of the recent wins which included a 1-0 Shutout win over Oklahoma City on February 19th; and a pair of critical wins over the Peoria Rivermen which helped them breakout of the being along the playoff borderline as the Rampage have been able to jump up in a tie for 4th with the Chicago Wolves & Abbotsford Heat. They're currently 6th in the Western Conference Playoffs Race and if the post season started today, they would play the Mid-West Division Leading Charlotte Checkers in the Conference Quarterfinals.

After going 7-3-1 during the 11 Game Rodeo Road Trip that took up nearly the entire month of February. The team will finally return home on Saturday Night when they take on the Houston Aeros on Saturday Night who are playing only their 3rd game since February 24th as the Aeros are in the middle of one their lightest stretches of the Season Schedule after coming off a split last weekend in Austin against the Texas Stars.

With both teams in the Western Conference Mindfield, both teams are needing such a critical win that could get them as high as 4th Place if teams like the Abbotsford Heat & the Peoria Rivermen lose coming up on Friday Night. The Rampage will finish the regular season with 11 of their final 19 games at home. Of the 11 remaining home games, they will have a 5 game homestand that starts on March 11 against the Lake Erie Monsters, Abbotsford Heat, Rockford Icehogs and a pair against the Grand Rapids Griffins which will wrap up the homestand on March 22nd.

Military Night

The Rampage will be having their annual Military Appreciation Night coming up on Saturday, March 3rd when the Rampage play the Aeros where they will have a special pre-game ceremony. As well as a ticket special where any current solider or veteran with a Military ID for any available set for that game for just $10 that night.

In addition, the team will be wearing special Military Uniforms that will be auctioned off after the game that will raise money for the San Antonio Rampage Sled Team that is for disabled hockey players, some of whom are Military Veterans. Last year, the team raised nearly $44,000 and have raised over $180,000 over the 8 years the team has had this promotion.

For more info, you can call any Rampage Representative at 210-444-5554 on this special night as the team returns from it's annual Rodeo Road Trip against Houston and look continue their strong run of late at home for the first time in nearly a month.

Rampage Military Night Info

The Rampage Visit San Antonio Lackland Joint Base

San Antonio Rampage 2  Chicago Wolves 1  (0-0, 0-1, 2-0)

San Antonio Rampage VS. Chicago Wolves Audio Highlights

Coach Chuck Weber Pre-Game Interview

Tyson Strachan Interview

San Antonio Rampage Press Release



The San Antonio Rampage received third period goals from Forward Greg Rallo and defensemen Nolan Yonkman to the top the Chicago Wolves, 2-1, on Wednesday Night at All-State Arena.

After a scoreless opening period, Chicago Scored the game's first goal at the 8:36 mark of the second frame. Defensemen Yaunn Sauve sent a seeing eye shot on goal that beat Rampage backstop Jacob Markstrom to give the Wolves a 1-0 lead. Center Jordan Schroeder and forward Anton Rodin notched the assists on Sauve's second goal of the season.

Rallo tied the game at for San Antonio at 3:45 into the third period with a power play goal. His shot from the slot eluded Chicago Goaltender Eddie Lack and knotted the game at 1-1. Forwards Bracken Kearns and Bill Thomas were credited with the assists' on Rallo's 16th marker of the year.

Yonkman gave San Antonio a 2-1 edge just over 4 minutes later. He registered his second goal of 2011-2012 on a shot from the blueline that beat Lack to his right. The lone helper on the play went to Center Scott Timmins.

Markstrom made 27 saves on 28 Wolves shots for his eighth win of the season. Lack turned aside 28 of 30 San Antonio attempts in the Chicago Loss.

The Rampage end the Rodeo Road Trip with a 7-3-0-1 record and franchise best winning percentage (.682%).

The Rampage (31-23-2-1) returns home for Military Appreciation on Saturday when they host the Houston Aeros at 7 PM (CT) at the AT&T Center.





New Poll Question: Can the San Antonio Rampage make the playoffs

With the San Antonio Rampage on the borderline of the AHL Playoff Race. The new poll Question takes a look at whatever or not the Rampage can make the playoffs for only the 3rd time in their history.

I want to hear for you with your comments on why or why not the Rampage will be making the playoffs this season.

American Hockey League Week Ahead 2/22-26

As the Rampage enter the final portion of their annual Rodeo Road Trip, this week could be the most important 3-in-3 weekend sets of the season as San Antonio will be playing the Peoria Rivermen. Who till after last night, were in 7th & 8th Place in the Conference till the Rivermen got an important shootout win against the Abbotsford Heat after being down 2-0 just 6 minutes into the game.

Then were down, 3-2, for a majority of the 3rd period, until Adam Cracknell's 14th goal of the season tied the game with just 47 seconds left where the Rivermen was able to win in the shootout for a 4-3 victory where the Rivermen were able to jump to 6th Place in the Western Conference.

Abbotsford on the other hand has been falling in the West as they currently sit in 7th Place, this was after the Heat were in a very tight race with Houston & Oklahoma City for most of the 1st half of the season for both the Conference & Division Lead.

After San Antonio finishes the 2 games in Illinois, they will head to Wisconsin to play the Milwaukee Admirals Sunday Afternoon. This could be a make-or-break weekend for the Rampage who sit in 8th Place and after the Rodeo Road Trip wraps up with a game in Chicago on 2/29, the stretch drive will have the Rampage play 12 of the team's final 18 games in March & April and will provide a prime opportunity to further established themselves in the playoff picture.

One thing to keep in mind about the Rampage is that San Antonio has only made the playoffs twice in their decade long history & has never won a Division Title or Playoff Series in their history. The last time the Rampage made the playoffs was in 2007 where they lost in 7 games to the Toronto Marlies.

Following tonight's Home Game against the Texas Stars, the Barons will start on a 6 game road trip starting with a battle of Division Leaders against the Mid-West Division Leading Charlotte Checkers where OKC will have a great chance to pull away even further from both Charlotte & Toronto as they currently sit 5 points up on the Toronto Marlies & 6 points up on the Charlotte Checkers.

Following the trip to North Carolina, OKC will head to the Mid-West for a pair of games against Peoria, sandwiched with games against Grand Rapids & Chicago during the Trip as well.

Time is beginning to run out for the Texas Stars to get into the playoff race as they sit in 13th Place and are 9 points back of in state rival San Antonio for the 8th & final playoff spot. Things won't get any easier with a road game to the Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons, followed by a weekend series against their In State Rival Houston Aeros.

Houston will be looking to take advantage of one of their lightest stretches of the season coming up as they will have just 3 games over the next week-and-a-half. Not only is the number of games at a minimum, but travel shouldn't be an excuse coming up as they will be heading to Austin for a Friday/Saturday Series against a Texas Stars Team who are looking to get out of the Western Conference basement. The Aeros are looking to get this 11 game extended road trip back on track where Houston is 2-4 so far after losing 3 straight to Milwaukee & a pair against Abbotsford last week.

This will be a great chance for the Aeros to get back into 4th Place and into the final Home Ice Spot for the AHL Western Conference Playoffs when they get underway in Mid-April. The Aeros will look to get back on track during the extended road trip prior to their 1st home game back when they return to the Toyota Center on March 10 against the Grand Rapids Griffins.

Like the Rampage, the Aeros will have a heavy home schedule over the final 18 games where 13 of their final 18 will be at home. Including a stretch starting on March 29 where the Aeros will wrap up the regular season with 7 of their final 8 at home with their only road game during the final stretch drive against Oklahoma City on April 13 which is part of the regular season's closing weekend.

This Weeks AHL Schedule

2/22

Texas Stars VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

2/24

Oklahoma City Barons VS. Charlotte Checkers  6:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Peoria Rivermen  7:00 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Texas Stars  7:30 PM

2/25

Oklahoma City Barons VS. Charlotte Checkers  6:00 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Texas Stars  7:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Peoria Rivermen  7:30 PM

2/26

San Antonio Rampage VS. Milwaukee Admirals  3:00 PM

Texas Stars lose 3rd Straight at School Day Game

The Texas Stars Woes continue after losing their 3rd straight game and 7 of their last 8 overall with a 4-3 loss to the Lake Erie Monsters in front of nearly 9,000 screaming kids as the Monsters hosted their annual Grade School Field Trip Game at the Quicken Loans Arena in the Cleveland Area. Texas is looking for anything to get out of this slump as they continue to sit in the bottom of the Western Conference as they now sit 9 points back of the Peoria Rivermen for the 8th & Final Playoff Spot in the Western Conference. With just

Texas was almost able to get back in this game as Francis Wathier, Colton Sceviour & Scott Glennie were able to score their goals in a 4 and a half minute span late in the period after Lake Erie took a 3-0 lead late in the first period. However, the Stars couldn't find any other offensive action after that as an opening minute goal by Patrick Rissmiller put the Monsters over the top to give the team a 4-3 victory.

The Stars will look to turn around their fortunes at home after losing all 3 games on this road trip which also had losses to Rochester Americans (9-4) on 2/10 & the Hamilton Bulldogs (2-0) on 2/12. Next up will be a weekend home series against the San Antonio Rampage on Friday Night (7:30 PM) & Saturday Night (7:00 PM).

Lake Erie will head out on the road for a home-and-home series against the Rochester Americans on Friday & Saturday coming up this weekend. The Monsters have been red-hot recently by winning 6 of their last 7 games which have helped the Monsters climb to 9th Place and just a point out of the Playoff Race right now.

Texas Stars 3  Lake Erie Monsters 4  (0-3, 3-0, 0-1

Press Release by the Texas Stars Staff

Lake Erie VS. Texas Game Video

Current AHL Standings

From Cleveland, Ohio: The Texas Stars (21-25-4, 46 PTS) were defeated by the Lake Erie Monsters (25-22-4, 54 PTS) in front of 8,933 fans at the Quick Loans Arena on Wednesday. Monsters Winger Patrick Rissmiller broke a 3-3 tie just 45 seconds into the third period and Lake Erie held on for a one goal win, extending the team's points' streak to seven games (6-0-1).

The Stars fought back with three goals in the last six minutes of the second period, earning a 3-0 deficit from the first period. Left Wings Francis Wathier registered the Gordie How hat trick, as Texas fell to 10-17-1 on the road this season. Forwards Angelo Esposito (2A) and Scott Glennie (1G, 1A) each had multi point games as the Stars concluded three game road trip. Lake Erie Goalie Gerald Coleman (8-2-1) made 30 saves in his ninth straight start. Texas Goalie Tyler Beskorowany (6-13-0) made 40 saves in the defeat, including 17 saves in the second period. Texas returns home to hose San Antonio on Friday, February 17th at 7:30 PM.

The Monsters started the scoring at 6:55 of the first period with a power-play goal by Greg Mauldin. The Lake Erie Forward snapped a wrist shot past Texas Goalie Tyler Bedkorowany for his tenth goal of the year and a 1-0 Monsters Lead. Right wing Brad Malone set up left wing Justin Mercier at 11:37 to make it 2-0 Monsters. Mercier finished off a two-on-one for his 12th goal of the year. Lake Erie closed out the first frame with its third its third goal of the period at 18:11. Center Mark Olver set up Dean Strong for his second goal of the season and a 3-0 lead. The Monsters out shot the Stars 18-8 in the opening frame.

The Stars responded with three goals in the last six minutes of the second period. The scoring spree started at 14:27 of the middle frame with a rebound goal by left wing Francis Wathier. Angelo Esposito and Stephen Schultz each had an assist on Wathier's tenth goal of the year, trimming the Lake Erie lead to 3-1. Texas struck again less then three minutes later at 17:13. Esposito and Scott Glennie each had an assist on Colton Sceviour's 12th goal of the year to make it 3-2. Sceviour found a rebound in the Monsters crease and shuffled it past Lake Erie goalie Gerald Coleman to bring his team within in a goal. Texas scored it's third unanswered goal in the closing minute to tie the game 3-3. Rookie Scott Glennie scored on the power play off a rebound at 19:06 of the middle period. His 11th goal of the season  came from defensemen Brad Lukowich and Wathier, tying the game 3-3.

Just forty-five seconds into the third period, Lake Erie's Patrick Rissmiller skated to the right-wing circle in the Texas zone and lifted a backhand shot over the glove of Beskorwany. Rissmiller's seventh goal of the year pushed the Monsters in front for good at 4-3.

Texas returns home on Friday, February 17th for a 7:30 PM, faceoff against the San Antonio Rampage, presented by Farmers Insurance. Friday's Game is a 3-2-1 night featuring $3 domestic drafts, $2 Sodas & $1 Hot Dogs. The Stars will take on the Rampage again on Saturday, February 18th at 7:00 PM, presented by the Texas Lottery Commission. The first 2,500 fans to the game will receive a team poster, compliments of ABC Home and Commercial Services. Saturday is also a State Farm Family Four Pack consisting of four tickets, four sodas and four hot dogs starting at $48.

Individual tickets for all home games are on sale now. Tickets are available online at the Texas Stars Tickets  or by calling 512-GO-STARS (512-467-8277).

2011-12 season seat packages are on sale now. For more information on Texas Stars Season Tickets call 512-GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit www.texasstarshockey.com Anyone interested in purchasing season tickets, suites, group tickets or mini-plans may call the Texas Stars Ticket Office.



Gameday Audio: Houston Aeros VS. Milwaukee Admirals

As the Houston Aeros & Milwaukee Admirals get ready to play in Milwaukee, Wisconson tonight at 7:00 PM. Here's some Pre-Game Audio discussing both the Admirals Forecheck. Back on February 5th, the Aeros lost in a very tightly contested 2-1 game against the Admirals. Milwaukee is coming off a 4-2 loss against the Peoria Rivermen who currently sit in the 8th & Final Playoff Spot in the AHL Western Conference. Right now, the Admirals are in 11th Place in the AHL West with a 24-21-3 (51 PTS) and are 4 points back of the Rivermen.

The Aeros were in Grand Rapids, Michigan coming off a weekend sweep of the Grand Rapids Griffins with a 5-1 win Friday Night, followed by a 5-4 victory on Saturday to keep the Aeros are in 4th Place in the Western Conference.

Milwaukee Admirals Head Coach Ian Herbers talks about Sunday's Loss

 Houston Aeros Assistant Coach Sebastien LaPlate discusses the Admirals Forecheck

Weekly Southwest Hockey Schedule for 2/13-20

Here's a look at this week's Weekly Hockey Schedule as the Tier 1 & Tier 2 State Champions have now been crowned and are now looking forward to prepare for Nationals which will be taking place in Late March & Early April for the Tier 2 Teams. Tier 1 Teams on the other hand will have to get through Rocky Mountain Regional Tournament from March 1-4 in Denver with the winners clinching a spot in Nationals which will be in Buffalo, N.Y. for the Tier 1 Teams this season.

This week will be crucial for the Stars as the schedule begins to toughen up as the team currently sits in 11th Place and are still 3 points back of 8th Place Phoenix and will have a chance to catch up as they will play the Calgary Flames on Thursday & the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday with a chance to make up some ground in the playoffs. But first, it's a very tough matchup against the Detroit Red Wings where they won a NHL Record Tying 20 Home Games in a row where they haven't lost since November 1st in a 2-1 OT Loss to the Minnesota Wild when the Wild were on they sup rising start earlier in the season, where, like the Stars have fallen back in the standings recently.

After their critical games against Phoenix, Calgary & Detroit the Stars will finish the week on Sunday Night against the Nashville Predators who are in 5th Place in the West in which the Central Division has been the Group of Death right now where Detroit is leading the Conference with 78 points, while even the Predators and Blues sit in 2nd & 3rd in the Central Division (4th & 5th Conference) with 75 & 70 points respectively in their Conference. If the Regular Season ended today, the Nashville Predators & St. Louis Blues would play each other it would most likely be a very exciting 1st Round Playoff Series.

The Aeros & Rampage both continue their mammoth road trips where both teams won't return home till March (The Aeros on 3/10 & Rampage on 3/3). Houston continues to be in a solid 4th Place, but a struggling Abbotsford Heat team has allowed the Chicago Wolves to overtake them for 5th Place as the Wolves will look to catch up on the Aeros as they would currently hold down the final home ice birth for the Conference Quarterfinals right now.

The Aeros will wrap up their Mid-Western Section of their Road Trip after beating the Grand Rapids Griffins in back-to-back games 5-1 & 5-4 back on 2/10-11 last weekend. Houston will next head to Wisconsin to play the Milwaukee Admirals where they will look revenge after losing 2-1 back on February 5th.

After a game in Wisconsin, the Aeros head to B.C. to take on the Abbotsford Heat for a pair of games on 2/17-18 as they will look to continue the Heat's Woes as they have lost 9 of their last 11 dating back to a January 15th loss in Oklahoma City near the end of their Southwestern Road Trip. Since then, the Heat have fallen from 5th to 7th Place in the Western Conference and are of danger of falling out of the Western Conference Playoff picture as the gap from 7th Place Abbotsford to 11th Place Milwaukee is just 4 points right now as they expecting to see a very desperate Heat Team.

Since winning 7 in a row back in January, the Rampage have used that as a spring board as they continue to overcome their slow start to the season as they have jumped to 6th Place out West after winning 2 of 3 last weekend against the Toronto Marlies & Rochester Americans before ending the weekend with a 7-4 loss to Grand Rapids. This weekend will see the Rampage stay closer to home with a 3 game in 3 night stretch with a Friday/Saturday Set against the last place Texas Stars, then a trip north of the Red River to play the Western Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons Sunday Afternoon.

Texas will wrap up their short road trip after losses to Rochester & Hamilton will look to end on a positive note against the Lake Erie Monsters Wednesday Morning as the Monsters will be playing in their team's annual School Day Field Trip Game for Cleveland Area Grade School Kids. Following the road trip, the Stars will return home for a Friday/Saturday Series against the San Antonio Rampage.

Oklahoma City will be off until Friday Night as they look to continue to grow their Conference Lead over their Division Rival Houston Aeros & Mid-West Division Leading Charlotte Checkers as they have a weekend series against the Milwaukee Admirals on Friday & Saturday followed by a Sunday Afternoon Game against the San Antonio Rampage.

Elsewhere we have a pair of Turner Conference Teams in the Central Hockey League as the Evansville Icemen & Dayton Gems will be coming down South for some important games. Especially for the Ice Men who are battaling with Ft. Wayne for the Turner Conference Lead. The Ice Men will play a pair in Mcallen against the RGV Killer Bees on Tuesday & Wednesday Night, then will head up north to play Tulsa on Friday Night.

While the Gems who for the most part are way out of the Playoff Race, will also play the Oilers on Tuesday Night, then will head South to Dallas to play the Brahmas on Wednesday Night.

Elsewhere in the CHL will have another important series at NYTEX Sports Center as the Killer Bees & Brahmas will play a weekend series as the Killer Bees look to recover after losing a 9-6 game on Sunday Afternoon where at one point, the Killer Bees were able to comeback from 5-1 down in the 2nd period to get the game tied at 5-5 only for the Oilers to pull away in the 3rd period to get a huge win and an important 2 points for the 4th & Final Playoff spot in the Berry Conference.

It will be a slow weekend for the Southwest Area Junior Teams as the Texas Tornado & Dallas Snipers will be having the weekend off in the Dallas Area. Also, Amarillo, Odessa & Wichita Falls also have the weekend off this weekend. That leaves just leaves 2 Junior Series in the Southwest this weekend, 1st in the NAHL, it's the Corpus Christi Icerays hosting the last place New Mexico Mustangs for a pair on Thursday & Friday Night.

Despite the Mustangs being in Last Place, it hasn't been a slam dunk as the Ice Rays are just 4-2-0 in 6 games against New Mexico this season and they looking to rebound after losing 4-of-their-last-5 and letting the lead against Wichita Falls slip to 6 points, however, Corpus Christi does have games in hand against all 3 of their playoff challengers in New Mexico, Wichita Falls & Odessa.

The only WSHL Team hosting a series this weekend is the El Paso Rhinos where they will be playing the Texas Jr. Brahmas for the 2nd straight weekend after taking 2-of-3 against the Jr. Brahmas at NYTEX Sports Center last weekend. The Ice Jets will be heading North to Idaho for a series against one of the WSHL's Best Teams in the Idaho Jr. Steelheads.

This is after a two-and-a-half week layoff since the Ice Jets lost to the Jr. Brahmas 4-2 back on February 1st. The Extended layoff has allowed the El Paso Rhinos to build the Division Lead to 12 points in the Mid-West Division Lead thanks to the last 2 Rhinos Series against the Long Beach Bombers & Park City Moose where they were able to destroy both teams in recent weeks.

Finally, with the Road to Nationals getting in high gear, the area AAA Teams are playing their last handful of Showcase & Tournament Events of the Regular Season. Both the Dallas Stars Elites U18AAA & U16AAA Teams will play their Final Tier 1 Elite League Showcase Events of the Season this weekend as the U18AAA will head to Orland Park, Illinois to play the Great Lakes Division, including the league leading Victory Honda Team.

The U16AAA will head West to Scottsdale,Arizona to play the Rocky Mountain Division Teams as well as the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes to finish the Tier 1 Elite League Regular Season.

Both Teams will be using this to prepare for the Rocky Mountain Tier 1 Regional Tournament that will take place in Denver from 3/1-4. The Winners will quailify for the USA Hockey Tier 1 National Championships that will be in Buffalo, N.Y. from March 28 through April 1.

Also playing one of their final Showcase Events of the Season is the Dallas Ice Jets U16AAA where they head to Woodrige, Illinois which will include a game against the highly touted Shattuck St. Mary's Prep School.

Here's the Full Schedule

NHL

2/14: Dallas Stars VS. Detroit Red Wings  6:30 PM (FSN Southwest)

2/16: Calgary Flames VS. Dallas Stars  7:30 PM (FSN Southwest)

2/18: Dallas Stars VS. Phoenix Coyotes  7:00 PM (KTXA 21)

2/19: Nashville Predators VS. Dallas Stars  6:00 PM (FSN Southwest)


AHL

2/14: Houston Aeros VS. Milwaukee Admirals  7:00 PM

2/15: Texas Stars VS. Lake Erie Monsters 9:45 AM

2/17

Milwaukee Admirals VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Texas Stars  7:30 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Abbotsford Heat  9:00 PM

2/18

Milwaukee Admirals VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Texas Stars  7:00 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Abbotsford Heat  9:00 PM

2/19: San Antonio Rampage VS. Oklahoma City Barons  4:00 PM


Central Hockey League

2/14

Evansville Ice Men VS. RGV Killer Bees  7:00 PM

Laredo Bucks VS. Wichita Thunder  7:05 PM

Texas Brahmas VS. Allen Americans  7:05 PM

Dayton Gems VS. Tulsa Oilers  7:05 PM

2/15

Dayton Gems VS. Texas Brahmas  7:00 PM

Evansville Ice Men VS. RGV Killer Bees  7:00 PM

2/17

Allen Americans VS. Dayton Gems  6:00 PM

RGV Killer Bees VS. Texas Brahmas  7:30 PM

Evansville Ice Men VS. Tulsa Oilers  7:35 PM

Laredo Bucks VS. Rapid City Rush  8:05 PM

2/18

Allen Americans VS. Ft. Wayne Komets  6:30 PM

RGV Killer Bees VS. Texas Brahmas  7:30 PM

Laredo Bucks VS. Rapid City Rush  8:05 PM


North American Hockey League

2/16: New Mexico Mustangs VS. Corpus Christi Icerays  7:05 PM

2/17: New Mexico Mustangs VS. Corpus Christi Icerays  7:05 PM


Western States Hockey League

2/17

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Idaho Jr. Steelheads  8:00 PM

Texas Jr. Brahmas VS. El Paso Rhinos  8:30 PM

2/18

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Idaho Jr. Steelheads  8:00 PM

Texas Jr. Brahmas VS. El Paso Rhinos  8:30 PM

2/19

Texas Jr. Brahmas VS. El Paso Rhinos  5:30 PM

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Idaho Jr. Steelheads  8:00 PM


U18AAA

2/17

Texas Tornado VS. Indiana Jr. Ice  10:00 AM

Texas Tornado VS. Carolina Jr. Hurricanes  4:00 PM

2/18

Texas Tornado VS. San Jose Jr. Sharks  8:15 AM

Cleveland Barons VS. Dallas Stars Elites  6:15 PM

2/19

Oakland Grizzlies VS. Dallas Stars Elites  12:15 PM

Texas Tornado VS. West Michigan Hounds  4:00 PM

Belle Tire VS. Dallas Stars Elites  8:15 PM

2/20

Victory Honda VS. Dallas Stars Elites  2:15 PM


U16AAA

2/17

Texas Tornado VS. San Jose Jr. Sharks  10:00 AM

Texas Tornado VS. New Jersey Jr. Titans  4:15 PM

2/18

Texas Tornado VS. Orange County  10:15 AM

Colorado Thunderbirds VS. Dallas Stars Elites  5:30 PM

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Team Illinois  11:40 AM

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Chicago Mission  6:20 PM

2/19

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Chicago Young Americans  8:10 AM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Russell Stover  11:10 AM

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Shattuck St. Mary  2:00 PM

Colorado Rampage VS. Dallas Stars Elites  7:00 PM

2/20

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Rocky Mountain Roughriders  9:00 AM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Phoenix Jr. Coyotes  3:00 PM

Texas Stars surge after being down 3-0 to beat Milwaukee

When the Stars & Admirals took the Ice at the Cedar Park Center last night, it quickly looked like that the Admirals were able to come away with a set sweep as the Admirals defeated the Stars 4-3 in OT back on Tuesday Night. Milwaukee took a quick 3-0 lead before the Stars took over the game with some amazing performances from Adam Pardy who was sent down from the Dallas Stars and brought back after a strong 3 assist performance last night.

Also included another 3 point nights from Scott Glennie as well. But perhaps the biggest night of all went to Ryan Garbutt who recorded a hat trick that was finished off with an empty netter with 1:47 left in the game to put the game away and win 6-3.

That win allowed Texas to gain some serious ground in the Western Conference Playoff Race by leap frogging both Hamilton & Rockford and are now even with the Grand Rapids Griffins. In addition, the Stars are just 2 points back of Lake Erie.

However, they are still 5 points back of 8th Place Peoria and will have to climb past 4 teams to get there as the Stars are getting ready to leave on a 3 game road trip out East with games against the Rochester Americans (Friday), Hamilton Bulldogs (Sunday) & Lake Erie Monsters (Wednesday).

The Stars return home on January 17th with a weekend series against the San Antonio Rampage who have been climbing in the standings by winning 7 in a row at one point in January to climb to 7th Place. And have their sights to overtaking teams like the Abbotsford Heat, Chicago Wolves & Houston Aeros who sit from 4th through 6th and are seperated by just 3 points.

Game Story from Steve Habel of the Austin American Statesman

Milwaukee Admirals 3  Texas Stars 6  (3-0, 0-2, 0-4)

From Cedar Park, Texas: Texas' Ryan Garbutt scored the first regular season home hat trick in team history and Matt Fraser and Scott Glennie scored goals in a minute and a half span of the third period to help complete a stirring comeback and grant the Stars a 6-3 win against Milwaukee before 4,158 fans at Cedar Park Center.

Garbutt's 3rd goal of the game, an empty netter, came at the 18:13 mark of the third period and was the fourth scored by the Stars while dominating the final period. Adam Pardy had three assists for Texas and Scott Glennie added two assists for a three point night.

The win also snapped a five game losing streak for Texas (21-22-2 44 PTS) who is five points out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the AHL's Western Conference with 29 games left in the season.

"Getting the hat trick was fun and all, but getting this win was the most important thing," said Garbutt, who now has 16 goals on the season, the second most on the team. "We showed the kind of character we have with this comeback tonight, and hopefully this win will get us going and we can carry the momentum forward."

Milwaukee (24-20-1 50 PTS) caught Texas flat footed in the early going, scoring three goals over a span of just eight minutes in the first period.

First, the Admirals Kyle Wilson skated right into left unabated across the goal crease before beating Texas Goalie Andrew Raycroft low on the stick side, giving Milwaukee a 1-0 lead at the 5:12 mark. Zack Stortini added to the advantage at the 11:05 mark where he sent home a rebound of a shot by Jani Lajunen.

Two minutes later, the Stars picked up a pair of penalties (one by Raycroft for hooking) that lead to a 5-on-3 opportunity for Milwaukee. The Admirals made Texas pay for their mistakes, as Chris Mueller swept a shot into the net for a power play goal and a 3-0 Milwaukee lead.

The Stars comeback began with Colton Sceviour's goal off a cross ice pass from Glennie and an assist by Brad Lukowich at the 6:04 mark of the second period.

Texas then clawed back to within 3-2 as Garbutt lit the lamp at 10:53.

Garbutt tied it just 59 seconds later into the third period and the Stars poured it on for the remainder of the game.

Before the Stars paid tribute to Lukowich, their team captain; who played in his 1,000th career professional game late last month

Aeros Goalie Matt Hacket on The Pipeline Show

Houston Aeros Goalie Matt Hackett was on The Pipeline Show back on Tuesday Night to chat about his strong run in the AHL Playoffs by getting to the Calder Cup Final. His great season so far this year which includes being named to the AHL All Star Game and his first career NHL Call Up he had in early December which included getting a shutout against the San Jose Sharks back on December 6.

Matt Hacket Interview

Full 1/31 Episode

The Pipeline Show Website

The Team 1260

Based in Edmonton, Alberta, The Pipeline Show has become one of the most well known Radio Shows in North America to cover the Canadian Hockey League, the NCAA Hockey & Minor Pro to track the best young players as they make their way to the NHL. In addition to the following these leagues, the show also covers some of the biggest events in North America including the NCAA Frozen 4 in April, the CHL Memorial Cup in May, the NHL Draft in June and the World Junior Hockey Championships around the Christmas Holidays.

In addition to these big events, other events include the RBC Cup which is the Canadian Junior A National Championships, the USHL Clark Cup Championship, the AHL Calder Cup among League Championships. Also other international events include the IIHF U18 World Championships and the U17 World Hockey Challenge

The Pipeline Show comes on twice a week from 8-10 PM on Tuesday Nights and 11 AM-1 PM on Saturdays. To listen live, click on the Team 1260 Website and be sure to listen live. If you can't listen live, go on The Pipeline Show Website, select "Media Archive" select the season you want and you can listen to a huge archive of past and recent interviews from the shows history.



American Goaltender Called up to the San Antonio Rampage

After having a strong season for the Allen Americans to get them in a major battle with the Wichita Thunder for the Berry Conference Lead. Americans Goaltender Rejean Beauchemin has been rewarded to earn a shot with the San Antonio Rampage as the team is beginning to prepare for the Post  All Star Break Portion of the season as San Antonio will be getting ready to travel to Oklahoma City to play the league leading  Barons on Thursday Night, then returning home to play the Lake Erie Monsters on Friday Night.

A Professional Tryout Contract usually lasts 25 games where the team can have enough time to let the player have a chance to show that he is worthy to play in the AHL. If he is, then the team will sign him to a regular contract. If not, then the player will be released and most likely returned to where he was playing prior to the PTO that was signed.

Rejean Beauchemin is currently playing in his 1st season for the Americans and has 3 Shutouts on the season and has been part of a goaltending carousel where 5 players have played in goal for the Americans this season. This hasn't hampered the Americans efforts where they trail the Wichita Thunder by just 1 point with both teams having 25 games left to play in the regular season which is scheduled to end on March 25.

It's important that the Rampage have a strong weekend as the team will prepare for their annual Rodeo Road Trip with the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo that will be at the AT&T Center from February 9-26 as the team will embark on an 11 game road trip where the Rampage where they will start with a 4 games up north in Toronto & Hamilton in Ontario, also Rochester & Grand Rapids during that time. Then they will have a pair of games against the Texas Stars on the 17th & 18th then up to Oklahoma City on Sunday the 19th to complete a 3 game in 3 night series.

Then the road trip wraps up in the Mid-West to play 2 against Peoria and will wrap it up against Milwaukee & Chicago on February 29. The Rampage will return home on March 3 against the Houston Aeros.

In addition to the Americans battling for the Top Spot in the CHL Berry Conference and even for home ice advantage for the playoffs. This is also an important part of the season coming up for the San Antonio Rampage as they are currently in the middle of a 7 game winning streak that has helped the Rampage climb to 7th Place in the Western Conference and are currently sitting just 4 points back of the Houston Aeros who sit in 4th Place.

In addition, they are also just 3 points back of the 8th Place Peoria Rivermen and just 4 points ahead of the Milwaukee Admirals & Rochester Americans who are tied with 46 points. So the Rampage could see themselves possibly continue to climb up or slide down the Western Conference Standings in a hurry when the AHL Resumes their regular season tomorrow night against Oklahoma City tomorrow night. In all, the team has 32 games left in the regular season that will be played over the next 2 and-a-half months to wrap up the regular season that will end on April 15.

Upcoming San Antonio Rampage Schedule

2/2: @ Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

2/3: VS. Lake Erie Monsters  7:00 PM

2/7: @ Hamilton Bulldogs  9:00 AM

2/10: @ Toronto Marlies  6:00 PM

2/11: @ Rochester Americans  6:35 PM



San Antonio Rampage Press Release

Florida Panthers Exc. Vice President & GM Dale Tallon announced today that the club has recalled goaltender Brian Foster. In addition, the Rampage have announced that they have signed goaltender Rejean Beauchemin to a Professional Tryout Deal (PTO).

Foster, 24, earned his third call up of the season to the Panthers. In 11 games with San Antonio this season, Foster is 4-6-0 with a 3.55 GAA. In 10 games with Cincinnati this year, Foster is 8-1-1 with a 2.47 GAA and a 911 SV%. The Pembroke, N.H. native was drafted by Florida in the fifth round (161st overall) in the 2005 NHL Draft.

Beauchemin, 26, has appeared in 18 games with the Allen Americans (CHL) this season posting a 10-4-4 record with a .932 SV%. In 25 career AHL Games, the Winnipeg, Manitoba Native has posted a 5-15-1 record with a .855 Save Percentage and a 3.71 Goals Against Average split between Philadelphia (2005-07), Houston (2008-09) and Manitoba (2009-10). He was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the sixth round (191st overall) in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

The Rampage will host their second annual Pink in the Rink Night this Friday at 7:00 PM at the AT&T Center. The ice will be dyed pink and the team will wear pink themed jerseys that will be auctioned off post-game to benefit the San Antonio affiliate of Susan G. Komen. A limited number of tickets are available and can be purchased by calling a Rampage Rampage representative at 210-444-5554 or online at www.sarampage.com

Southwest Regional Hockey Schedule for 1/30-2/5

The All Star & Top Prospects Game continue for some leagues across North America this week as the American Hockey League All Star Game takes place tonight up in Atlantic City, New Jersey after the Western Conference winning the Skills Competition last night 18-10. Highlights including former Texas Tornado Goalie Ben Bishop won the Top Goaltender so far this season which leads the league with 6 shutouts was one of the top goaltenders by stopping 16 of 19 shots when in net. Also Ryan Keller of the Oklahoma City Barons was the co champion of the Accuracy Shot by hitting all 4 targets in just 5 shots along with Abbotsford Heat Forward Brian Connelly as well.

You can read about the entire AHL All Star Skills Competition here as well as the full results here.

With the NHL All Star Break now behind us, the league will resume the Regular Season tomorrow night with the Stars beginning a huge 2 game road trip to California to play the Ducks on Wednesday & the Sharks on Thursday as the Stars will look to eat into the Pacific Division Gap as they sit 8 points back of the Division Leading San Jose Sharks. Following the California Road Trip, it's back home to the Stars as they face the Minnesota Wild who currently holds down the 8th & Final Playoff Spot who like the Stars, have fallen back some what after an impressive start to the regular season.

Eddie Belfour will also be on hand for his NHL Hall of Fame Recognition after he got inducted back in November. He is the 3rd player from the Stars 1999 Stanley Cup Winning Team to be inducted into  the NHL Hall of Fame along with Joe Nieuwendyk who also got inducted along with Belfour & Brett Hull who was inducted back in 2009.

The 1st 7 games on February are critical to the team's Playoff Chances as they will be playing teams that are all very winnable and that are critical to the playoff run with 34 games left in the regular season that will take place over the final 2 months of the regular season which will wrap up on April 7.

When the AHL All Star Break wraps up after tonight's All Star Game. The American Hockey League will get back to business on Thursday Night with all 4 Regional Teams in action with San Antonio playing the Western Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons while the Texas Stars will take on the Houston Aeros.

Oklahoma City will look to cool off a surging Rampage Team that has now risen to 7th Place thanks to a 7 game winning streak that goes back to January 14th win against the Rockford Ice Hogs. In addition to Rockford, San Antonio has also 3 wins over Houston & a victory over the Abbotsford Heat as well who are battling with Houston for 4th & get in a position where they would have home ice advantage in the 1st Round. Overall, the gap from from the 4th Place Houston Aeros to 7th Place San Antonio Rampage is now just 4 PTS.

Other big games in the AHL This week includes a battle of the West Division Leading Oklahoma City Barons against the Mid-West Division Leading Charlotte Checkers on Friday in OKC. Charlotte will also visit the Texas Stars on Saturday, while the Lake Erie Monsters are also visiting the Southwest by playing the Rampage on Friday & the Aeros on Saturday Night as well.

Elsewhere in the Region this week will have an important battle for the 4th & Final Playoff spot in the Berry Conference between the Tulsa Oilers & RGV Killer Bees in Tulsa. RGV needs to respond after losing 2 of 3 last weekend after a OT Loss to South Texas Rival Laredo Bucks & a 4-1 loss to the Allen Americans on Sunday last weekend that allowed the Oilers to gain a slight lead where they were able to gain points in all 3 games with wins over the Texas Brahmas & Laredo Bucks as well as forcing OT in Kansas over the Wichita Thunder who are battling with Allen for the Conference Lead right now.

Among the Junior Ranks, we will see an all Dallas Area Game on Wednesday Night as the Ice Jets will play their final game before being off for two weeks as they will look to go ahead of the El Paso Rhinos for the Mid-West Division. This game is a virtual must win to help the Ice Jets Chances as the Rhinos still has two games in hand (three after Wednesday Night) as the Rhinos will have another Favorable Series against West Coast Division Cellar Dwelling Phoenix Knights after El Paso outscored Park City 28-3 in the 3 game series that wrapped up yesterday.

In the NAHL, the Texas Tornado & Wichita Falls Wildcats will play a 3 game series as the Tornado will host the series on Thursday & Friday before both teams head to Wichita Falls on Saturday Night. Also it will be a chance for the Corpus Christi Icerays to show that not only they can make the playoffs, but show they will be a dangerous foe as the Icerays travel to Kansas to play the Topeka Roadrunners on Wednesday & Thursday Night.

Finally the Dallas Stars Elites at both the U18AAA & U16AAA Levels will play their 2nd to Final Tier 1 Elite League Showcases of the season as the U18's will head to LA while the U16's will be in Denver. This weekend will also be used a tune up for the TAHA State Championship where both teams will play the Alliance Bulldogs in the Best of 3 State Tournament Series. Speaking of Alliance, the Alliance Bulldogs U18 team will play the Dallas Oilers on Sunday; while the U16's will head to Colorado to play the Pikes Peak Miners in an exhibition series up in Colorado this weekend.

National Hockey League

2/1: Dallas Stars VS. Anaheim Ducks  9:30 PM (FSN Southwest+)

2/2: Dallas Stars VS. San Jose Sharks  9:30 PM (FSN Southwest)

2/4: Minnesota Wild VS. Dallas Stars  7:00 PM (FSN Southwest+)

American Hockey League

1/30 (All Star Game) 6:00 PM in Atlantic City, New Jersey

2/2

San Antonio Rampage VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

Texas Stars VS. Houston Aeros  7:05 PM

2/3

Charlotte Checkers VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

Lake Erie Monsters VS. San Antonio Rampage  7:00 PM

2/4

Charlotte Checkers VS. Texas Stars  7:00 PM

Lake Erie Monsters VS. Houston Aeros  7:35 PM

2/5: Milwaukee Admirals VS. Houston Aeros  12:05 PM

Central Hockey League

1/31: RGV Killer Bees VS. Tulsa Oilers  7:05 PM

2/1: Texas Brahmas VS. Laredo Bucks  7:00 PM

2/3

Tulsa Oilers VS. Allen Americans  7:05 PM

Texas Brahmas VS. Laredo Bucks  7:30 PM

Wichita Thunder VS. RGV Killer Bees  7:30 PM

2/4

Tulsa Oilers VS. Allen Americans  7:05 PM

Wichita Thunder VS. Laredo Bucks  7:30 PM

Texas Brahmas VS. RGV Killer Bees  7:30 PM

North American Hockey League

2/1: Corpus Christi Icerays VS. Topeka Roadrunners  7:05 PM

2/2

Corpus Christi Icerays VS. Topeka Roadrunners  7:05 PM

Wichita Falls Wildcats VS. Texas Tornado  7:30 PM

2/3

New Mexico Mustangs VS. Amarillo Bulls  7:00 PM

Fresno Monsters VS. Odessa Jackalopes  7:05 PM

Wichita Falls Wildcats VS. Texas Tornado  7:30 PM

2/4

New Mexico Mustangs VS. Amarillo Bulls  7:00 PM

Fresno Monsters VS. Odessa Jackalopes  7:00 PM

Texas Tornado VS. Wichita Falls Wildcats  7:05 PM

Western States Hockey League

2/1: Dallas Ice Jets VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  9:30 PM

2/3

El Paso Rhinos VS. Phoenix Knights  9:00 PM

Dallas Snipers VS. Park City Moose  9:00 PM

Long Beach Bombers VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  9:00 PM

Cheyenne Stampede VS. New Mexico Renegades  9:30 PM

2/4

Long Beach Bombers VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  3:45 PM

Cheyenne Stampede VS. New Mexico Renegades  6:30 PM

El Paso Rhinos VS. Phoenix Knights  8:45 PM

Dallas Snipers VS. Park City Moose  9:00 PM

2/5

Long Beach Bombers VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  10:15 AM

Dallas Snipers VS. Park City Moose  12:45 PM

El Paso Rhinos VS. Phoenix Knights  1:30 PM

Cheyenne Stampede VS. New Mexico Renegades  3:00 PM

U18AAA

2/3

Phoenix Jr. Coyotes VS. Dallas Stars Elites 10:00 AM

Colorado Thunderbirds VS. Dallas Stars Elites  6:15 PM

2/4

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Colorado Rampage  10:30 AM

Russell Stover VS. Dallas Stars Elites  6:45 PM

2/5

Rocky Mountain Roughriders VS. Dallas Stars Elites  10:30 AM

Alliance Bulldogs VS. Dallas Oilers AA  8:00 AM

U16AAA

2/3

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Rocky Mountain Roughriders  3:30 PM

Alliance Bulldogs VS. Pikes Peak Miners  6:30 PM

2/4

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Russell Stover  12:15 PM

Alliance Bulldogs VS. Pikes Peak Miners  3:00 PM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Colorado Thunderbirds  6:30 PM

DJHA U18 AA VS. Dallas Ice Jets  7:00 PM

2/5

Alliance Bulldogs VS. Pikes Peak Miners 9:00 AM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Colorado Rampage  12:30 PM



1/25 American Hockey League Scoreboard

With the NHL on it's All Star Break and it's events beginning tonight with the NHL All Star Fantsay Draft coming up tonight. The American Hockey League (AHL), the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) & the Central Hockey League (CHL) are in action right now. For the Southwest Based Teams, it's a quiet couple of days as the Dallas Stars aren't back in action till February 1 when the Stars play the Ducks out in Anaheim.

While the Region's AHL teams are all off til Friday when Houston visits the Oklahoma City Barons while the Texas Stars travel to San Antonio to take on the Rampage. Then the Pre-All Star Game portion of the schedule wraps on Saturday where the Texas Stars & Houston Aeros will trade places with Oklahoma City & San Antonio as the Stars play the Barons & the Aeros playing the Rampage on Satuday as the league will head into their All Star Break.

In the Central Hockey League, the Americans are getting ready for a battle with the Wichita Thunder on Friday Night for a 1st Place Battle in the Berry Conference. While a critical battle for the league's last two playoff spots will be taking place as the Tulsa Oilers VS. Texas Brahmas will be taking place at the NYTEX Sports Center on Friday.

American Hockey League

St. John's Ice Caps 4  Bridgeport Sound Tigers 3  (SO) (1-1, 1-0, 1-2, 0-0, 1-0)

Rochester Americans 1  Grand Rapids Griffins 4  (0-3, 1-0, 0-1)

Adirondack Phantoms 1  Manchester Monarchs 5  (0-1, 0-3, 1-1)

Springfield Falcons 4  Worcester Sharks 2  (0-1, 1-0, 3-1)

Providence Bruins 4 W-B/Scranton Penguins 3  (OT) (2-1, 1-0, 0-2, 1-0)

Chicago Wolves 5  Abbotsford Heat 0  (3-0, 1-0, 1-0)