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.



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

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

2/6-12 Southwest Hockey Schedule

Here's a look at the Southwest Hockey Schedule for the week of February 6-12.

National Hockey League

2/7: Phoenix Coyotes VS. Dallas Stars  7:30 PM (FSN Southwest)

2/9: Dallas Stars VS. Columbus Blue Jackets  6:00 PM (FSN Southwest)

2/10: Dallas Stars VS. Buffalo Sabres  6:30 PM (FSN Southwest Plus)

2/12: LA Kings VS. Dallas Stars  (FSN Southwest)

American Hockey League

2/7

San Antonio Rampage VS. Hamilton Bulldogs  9:00 AM

Houston Aeros VS. Chicago Wolves  11:00 AM

Milwaukee Admirals VS. Texas Stars  7:30 PM



2/8: Milwaukee Admirals VS. Texas Stars  7:30 PM

2/9:  Oklahoma City Barons VS. Abbotsford Heat  8:00 PM (In Calgary, AB)

2/10

Houston Aeros VS. Grand Rapids Griffins  6:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Toronto Marlies  6:00 PM

Texas Stars VS. Rochester Americans  6:35 PM

2/11

Houston Aeros VS. Grand Rapids Griffins  6:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Rochester Americans  6:35 PM

Oklahoma City Barons VS. Abbotsord Heat  9:00 PM

2/12

Texas Stars VS. Hamilton Bulldogs  2:00 PM

San Antonio Rampage VS. Grand Rapids Griffins  4:00 PM

Central Hockey League

2/9

RGV Killer Bees VS. Laredo Bucks  11:00 AM

Wichita Thunder VS. Allen Americans  7:05 PM

2/10

Tulsa Oilers VS. Wichita Thunder  7:05 PM

Allen Americans VS. Texas Brahmas  7:30 PM

2/11

RGV Killer Bees VS. Allen Americans  7:05 PM

Laredo Bucks VS. Texas Brahmas  7:30 PM

Evansville IceMen VS. Tulsa Oilers  7:35 PM

2/12

RGV Killer Bees VS. Tulsa Oilers  4:05 PM

North American Hockey League

2/7

Amarillo Bulls VS. Wichita Falls Wildcats  7:05 PM

2/10

Wichita Falls Wildcats VS. Corpus Christi Icerays  7:05 PM

Amarillo Bulls VS. Texas Tornado  7:30 PM

Odessa Jackalopes VS. New Mexico Mustangs  8:30 PM

2/11

Amarillo Bulls VS. Texas Tornado  7:30 PM

Wichita Falls Wildcats VS. Corpus Christi Icerays  7:35 PM

Odessa Jackalopes VS. New Mexico Mustangs  8:30 PM

2/12

Odessa Jackalopes VS. New Mexico Mustangs  2:00 PM

Western States Hockey League

2/10

New Mexico Renegades VS. Dallas Snipers  7:30 PM

El Paso Rhinos VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  10:45 PM

2/11

El Paso Rhinos VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  2:15 PM

New Mexico Renegades VS. Dallas Snipers  7:30 PM

2/12

New Mexico Renegades VS. Dallas Snipers  10:00 AM

El Paso Rhinos VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  10:15 AM

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.



Southwest Regional Hockey Schedule for 1/9-15

Here's a look at this week's Southwest Regional Hockey Schedule coming up this week. As always, if you have questions or comments about what's going on this week at the Professional, Junior & AAA Hockey Levels. If you have any questions or comments regarding any of the games this week, use the hash tag #SWHockey & use the Twitter name @tanman9.

The Stars are on the road in Southern California this week with games in Anaheim & Los Angeles coming up on Tuesday & Thursday as the team looks to eat into San Jose's Pacific Division Lead which is just 3 points, but at the same time be able to gain a lead on both the LA Kings who is currently tied for 2nd in the Division. And just 2 points ahead of the Phoenix Coyotes right now with 45 right now, so this would be a good time to gain some ground on both fronts.

As for the San Jose Sharks are also on the road against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday, Winnipeg Jets on Thursday Night & the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday Evening as well. Fortunately for the Sharks it's against teams that are closer to the bottom of the league as Columbus is dead last in the Western Conference & a Winnipeg Jets team who has been red hot right now which them currently in 9th place just 1 point back of Pittsburgh for the 8th & Final Playoff Spot in the Eastern Conference right now.

They will wrap up the week on Saturday Afternoon against the Colorado Avalanche. The team will also officially reach the half way point of the Regular Season and the run to the NHL All Star Break which will go from January 26-30 this year, with the Skills Competition on Saturday the 28 & the All Star Game it self will be on January 29 this season from the from the Scotiabank Center in Ottawa, Ontario.

The American Hockey League Teams will have on of their busier weeks of the season so far today as the Aeros will go on the Northern Part of their 4 Game Road trip after beating the San Antonio Rampage 4-3 yesterday with the help of a 2nd period surge with the help of Aeros Power Play Goals from Kris Foucault & Jon Disalvatore to help beat San Antonio and are back tied with the Abbotsford Heat for 2nd in the West Division & are just 3 points back of the Western Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons.

Speaking of the Western Conference Leading OKC Barons, they have a 3 game in 3 night home stretch this weekend; which will include a pair of games against the Abbotsford Heat on Saturday Night & Sunday Afternoon with the West Division Lead likely on the line. It will depend however on how the Heat will do against the San Antonio Rampage on Tuesday Night & the Texas Stars on Wednesday Night to determine how much 'Heat' will be on the Barons to help protect the lead. It should be a pair of fiesty games for the Division Lead.

Back in November, the Barons & Heat split a weekend series with a pair of 4-1 games between the two teams. The Barons lead Abbotsford by 3 Points going into this week. In addition to the two games against Abbotsford, they will play the Rockford Ice Hogs who are currently dead last in the Western Conference

As for the American Hockey League All Star Game, it will be taking place on January 29 & 30 at the Boardwalk Hall Arena in Atlantic City, N.J. You can see the info on this year's event here and info on this year's roster here.

Saturday Night will be extremely busy for the AHL Teams as all 4 teams are in action against separate opponents. Texas is in Wisconsin to play the Milwaukee Admirals, Abbotsford will host the Oklahoma City Barons, the Houston Aeros are in Illinois to play the Peoria Rivermen and the Rampage hosting the Rockford Ice Hogs.

Elsewhere around the region on Thursday & Friday Night will have a critical battle for the 4th & Final Playoff spot in the South Division as the Odessa Jackalopes & Corpus Christi Icerays will play each other at the American Bank Center. The Icerays are currently leading for the 4th Spot by 4 points, so the Jackalopes will need to win both games in regulation to get to a tie for 4th.

The League will also have the Topeka Roadrunners & Amarillo Bulls each other as the Roadrunners are looking to overtake the Tornado for 2nd Place who have lost their lost 3; and allowed the Roadrunners to get within 2 points of 2nd Place and what would be 1st Round Home Ice in the NAHL Robertson Cup Playoffs.

In the Western States Hockey League, after a 3 game sweep of the Dallas Ice Jets in Grapevine over the weekend. The Rhinos have a chance to take the Mid-West Division Lead as the Rhinos will host the New Mexico Renegades this weekend. El Paso needs to get at least 3 of a possible 6 points to take the Division Lead which would at least be a win, an OT Loss & Regulation Loss or better this weekend.

Finally, it's a very busy weekend for U16AAA & U18AAA Teams with the MLK Weekend coming up.

At the U18 Level, The Dallas Stars Elites will head to Denver to play the Rocky Mountain Teams in their Tier 1 Elite League Showcase. The Ice Jets & Alliance Bulldogs will head to the High Performance Hockey League Showcase in Chicago. Finally the Texas Tornado U18 & U16 Teams will be in Troy, Michigan (just outside of Detroit) for one of the final NAPHL Regular Season.

The U16 Level will have the Stars Elites heading to Hingham, Mass (Just outside Boston). The Ice Jets will also be at the HPHL Showcase to play Shattuck St. Mary's as well as a trio of Detroit Powerhouses in Compuware, Honeybaked & Little Caesars during the MLK Weekend as well.

The TAHA State Tournament gets underway a month from tomorrow. So some teams who are going to looking to qualify for the Tier 2 State Tournament in Mid February will be looking to get in position to qualifiy for the Tournament next month.

Here's the Video & Audio Links where you can watch & Listen to games on line.

All Start Times on here are CST.

Here's this week's schedule

National Hockey League

1/10:  Dallas Stars VS. Anaheim Ducks  9:00 PM (FSNSW+)

1/12: Dallas Stars VS. Los Angeles Kings  9:30 PM (FSNSW)

1/14: Colorado Avalanche VS. Dallas Stars  2:00 PM  (FSNSW & NHLN US)

American Hockey League

1/10: Abbotsford Heat VS. San Antonio Rampage  7:00 PM

1/11

Houston Aeros VS. Grand Rapids Griffins  6:00 PM

Abbotsford Heat VS. Texas Stars  7:30 PM

1/13

Texas Stars VS. Grand Rapids Griffins  6:00 PM

Rockford Ice Hogs VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Peoria Rivermen  7:00 PM

1/14

Texas Stars VS. Milwaukee Admirals  7:00 PM

Abbotsford Heat VS. Oklahoma City Barons  7:00 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Peoria Rivermen  7:00 PM

Rockford Ice Hogs VS. San Antonio Rampage  7:00 PM

1/15: Abbotsford Heat VS. Oklahoma City Barons  4:00 PM

Central Hockey League

1/13

Allen Americans VS. Missouri Mavericks  7:05 PM

Texas Brahmas VS. RGV Killer Bees  7:30 PM

Laredo Bucks VS. Arizona Sundogs  8:05 PM

1/14

Texas Brahmas VS. RGV Killer Bees  7:30 PM

Allen Americans VS. Tulsa Oilers  7:35 PM

Laredo Bucks VS. Arizona Sundogs  8:05 PM

1/15: RGV Killer Bees VS. Texas Brahmas  5:00 PM

North American Hockey League

1/12: Odessa Jackalopes VS. Corpus Christi Icerays  7:05 PM

1/13

Topeka Roadrunners VS. Amarillo Bulls  7:00 PM

Odessa Jackalopes VS. Corpus Christi Icerays  7:05 PM

Wichita Falls Wildcats VS. Texas Tornado  7:30 PM

1/14

Topeka Roadrunners VS. Amarillo Bulls  7:00 PM

New Mexico Mustangs VS. Wichita Falls Wildcats  7:05 PM

Odessa Jackalopes VS. Texas Tornado  7:30 PM

1/15

Wichita Falls Wildcats VS. New Mexico Mustangs  2:00 PM

Texas Tornado VS. Corpus Christi Icearys  3:05 PM

Western States Hockey League

1/13: New Mexico Renegades VS. El Paso Rhinos  8:30 PM

1/14: New Mexico Renegades VS. El Paso Rhinos  8:30 PM

1/15: New Mexico Renegades VS. El Paso Rhinos  5:30 PM

U18AAA

1/13

Texas Tornado VS. Omaha AAA Lancers  12:00 PM

1/14

Wenatchee Wild VS. Texas Tornado  8:00 AM

Dallas Alliance Bulldogs VS. Culver Academy  1:40 PM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Rocky Mountain Roughriders  2:00 PM

Texas Tornado VS. San Jose Jr. Sharks  4:15 PM

Dallas Alliance Bulldogs VS. Chicago Young Americans  8:40 PM

1/15

West Michigan Hounds VS. Texas Tornado  8:15 AM

Dallas Alliance Bulldogs VS. Honeybaked  10:40 AM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Russell Stover  12:15 PM

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Team Illinois  12:40 PM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Colorado Thunderbirds  6:30 PM

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Chicago Mission  7:20 PM

1/16

Dallas Ice Jets VS. Honeybaked

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Colorado Rampage 12:30 PM

U16AAA

1/13

Orange County VS. Texas Tornado  2:15 PM

Dallas Stars Elites VS. Ohio Blue Jackets  11:00 AM

1/14

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

Pittsburgh Hornets VS. Dallas Stars Elites  5:20 PM

Shattuck St. Mary VS. Dallas Ice Jets  7:50 PM

1/15

Compuware VS. Dallas Ice Jets  11:40 AM

Phoenix Firebirds VS. Texas Tornado  12:00 PM

Honeybaked VS. Dallas Ice Jets  6:20 PM

TPH Thunder VS. Dallas Stars Elites  9:20 PM

1/16

Texas Tornado VS. Pikes Peak Miners  6:00 AM

Buffalo Jr. Sabres VS. Dallas Stars Elites  7:00 AM

Little Caesars VS. Dallas Ice Jets  8:40 AM


TAHA Tier 2 State Tournament Qualifiers

U18

1/11

GM1 :DJHA-Kowall VS. Texas Jr. Brahmas  7:45 PM

GM1: Dallas Stars Selects VS. Alliance Bulldogs  8:00 PM


U16

1/14

GM1: Houston Hitmen VS. Texas Aces  1:30 PM

GM2: Texas Aces VS. Houston Hitmen  7:30 PM

1/15

GM3: Houston Hitmen VS. Texas Aces  8:50 AM


U14

1/12

GM2: Allen Jr. Americans VS. Dallas Ice Jets  7:30 PM

Barons use Strong PP to crush Aeros 6-0

A very strong PP that lead to 4 Power Play Goals had the Barons burning the Aeros up all night long as Oklahoma City was able to keep their Slim Lead in the Western Conference and build their overall record to 22-8-4 for a league leading 48 points and the Barons got some more good news as their head coach Todd Nelson was officially announced as the Head Coach of the AHL Western Conference All Stars when the American Hockey League heads to Atlantic City, New Jersey on January 29 & 30 at the Boardwalk Hall Arena.

The Barons spread the scoring out where a different Barons player scored all 6 goals. In addition to the goals, Magnus Paajarvi had a big game where he also added two assists in the game as well as he got his 1st goal scoring as a member of the Oklahoma City Barons after being sent from the Edmonton Oilers on December 16 after having just 3 assists in 25 games with the Oilers this season, that was compared to a strong rookie season where he had 34 points (15G 19A) in 80 games in Edmonton last season.

Press Release by Blake Colston from the Oklahoma City Barons Website

Oklahoma City Barons 6  Houston Aeros 0  (0-0, 4-0, 2-0)

From Houston, Texas: The Oklahoma City Barons (22-8-4 48 PTS) used a franchise record tying four power play goals to defeat the Houston Aeros (18-7-9 45 PTS) and reclaim 1st place in the Western Conference.

The Victory also secured Todd Nelson's spot as head coach of the Western Conference All Stars for the AHL All Star Classic January 29 & 30 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

After a quiet 1st period the Barons offense erupted for four goals in the 2nd period, three of which came via power play goals.

Antti Tyrvainen ignited the scoring spree with a breakaway goal at 3:27 off a pass from Kevin Montgomery. The goal was Tyrvainen's second of the season and second as in many nights. It was also the only even strength goal of the period.

Just 53 seconds later Oklahoma City notched the first of their three power play goals in the period. Josh Green fired a centering pass from the right wing to Philippe Cornet in front of the net where he pushed one past Aeros net minder Darcy Kuemper to notch his team leading 16th of the season. Ryan Kelly also collected an assist on the play.

Captain Bryan Helmer notched the Barons second goal at 11:47 of the frame. Magnus Paajarvi set up Helmer for a one time opportunity and the AHL's top scoring defensemen of all time found the back of the net. Kevin Montgomery also added an assist on the play.

The scoring extravaganza was capped off at 17:16 of the 2nd by Keller. His 12th goal of the season put the Barons in front 4-0. Paajarvi & Green assisted on the goal.

Oklahoma City's Final Power Play Goal of the night was put home by Curtis Hamilton at 12:43 of the 3rd period. Curtis VandeVelde skated around the left wing faceoff circle and fed Tyrvainen behind the net. From there Tyrvainen shoveled a pass to Hamilton in the slot where he fired one past Kuemper.

Helmer & Paajarvi each picked up their first goals of the season while Green & Montogmery added two assists respectively.

Barons net minder Yann Danis stopped all 23 shots he faced and improved to 5-0 against Houston on the season. The Shutout was his third of the season and his second against the Aeros.

What a difference a season makes for the Barons against the Aeros. Last season, Oklahoma City won just one of it's 10 games against the Aeros. This season, the Barons have won all five meetings, two of them by shutout.

Oklahoma City travels to Cleveland to play the Lake Erie Monsters Wednesday Evening. Faceoff is set for 6:00 PM CST.

Aeros score 5 2nd Period Goals to run away from Peoria 5-2

In a game where all 7 goals were scored in the 2nd period, the Aeros used 4 unanswered goals including 3 in just over 5 minutes late in the 2nd period to pull away from the Peoria Rivermen for a 5-2 win back on Sunday Afternoon.

It was a mostly an afternoon where you saw secondary players score most of the goals including Defensemen Jared Spurgeon who scored his first career Professional goal for the Aeros which tied the game at 2-2 early in the 2nd period. And helped kick off the Aeros pulling away from the Peoria Rivermen, as the Aeros were able to snap a 3 game losing streak as they lost both games in BC against Abbotsford and the first of two against the Rivermen the night before.

After a scoreless first period, the goals began flying when it went from 0-0 to 2-2 as Peter Klaus got the scoring going as he scored his 4th of the season just 28 seconds into the 2nd period. After Peoria scored twice in just over a minute apart to take brief 2-1 lead for the Rivermen.

Then the Aeros shut the door on Peoria as Maxim Noreau, Joel Broda on the Power Play and a shorthanded goal by Carson Macmillan put the Aeros up 5-2 with just under 5 minutes left in the 2nd period.

Then it was Matt Hackett's job to keep the door shut as he stopped 7 shots in the 3rd period  as the Aeros won comfortably 5-2 over the Rivermen over in Illinois.

As the Aeros are looking to climb back up in the West Division Standings as the Aeros are now 7-6-3 (17 points) and in 5th place in the West. A great winning streak can put them within striking distance of the Rivermen who are just 2 points up plus Milwaukee and Oklahoma City who are currently tied for 2nd at the moment.

As for the upcoming schedule for the Aeros, it's a home game against the Chicago Wolves on Wednesday Night. Then it's a quick 2 game road-trip with games in Grand Rapids and Chicago this weekend.


Here's the Aeros next 5. All games can be heard on Houston News Talk 1070 KNTH.

11/17: VS. Chicago Wolves    7:05 PM

11/19: @ Grand Rapids Griffins    6:00 PM

11/20: @ Chicago Wolves     7:00 PM

11/21: VS. Texas Stars    4:05 PM

11/24: @ Texas Stars    7:30 PM


Houston Aeros 5  Peoria Rivermen 2  (0-0, 5-2, 0-0)

Audio Clips from the Game

Carlson McMillan's SHG

Joel Broda Gives Aeros 4-2 Lead on PP

Spurgeon's First Professional Goal


Game Story from the Houston Aeros Website

From Peoria, Illinois: Three Aeros collected multiple points, including defensemen Maxim Noreau who had a goal and two assists, and the Houston Aeros scored five times in the 2nd period en route to a 5-2 win over the Peoria Rivermen Sunday at Carver Arena.

The win snapped a 3 game Houston Winless skid and ended a five game road trip at 2-1-2.

Carson McMillan and Jared Spurgeon each added a goal and an assist and Matt Hackett made 21 saves for his first win since October 15 and just his third overall this season.

After a scoreless first period, Houston's Petr Klaus scored 28 seconds into the second with his fourth goal of the season.

Peoria's Derek Nesbitt responded 52 seconds later to knot the score at 1-1. Ian Cole gave the Rivermen a 2-1 lead just 1:17 later.

Houston began a run of four unanswered goals starting with Spurgeon's first as a pro, on the power play at 4:50. Noreau scored the eventual game winner at 10:36 and then Joel Broda tallied another power play marker at 13:55. McMillan added a shorthanded goal, the team's first of the season, at 15:13.

The Aeros went 2/7 on the power play and have scored on the man advantage in six of their last seven outings.

Peoria Goalie Jake Allen (17 saves) suffered the loss, his first as a pro, and was relieved after Houston's fourth goal. Ben Bishop made 8 saves in 23:46 of mop up duty.

The Aeros (7-6-3) return home on Wednesday Night at 7:05 PM to face the Chicago Wolves. Get $25 Center Ice Tickets, regularly $35, by calling 713-974-7825.

This Weeks Southwest Schedule

After the Dallas Stars 5-0 crushing against Colorado back on Saturday Night, the Stars have plenty of time and plenty to think about as they look to rebound with several days off as they don't hit the ice again until Thursday Night when they start a 2 game, 2 night road-trip to Southern California as the Stars will take on the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday and the Anaheim Ducks on Friday Night.

Then the team will return home as the Stars will faceoff against the Ducks, Kings and Avalanche again next weekend.

So it will be interesting to see how the Stars will react to some the same opponent's and hit the video room to take a look at how to take down the Avalanche after losing 5-0 and looking to take down their Pacific Division Rivals.

This will be an interesting test as the Stars won't have more then two nights rest between next week and just before the Christmas Rest Period after the December 23 game against the Calgary Flames.

It's a busy week for the San Antonio Rampage and Houston Aeros as both teams will be playing 4 games this week.

For the Rampage, it's a short trip to Oklahoma City on Tuesday Night, then a 3 game home-stand as the Rampage will play back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday Night against the Rockford Iceogs as the Rampage will be battling for 2nd place in the West Division as of right now and it could be for the West Division Lead if San Antonio beats Oklahoma City tonight.

For the Rampage, it will be a Sunday Afternoon tilt against the Chicago Wolves who's looking to climb back up in the Division after winning the West Division last year and getting knocked out by the Texas Stars last year.

Houston is in the middle of a 4 game road-trip with a pair of road-trips to Abbotsford, BC and Peoria. Last night for the Aeros, it looked like it would be a win for the Aeros. But after a late comeback, the Heat ended up winning in a shootout and will faceoff again tonight.

After tonight, it's a long flight to Illinois as the Aeros play the Rivermen coming up on Saturday & Sunday which is in the middle of a string where they are currently playing 7 of their next 8 away from H-Town.

The next time the Aeros will head home will be for a single game on November 17 against the Chicago Wolves.

Both OKC & Texas will have slow weeks as the Stars will play only one game this week against the Chicago Wolves coming up on Wednesday Night.

 The Barons are in the middle of an 8 game home-stand and will only play twice this week as they will play San Antonio tonight and then Chicago on Friday Night, then it's a full week off as the Barons won't play again until November 19 against the Texas Stars.

Who can stop the Tornado?

That is the question that the Corpus Christi Icerays will try to figure out as the team's 12 game winning streak is currently the longest of the season and has taken the Tornado to the top of the entire NAHL with a 14-2-3 record with 31 points.

And with a number of players getting named to the NAHL Top Prospects Tournament next month on both sides, the pressure will be on to perform as they will be under a big spotlight as they look to sign NCAA Scholarships.

To check out your favorite teams on the web, here's a series of links to listen online and on the Radio


Dallas Stars: Sports Radio 1310 the Ticket

AHL Live

Texas Stars:  ESPN Austin

San Antonio Rampage:  Sports Radio 760 the Ticket

Houston Aeros:  Houston News Talk 1070

 Corpus Christi Icerays:  Keys News Talk 1440


Here's this weeks Southwest Schedule

National Hockey League

11/11: @ Los Angeles Kings    9:30 PM (FSN Southwest, NHLN-CA)

11/12: @ Anaheim Ducks        9:00 PM  (FSN Southwest Plus)


American Hockey League

11/8: Houston Aeros 2  Abbotsford Heat 3  (SO) (1-0, 1-1, 0-1, 0-0, 0-1)


11/9

San Antonio Rampage VS. Oklahoma City Barons   7:05 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Abbotsford Heat   9:00 PM


11/10

Chicago Wolves VS. Texas Stars     7:30 PM


11/11

San Antonio Rampage VS. Rockford Icehogs    7:00 PM


11/12

Chicago Wolves VS. Oklahoma City Barons     6:05 PM

Rockford Icehogs VS. San Antonio Rampage    7:00 PM


11/13

Houston Aeros VS. Peoria Rivermen     7:05 PM


11/14

Houston Aeros VS. Peoria Rivermen     3:05 PM


Central Hockey League

11/9

Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs VS. Laredo Bucks     7:00 PM


11/12

RGV Killer Bees VS. Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs     7:05 PM

Odessa Jackalopes VS. Texas Brahmas    7:30 PM

Allen Americans VS. Laredo Bucks    7:30 PM

Tulsa Oilers VS. Colorado Eagles    8:05 PM


11/13

Laredo Bucks VS. Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs    7:05 PM

Allen Americans VS. Odessa Jackalopes     7:05 PM

RGV Killer Bees VS. Texas Brahmas    7:30 PM

Tulsa Oilers VS. Rapid City Rush     8:05 PM


11/14

Allen Americans VS. Odessa Jackalopes    4:05 PM



North American Hockey League

11/12

New Mexico Mustangs VS. Topeka Roadrunners    7:05 PM

Corpus Christi Icerays VS. Texas Tornado    7:30 PM



11/13

Amarillo Bulls VS. Wichita Falls Wildcats     7:05 PM

New Mexico Mustangs VS. Topeka Roadrunners    7:05 PM

Corpus Christi Icerays VS. Texas Tornado    7:30 PM

Abbotsford uses late comeback to beat the Aeros 3-2

Despite a strong start which included a 2-0 lead with Aeros goals by Cody Almond and Jean-Michael Daoust that looked like it would help the Aeros win the first of a two game set in BC.

But a goal by Carter Bancks in the final minute of regulation tied the game at 2-2 to force OT then a SO with goals by Gaelan Patterson and Jon Rheault put the Heat over the top in the SO as they won to get themselves in a first place tie with the Hamilton Bulldogs in the North Division.
After the Aeros finish up in BC, they will head to Illinois for a pair of games against the Peoria Rivermen on November 13 and 14 this upcoming weekend.

The win takes Houston to a record of 6-5-2 with 14 points and currently in 5th place in the West Division. For the Abbotsford Heat, they currently in 2nd place in the North Division with an 8-6-1 record and only trail the Hamilton Bulldogs on the Number of Games played as the Bulldogs have played 4 fewer games through the first month of the season.

Houston Aeros 2  Abbotsford Heat 3  (SO) (1-0, 1-1, 0-1, 0-0, 0-1)

Here's the Calls of the Games from the Houston Aeros Broadcaster Joe O'Donnell

J-M Dauost makes it 2-0

Cody Almond PP Goal

Playfair on Weekend vs. the San Antonio Rampage

Kris Fredheim on being back hom in BC



Tonight's Houston VS. Abbotsford Game Preview

Game Story from the Houston Aeros Website

From Abbotsford, BC: The Houston Aeros scored twice on the Power Play and goalie Matt Hacket turned away 31 shots in regulation, but it wasn't enough as the Abbotsford Heat overcame a late deficit to edge the Aeros 3-2 in a shootout Monday Night at the Abbotsford Sports and Entrainment Center.

Abbotsford's Carter Banks forced overtime, scoring with just 34 seconds left in regulation, after the Heat pulled goalie Leland Irving for an extra attacker. The Aeros, who went 2/6 on the power play, opened a 2-0 lead on markers by Cody Almond (9:26 of the 1st Period), and Jean-Michael Daoust (13:22 of the 2nd Period). Jon Disalvatore and Marco Scandella assisted on each.

Greg Nemisz scored on the power play at 15:51 of the 2nd to pull the Heat within a goal and then assisted on Banks' tying goal.

Irving stopped 26 saves and all four Houston Saves in the Shootout to help Abbotsford (8-6-1 17 points) pull into a tie into the Hamilton Bulldogs for first place in the North Division.

Hackett, seeing his first action since October 29 against San Antonio, made 31 saves in three plus periods of hockey and stopped two of four shots in the Shootout session.

Houston is unbeaten in regulation in five games (4-0-1) and now sits one point behind third place Milwaukee with a 6-5-2 14 points in the West Division.

The Aeros and Heat square off in the second game of a two-in-a-row Tuesday Night at 9:00 PM CST. Follow the Action on 1070 KNTH and online at http://www.aeros.com/

A Climie Shutout extends San Antonio's Winning Streak to 4

Matt Climie was able to get his first shutout in a Rampage uniform, plus goals both the 1st period and 3rd periods are good enough to extend the San Antonio Rampage winning streak to 4 games and gets them to 2nd Place in the AHL West Division.

In addition to Climie's 26 saves, goals by Alex Picard in the 1st and Brackon Kearns in the 3rd were enough to thwart off any comeback attempt by the Houston Aeros and protect the AT&T Center Ice as the Rampage go to 4-2 on home ice in the young season for the Rampage.

For the Houston Aeros, it was a strong effort by Aeros Goaltender Matt Hackett by keeping the Aeros in the game, but it wasn't enough despite a 24 save effort on 26 shots and was able to keep the game at 1-0 until the nearly the midway point in the 3rd period.

For Houston, this takes their record to 2-3-1 for 5 points and is currently in last place in the West Division.

When they are games with Southwest Teams are both involved. I always do the Home Team's Game Story.

Here's the Houston Aeros Game Story:

Houston Aeros 0  San Antonio Rampage 2  (0-1, 0-0, 0-1)

Here's the Game Story from the San Antonio Rampage Website

From San Antonio, Texas: San Antonio Rampage goaltender Matt Climie earned his first shutout of the season with a 2-0 win over the Houston Aeros in front of a sold out AT&T Center on Saturday Night. The Rampage raised $13,385 for their postgame jersey auction to benefit the Spurs Foundation.

The Rampage claimed the lead at the 10:23 mark of the first period, off a goal by Alex Picard. Right wing Viktor Tikhonov intercepted a pass a Houston Pass in the defensive zone and moved the puck to forward Mathieu Beaudoin at center ice. Beaudoin passed to Picard who received the puck at the blue line along the left wing wall. Picard spent toward the left goalpost slid the puck underneath the right leg padding of Aeros goaltender Matt Hackett. Beaudoin extended his point streak to six games to Tikhonov extended his point streak to five games.

San Antonio out shot Houston 15-5 in the beginning frame with 12 Rampage players registering shots.

The Rampage fended off 12 Houston Shots in the middle frame to hold on to a 1-0 lead heading into the third period.

A little over nine minutes into the 3rd period, the Rampage extended their lead to 2-0 as center Bracken Kearns scored on assists from Jeff May and Matt Pope. Pope passed the puck to May at the blue line who took a shot down the center that was redirected in front of Kearns to the high glove side of Hackett.

San Antonio held on to their 2-0 lead to ensure the victory. Matt Climie finished the day with 26 saves with Aeros net minder, Hackett, had 24 saves on 26 Rampage shots.

The Rampage killed off all five of the Aeros power play opportunities.

The Rampage return to the ice tomorrow when David Spina and the Peoria Rivermen at 3:00 PM at the AT&T Center. Tickets are available at the AT&T Center Box Office or by logging on to http://www.sarampage.com/

2010-2011 AHL Rosters

Due to my website not being able to download anything for a while. I appoligze for the timing of the AHL Rosters that came out just after the AHL Season got underway last weekend. For all 4 teams, the rosters will have around 25 names to give room for teams that send down players to the ECHL, while also having players that can fill in when they get NHL Call Ups as well as the season unfolds.

Be sure to click on the team to get the website. Then for the seperate link to find the roster for all 4 Southwest Teams as the season got underway this past weekend


Houston Aeros Website

Houston Aeros Team Roster


San Antonio Rampage Website

San Antonio Rampage Roster


Oklahoma City Barons Website

Oklahoma City Barons Roster 


Texas Stars Website

Texas Stars Roster

AHL Rosters to come out Tomorrow: Season Starts Friday Night

Which AHL Team will have the Best Season

With the American Hockey League season starting up last weekend. Their's just a couple of days left to answer the poll question on which of the 4 Southwest AHL Teams will have the best season. With the Texas Stars looking to defend the AHL Western Conference Title and looking to have another shot at the Calder Cup.

In addition to the Stars is Oklahoma City whos looking for similar success in their first season as they look to have one of the deepest teams that the Edmonton Oilers AHL Affliate that they have had a long time. They looking to forget their time in Springfield, Mass. as they were among the league's bottom feeders while the they affliated with the Springfield Falcons.

Houston & San Antonio are looking to return after finishing 6th and 7th in the West and with new head coaches and some aggressieve moves getting new players. Both teams are looking to shake up the West Division this season and return to the post-season this year.


Only a couple days left to vote, Which AHL Team will have the best season this year?

Houston Aeros

Oklahoma City Barons

San Antonio Rampage

Texas Stars

Be sure to vote and leave your comments. Either on my site or on my Twitter Page

Catching Up during the Blaine Showcase

With the North American Hockey League Blaine Showcase dominating things on the website and officially opening up the hockey season for Southwest Teams. Here's a look at other recent news and notes that have happened this week.

Stars Sign James Neal and Matt Niskanen

After long talks and nervously thinking the two of the best young players might miss the start of training camp in PEI, Canada. The Stars last night officially signed both Neal & Niskanen to 2 year deals worth $5.75 Million & $3 Million each over the next two seasons. With now Neal & Niskanen now signed, the Stars finally have all their players from last year resigned and ready to go with the team kicking off training camp in Charlottentown, PEI, Canada this weekend.

For James Neal he's going to make $2.25 Million this upcoming season and then $3.5 Million in the 2011-2012 season. Neal had 55 points (27G 28A) last season. He also had 64 penalty minutes and is looking to add some physicality along the boards and with Modano & Possibly Lehtinen gone, he looks to start adding a leadership role to the team as well for the 23 year old native of Oshawa, Ontario.

Niskanen who has admitted that he didn't have a strong season last year will make $1.25 Million this upcoming season and $1.75 Million next season. Niskanen who's also 23 years old did have a team low -15 Rating last season as he produced 15 Points (3G 12A) and will look to improve +/- rating and be more physical, despite having just 15 penalty minutes stills feel like he's a bit empty handed on the ice at times throughout the season as he played in 74 games last year.

I'm happy that Neal has been re-signed, but it's without a doubt that Niskanen is being overpaid, especially on a team that is having to work on an internal salary cap until this team gets sold. For Neal, i'm expecting another big year and for him to be a part of the Stars Next Generation. Niskanen on the other hand needs to take a big step up and show that he is worth the money next season. He was a very unreliable at times and is almost afraid of taking so called "Good Penalties" that could prevent goals because of the team's shaky defensemen.

Here's some links to read more about the Neal & Niskanen signings.

Stars Agree to Terms

Matt Niskanen Profile

James Neal Profile

Comments from Neal, Niskanen & Nieuwendyk


Begginning of Training Camp

In addition, the Charlottentown Guardian Newspaper will be covering the Dallas Stars Training Camp. Here's two of their stories about Brad Richards coming home and the team arriving.

Stars Arrive in PEI

Brad Richards training in his home Provence


Dallas Stars Midget Major Kicks off Tier 1 Season.

The Dallas Stars Midget Major Team gets their Tier 1 Elite League Season underway this weekend as they will play 4 games this weekend at the Capitol Ice Rink in Middleton, Wisconsin as they will kick off the season playing against the Illinois Division this afternoon at 4:15 PM against Team Illinois. They will also see the Chicago Fury on Saturday Morning, the Cleveland Barons on Saturday Afternoon then the weekend set wraps up against the Chicago Youth Association (CYA) on Sunday Morning.

This is how most of the schedule works as 12 of the 24 teams are in Wisconsin to kick off the Tier 1 Season. Other teams of interest competing their this weekend include the Madison Capitals who are also in the Mid-American Division and Team Illinois who has Arlington Native Cole Martin who played on the Team Illinois Midget Minor Team last year who was taken by the Lincoln Stars in the USHL Futures Draft back in May.

Speaking of the Midget Minor Team, they season gets underway gets going next weekend at the Chiller North Rink which is in Lewis Center, Ohio.

Here's the Midget Major Schedule for this weekend

9/17: VS. Team Illinois 4:15 PM

9/18: VS. Chicago Fury 8:30 AM

9/18: VS. Cleveland Barons 4:00 PM

9/19: VS. CYA 8:00 AM


Dallas Stars AAA Website

Team Roster & Stats


Texas Stars Announce 2010-2011 Promotions

The Dallas Stars AHL Affliate has announced their promotions & Special Events for the 2010-2011 season. A few of them will include a military night, wearing special Jerseys and 3-2-1 nights where you can get special deals in both the gift shots and Concession Stands.

To see the Full List, Click Here


Texas Stars & San Antonio Rampage Announce Youth Hockey Commitments

In an effort to help improve the numbers of hockey participation in both the Austin & San Antonio Areas, both the Texas Stars & San Antonio Rampage have announced major commitments to help improve youth hockey in their areas to form the Texas Junior Stars & San Antonio Jr. Rampage.

To see more on both projects, click on the team links below.

San Antonio Rampage

Texas Stars


Here's a look at the Home Openers for all 4 SW AHL Teams as the Season starts in less then a month.

Houston Aeros: 10/16 VS. Peoria Rivermen

Oklahoma City Barons: 10/9 VS. Houston Aeros

Texas Stars: 10/16 VS. San Antonio Rampage

San Antonio Rampage: 10/8 VS. Chicago Wolves


AT&T Metroplex HS Hockey League Preseason Showcase

With last weekend being the Leveling Showcase for the AT&T Metroplex HS Hockey League Showcase. Here's a look at what the Divisions could look like at the Varsity Level when the season starts next month in the D/FW Area.

Here's a look at how the teams did last weekend in the Varsity Gold & Silver Divisions. Click on the Ind. Team to see the schedule & Their results from last weekend. Of course things can change on what the actual divisions will look like this season.

Click on the team of your choice to see their results from the weekend, plus rosters, stats as well.

Varsity Gold Division

Plano Senior 3-0-0 6 PTS

Allen 3-0-0 6 PTS

Coppell 2-1-0 4 PTS

SL Carroll 1-1-1 3 PTS

Plano West 1-1-1 3 PTS

Frisco ISD 1-2-0 2 PTS

Dallas Jesuit 1-2-0 2 PTS

Flower Mound 0-3-0 0 PTS


Varsity Silver Division

Richardson/Rockwall 3-0-0 6 PTS

Keller ISD 3-0-0 6 PTS

Mansfield ISD 3-0-0 6 PTS

FM Marcus 2-0-1 5 PTS

Highland Park 2-1-0 4 PTS

Midlothian 2-1-0 4 PTS

Prosper 2-1-0 4 PTS

Arlington Martin 2-1-0 4 PTS

Garland ISD 1-1-1 3 PTS

Mckinney ISD 1-2-0 2 PTS

Plano East 0-3-0 0 PTS

Lovejoy 0-3-0 0 PTS

Grapevine 0-3-0 0 PTS

Arlington Wild 0-3-0 0 PTS

Bishop Lynch 0-3-0 0 PTS

The American Hockey League Schedule comes out Today

In about 3 hours the full 2010-2011 AHL Schedule is expected to come out today as the final major league in North America will start getting ready for the new season in October. Be sure to find links for all 4 Southwest Teams when the schedule is expected to come out around 3:00 PM Today.

I will show the links when they come out. In addition I will also post the records from last season as all 4 teams will compete in the West Division this season.

Full AHL Schedule

AHL Season Highlights


Texas Stars Schedule

Texas Stars Schedule Highlights

Season Opener: 10/10 @ San Antonio Rampage

Home Opener: 10/16 VS. San Antonio Rampage

Longest Home Stand: 11/24-12/7 7 Games

Longest Road Trip: 2/14-2/26 8 Games

The Texas Stars will get underway on Sunday October 10 with a road game in San Antonio followed by a 5 game homestand as the Stars will look to start their 2nd season on a strong note with another game against San Antonio along with 3 games against the Peoria Rivermen on 10/17, 10/23 and 10/26 along with a match against the Lake Erie Monsters on October 22.

Some of the interesting schedule highlights include a 7 game homestand which starts the day before Thanksgiving on November 24 against the Houston Aeros.

As for long roadtrips this season away from the Austin Area, the Stars will embark on a season long 8 game roadtrip in February starting out with a weekend set against the Lake Erie Monsters along with visits to Grand Rapids, Chicago, Milwaukee & Peoria before returning to Texas with games against the both the Aeros & Rampage.

Another long set of road games will be coming up just after Christmas and in to Mid-January where they play 8-of-9 on the road.

Overall the Texas Stars, this seems to be a pretty balanced schedule full of different homestands and roadtrips through the year. For the team that's been raided since the Calder Cup Run back in June. Expect a step or two back this season for the Stars

hey hoping that the Stars will bring a strong 2nd act to the Austin Area. However, I don't expect the Stars will have quite such as a strong season as they did last year because of the massive departures of players like Matt Climie. They maybe fighting it out for a playoff spot and a lot less like the team that came within 2 wins of winning a Calder Cup last season.


Houston Aeros Schedule

Houston Aeros Schedule Highlights


Season Opener: 10/9 VS. Oklahoma City Barons

Home Opener: 10/16 VS. Peoria Rivermen

Longest Home Stand: 5 Games 3/6-3/19

Longest Road Trip: 6 Games 12/10-12/21

Houston gets underway with a pair of roadgames a week apart on October 9 & 15 up in Oklahoma City before their October 16 home opener with 2 against the Peoria Rivermen and another game against the Oklahoma City Barons as the last year's Last Place Team in the West Division and the league's new boys will get used to each other a lot in the opening month of the season.

November will be a heavy road month for the Aeros as the team will embark on a trip where they will play 6-of-7 on the road with trips to Abbotsford, Peoria and Grand Rapids on this trip.

The Aeros home schedule won't be a benefit it seems like til late in the year where late February and March will have lots of home games where a possible playoff chase could be benefited here as they will be playing a lot of teams that either just barely made it or were just awful last year including the Rockford Icehogs, Syracuse Crunch and the Manitoba Moose.


San Antonio Rampage Schedule

San Antonio Rampage Schedule Highlights


Season Opener: 10/8 VS. Chicago Wolves

Road Opener: 10/16 VS. Texas Stars

Longest Home Stand: 6 Games 3/5-3/18

Longest Road Trip: 9 Games 2/4-2/25

If San Antonio is looking to return to the playoffs for the first time in 2008 and they hoping that a favorable home start will help out. The Rampage will start the year with 9 of their first 11 at home with the Chicago Wolves on October 8.

Their only road trips in the first 11 are to Texas Stars and the Oklahoma City Barons so travel will be minimal when they do hit the road. In addition to the first 11, a 3 game road trip that will take them Abbotsford, BC and OKC.

As for the annual "Rodeo Road Trip that has the team out of the building for most of February will see them have a 5 game roadtrip with a break in between with games against Abbotsford & Chicago.

This year's Rodeo Road Trip will see them have a 9 game will see them head to Lake Erie & Manitoba for a pair of games each, also included will be a trip to Syracuse then the 2 Ontario Teams in Hamilton who came within one win of beating Texas & Making the Calder Cup.

Then a game against the Toronto Marlies that were badly affected by injuries despite being in the playoff chase til about the final month of the season where they dropped off and miss the playoffs by 9 points over the Manitoba Moose.


Oklahoma City Barons Schedule

Oklahoma City Barons Schedule Highlighights


Season Opener: October 9 VS. Houston Aeros

Road Opener: October 17 VS. Houston Aeros

Longest Home Stand: 8 Games 11/5-11/23

Longest Road Trip: 9 Games 3/15-3/27

Like the San Antonio Rampage, the Barons will also have a heavy home schedule early on with 6 of the first 7 games at the Cox Convention Center with the Barons & Aeros hooking up 3 times in the first 5.

Between that opening stretch and an 8 game home stretch that takes up a majority of November, An interesting 5 game roadtrip will be their big road test of the season which includes the Hamilton Bulldogs and the Chicago Wolves who finished on top of the West Division Standings at the end of the regular season last year.

Some interesting roadtrips will include a season long 9 game road trip late in the year which includes a 3 straight games against the Houston Aeros and a pair of games for the Chicago Wolves which could be huge for their playoff hopes as these teams will be looking to turnaround from a bad 2009-2010 season. Overall, that starts a very tough end of the season where 12 of the final 14 games where all but one will be against Divisional Matchups.

This schedule has a lot of huge chunks, and not just a whole lot of just one or two game homestands so they will have plenty of time in advance to find out what to expect ahead of time.

AHL Schedule Comes out Today

Here's a look at the opening weekend schedule for the American Hockey League which will get underway on October 8 as the San Antonio Rampage will play host to the Chicago Wolves. While the other Southwest Teams for the most part will get underway with Houston & Oklahoma City will get underway on October 9 at the Cox Convention Center.

Finally the defending Western Conference Champion Texas Stars will look to start a strong 2nd season in the Texas Capital on October 10 in the I-35 Rivalary against the San Antonio Rampage.

As for other games the expansion Charlotte Checkers will head to Conn. to play the Hartford Wolfpack while the Albany will make their AHL Return against the Adirondack Phantoms.

In addition to the Schedule, here's the Conference Alignment after the changes were made over the offseason.

Eastern Conference

Atlantic Division: Bridgeport Sound Tigers, Hartford Wolfpack, Manchester Monarchs, Portland Pirates, Providence Bruins, Springfield Falcons, Worcester Sharks

East Division: Adirondack Phantoms, Albany Devils, Binghamton Senators, Charlotte Checkers, Hershey Bears, Norfolk Admirals, Syracuse Crunch, W-B/Scranton Penguins


Western Conference

North Division: Abbotsford Heat, Grand Rapids Griffins, Hamilton Bulldogs, Lake Erie Monsters, Manitoba Moose, Rochester Americans, Toronto Marlies

West Division: Chicago Wolves, Houston Aeros, Milwaukee Admirals, Oklahoma City Barons, Peoria Rivermen, Rockford Icehogs, San Antonio Rampage, Texas Stars


Here's the Full American Hockey League Opening Weekend Schedule.

10/8

Abbotsford Heat VS. Grand Rapids Griffins 6:00 PM

Adirondack Phantoms VS. Binghamton Senators 6:05 PM

Springfield Falcons VS. Providence Bruins 6:05 PM

Syracuse Crunch VS. Lake Erie Monsters 6:30 PM

Chicago Wolves VS. San Antonio Rampage 7:00 PM

Manitoba Moose VS. Peoria Rivermen 7:05 PM


10/9

Rochester Americans VS. Toronto Marlies 2:00 PM

Manitoba Moose VS. Rockford Icehogs 4:35 PM

Adirondack Phantoms VS. Albany Devils 6:00 PM

Worcester Sharks VS. Bridgeport Sound Tigers 6:00 PM

Charlotte Checkers VS. Hartford Wolfpack 6:00 PM

Manchester Monarchs VS. Portland Pirates 6:00 PM

Providence Bruins VS. Springfield Falcons 6:00 PM

Norfolk Admirals VS. Binghamton Senators 6:05 PM

Hershey Bears VS. W-B/Scranton Penguins 6:05 PM

Lake Erie Monsters VS. Syracuse Crunch 6:30 PM

Abbotsford Heat VS. Milwaukee Admirals 7:00 PM

Houston Aeros VS. Oklahoma City Barons 7:05 PM


10/10

Manchester Monarchs VS. Bridgeport Sound Tigers 2:00 PM

Worcester Sharks VS. Hartford Wolfpack 2:00 PM

Charlotte Checkers VS. Springfield Falcons 2:00 PM

Texas Stars VS. San Antonio Rampage 3:00 PM

Chicago Wolves VS. Oklahoma City Barons 3:05 PM

Milwaukee Admirals VS. Peoria Rivermen 3:05 PM

Hershey Bears VS. Rochester Americans 4:05 PM

Grand Rapids Griffins VS. Rockford Icehogs 4:05 PM

AHL Schedule to come out on August 25

Pending an official league approval from the league's Board of Governors, the Texas Stars, San Antonio Rampage, Houston Aeros & Oklahoma City Barons Schedules will be officially released at 3:00 PM CDT on August 25.

It will be interesting to see how the American Hockey League (AHL) season pans out and especially the 4 Southwest Teams in the AHL's West Division as the Texas Stars finished 2nd in the West that spurred an amazing playoff run that got them to the Calder Cup Final in their very first year.

Meanwhile, the Houston Aeros & San Antonio Rampage are looking to get back to the playoffs after finishing 6th & 7th in the West Division and look for stronger years. Finally the Oklahoma City Barons are looking for a strong debut this season.

In the meantime, here's the schedule for the preseason so fans in Austin, San Antonio, Houston & Oklahoma City can get an early look at their teams before the regular season gets underway in Mid-October.

Texas Stars

San Antonio Rampage

Houston Aeros

Oklahoma City Barons

AHL Preseason Schedule

All 3 Texas Teams in the American Hockey League have announced a series of preseason games against each other in mid-to-late September as the Texas Stars begin to prepare to defend their AHL Western Conference Championship while the San Antonio Rampage & Houston Aeros look to get back to the playoffs.

Some of these games will be played at the San Antonio Rampage & Houston Aeros Practice Facilities while the Texas Stars will have all their Games at Cedar Park Center. It was also announced yesterday that the Texas Stars will also have a game against the Oklahoma City Barons as the Barons get ready for their first season of play this year.

As for the regular season, that is expected to come out early next week with the AHL Season expected to start on or around October 8 which is the same night as the National Hockey League Season gets underway.

Northwoods Ice Center

Sugarland Ice & Sports Center


Texas Stars

9/30: @ San Antonio Rampage at Northwoods Ice Center 7:00 PM

10/2: VS. Oklahoma City Barons 7:00 PM

10/3: VS. Houston Aeros 5:00 PM


San Antonio Rampage

9/30: VS. Texas Stars at Northwoods Ice Center 7:00 PM

10/1: @ Houston Aeros at Sugar Land Ice & Sports Center 7:00 PM

10/2: @ Texas Stars 7:00 PM


Houston Aeros

10/1: VS. San Antonio Rampage 7:00 PM at Sugar Land Ice & Sports Center

10/3: @ Texas Stars 5:00 PM


Oklahoma City Barons

10/2: @ Texas Stars 7:00 PM

Expect the AHL Schedule to come out on August 23

After weeks of waiting and with the release of the NBA Schedule coming out last week. The AHL has officially announced that the schedule will be coming out the week of August 23. One of the reasons why the American Hockey League has been one of the only Major Hockey Leagues in North America hasn't released their schedule yet is because the NBA schedule just came out yesterday.

Currently 5 AHL Teams share arenas with NBA Teams as the Houston Aeros, San Antonio Rampage, Milwaukee Admirals, Lake Erie Monsters and the Charlotte Checkers who are joining the American Hockey League this upcoming year after moving from Albany, New York (Albany River Rats).

So this is the main reason why if your wondering why the league is taking so long to make it's schedule public. This is it

Theirs also an interesting article on the AHL Website about how the American Hockey League Schedule comes together.

Behind the Scenes of making the AHL Schedule

Darryl Sydor discusses Hockey on Houston Sports Radio

Former Dallas Star Darryl Sydor who recently ended his playing career will be entering the coaching ranks with the AHL's Houston Aeros this season. Recently, he was on with Joe O'Donnell and John Wessling on SportsRadio 610 in Houston to discuss his new job, his playing career and living in Edmonton, Alberta.

Here's the Link:

Look for the Click Here Link to listen to the Interview.

Other Darryl Sydor Links

Darryl Sydor Career Stats:

Sydor Hired as Aeros Assistant Coach:

Houston Sports Radio 610: