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.







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

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

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

San Antonio grinds past Abbotsford 2-1

The Rampage took advantage of a shorthanded Abbotsford Heat who has been battling with the Houston Aeros & Oklahoma City Barons for the Western Conference Lead. On a night where the Heat were forced to play a man down and had another injury to Desbeins Guillaume early on in the 3rd period. That shows that the Heat are a very deep team despite the injuries to stay within striking distance. Also the San Antonio Rampage are continuing to prove that they have few guys that can score as they continue to be dead last in scoring with just 89 goals in their 39 games this season (2.28 Goals Per Game).

The Heat their Southwest Road trip 2-3 with 3 of their 5 games finishing in a 1 goal game where they went 1-2 in those 3 games (2-1 losses against San Antonio last night & Texas last Wednesday Night & a 2-1 win over Oklahoma City on Sunday). So despite the injury issues, they were able to keep those games close and show the quality of depth and character that this team is showing that they could be in the race for not only #1 Overall seed in the Western Conference. But possibly get in a deep playoff run when the AHL Playoffs begins in Mid April and take a shot of possibly winning the team's 1st ever AHL Calder Cup Championship. In addition to the 1 goal games, they also lost 3-1 to Oklahoma City and won 5-0 on Tuesday Night

Despite their problems scoring goals, they continue to be just 3 points back of the 8th Place Peoria Rivermen who currently hold down the 8th & Final Playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Rampage now have a couple of days to prepare for the dreaded 3 game in 3 night stretch with a pair of road games against Houston on Friday Night at 7:35 PM & Sunday Evening at 5:05 PM. Sandwiched in between those two games will be a very critical matchup between the Peoria Rivermen where they will have  a prime opportunity to climb in the Western Conference Playoff Race.

Abbotsford Heat 1  San Antonio Rampage 2  (1-1, 0-0, 0-1)

Abbotsford Heat VS. San Antonio Rampage Game Highlights

San Antonio Rampage Post Game Interviews

Updated AHL Standings

San Antonio Rampage Ticket Info

From San Antonio, Texas: Center Mark Cullen scored 7:12 into the third period to lift the San Antonio Rampage to a 2-1 triumph over the Abbotsford Heat on Martin Luther King Day at the AT&T Center.

The Rampage scored the game's first goal at 14:49 into the opening period. With San Antonio on a power play, center James Wright deflected an Evan Barlow shot from the top of the right circle and the puck found it's way past Abbotsford goalie Goaltender Danny Taylor to give the Rampage a 1-0 advantage. Forward Scott Timmins picked up the secondary assist on Wright's fourth goal of the season.

Right wing Akim Aliu answered back for the Heat with just over a minute remaining in the frame. A shot from the defensemen Jordan Henry hit Rampage backstop Dov Grument-Morris, caromed off the skate of Aliu, and glided into the net. Forward Quintin Laing also assisted on the Aliu marker, which tied the game at 1-1.

After a scoreless second period, San Antonio regained the the lead on Cullen's fifth goal of the 2011-2012 campaign. He redirected a point shot from defensemen Mike Vernace past Taylor to hand the Rampage a 2-1 edge. Center Bracken Kearns tallied his 15th assist of the year with the secondary helper on the play.

Grument-Morris made 25 saves on 26 Heat Attempts for his 8th win of the season while Taylor turned aside 29 of of 31 Rampage shots in the Abbotsford Loss.

The Rampage (19-18-2) travel to Houston on Friday at 7:35 PM (CST) contest with their in-state rivals, the Houston Aeros, at the Toyota Center

Abbotsford Blasts the Rampage 5-0

In a game where basically nothing went right for San Antonio, the Abbotsford Heat just took advantage of major turnovers, poor shots, bad special teams and not much execution. The Heat took advantage of one of the worst performances of the year by the San Antonio Rampage to win 5-0.

The Rampage didn't take advantage of a major opportunity that would gotten them within one point of both the Rochester Americans & Peoria Rivermen who are currently tied for the 8th & Final Playoff spot with 39 points right now.

Abbotsford on the other hand is back within one point of the Western Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons who they will play in a weekend series this upcoming weekend

"This was a disappointing effort for 60 minutes." San Antonio Coach Chuck Webber said in a post-game interview. "The only thing I felt we did is constantly is turnover the puck and lose one-on-one battles.

Webber was more disappointed then anything else as he mentioned a bunch of things that lead to the worst showing of the year. "Even when we lost 5-0, 4 of them were power play goals." Mentioning a game back on October 21 game at home against the Peoria Rivermen, currently the Rivermen are sitting in a tie with the Rochester Americans for the 8th & Final Playoff spot in the AHL Western Conference right now.

"We got outworked for pretty much the entire game," Rampage Forward Bracken Kearns said following the 5-0 loss. "But they were pretty hungry after how they were pretty embarrassed and they did it to use tonight." Mentioning a game back on November 25 when the Rampage beat the Heat by the same 5-0 score in a similar fashion.

San Antonio will hit the ice again on Saturday Night back at the AT&T Center against the last place Rockford Ice Hogs on Saturday Night at 7:00 PM. While the Abbotsford Heat will continue their Southwest Road Trip tonight in Austin to play the Texas Stars at 7:30 PM at the Cedar Park Center tonight.

Abbotsford Heat 5  San Antonio Rampage 0  (2-0, 2-0, 1-0)

San Antonio Rampage TV

Press Release from the San Antonio Rampage Website

From San Antonio, Texas: The San Antonio Rampage were defeated by the Abbotsford Heat by a score of 5-0 at the AT&T Center on Tuesday Night.

Abbotsford scored the game's first goal at 11:00 into the opening period to take a 1-0 lead. With the Heat Shorthander, Center Quintin Laing received a feed from the right wing Guillaume Desbiens and fired a wrist shot over the right shoulder of Rampage backstop Dov Grument-Morris for his ninth goal of the season. Defensemen Chris Breen registered the secondary assist on the Laing tally.

Right wing Akim Aliu extended the Abbotsford edge to 2-0 with just over a minute remaining in the first. In a goal mouth scramble at the front of the net, Aliu was the last player to touch the puck before it slid past Grument-Morris and over the goal line. Aliu's third score of the year was assisted by the defensemen Joe Piskula and Center Ben Walter.

A power play goal from center Krys Kolanos at 3:12 of the middle stanza made the count 3-0 in favor of the Heat. From the end line, Kolanos took a pass from right wing Jon Rheault, and roofed a shot over the shoulder of Grument-Morris to tally his 17th goal of the 2011-2012 campaign. Laing picked up his second point with the secondary assist on the play.

Left Wing Raitis Ivanans converted on a two-on-rush with forwards Carter Bancks 8:54 into the second period to give Abbotsford a 4-0 advantage. Ivanans gathered a pass from Bancks before firing a shot into the right side of the net for his second tally of the year. Also notched a helper on the goal was left wing Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond.

Rheault tallied his 14th score of the year at 14:33 mark of the third period when he intercepted a San Antonio pass and quickly ripped a shot by Grument-Morris to give the Heat a 5-0 lead.

Abbotsford backstop Danny Taylor turned aside 26 Rampage shots he faced for his 2nd shutout of the season while Grument-Morris made 37 saves on 42 Heat attempts.

The Rampage celebrate their 10th anniversary on Saturday Night with a 7 PM (CST) contest against the Rockford Ice Hogs at the AT&T Center

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

San Antonio splits games in Charlotte with 2-1 loss

A strong 45 save performance wasn't enough to help the Rampage get a sweep out of the Charlotte Checkers as the Rampage exit North Carolina with a split of the Mid-West Division Leading Charlotte as both sides goalies were strong in this one. In addition to Grument-Morris' 45 saves, Charlotte Checkers Goalie John Muse was neck-and-neck in this great goaltender's duo.

After the Rampage were able to leave with a split in the 2 game series, the Rampage are still 3 points back of 8th Place Chicago thanks to a 3-2 Lake Erie Loss to the Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons. It's back home to begin a stretch where 8 of their next 10 games will be at the AT&T Center on Friday 1/6 against the Texas Stars.

San Antonio Rampage 1  Charlotte Checkers 2  (0-1, 0-0, 1-1)

San Antonio Rampage VS. Charlotte Audio Highlights

Press Release from the San Antonio Rampage Website

From Charlotte, North Carolina: San Antonio Rampage Goaltender Dov Gourment-Morris made a season high 45 saves in San Antonio's 2-1 loss to the Charlotte Checkers at the Time Warner Cable Arena on Wednesday Night.

The Checkers scored the games first goal at 16:34 of the opening period when right wing Jermone Samson fired a shot on the San Antonio net, picked up his own rebound, and backhanded the puck past Grument-Morris to give Charlotte a 1-0 lead. Forwards Brett Sutter & Riley Nash tailed the assists on Samson's 15th marker of the season.

Nash extended the Checkers lead to 2-0 with a power play goal 2:25 into the third frame. He got his stick on Michal Jordan shot from the blue line to deflect the puck by Grument-Morris for his third goal of the year and second power play point of the net. Defensemen Derek Johnson notched the secondary helper on the play.

The Rampage scored with just over a minute remaining in the game to make the count 2-1. A centering feed from the left wing Evan Barlow went off forward David Marshall and eluded Checkers Backstop John Muse before going over the goal line. Left wing Evgeni Dadonov also registered an assist, his fifth of the year, on the Marshal goal.

Muse turned aside 42 of 43 Rampage shots he faced for his second win of the 2nd while Grument-Morris denied the Checkers on 45 of 47 shooting attempts.

San Antonio (16-16-2) returns home for a 7 PM (CST) contest at the AT&T Center on Friday Night against their In-State Rivals, the Texas Stars.



San Antonio grinds to a 2-0 Shutout Victory against Charlotte

In San Antonio's 1st of 2 games against the Charlotte Checkers over in North Carolina resulted in a 2-0 Shutout Victory with goals by Greg Rallo & Kyle Rau in a very evenly matched game from the pace of play, to factors like SOG where the Checkers were able to barely out shot the Rampage 33-32 and with very few penalties on both sides as well (6 Minutes for SA & 8 Minutes for Charlotte).

But perhaps one of the biggest difference in this game was that San Antonio was able capitalize on the PP while Charlotte wasn't able on the two Checkers chances in this game that took place in the 1st period.

Rampage Goalie Dov Grument-Morris recorded his 2nd Shutout of the season and has an impressive 1.44 GAA so far this season in just his 8th start of the season, while Checkers Goalie Mike Murphy despite the loss had 30 saves on 32 shots and had to make some great saves to help keep the Checkers in the Game for huge chunks of this game.

The two teams will play again tonight at 6:00 PM CT in Charlotte, North Carolina. For the Rampage, a win tonight would allow them to leap frog Lake Erie & Rochester and be tied with Chicago for the 8th & Final Playoff Spot in the Western Conference.

Both Rochester & Chicago are idle tonight, while Lake Erie has a tough home game against the Western Conference Leading Oklahoma City Barons tonight.

San Antonio VS. Charlotte 1/4 Preview

San Antonio Rampage 2  Charlotte Checkers 0  (1-0, 1-0, 0-0)

San Antonio VS. Charlotte Audio Highlights

Other AHL Games last Night

Syracuse Crunch 0  Toronto Marlies 2  (0-2, 0-0, 0-0)

Press Release from the San Antonio Rampage Website

In Charlotte, North Carolina: San Antonio Rampage netminder Dov Gorument-Morris stopped all 33 shots he faced to lift the Rampage to a 2-0 victory over the Charlotte Checkers at Time Warner Cable Arena on Tuesday Night. Grument-Morris earned his second shutout victory of the season of the season and Mark Cullen added a goal and an assist as the Rampage improved to 16-15-2 on the season.

San Antonio forward Greg Rallo scored the game's first goal, a power-play tally, at 19:41 of the 1st period. Center Bracken Kearns started the play by feeding Cullen down low to the left of Checkers backstop Mike Murphy. Cullen, who had been returned to the Rampage earlier in the day, feathered a pass across the crease to Rallo one-timed the puck into the left side of the goal to give San Antonio a 1-0 lead.

The Rampage added to their lead 11:34 into the third to make the count 2-0. From behind the Checkers net, winger Evgeni Dadnov found Cullen at the left side of the goal. Dadonov sent Cullen a pass that Cullen buried for his fourth goal of the season and his ninth point in his last 4 AHL Games. Kearns received the secondary assist on the play for his fifth multi point game of the season.

Grument-Morris registered his fifth win of the 2011-12 campaign while Murphy turned aside 30 of 32 Rampage attempts in the Charlotte loss. The Rampage & Checkers will faceoff again for another 6:00 PM (CST) contest at the Time Warner Cable Arena



AHL Weekly: Rampage look to end culture of losing

Since the Rampage joined the American Hockey League in 2002, the team has had a repturation of losing. For instance, they last made the playoffs in 2007 only to lose in a 7 game series against the Toronto Marlies. They only other playoff trip in team history was back in the team's 2nd season in 2003 when they lost in a 3 game sweep against the Norfolk Admirals (First Round back then was back of 5).

Other then that, they hasn't been much excitement for hockey fans in the Alamo City as the team has never won a division title, never won a playoff series and hasn't had the best luck of getting players to the National Hockey League.

However, with their start this year as they sit on top of the West Division with a 12-4-1 record through 16 games, as well as new head coach Ray Edwards looking to bring a new excitement. This may finally be the year that Rampage can look forward to being a major contender instead of a pretender.

With some strong transactions by their NHL Affiliate Phoenix Coyotes like bringing in Matt Climie and Mathieu Beaudoin from the Texas Stars (Dallas Stars), as well as a strong showing by starting goalie Al Montoya and along with Matt Climie in net. This is one of the best goaltender duo's in the AHL, which is one big thing the Rampage have been lacking for most (if not all) in their franchise's history.

Their starting to gain attention from the American Hockey League as a strong foe and someone who's looking to bring some excitement and for the first time some banners and hardware that will inspire future players and staff, bring in more fans and become an AHL Force.

From the American Hockey League Website

San Antonio Rampage Team Stats

San Antonio Rampage Team Website

Next 5 Games

11/19: VS. Milwaukee Admirals    7:00 PM

11/26:  @ Houston Aeros    7:35 PM

11/27:  @ Texas Stars     7:00 PM

11/28: VS. Milwaukee Admirals    3:00 PM

12/3:    @ Texas Stars    7:30 PM


A franchise with a history of early season struggles, the San Antonio Rampage are bucking the trend with one of the most impressive starts of the 2010-2011 season.

The Rampage posted a combined 9-30-4 in October and November over the past two seasons, digging a hole both years from which they were unable to recover. But San Antonio enters the new week winners of four straight and 11 of their last 13 games, putting them in first place in the West Division (12-4-1) and tied for the overall AHL Lead with 25 points. Under Coach Ray Edwards, who took over on November 23 last season, and featuring a roster which includes six former first round draft picks, San Antonio ranks seventh in goals per game (3.29), fifth in PP Efficiency (21.2 %) and fourth in goals allowed per game (2.53).

The Rampage show three former first-or-second round draft picks among their top five scores - 21 year olds Mikkel Boedker (17 PTS) and Brett Maclean (15 PTS) and 22 Year old Viktor Tikhnov (14 PTS), drafted 8th overall by the Phoenix Coyotes in 2008, is already near halfway to the 38 points he put up in 64 games for San Antonio last season; Maclean a 2nd round pick in 2007 and an AHL All Star his rookie year in 2009, leads all Rampage forwards with a +6 rating; and Tikhonov, a first rounder (28th overall), has at least one point in 11 of his last 14 games.

Another former first round draft pick (8th overall in by Columbus in 2004) Alex Picard is tied for the team in goals (9) and shows (30 PTS, 18G 12A) in 31 games since arriving to San Antonio from Columbus in a late season trade. Tim Stapleton, who scored 28 and 30 goals the past two season for Toronto and Chicago, respectively, has 12 points (6G 6A) through his first 17 games in a Rampage Uniform, follow newcomer Bracken Kearns fresh off a best career year with 51 points in Rockford last year, has registered 8 points in 10 games for San Antonio, and Andrew Ebbett, who spent all of 2009-2010 in the NHL, has scored a goal and six assists in nine outings.

Three key members of the Texas Stars' 2010 AHL Calder Cup Run moved down interstate 35 to San Antonio for the 2010-2011 campaign and are paying immediate dividends. Coming off a breakout 44 point campaign for the Stars a year ago, Mathieu Beaudoin is currently leading the Rampage with nine goals (tied) and has 19 points through 17 games played.

Garrett Stafford places among the AHL Defensemen Leaders with 12 points (3G 9A) and has also played two games for Phoenix and goaltender Matt Climie (8-3-0, 1.99 GAA, .939 SV%), fifth in goals against average and tied for third for victories. Climie's counterpart is 2004 first round pick Al Montoya, is out to a 4-2-0 start after winning just 4 games in an injury plagued 2009-2010 season.

With the exception of Stafford and a third year pro Jeff May, San Antonio has employed a collection of rookies on the blue line. Olivier Ekman-Larsson, drafted sixth overall by Phoenix in 2009, was assigned to San Antonio on Friday and recorded two assists in Saturday's 5-2 win over Chicago. Chris Summers, a first round pick in 2006, has a plus six rating to go along with two points and fellow first year rearguards Maxim Goncharov and Michael Stone have three points apiece.

The Rampage enjoy a light schedule this week, with a Wednesday matinee on tap in Peoria before returning home on Friday for their first meeting of the year with the Milwaukee Admirals.

To read the entire AHL Weekly Column, Click Here

San Antonio dominates in 5-2 win over the Chicago Wolves

It was a successful afternoon Sunday Afternoon at the AT&T Center as the Rampage continue to grow their lead in the AHL West Division with a convincing 5-2 win over the Chicago Wolves on Sunday as the Rampage did score 4 times in the first period.

 Including 2 goals in 33 seconds to take a quick 2-0 lead that the Wolves were never able to comeback as the Wolves also yanked starting goalie Edward Pasquale after the first intermission when San Antonio was up 4-1 as the Rampage scored the 5 goals from 5 different including Alex Picard who tied Mathieu Beaudoin for the team goal scoring lead with 9 this season.

It was also a strong showing for backup goaltender Matt Climie as he made 25 of 27 saves in the game as he helped the Rampage take the West Division Lead to 4 points over both the Milwaukee Admirals and Oklahoma City Barons are tied for 2nd with 21 points.

Other goal scorers for San Antonio included Danish Left Winger Mikkel Boedker who had a goal and assist in his 2nd straight game and takes his point total to 17 which he is starting to become a point a game player as he also had a 3 assist game in a 5-1 win over Abbotsford back on November 5.

Other Goal Scorers on Sunday Afternoon include Ryan Holloweg, Bracken Kearns and Viktor Tikhonov who each logged their 3rd goal of the season on a day where the Power Play was strong as they went 3-4 on the man advantage as well.

San Antonio takes their record to a division leading 12-4-1 for 25 points as the Rampage will prepare for a special field trip game on Wednesday as the Rampage will travel to Peoria which will start at 10:00 AM.

Here's a look at the upcoming San Antonio Rampage Schedule as the team will begin a huge stretch of road games as they have only 2 home games left in November. Overall, 8 of their next 11 games will be on the road which goes through the December 11th game against the Manitoba Moose.

Next 5 Games (All Games are on Sports Radio 760 The Ticket)

11/17: @ Peoria Rivermen   10:05 AM

11/19: VS. Milwaukee Admirals    7:00 PM

11/26: @ Houston Aeros   7:35 PM

11/27: @ Texas Stars    7:00 PM

11/28: VS. Milwaukee Admirals   3:00 PM

Chicago Wolves 2  San Antonio Rampage 5  (1-4, 1-0, 0-1)

San Antonio Rampage VS. Chicago Wolves Game Highlights

Game Story from the San Antonio Rampage Website

From San Antonio, Texas: The San Antonio Rampage jumped to an early lead scoring four first period goals and held on to a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Wolves on Sunday Afternoon at the AT&T Center. The Rampage improved 12-4-1 and lead the Western Conference with 25 points.

San Antonio's first goal came at 4:23 of the first period mark when Alex Picard tallied his fourth goal power play goal of the season. With only four seconds remaining on the Rampage power play, Picard redirected Mathieu Beaudoin shot from the left faceoff circle over goalie Edward Pasquale. Oliver Ekman-Larsson earned his first Rampage point recording the second assist on the play. Picard and Beaudoin both extended their point streaks to four games.

The Rampage struck again just 33 seconds later to extend their lead to 2-0 when Ryan Helloweg shot from the left faceoff circle beat Pasquale high stick side. David Brine and Ryan Weston supplied the assists each receiving their first point of the season.

Chicago Center Jason Krog cut the deficit in half to 2-1 at the 12:21 mark of the first period. Wolves left wing Frederick Petterersson centered a pass to Krog who tipped the puck over Rampage goalie Matt Climie's right shoulder. Andre Deveaux chipped in the second assist on Krog's second goal of the season.

The Rampage extended their lead to 3-1 when Bracken Kearns scored a power play goal at the 15:27 mark of the first stanza. Kearns redirected Mikkel Boedker's shot from the left faceoff circle over the stick of Pasquae and into the back of the net. Brett Maclean added the second helper with his 8th assist of the season .

San Antoino took a 4-1 advantage off Mikkel Boedker power play goal at the 17:41 mark of the opening frame Boedker one-timer from the right faceoff circle went high stick side past Pasquale. Ekman-Larsson earned his second point of the night as he and Tim Stapleton both combined for assists.

After letting in four goals in twenty minutes, Chicago Head Coach Don Lever substituted net- Drew Macintyre for Pasquale who finished the game with 13 saves on 17 shot attempts.

Chicago made it a 4-2 game at the 6:26 mark of the second period on Paul Postma's power play Goal. Postma fired a shot from the blue line that passed Climie low on the stick side and into the back of the net. Assisted were provided by Jared Ross and Jason Krog.

Viktor Tikhonov solidified the Rampage victory with a goal at 2:23 of the 3rd period into the third period. Picard passed to Tikhonov was camped out in front of the crease and his shot beat Macintyre high to the stick side. Beaudoin added the second assist for his second point of the night.

Climie turned aside 25 of 27 Wolves Shot attempts while Pasquale and Macintyre combined for 33 of saves on 38 Rampage shots.

The Rampage return to the ice on Wednesday morning when the team travels to the Peoria Civic Center Carver Arena to face the Rivermen for a 10:05 AM.

A special Video Feature by the San Antonio Rampage

One of the newest features that the San Antonio Rampage will be doing this season will give fans a chance to get to know more about the arenas that the different AHL Teams play in throughout the season.

The first feature of the new season took place a couple of weeks ago when the team was in Abbotsford, BC While playing a pair of games against the Abbotsford Heat as they take a tour of the arena and give you a better idea of what fans throughout the arena head to to support their teams.

For the Abbotsford Heat, the team makes their home at the Abbotsford Sports and Enterainment Center and the city has a population of about 125,000 which would be comparable to cities like Abline and Brownsville here in Texas.

Look for this feature to come up throughout the season and look for more arenas to be featured as the season goes on. They is also some web links to the Heat and the city to give you a better idea of what the city is like.

San Antonio Rampage Tour of the Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Center

Abbotsford Heat Website

Abbotsford, BC Wikipedia Page

Oklahoma City Barons Rout Chicago 6-2 to keep pressure on San Antonino

Their was no question that the Barons were looking to catch up to the Rampage and tie them for the West Division. Despite the Rampage win, the Barons were no match for the Chicago Wolves as the stay within 2 points of the division leading Barons. This also takes OKC to 3-2 as they are 5 games through the longest home-stand of the season as the Barons have also had wins over the Texas Stars & Toronto Marlies during this stretch.

It was a big night for Ryan O'Merra (3 Assists), Liam Reddox (2 Goals) and Alexander Giroux (2 Assists) as the attack minded Barons never held the Wolves out of their sight as the Barons went up 2-0 late in the first and never looked back for the rest of the night.

In addition, Martin Gerber who was brought in because of his Experience at all levels in the NHL, AHL & in Europe also had 35 saves in a game that had a lot of flow and shots as the Barons out-shot the Wolves 43-37 where both sides had to make some key saves for the Barons to keep the lead all night long.

Despite the win, the Rampage also won their game 3-2 over Rockford to keep the lead. With the Barons not hitting the ice again until next Friday on November 19, the Barons have temporally lost their chance to jump over the Rampage to take over the West Division Lead.

The Next time the Barons hit the ice is on 11/19 against the Texas Stars, then the team will wrap up the home-stand with a pair of games against the Milwaukee Admirals on 11/21 & 23.

San Antonio will now have a chance to gain some breathing room on top of the West with games on Sunday afternoon against the Chicago Wolves on Sunday, then a special Field Trip Game for local Grade School Kids in the area on Wednesday the 17th against the Peoria Rivermen.

Oklahoma City Barons VS. Chicago Wolves Highlights

OKC VS. Chicago Post Game Reaction

Game Story from Ryan Aber of the The Daily Oklahoman

From Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: The first period had been a problem for the Barons for much of the season.

But Friday against Chicago, the Barons broke through early, let the Wolves back into it, then controlled the 3rd period to come away with a 6-2 win in front of 3,601 at the Cox Convention Center.

"It's something we've focused on," Barons Winger Liam Reddox said. "We've talked about it in the room. It's nice to get a couple of goals there early."

Once again, Reddox played a big part.

He scored 3:24 into the game on a shorthanded breakaway to put the Barons ahead. Reddox has two of the three Barons Shorthanded goals this season.

Later in the period, Colin Macdonald put the Barons up 2-0. It was a nice change of pace for the Barons from their early struggles as of late. The Barons have allowed goals in the first 5:35 in the last six games.

A big part of the Barons early game success was because of Martin Gerber. Gerber stopped all 16 first period shots from the Wolves as he picked up his seventh straight win.

"Streaks are always nice when they are positive," Gerber said. "It's much earlier to stay in a winning streak thenn to break out of a losing out."

But after Reddox scored his goal less then six minutes into the second, the Wolves Spencer Machacek scored two straight goals to cut the Barons lead to one entering the third period.

The Wolves out-shot the Barons 15-11 in the 2nd period.

Barons Head Coach Todd Nelson had a strong conversation with his team in the second period.

"I just told the guys, 'Don't cheat the game,'" Nelson said. "They looked like they wanted to get on the bus after jumping 3-0."

The Barons lead stayed at one through much of the third period until Chris VandeVelde, getting the puck off the draw in the zone near the boards, streaked behind the net and tried a wraparound.

VandeVelde initial shot didn't make it past Chicago Goaltender Peter Mannino, but it bounced off a Wolves player in the crease and past Mannino.

That was the first of three Barons Goals in a stretch of 5:21 stretch that quickly put the game firmly in the Barons Grasp.

Brad Moran and Shawn Belle added goals for the Barons during that stretch.

The game was the final of a four game conditioning assignment for Edmonton's J.F. Jacques. Jacques had three shots and five penalty minutes, getting into his first fight of the season and showing no effects from the back injury that had sidelined him since last season.

Ryan O'Marra assisted on three of the Barons goals, giving him 12 for the season. While O'Marra has yet to score a goal, he's already registered a professional high in assists.

The Barons (10-6-1 21 PTS) get most of the week off before resuming their eight game home-stand Friday against the Texas Stars.

The team will take the next two days off from practice, with most of the team attending today's OU Football Game before a team event on Sunday.

San Antonio holds on to slim lead in AHL West Division with 3-2 win

The Rampage continue their strong home ice performance with their 4 win in their last 5 games as all 3 goals in the 2nd period.

Including some very key goals by Mathieu Beaduoin with his team leading 9th of the season and Defensemen Mikkel Boedker who scored twice in just over a minute as the Rampage were able to break open a 1-1 game into a 3-1 game where that Boedker goal turned out to be the game winner.

Early in the 3rd period, a goal by rookie defense Nick Leddy scored and put the Icehogs within 1 at 3-2 just 3:20 into the game as that gave the Icehogs life and put pressure at numerous points in the 3rd period.

But Goaltender Al Montoya wouldn't have any of it as 14 saves in the 3rd period helped keep the Rampage up 3-2 including in the final 45 seconds when Rockford pulled goalie Alec Richards looking to force OT, but a pair of late key saves ended the Icehogs hopes last night.

In addition to the 3-2 win over Rockford, Oklahoma City has been able to keep up the pressure with a 6-2 win over the Chicago Wolves last night as the Rampage lead in the West Division stays at 2 points.

In addition to last night's game, they has been a change in the Broadcast Schedule for Sunday Afternoon when the Rampage take on the Chicago Wolves. It will be on 92.5 KRPT the Patriot instead of the usual Sports Radio 760 The Ticket due to a schedule conflict.

92.5 The Patriot Website

San Antonio Rampage Broadcast Press Release


San Antonio VS. Rockford Game Highlights

Rockford Ice Hogs 2  San Antonio Rampage 3  (0-0, 1-3, 1-0)

Game Story from the San Antonio Rampage Website

From San Antonio, Texas: The San Antonio Rampage swept the Rockford Icehogs in back-to-back games as they claimed a 3-2 victory at the AT&T Center Friday Night and are now tied for first in the league with a 11-4-1 record good for 23 points.

Despite being out-shot 11-10 in the first period, the Rampage were able to get some quality shots on Rockford netminder Alec Richards but unfortunately took some unlucky bounces and the game remained scoreless heading into the 2nd period.

San Antonio claimed the first lead of the game off right wing Brett Maclean's goal 8:06 into the 2nd period. Mikkel Boedker assisted on Maclean's backhanded shot at the left post beating Richards low stick side for a 1-0 lead.

Rockford Right Wing Hugh Jessiman netted an equalizer on the power play just 1:31 later to even the score at 1-1. Nick Leddy's shot from the left faceoff circle was deflected by Jessiman to the upper right corner past Rampage goaltender Al Montoya.

The Rampage took a 2-1 advantage 16:57 into the 2nd period as leading scorer Brett Maclean scored his nineth of the season. Alex Picard sent a cross ice pass to Beaudoin at the left goal line who punched a low stick side past Richards. Vitkor was credited with the second assist.

San Antonio extended their lead to 3-1 as Boedker scored the game winning goal at the 18:04 mark of the 2nd period. Rookie Chris Summers supplied his first assists of his pro career on Boedker snap shot that went high glove side. Boedker's goal marked his fifth multi point game of the season to lead all Rampage attackers.

Icehogs defensemen Nick Leedy made it a 3-2 contest after his goal at 3:20 into the third period. Leddy fired a bullet from the left faceoff circle beating Montoya high stick side. Brian Connelly and Ryan Potunly added the helpers.

Rockford Head Coach Bill Peters pulled Richards with 45 seconds left in the game in favor of a sixth attacker, but the Icehogs could not convert the man advantage and the Rampage finalized the victory 3-2.

Montoya stopped 36 of 38 Icehog Shots while Richards made 26 saves on 29 shots on net.

The Rampage return to the AT&T Center on Sunday Afternoon as they host the Chicago Wolves at 3:00 PM.

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