Today is another critical date for all ECHL teams as final rosters are due to the league office by 3:00 p.m. ET. With just 21 players remaining in training camp with the Allen Americans, unless something unforeseen happens, the final roster should include all 21. It breaks down to two goalies, 11 forwards and eight defensemen. Here is the roster:
GOALIES
#29 - Joel Rumpel
#30 - Riley Gill
FORWARDS
#9 - Justin Courtnall
#12 - Garry Steffes
#13 - Chad Costello
#15 - Greger Hanson
#17 - Tristan King
#18 - Casey Pierro-Zabotel
#19 - Kyle Follmer
#26 - Dyson Stevenson
#27 - Daniel Doremus
#28 - Mike DiPaolo
#79 - Garrett Clarke
DEFENSEMEN
#2 - Danny Federico
#4 - Rick Pinkston
#5 - Aaron Gens
#6 - Justin Baker
#7 - Eric Roy
#10 - David Makowski
#24 - Ayrton Nikkel
#43 - Kevin Young
- The only player not on the list above is #25 Ian Schultz who is still recovering from an injury and won't be ready for a few weeks. With the roster rules allowing for 21 on the active list, two on regular reserve and an unlimited number of players on 21 day injured reserve coach Martinson will have some flexibility in how to handle Schultz. Factors such as cost and ability to practice will factor in where it is best to put Schultz.
- Mike DiPaolo has been suspended for three games for an incident in the preseason game in Wichita on Saturday. The ECHL cited rule 40.4 in their press release which covers abuse of officials/contact with officials. The violation requires a minimum three game suspension. Mike will miss the home opener on Friday against Quad City and two games against Tulsa, in Allen on Saturday and Tulsa on Sunday.
- The Americans will not get a full practice on the ice at the Allen Event Center (AEC) before opening night on Friday. The entire training camp has taken place in the Community Rink. As soon as the ice was installed in the AEC it had to be covered for a Counting Crows concert and then last night it was Theresa Caputo Live (TV personality/medium). The Americans first time on the ice will be at their pregame skate on Friday. It would have been desirable, especially for the new players on the roster, to have some practice time on the AEC ice.
- It didn't take Trevor Ludwig long to have an impact on his new team, the Missouri Mavericks. Trevor arrived in Alaska in time to play in Missouri's second preseason game against the Aces last night and scored the only goal for the Mavericks in a losing cause as Alaska won the game 3-1. After splitting their two preseason games they will take a couple of days off and then open the season playing each other Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Playing the same team five times in seven days will certainly have the players pretty testy by Sunday.
- If any Allen fans are making plans to go to Tulsa for the game on Sunday or anytime this year don't forget Tulsa has special pricing for the entire season as well as a hotel special. All you need to do is call Todd Street at 918-632-7825 or email him at todd@tulsaoilers.com and he will hook you up. If you want a really unique experience ask Todd about the "Coaches Box" experience. You literally have a box on the ice between the two benches and get to see and hear everything. The Oilers will give Allen fans a reduced rate of $500 which includes six tickets, an autographed stick, official game pucks and some other goodies and recognition.
DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL has not had back to back champions since the Toledo Storm won back to back in 1993 and 1994.
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Training Camp News - New Players Arrive and Others Are Released - The Details
The first ten days of training camp each year always has a lot of roster changes but this season has been full of surprises for Allen Americans fans. One player was at the meet and greet the Saturday before the first day of camp and never made it to the first on ice practice. Before you can put a name to a face they are gone. You definitely need a roster list every time you attend practice and that will certainly be the case this week as the roster is trimmed down to the final roster which is due Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time. To complicate matters there are players being assigned by San Jose which will strengthen the team but require additional players to be released. Throw in a surprise like the Trevor Ludwig trade and you can see the wisdom of not writing any feature stories until the roster is set and even then there will be many roster changes after the season begins.
So far four players have been released. Max Cook was released prior to the preseason game in Wichita. Three players that played in the preseason game in Wichita were officially released yesterday, forwards Tyler Stothers and Mike Colavecchia as well as defenseman Jacob Poe. These moves has gotten coach Martinson close to the final roster depending how many players he wants to carry to open the season. Remember, he can have an active roster of 21 players for the first month of the season and then it goes to 20. In, addition he can place two players on reserve and an unlimited number of players on injured reserve which requires them to be sidelined for a minimum of 21 days.
Daniel, who goes by Danny, is a power forward who was raised in Aspen, Colorado. His parents who became high school sweethearts were both born in Aspen. Danny played his youth hockey in Aspen, took advantage of his father's European travels to spend his freshman year of high school playing hockey in Switzerland and then played high school hockey back in Aspen. He then moved on to play junior hockey in Denver and Sioux Falls (USHL) before attending the University of Denver (DU) where he was a management major. In 2013-14 he was an academic all conference player and also helped lead his team to the conference championship and a NCAA berth. As a senior he was chosen as an alternate captain of the team and helped lead DU to a quarterfinal appearance in the NCAA tournament. He signed with San Jose in April, 2015 after his collegiate eligibility was complete and played five games with the Worcester Sharks at the end of last season. Danny has four brothers including twin brothers that are younger than him and are hockey players. His off ice interests include skiing, golf, biking, fishing, camping and traveling.
Born Jun 3 1992 -- Acton, MA
[23 yrs. ago]
Height 6.01 -- Weight 205
Born Oct 4 1990 -- Trenton, MI
[25 yrs. ago]
Height 6.01 -- Weight 205
So far four players have been released. Max Cook was released prior to the preseason game in Wichita. Three players that played in the preseason game in Wichita were officially released yesterday, forwards Tyler Stothers and Mike Colavecchia as well as defenseman Jacob Poe. These moves has gotten coach Martinson close to the final roster depending how many players he wants to carry to open the season. Remember, he can have an active roster of 21 players for the first month of the season and then it goes to 20. In, addition he can place two players on reserve and an unlimited number of players on injured reserve which requires them to be sidelined for a minimum of 21 days.
With that being said there are four players that have been added to the Allen roster in the last few days that are expected to be key contributors as the season gets underway. Danny Federico, Rick Pinkston, and Danny Doremus were assigned to Allen by San Jose and Tristan King was acquired from the Missouri Mavericks in the Trevor Ludwig trade. The San Jose contracted players could be recalled by the Barracuda at any time but since they should be in the line up for the opener on Friday wanted to do a quick player profile on them along with Tristan King. Here is a little background on each of the players with their statistics courtesy of hockeydb.
Born Oct 22 1991 -- Aspen, CO
[23 yrs. ago]
Height 6.00 -- Weight 200
Daniel Doremus
ForwardBorn Oct 22 1991 -- Aspen, CO
[23 yrs. ago]
Height 6.00 -- Weight 200
 |
| Danny Doremus |
Daniel, who goes by Danny, is a power forward who was raised in Aspen, Colorado. His parents who became high school sweethearts were both born in Aspen. Danny played his youth hockey in Aspen, took advantage of his father's European travels to spend his freshman year of high school playing hockey in Switzerland and then played high school hockey back in Aspen. He then moved on to play junior hockey in Denver and Sioux Falls (USHL) before attending the University of Denver (DU) where he was a management major. In 2013-14 he was an academic all conference player and also helped lead his team to the conference championship and a NCAA berth. As a senior he was chosen as an alternate captain of the team and helped lead DU to a quarterfinal appearance in the NCAA tournament. He signed with San Jose in April, 2015 after his collegiate eligibility was complete and played five games with the Worcester Sharks at the end of last season. Danny has four brothers including twin brothers that are younger than him and are hockey players. His off ice interests include skiing, golf, biking, fishing, camping and traveling.
| Regular Season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2009-10 | Tri-City Storm | USHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2010-11 | Sioux Falls Stampede | USHL | 57 | 19 | 16 | 35 | 20 | 20 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 8 |
| 2011-12 | U. of Denver | WCHA | 38 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 14 | ||||||
| 2012-13 | U. of Denver | WCHA | 39 | 12 | 12 | 24 | 29 | ||||||
| 2013-14 | U. of Denver | NCHC | 42 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 28 | ||||||
| 2014-15 | U. of Denver | NCHC | 39 | 11 | 23 | 34 | 36 | 24 | |||||
| 2014-15 | Worcester Sharks | AHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -1 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
Danny Federico
Defense -- shoots LBorn Jun 3 1992 -- Acton, MA
[23 yrs. ago]
Height 6.01 -- Weight 205
 |
| Danny Federico |
Danny Federico is a defensive defensman who is from Acton, MA and played his junior hockey for the Boston Junior Bruins of the Eastern Junior Hockey League (EJHL). In 2009-10 he was the Defensive Player of the Year for the Junior Bruins. Danny attended Quinnipiac University where he skated for four seasons from 2011-15. As a senior, Federico was co-captain of the team, was a candidate for the leagues Best Defensive Defenseman Award and helped lead the team to their third consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament. He was tied for the league lead in plus minus with a +19. He also led his team in plus/minus as a sophomore and junior. An outstanding student who was named to the league's All-Academic Team, Danny majored in Finance and may pursue a law career after his playing days are over. Danny was just signed to an AHL/ECHL two way contract by the San Jose Barracuda and loaned to Allen.
| Regular Season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2008-09 | Boston Jr. Bruins | EJHL | 44 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 14 | ||||||
| 2009-10 | Boston Jr. Bruins | EJHL | 44 | 2 | 25 | 27 | 14 | ||||||
| 2010-11 | Boston Jr. Bruins | EJHL | 45 | 4 | 28 | 32 | 26 | ||||||
| 2011-12 | Quinnipiac University | ECAC | 16 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||||||
| 2012-13 | Quinnipiac University | ECAC | 42 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 26 | ||||||
| 2013-14 | Quinnipiac University | ECAC | 36 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 6 | ||||||
| 2014-15 | Quinnipiac University | ECAC | 38 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 36 | 4 | |||||
Tristan King
Center -- shoots R
Born Nov 7 1990 -- Minneapolis, MN
[24 yrs. ago]
Height 6.00 -- Weight 170
Born Nov 7 1990 -- Minneapolis, MN
[24 yrs. ago]
Height 6.00 -- Weight 170
 |
| Tristan King |
Tristan is a talented center originally from Elk River, Minnesota who went the major junior hockey route playing four years in the Western Hockey League. He was signed by the Dallas Stars to a three year entry level contract in 2009 and made his professional debut in 2010-11 playing 11 games for the Texas Stars (AHL). He is now in his sixth professional season. King played for the Ontario Reign last season and had a great playoff with 17 points (7 goals 10 assists) in 17 games. Tristan was acquired by Missouri in the off season as part of a future considerations trade that Missouri had made with Ontario when they sent a player to Ontario late last season. Missouri then traded King to Allen for Trevor Ludwig. King has bounced around the ECHL having been with seven different teams in six seasons. If you look at his resume he looks like a player that needs a fresh start and an opportunity to prove himself. Steve Martison's system may be just the ticket for King to have a career year. It certainly has happened to many other players when they play in Allen.
| Regular Season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2006-07 | Portland Winter Hawks | WHL | 64 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 26 | -24 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2007-08 | Portland Winter Hawks | WHL | 69 | 9 | 16 | 25 | 39 | -37 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2008-09 | Medicine Hat Tigers | WHL | 47 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 33 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009-10 | Medicine Hat Tigers | WHL | 70 | 21 | 44 | 65 | 65 | 8 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| 2010-11 | Texas Stars | AHL | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | -1 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2010-11 | Idaho Steelheads | ECHL | 24 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 13 | -4 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2011-12 | Idaho Steelheads | ECHL | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -1 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2011-12 | Greenville Road Warriors | ECHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2011-12 | Ontario Reign | ECHL | 45 | 17 | 24 | 41 | 38 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2012-13 | Idaho Steelheads | ECHL | 35 | 18 | 19 | 37 | 30 | 8 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2012-13 | San Francisco Bulls | ECHL | 17 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 | -7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013-14 | Fort Wayne Komets | ECHL | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -12 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2013-14 | Evansville Icemen | ECHL | 32 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 18 | -2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2014-15 | Ontario Reign | ECHL | 42 | 6 | 27 | 33 | 21 | 11 | 17 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 6 |
Rick Pinkston
Defense -- shoots LBorn Oct 4 1990 -- Trenton, MI
[25 yrs. ago]
Height 6.01 -- Weight 205
 |
| Rick Pinkston |
Rick Pinkston is a defenseman from Trenton, Michigan who played three years for the Tri-City Storm of the USHL where he was the captain of the team in his final season and was also an All-Star. He then spent four years at Dartmouth College (2011-15). Pinkston played six games for the Springfield Falcons (AHL) at the end of last season after wrapping up four years at Dartmouth. Rick completed his senior year by finishing first on his team in plus/minus (+14) in 28 games while setting career highs in both points (13) and assists (9). He signed a two-way AHL/ECHL contract with the San Jose Barracuda at the end of August and participated in San Jose's NHL and AHL training camps. While Pinkston has some offensive skill look for him to primarily be a defensive defenseman who was one of his team's top penalty killers in college and he is an excellent shot blocker. His college coach said of Rick, "He brings a lot of stability and consistency to our line up."
| Regular Season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2008-09 | Tri-City Storm | USHL | 37 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 52 | -29 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2009-10 | Tri-City Storm | USHL | 55 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 123 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 2010-11 | Tri-City Storm | USHL | 55 | 5 | 18 | 23 | 96 | -4 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2011-12 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 24 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 24 | ||||||
| 2012-13 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 33 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 38 | ||||||
| 2013-14 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 32 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 38 | ||||||
| 2014-15 | Dartmouth College | ECAC | 28 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 26 | 14 | |||||
| 2014-15 | Springfield Falcons | AHL | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |
OTHER ITEMS
- The Allen Americans Fan Club asked me to remind everyone in the DFW area that they are having a meeting tonight (Tuesday) at 5th Street Pizza which is located at 111 Central Expressway, Suite 102 in Allen (in the Stacey furniture building). The meeting starts at 7:00 p.m. All members are encouraged to attend and if you are not a member, come out and see what the fan club is all about. The fan club was responsible for all of the training camp breakfasts for the team again this year and did a great job.
- Best of luck to Trevor Ludwig as he heads to Alaska to meet up with his Missouri teammates for their regular season opening games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday against the Alaska Aces. Trevor was always kind to this blog and willing to answer all of the questions posed to him no matter how crazy they were. And his answers were always thoughtful and complete. It has to be difficult to make this move for Trevor, Holly and the baby but they are headed to a great situation in Missouri. Always a class act, Trevor posted the following to social media last night:
"I want to thank the Allen Americans for the last four years. My family and I were extremely fortunate to have been part of three championships. We met and became friends with some really great people from our time spent with the team. I'll never forget the amazing fans, diligent office staff, and incredible teammates. We are on to a new adventure with the Missouri Mavericks. My blood has turned orange."
DID YOU KNOW: Danny Federico and Rick Pinkston both played in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Association (ECAC) which has produced two of the last three NCAA national champions including in 2013 when Federico's Quinnipiac Bobcats lost in the final to another ECAC team, Yale.
Sunday, October 11, 2015
Shocker - Trevor Ludwig Traded To Missouri, Allen Loses To Wichita 7-2 & More
- In a move that caught many by surprise the Allen Americans traded Trevor Ludwig yesterday to the Missouri Mavericks for forward Tristan King. With the trade the four players that were in Allen for all three championships (Brian McMillin, Jamie Schaafsma, Trevor & Tyler Ludwig) are now gone. It has to be disappointing for Trevor and his family to leave the DFW area. Here is part of what Trevor had to say just a couple of weeks ago at the Q & A announcing his re-signing with Allen. "This is my home as most of you know. I have lived here for a long time
and have been on the team for a long time. Allen was always my first
choice as to where I wanted to play in 2015-16. It is a great area,
the fans are unbelievable, and the team has been a great team to play
for with three straight championships. Not only is this our home but we
have lots of family here, and our little girl has grandparents she can
visit. I am super thrilled to be back and look forward to making another
run this year." But what turned out to be prophetic Trevor also said, "I know that in professional sports there is no job security and it is a business."
- If there is any good news in being traded you would have to assume Missouri was at the top of the list as to where Trevor would like to play. Missouri coach Richard Matvichuk is a close family friend since he played with Trevor's dad for many years in the NHL. Trevor has known Richard since he was ten years old. Matvichuk, who played defense as a player, coached Trevor during the first two championship seasons when he was the assistant coach in Allen. Ludwig will be playing with his younger brother C.J. who was recently assigned to Missouri by the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL). Finally, Missouri is a great organization that will be much improved this season after missing the playoffs last season.
- Why did Allen make the trade? There were too many defensemen in training camp especially after San Jose assigned two AHL contracted defensemen to Allen. Trading a defenseman for a forward was anticipated by everyone looking at the roster. My guess is Allen was not trying to trade Trevor Ludwig rather they were trying to trade a defenseman for a forward and Missouri was interested in Ludwig. Tristan King is a good player and the type of player that Allen needed so the deal was done. King played great against Allen last year when he was in Ontario. Between the regular season and playoffs he played against Allen eight times and had points in seven of the eight games.
- The Ludwig trade ended up overshadowing the preseason game with Wichita which ended up being a good thing as the Thunder scored four first period goals and coasted to a 7-2 win over the Americans. The Allen goals were scored by David Makowski and Garrett Clarke. Steve Martinson's only comment after the game was, "We played poorly in all phases of the game." The fact that seven key players didn't make the trip to Wichita was not an excuse for poor play according to Martinson as Wichita also sat out some key players.
- The players have the day off today and then will be back at it on Monday. With the final roster due on Wednesday look for some players to get released today or tomorrow.
- With the Ludwig trade Allen now only has three veterans (Costello, Steffes, Pierro-Zabotel) under contract. There can be four veterans on the active roster. It is always nice to have a vacant veteran slot as players with AHL experience become available as NHL & AHL rosters shake out or players in Europe decide they want to return to North America.
OTHER ITEMS
- Colton Yellow Horn continues his torrid pace playing in the Austrian league. He leads the league in scoring with 15 points in eight games (7 goals 8 assists) and his team is in first place in the 12 team league with a record of 7-1.
- It was an Allen Americans reunion of sorts when two big rivals from the CHL days played back to back preseason games the last two nights. Dallas Ehrhardt, Kale Kerbashain and Nolan Descoteaux play for Rapid City and Darryl Bootland is with Colorado. Colorado won both games. They won on Friday night in Colorado by a score of 3-0 and Darryl Bootland started the season in style with his first fight just 18 seconds into the game. Last night they played in Rapid City and Colorado prevailed again by a score of 5-3.
- Brian McMillin scored a goal and was named "man of the match" for his team yesterday as the Dijon Ducs lost to Bordeaux 4-2. Brian has six points (3 goals 3 assists) in eight games for Dijon.
- Tommy Daniels used his contacts with the Texas Rangers so that several players could get tickets to watch their beloved Toronto Blue Jays try to avoid elimination tonight. Forward Mike Colavecchia told Tommy he would be proudly wearing his Blue Jay gear at the game.
- The Allen Ice Angels head back to Texas today after completing their calendar shoot in Mexico. Based on some of the early pictures shared on social media it should be another great calendar.
DID YOU KNOW: The NHL's first Ice Girls squad appeared in 2001-02 with the New York Islanders. The Dallas Stars launched their Ice Girls squad the very next season. Originally the Dallas Ice Girl squad's sole responsibility was to maintain the ice during timeouts. It wasn't until the 2006-07 season that live choreographed dance was added.
- If there is any good news in being traded you would have to assume Missouri was at the top of the list as to where Trevor would like to play. Missouri coach Richard Matvichuk is a close family friend since he played with Trevor's dad for many years in the NHL. Trevor has known Richard since he was ten years old. Matvichuk, who played defense as a player, coached Trevor during the first two championship seasons when he was the assistant coach in Allen. Ludwig will be playing with his younger brother C.J. who was recently assigned to Missouri by the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL). Finally, Missouri is a great organization that will be much improved this season after missing the playoffs last season.
- Why did Allen make the trade? There were too many defensemen in training camp especially after San Jose assigned two AHL contracted defensemen to Allen. Trading a defenseman for a forward was anticipated by everyone looking at the roster. My guess is Allen was not trying to trade Trevor Ludwig rather they were trying to trade a defenseman for a forward and Missouri was interested in Ludwig. Tristan King is a good player and the type of player that Allen needed so the deal was done. King played great against Allen last year when he was in Ontario. Between the regular season and playoffs he played against Allen eight times and had points in seven of the eight games.
- The Ludwig trade ended up overshadowing the preseason game with Wichita which ended up being a good thing as the Thunder scored four first period goals and coasted to a 7-2 win over the Americans. The Allen goals were scored by David Makowski and Garrett Clarke. Steve Martinson's only comment after the game was, "We played poorly in all phases of the game." The fact that seven key players didn't make the trip to Wichita was not an excuse for poor play according to Martinson as Wichita also sat out some key players.
- The players have the day off today and then will be back at it on Monday. With the final roster due on Wednesday look for some players to get released today or tomorrow.
- With the Ludwig trade Allen now only has three veterans (Costello, Steffes, Pierro-Zabotel) under contract. There can be four veterans on the active roster. It is always nice to have a vacant veteran slot as players with AHL experience become available as NHL & AHL rosters shake out or players in Europe decide they want to return to North America.
OTHER ITEMS
- Colton Yellow Horn continues his torrid pace playing in the Austrian league. He leads the league in scoring with 15 points in eight games (7 goals 8 assists) and his team is in first place in the 12 team league with a record of 7-1.
- It was an Allen Americans reunion of sorts when two big rivals from the CHL days played back to back preseason games the last two nights. Dallas Ehrhardt, Kale Kerbashain and Nolan Descoteaux play for Rapid City and Darryl Bootland is with Colorado. Colorado won both games. They won on Friday night in Colorado by a score of 3-0 and Darryl Bootland started the season in style with his first fight just 18 seconds into the game. Last night they played in Rapid City and Colorado prevailed again by a score of 5-3.
- Brian McMillin scored a goal and was named "man of the match" for his team yesterday as the Dijon Ducs lost to Bordeaux 4-2. Brian has six points (3 goals 3 assists) in eight games for Dijon.
- Tommy Daniels used his contacts with the Texas Rangers so that several players could get tickets to watch their beloved Toronto Blue Jays try to avoid elimination tonight. Forward Mike Colavecchia told Tommy he would be proudly wearing his Blue Jay gear at the game.
- The Allen Ice Angels head back to Texas today after completing their calendar shoot in Mexico. Based on some of the early pictures shared on social media it should be another great calendar.
 |
| Ice Angels Mexico calendar shoot |
DID YOU KNOW: The NHL's first Ice Girls squad appeared in 2001-02 with the New York Islanders. The Dallas Stars launched their Ice Girls squad the very next season. Originally the Dallas Ice Girl squad's sole responsibility was to maintain the ice during timeouts. It wasn't until the 2006-07 season that live choreographed dance was added.
Saturday, October 10, 2015
Seven Players Not Playing in Wichita Today, Dyson Stevenson Interview, AHL New CBA, Barracuda Lose
- After going at each other all week in practice the Allen Americans are itching to play against another team and will get that chance this afternoon when they travel to Wichita for their one and only preseason game. You can be assured nobody is looking forward to the bus ride which is a same day up and back trip to Wichita and over 650 miles on the bus but at least they have a 4:05 p.m. start so they will get back on the road to Allen after the game at a reasonable hour. Tommy Daniels is not making the trip so there will be no radio coverage of the game by the Americans or the Thunder. Social media will the only way to track the game if you are interested.
- Not playing in Wichita today are Chad Costello, Greger Hanson, Danny Federico, Aaron Gens, Trevor Ludwig, Kevin Young, and Riley Gill. This will give the younger players on the team plenty of ice time to show how they perform in game conditions. In addition, forward Max Cook has been released from his try out contract.
- This season the plan is to use more video clips in the blog and this is the first of what hopefully will be many video interviews. I have created a YouTube channel with the title "Allen Americans Blog" so you can go directly to the channel to view the videos however most will be posted here as well. In this interview Dyson Stevenson talks about training camp and bringing the Kelly Cup to his home town, Shaunavon, Saskatchewan.
OTHER ITEMS
- The American Hockey League (AHL) and the Professional Hockey Players Association (PHPA) announced yesterday the ratification of a new four-year Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Here is what the PHPA included in their press release about the CBA. "The CBA has been modified to include enhancements to the health and welfare plan currently offered to AHL players and their families, and to provide significantly better playoff compensation to players while allowing more flexibility to the AHL in Calder Cup Playoff scheduling and financing. The new Agreement also provides for increases in per-diem and minimum salary as well as modifications to housing and travel provisions."
- The San Jose Barracuda lost their home opener and first ever game in San Jose last night by a score of 4-2 to the Rockford Ice Hogs. There were 6977 fans in attendance to see the historic game. Chris Crane and Vincent Arseneau both played but did not score.
- If you haven't checked out the podcasts that Matt Harding from Team Sin Bin has been posting you need to check them out. Matt does a great job with his interviews and his latest podcast includes an interview with Mike "Doc" Emrick who is the lead announcer for NHL national telecasts on NBC. To find Matt's podcasts go to thesinbin.net and click on the "Into The Sin Bin" link under the "Podcasts" tab.
- Wanted to end the blog post today with a big thank you for all of the support over the last three years. Two milestones were hit in the same day this week when Allen Americans Blog Twitter followers reached 800 and the number of page views for the blog reached 500,000.
DID YOU KNOW: Steve Martinson has been the head coach of two teams during their first year in the ECHL when the were absorbed into the league. Of course last year he led the Allen Americans to the Kelly Cup in their first year when the Central Hockey League was absorbed into the ECHL. In 2003-2004 Martinson was the coach of the San Diego Gulls when the West Coast Hockey League was absorbed by the ECHL. Martinson's team set two records that year that still stand. The Gulls had 100 points that year which is a record for an expansion team in the ECHL. Even more impressive is they had 30 home wins which is still the most home wins in a season by any ECHL team in the history of the league.
- Not playing in Wichita today are Chad Costello, Greger Hanson, Danny Federico, Aaron Gens, Trevor Ludwig, Kevin Young, and Riley Gill. This will give the younger players on the team plenty of ice time to show how they perform in game conditions. In addition, forward Max Cook has been released from his try out contract.
- This season the plan is to use more video clips in the blog and this is the first of what hopefully will be many video interviews. I have created a YouTube channel with the title "Allen Americans Blog" so you can go directly to the channel to view the videos however most will be posted here as well. In this interview Dyson Stevenson talks about training camp and bringing the Kelly Cup to his home town, Shaunavon, Saskatchewan.
OTHER ITEMS
- The American Hockey League (AHL) and the Professional Hockey Players Association (PHPA) announced yesterday the ratification of a new four-year Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Here is what the PHPA included in their press release about the CBA. "The CBA has been modified to include enhancements to the health and welfare plan currently offered to AHL players and their families, and to provide significantly better playoff compensation to players while allowing more flexibility to the AHL in Calder Cup Playoff scheduling and financing. The new Agreement also provides for increases in per-diem and minimum salary as well as modifications to housing and travel provisions."
- The San Jose Barracuda lost their home opener and first ever game in San Jose last night by a score of 4-2 to the Rockford Ice Hogs. There were 6977 fans in attendance to see the historic game. Chris Crane and Vincent Arseneau both played but did not score.
- If you haven't checked out the podcasts that Matt Harding from Team Sin Bin has been posting you need to check them out. Matt does a great job with his interviews and his latest podcast includes an interview with Mike "Doc" Emrick who is the lead announcer for NHL national telecasts on NBC. To find Matt's podcasts go to thesinbin.net and click on the "Into The Sin Bin" link under the "Podcasts" tab.
- Wanted to end the blog post today with a big thank you for all of the support over the last three years. Two milestones were hit in the same day this week when Allen Americans Blog Twitter followers reached 800 and the number of page views for the blog reached 500,000.
DID YOU KNOW: Steve Martinson has been the head coach of two teams during their first year in the ECHL when the were absorbed into the league. Of course last year he led the Allen Americans to the Kelly Cup in their first year when the Central Hockey League was absorbed into the ECHL. In 2003-2004 Martinson was the coach of the San Diego Gulls when the West Coast Hockey League was absorbed by the ECHL. Martinson's team set two records that year that still stand. The Gulls had 100 points that year which is a record for an expansion team in the ECHL. Even more impressive is they had 30 home wins which is still the most home wins in a season by any ECHL team in the history of the league.
Friday, October 9, 2015
Two Player Assigned, New Hash Mark Rule Explained, Gens Delivers Season Tickets, Camp Pics & More
- In what had to have been a bit of a surprise even to coach Martinson the San Jose Barracuda loaned forward Daniel Doremus and defensemen Rick Pinkston to the Allen Americans yesterday. The surprise wasn't the names of the players but the timing of the loan especially for Doremus. Martinson had indicated at the media luncheon on Wednesday it would be a couple of weeks before he got a forward because of injuries in San Jose. Would assume some guys got better quicker than expected.
- With the addition of Doremus and Pinkston there are now 26 players in camp (three goalies, 10 defensemen, 13 forwards) with the final roster of no more than 21 active players (excluding players on injured reserve) due in five days. You can look for the first cuts to be made as soon as Sunday following the preseason game in Wichita on Saturday.
- Wouldn't be a shock if coach Martinson ended up trading a defenseman next week as all ten of the defensemen in camp can play in the ECHL. No easy cuts or camp fillers in this group.
- Have had several questions about the new ECHL rule for this season that changes the end zone hash mark distance to five feet seven inches so here is an illustration (courtesy of scoutingtherefs.com) to show you what will be different this year. This is another rule where the ECHL is matching the NHL rule which changed in 2014-15 from three feet apart to the International Ice Hockey Federation standard of five feet seven inches apart. The rule is supposed to accomplish several things and should place even more importance on winning the draw and gaining possession of the puck. If the attacking team wins the faceoff, its forwards will have a little more room to get into shooting position and if the defensive team wins the faceoff it will be a little more difficult for the attacking team to regain control of the puck because defenders will have a split second more to handle the puck and make a decision. The additional distance should also prevent some of the predraw jostling, shoving and stick work that takes place. The new rule will will also impact power plays and three on three overtime where that little bit of extra distance could make a big difference. The key will be how well the linesmen enforce the new rule. Hope this explanation helps and it is something you can look for when you attend your first game. The blue and red lines in the illustrations below shows you the difference.
- A special thanks to Aaron Gens who came out to Heritage Ranch (where I live) yesterday afternoon to deliver season tickets and thank everyone for supporting the Allen Americans. We stopped at 22 homes and everyone was excited to chat with Aaron and very appreciative of him taking his time during training camp to personally deliver their season tickets. As you can see below fans wanted to talk to Aaron about hockey and his favorite pastime which is fishing.
- Congratulations to Tanner Eberle who has signed a contract with the Iowa Wild (AHL). Tanner made a big impression in a short time last year in Allen and had he not gotten an AHL deal would have returned to play for the Americans. It is disappointing he won't be in Allen but it is always great to see a player take the next step to his dream of making it to the NHL.
- If you track the ECHL transactions you may have noticed that the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) have sent CJ Ludwig, younger brother of Trevor and Tyler, to the Missouri Mavericks. If CJ doesn't get called up to the AHL he will see plenty of Trevor on the ice this year as Allen plays Missouri 11 times with six games being at the Allen Event Center.
- If you are on Twitter and not following all of the Allen Ice Angels suggest you do so immediately. They are in Mexico doing their annual calendar photo shoot and are sending back some great pictures.
- One of the most enjoyable parts of writing a blog is when I meet youngsters who are such big Allen Americans fans they want to write about the team, post pictures or video. I was recently contacted by ten year old Lily who with her dad (David) have started a weekly show they call Team Red where they talk about their favorite teams, the New Jersey Devils organization and the Allen Americans. Lily asked that I give her show a shout out in my blog and anything I can do to encourage a young fan I am more than willing to do, so this is for you Lily. They upload the show to YouTube on Thursday and you can find Lily's videos at the following link. buff.ly/1Vzhopl
- Had a chance to meet Dianne Webster at practice this week as she has been a constant presence with her camera. Dianne is an Allen Americans season ticket holder and an avid photographer who has done a lot of work in outdoor sports photography but had not tried hockey which presents some unique challenges with the speed of the game, lighting, angles and shooting through the glass. I asked Dianne to share some of her training camp pictures with me and she kindly obliged. Her are four samples. Nice work Dianne!
DID YOU KNOW: In the very early days of hockey the game started with the placement of the puck at center ice and on the signal by the referee, who rang a hand bell, the opposing forwards would perform a maneuver known as "Bully". That consisted of whacking the ice on their own side three times, then striking each others stick above the puck and then scrambling for the puck.
- With the addition of Doremus and Pinkston there are now 26 players in camp (three goalies, 10 defensemen, 13 forwards) with the final roster of no more than 21 active players (excluding players on injured reserve) due in five days. You can look for the first cuts to be made as soon as Sunday following the preseason game in Wichita on Saturday.
- Wouldn't be a shock if coach Martinson ended up trading a defenseman next week as all ten of the defensemen in camp can play in the ECHL. No easy cuts or camp fillers in this group.
- Have had several questions about the new ECHL rule for this season that changes the end zone hash mark distance to five feet seven inches so here is an illustration (courtesy of scoutingtherefs.com) to show you what will be different this year. This is another rule where the ECHL is matching the NHL rule which changed in 2014-15 from three feet apart to the International Ice Hockey Federation standard of five feet seven inches apart. The rule is supposed to accomplish several things and should place even more importance on winning the draw and gaining possession of the puck. If the attacking team wins the faceoff, its forwards will have a little more room to get into shooting position and if the defensive team wins the faceoff it will be a little more difficult for the attacking team to regain control of the puck because defenders will have a split second more to handle the puck and make a decision. The additional distance should also prevent some of the predraw jostling, shoving and stick work that takes place. The new rule will will also impact power plays and three on three overtime where that little bit of extra distance could make a big difference. The key will be how well the linesmen enforce the new rule. Hope this explanation helps and it is something you can look for when you attend your first game. The blue and red lines in the illustrations below shows you the difference.
- A special thanks to Aaron Gens who came out to Heritage Ranch (where I live) yesterday afternoon to deliver season tickets and thank everyone for supporting the Allen Americans. We stopped at 22 homes and everyone was excited to chat with Aaron and very appreciative of him taking his time during training camp to personally deliver their season tickets. As you can see below fans wanted to talk to Aaron about hockey and his favorite pastime which is fishing.
- Congratulations to Tanner Eberle who has signed a contract with the Iowa Wild (AHL). Tanner made a big impression in a short time last year in Allen and had he not gotten an AHL deal would have returned to play for the Americans. It is disappointing he won't be in Allen but it is always great to see a player take the next step to his dream of making it to the NHL.
- If you track the ECHL transactions you may have noticed that the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) have sent CJ Ludwig, younger brother of Trevor and Tyler, to the Missouri Mavericks. If CJ doesn't get called up to the AHL he will see plenty of Trevor on the ice this year as Allen plays Missouri 11 times with six games being at the Allen Event Center.
- If you are on Twitter and not following all of the Allen Ice Angels suggest you do so immediately. They are in Mexico doing their annual calendar photo shoot and are sending back some great pictures.
- One of the most enjoyable parts of writing a blog is when I meet youngsters who are such big Allen Americans fans they want to write about the team, post pictures or video. I was recently contacted by ten year old Lily who with her dad (David) have started a weekly show they call Team Red where they talk about their favorite teams, the New Jersey Devils organization and the Allen Americans. Lily asked that I give her show a shout out in my blog and anything I can do to encourage a young fan I am more than willing to do, so this is for you Lily. They upload the show to YouTube on Thursday and you can find Lily's videos at the following link. buff.ly/1Vzhopl
- Had a chance to meet Dianne Webster at practice this week as she has been a constant presence with her camera. Dianne is an Allen Americans season ticket holder and an avid photographer who has done a lot of work in outdoor sports photography but had not tried hockey which presents some unique challenges with the speed of the game, lighting, angles and shooting through the glass. I asked Dianne to share some of her training camp pictures with me and she kindly obliged. Her are four samples. Nice work Dianne!
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| Aaron Gens and the "youthful" Kevin Young share a laugh |
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| All eyes on the puck |
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| Concentration |
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| The new AEC ice - Wonder if those hash marks are correct? |
DID YOU KNOW: In the very early days of hockey the game started with the placement of the puck at center ice and on the signal by the referee, who rang a hand bell, the opposing forwards would perform a maneuver known as "Bully". That consisted of whacking the ice on their own side three times, then striking each others stick above the puck and then scrambling for the puck.
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Comments From The Allen Americans Media Luncheon - Martinson, Costello, Steffes, Hanson & Pierro-Zabotel
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| Hanson, Costello, Martinson, Steffes, Pierro-Zabotel address the media - photo by Tommy Daniels |
The Allen Americans hosted their annual media luncheon yesterday which provided the opportunity to hear from coach Martinson as well as players Chad Costello, Greger Hanson, Gary Steffes and Casey Pierro-Zabotel.
- As reported yesterday the biggest news out of the media luncheon was the announcement that Chad Costello and Gary Steffes would be Co-captains this year. A first for the Americans to have a shared responsibility. Each month one will wear the "C" at home and the other on the road and they will switch each month. Both Chad and Gary emphasized how proud they are to be named co-captains but in their humble manner talked about how the locker room is filled with great leaders and they will all play an important role. Congrats to Chad and Gary who are both well deserving choices as captains.
Here are some of the comments from the coach and players.
Martinson: I am looking forward to getting the season started. We will have a bigger team this year and maybe a little bit faster. We are fortunate to have a lot of players returning from last year including our core group which makes everything a little easier to prepare for the season. It should be a fun group to coach and a fun group to watch. We are very lucky to have our top two scorers back in Costello and Steffes. They lead by example and that is why I selected them to be our Co-captains.
Costello: I am really honored to be selected as a Co-captain along with Gary. We have a great team here in Allen and there are many leaders in our locker room and that is what you need to have to be successful. It will be another great season for Allen fans.
Steffes: I am honored and blessed to be selected as one of the captains of the team. As Chad said we have a lot of leadership in the locker room and that is why this organization continues to win championships. Our locker room has an amazing culture where guys truly care about one another, hold each other responsible and also push each other.
Pierro-Zabotel: My style of play is more of a puck possession style where I like to slow the game down. I am more of a pass first guy rather than shoot but hopefully will get my share of goals especially playing along side skill players like those sitting here with me. I am from Kamloops, British Columbia and with me here in Allen is my wife, Levi, and our six year old son Lane, who is enrolled in school. We are all excited to be in the Allen organization.
Martinson: Our affiliation with San Jose has been excellent. Last year they did a great job of sending us players. When you have an affiliation that cares and wants to help you win it is a big benefit. Some affiliations are not like that so having an affiliation can be good or bad depending on the relationship. San Jose is dealing with some injuries so we will not be getting any forwards from them for a couple of weeks. That will give an opportunity to some of the guys that are here to have a bigger role early in the season. We have a line up right now that will be competitive no matter who we play.
Hanson: Going to training camp with San Jose was a lot of fun. They have really nice facilities with the Barracuda right next to the Sharks. I think all of the guys from Allen played well, contributed and had an impact.
Steffes: It was a tremendous blessing to be in San Jose for sure. All of the Allen guys had a great camp. Having the Barracuda and Sharks so close made everything feel so real. You are literally 20 feet away from the NHL and that is exciting and inspiring. The San Jose organization is very professional and top notch and it was cool for me to see the relationship between the teams in San Jose and the Allen Americans.
Martinson: Our group in the locker room has the same expectation for this year as they had last year. Everyone comes to work and wants to get a little bit better everyday and the expectation is to go out and win the first game and then keep going. The players want it for each other. Hockey is a team sport but you always have to make sure you are doing your job.
Martinson: I will go through Saturday and the preseason game in Wichita with the roster we currently have but I am still reaching out at ways to improve our roster. We do have some guys we thought we were going to get that we won't have. Ian Schultz is not ready to play and it will be a while until he is back. Tanner Eberle was possibly coming back but it looks like that won't happen. San Jose has several forwards injured so it will be a while before they send forwards to Allen. We have a lot of good defensemen and a couple of forwards that have played defense so we will see what happens between now and next Monday. Nothing is etched in stone at this point.
Martinson: I am not sure yet if we will practice the three on three overtime at the end of the preseason game in Wichita. I think we should do it but will have to talk to Wichita to see if they agree. I am also not sure yet if we will have 10 or 12 forwards playing in the game on Saturday. It doesn't make sense for us to beat each other up in a preseason game and it is possible some players could sit out but that hasn't been decided yet. We will have a game regardless so we will see what transpires.
Martinson: Yes, it is true what you have heard that I plan on taking it easy on the officials this year. I am really going to work on that.
Hanson: This is my third season in Allen and coach Martinson makes the "I am going to take it easy on the officals" promise every year so we will see how that works out.
DID YOU KNOW: Chad Costello, Greger Hanson, Gary Steffes and Casey Pierro-Zabotel combined scored 180 goals last year (regular season & playoffs) which is more than some entire ECHL teams scored last season.
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Two Missing From The Practice Brigade, Costello & Steffes Named Co-captains, Rumpel Arrives
Wanted to start out today by acknowledging a couple of Allen Americans super fans that have been missed at training camp practice. One of the benefits of being a season ticket holder in Allen or any hockey town are the friendships you develop over the years. Going to a hockey game is so much more enjoyable when you have these friendships. If you happen to be a fan that attends practice you are in a very small select group of fans that become close hockey friends. The first week of practice during training camp sees a lot of fans in attendance but when December rolls around the number of fans that attend practice is down to a handful. I knew beforehand that Dan and Vicki Zalaznik had moved to Iowa to be closer to family and Richard and Carol Henry were dealing with some health issues but it really hit me that first day of training camp when they weren't sitting in the stands. Dan Zalaznik has seen more Allen Americans practices than anyone including coaches and front office staff as he has been attending practice since day one. I know Dan is still following the Allen Americans from Iowa, will be watching all of the games on ECHL TV and will attend some away games close to home but he is already really missed by me and the practice brigade. Richard Henry isn't at practice because he is currently battling cancer and his treatments require him to stay away from large crowds so no Allen Americans games for him this year. Richard is a warrior and a champion just like the Americans so he will be back and look forward to seeing him as part of the "practice brigade" and attending games again with his hockey family. Richard would love to get some words of encouragement to let him know his hockey family from all over the ECHL has him in their thoughts and prayers. His address is: Richard Henry, 1210 Sandy Creek Dr. Allen, TX 75002. As Richard says, "With all of your good thoughts and prayers I will kick cancer's butt." Let's fill up his mail box with good wishes!
- Joel Rumpel arrived in Allen yesterday and participated in practice for the first time this morning. It is great to have him back in Allen.
- At practice today were three goalies, eight defensemen and 12 forwards. The only player that has yet to report is defensemen Danny Federico.
- Just returned from the Allen Americans media luncheon and will have a full report tomorrow. Thanks to Tommy Daniels, Vice President of Broadcasting and Media Relations and corporate sponsor Abuelo's for putting on another great event. Coach Martinson was in attendance along with players Chad Costello, Gary Steffes, Greger Hanson and Casey Pierro-Zabotel. The big news coming out of the luncheon was Steve Martinson announcing that he has named Chad Costello and Gary Steffes as co-captains for this season. Each month one will wear the "C" at home and the other on the road and they will switch each month. Both Chad and Gary emphasized how proud they are to be named co-captains but in their humble manner talked about how the locker room is filled with great leaders and they will all play an important role. Congrats to Chad and Gary who are both well deserving choices as captains.
- Just received my copy of the 2015-16 ECHL Official Guide & Record Book which is a outstanding reference book full of great information. You can buy the book or CD by going to the ECHL web site (echl.com). Check out the picture of Jamie Schaafsma hoisting the Kelly Cup on the cover of the Media Guide. Sweet!
DID YOU KNOW: Chad Costello had 125 points last season which is the ninth most points scored in ECHL history. Everyone in the top 18 all time in scoring with the exception of Chad played at least 20 years ago when the game was more of a high scoring game. A truly remarkable feat by Chad.
- Joel Rumpel arrived in Allen yesterday and participated in practice for the first time this morning. It is great to have him back in Allen.
- At practice today were three goalies, eight defensemen and 12 forwards. The only player that has yet to report is defensemen Danny Federico.
- Just returned from the Allen Americans media luncheon and will have a full report tomorrow. Thanks to Tommy Daniels, Vice President of Broadcasting and Media Relations and corporate sponsor Abuelo's for putting on another great event. Coach Martinson was in attendance along with players Chad Costello, Gary Steffes, Greger Hanson and Casey Pierro-Zabotel. The big news coming out of the luncheon was Steve Martinson announcing that he has named Chad Costello and Gary Steffes as co-captains for this season. Each month one will wear the "C" at home and the other on the road and they will switch each month. Both Chad and Gary emphasized how proud they are to be named co-captains but in their humble manner talked about how the locker room is filled with great leaders and they will all play an important role. Congrats to Chad and Gary who are both well deserving choices as captains.
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| Chad Costello & Gary Steffes Named Allen Co-captains - photo by scenebykimberly.com |
- Just received my copy of the 2015-16 ECHL Official Guide & Record Book which is a outstanding reference book full of great information. You can buy the book or CD by going to the ECHL web site (echl.com). Check out the picture of Jamie Schaafsma hoisting the Kelly Cup on the cover of the Media Guide. Sweet!
DID YOU KNOW: Chad Costello had 125 points last season which is the ninth most points scored in ECHL history. Everyone in the top 18 all time in scoring with the exception of Chad played at least 20 years ago when the game was more of a high scoring game. A truly remarkable feat by Chad.
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