Allen Wins 5-3, Longest Win Streak Since 2016-17, Game Recap, Video Highlights, Martinson Comments, Assist Leaders, 30+ Goal Scorers, Shootout Stats and More

 

The Allen  Americans extended their winning streak to seven games last night with a 5-3 win over the Wichita Thunder. The last time Allen had a winning streak as long as seven games was in 2016-17. That season, Allen won 15 of its last 16 games to overtake Colorado to win the division. It was almost a 16-game win streak; the Americans won seven straight, lost in overtime, and then won the last eight games of the season. This season reminds me of 2016-17, when I predicted Allen would not catch Colorado and was proven wrong. A couple of weeks ago, I predicted Allen would not be able to catch Idaho for second place. A seven-game win streak by the Americans, combined with a three-game Idaho losing streak, means Allen controls its own destiny. If they win the last five games, the Americans will finish in second place, no matter the outcome of Idaho's last three games of the season in Tulsa this weekend.     

 

- Allen scored five goals last night and improved its league-leading average goals per game to 3.70. A win is a win, but Allen overcame some odds last night. Here are some of the good and the bad:

• Allen outshot Wichita 42-25.
• Allen gave up the first goal of the game and still won. The Americans' record when giving up the first goal is not good, 12-21-2-0 (.371)
• Allen outplayed Wichita in the first period, measured by shots (17-6) and puck possession, but trailed 2-0 at the first intermission. Allen overcame its record when trailing after the first period of 5-17-2-0 (.250) to win the game.
• Allen outscored Wichita 3-0 in the second period to turn the game around. Allen's second period has been the best by far all season. The Americans' goal differential by period is -5 (1st), +41 (2nd), +14 (3rd).
• Allen had a 3-2 lead after the second period, and that has been golden this season. The Americans' record when leading after the second period is 28-0-2-0.
• Allen won despite losing the special teams battle. The game pitted the #1 home penalty kill in Allen against the #28 road power play in Wichita. Allen was 0-4 on the power play, Wichita was 1-3. 
• The bottom line is Allen got an important win against a depleted Wichita team. If Allen wants to keep the winning streak going, the Americans will have to play better tomorrow night against Tahoe. FYI, Allen's win over Wichita last night clinched a playoff spot for Tahoe. The Knight Monsters can't improve on their fourth-place position in the standings. Could that help Allen this weekend?

 

- Goals scorers for Allen were Colby McAuley (25), Jax Dubois, (2), Landon Hookey (1), Danny Katic (36), and Harrison Blaisdell (27). Sam Sedley led the team with three assists, and Hookey led the team with seven shots. Here are the video highlights with all of the goals and the game recaps from both teams with the goal-by-goal details:

• Video highlights: https://echl.com/videos/wichita-thunder-vs-allen-americans-apr-8-2026  
• Allen Americans recap: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/americans-storm-back-to-beat-wichita 
• Wichita Thunder recap: https://wichitathunder.com/news/2026/04/thunder-suffer-5-3-loss-at-allen 

 

- I will have a complete preview tomorrow of the two-game series with Tahoe (Friday and Saturday), but here are a couple of stats. Allen is 1-2-0-0 against Tahoe this season. They played the three games in Tahoe at the beginning of January. Currently, Allen is on a seven-game win streak, and Tahoe has lost four of its last six games.

 

-  The Allen offense continues to click. The totals for the seven-game win streak are 42 goals scored (6.00 average) and 15 goals allowed (2.14 average). Here are some of the individual accomplishments:

• Brayden Watts has an assist in eight of the last nine games. He is #2 in the league in assists (47) and #3 in points (69).
• Danny Katic leads the league in goals (36). He has a goal in 11 of the last 15 games for a total of 14 goals in 15 games.
• Colby McAuley had at least one point in every game of the winning streak and was a plus player as well. His totals for the seven games are 12 points (6G, 6A) and +11.
• Michael Gildon has points in seven of the last eight games. His totals are 15 points (4G, 11A) 
• Harrison Blaisdell has points in six of the last eight games. A total of  11 points (7G, 4A). 
• Sam Sedley has points in five straight games, eight points (2G, 8A). He is #3 in the ECHL in power play assists (24) and #4 in power play points (24).
• Colton Hargrove has 10 points (6G, 4A) in the seven-game win streak and is +11.
• Anthony Costantini +15 and Andre Anania +13 led the team in plus/minus during this seven-game winning streak.    

 

MARTINSON'S POST-GAME COMMENTS

"We didn't defend well on a couple of the goals. We practice defense in a 2-on-1 situation every day in practice, but we didn't play them very well in the game. We will go over some video with the defensemen to clean that up."

"I liked Hookey in the game. He is a big, strong guy with good hands and good vision. He will get stronger over the next 10 days by playing more minutes. He has been in and out of the lineup in Belleville. 

"We have never had an affiliate that is willing to send as many players as Ottawa will send us for the playoffs. Even though Belleville is not going to make the playoffs, they can't send players now. They need them all because they don't have extra players."

"We can't look past Friday night, but I am excited about what we have coming for the playoffs."

"Because we were playing a team that was depleted, we talked before the game about playing the right way and the four important things. Working hard, being in shape, being a team guy, and finishing your checks."

"We didn't score on the power play, but we did some good things. When we work things from the left side, it is nice to have a right shot net front guy like Hookey, because he can step off on his forehand and have a passing lane."

"I didn't match lines at all tonight. With four games in five days, I am trying to keep the minutes even." 

 

    

OTHER COMMENTS

- With his three assists last night Sam Sedley joins the exclusive group of defensemen with 40+ assists in a single season since Allen joined the ECHL:

• 48 assists - Aaron Gens (2014-15)
• 47 assists - Matt Register (2020-21) 
• 44 assists - Alex Breton (2019-20) 
• 43 assists - David Makowski (2017-18)
• 41 assists - Sam Sedley (2025-26) - 5 games remaining

 

 - Danny Katic's 36th goal last night moved him up another notch on the all-time franchise list of 30+ goal scorers. With five games remaining, he has a four-goal lead as the top goal scorer in the ECHL: 

• 49 goals - Hank Crone (2022-23)
• 44 goals - Gary Steffes (2014-15) 
• 41 goals - Chad Costello (2014-15) 
• 39 goals - Colton Hargrove (2022-23)
• 36 goals - Danny Katic (2025-26) - 5 games remaining 
• 36 goals - Jack Combs (2022-23)  
• 35 goals - Greger Hanson (2016-17)  
• 34 goals - Bruce Graham (2010-11)
• 34 goals - Nino Musitelli (2010-11)
• 34 goals - Zach Pochiro (2018-19)
• 33 goals - Chad Costello (2016-17)
• 33 goals - Colton Yellow Horn (2010-11)
• 33 goals - Liam Finlay (2022-23) 
• 31 goals - Bruce Graham (2009-10)
• 30 goals - Corey Mackin (2020-21)

 

- Kansas City lost to Tulsa 2-1 at home last night. The Mavericks' points percentage dropped to .809, which is the second-best all-time. If Kansas City wins its final four games, the Mavericks would finish with a points percentage of .8194, just shy of Idaho's all-time record of .8256 set in 2022-23. The difference is one point over a 72-game schedule.

 

 - There is only one game on the ECHL schedule today: Chad Costello's Greenville Swamp Rabbits take on the Bloomington Bison. Greenville lost 4-3 to Savannah at home last night and was eliminated from the playoffs. The Swamp Rabbits have six games remaining (all at home). It is that time of the season when players are playing for jobs for next season and pride. 

 

- Mathematically, only 10 teams have qualified for the playoffs, but realistically, the Central Division is the only one with playoff spots up for grabs. In the North Division, Reading and Adirondack will join #1 Wheeling and #2 Maine. In the South Division, Savannah will join #1 Florida, #2 South Carolina, and #3 Atlanta. In the Mountain Division, all four playoff teams are already decided. That leaves the Central Division with four teams vying for two playoff spots to join Toledo and Fort Wayne. Here are the points and games remaining for the four teams:

• 72 points - Kalamazoo (6 games remaining, 2 home, 4 away)
• 72 points - Indy (5 games remaining, all away)
• 72 points - Cincinnati (5 games remaining, 3 home, 2 away)
• 69 points - Bloomington (6 games remaining, 2 home, 4 away)  
• Bloomington has the easiest schedule with all six remaining games against non-playoff teams.
• Kalamazoo and Cincinnati play each other three times.
• Which two teams make the playoffs?

 

DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL Stats post today is about shootouts. Allen is the best in the league at converting on shootout attempts. However, the Americans are only 3-5 in games decided in overtime.

 

The anatomy of ECHL shootouts in 2025-26:

 

Zero Shootouts

Norfolk

Tulsa 

 

Best Shootout Record

6-1: Idaho

5-1: Adirondack

5-1: Indy

3-0: Allen

 

Worst Shootout Record

1-5: Toledo

1-4: Wichita

0-3: Florida

0-3: South Carolina 

 

Shootout attempts converted

Best - Allen is 6-9 (.667)

Worst - South Carolina is 0-8

   

Allen vs Wichita Preview, Landon Hookey Assigned By Belleville, Player Profile, Goalie of the Week Questionable Selection, Rookie vs Vet Mix and More

 

It will be a brutal week for the Allen Americans with yet another four games in five days. Three home games starting tonight against Wichita, followed by Tahoe on Friday and Saturday. Then the Americans travel overnight to Wichita after the Saturday game, arriving around 5:00 am. They will have to be at the rink at noon for a 2:05 pm puck drop. 

 

- How important are the four games this week? They got a lot more important last night when Idaho lost to Utah 3-1. Allen's fate is now in its own hands. Here are the facts:

• Idaho's regular season ends on Sunday after they play three games in Tulsa this weekend.
• Idaho has 87 points, and with a sweep in Tulsa will finish with 93 points.
• Allen has 81 points, and if the Americans win their final six games, they will finish the regular season with 93 points.
• If the teams end up tied, Allen holds the tiebreaker, which is regulation wins. 
• Win or lose this week, if Allen is within four points of Idaho after the games on Sunday, the Americans' fate will be in their hands the final week of the season when they play Wichita on the road on the 17th (Friday) and Kansas City at home on the 18th (Saturday).

 

- It is great to know that if Allen wins the final six games of the season, they will finish in second place. That would give them home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. It would also mean just one trip to Idaho instead of two, saving the team $15,000. 

 

- Right now, the only game Allen should be thinking about is tonight against Wichita. With Tahoe coming to Allen for two big games on Friday and Saturday, the Americans can't look past Wichita. It would be easy to do, considering Wichita has the worst record in the ECHL over the last 10 games (2-7-1-0), and they have lost all of their NHL/AHL contracted players. They have had nine different players assigned at some point this season; they currently have none. The only team in the ECHL with no assigned players.

 

- The game tonight will be the 8th of ten games against Wichita. Allen's is 6-1-0-0 against the Thunder.  Here are the stats:

• Allen's record is 38-23-5-0 (.614), Wichita's is 25-30-7-4. 
• Allen is 7-3-0-0 over the last 10 games, Wichita is 2-7-2-0.
• Allen is 21-9-2-0 at home, Wichita is 10-19-5-0 on the road.
• Allen's goal differential is +49 (243-194), Wichita's is -31 (180-211).
• Allen's team plus/minus is +139, Wichita's is -213.
• Allen's team save percentage is .915, Wichita's is .909.

 

- Here is how the teams rank in some key stats: 

• Goals scored average: Allen #1 (3.68) - Wichita #21 (2.73)
• Goals allowed average: Allen #14 (2.94) - Wichita #21 (3.20)
• Shots for average: Allen #2 (33.64) - Wichita #11 (31.73)
• Shots against average: Allen #28 (34.42) - Wichita #27 (34.36)
• Power play percentage: Allen #8 (21.0%) - Wichita #18 (17.7%)
• Penalty kill percentage: Allen #9 (84.1%) - Wichita #11 (83.9%

 

- Here are some other relevant stats:

• Allen is ranked #13 in penalty minutes (851), Wichita is ranked #28 with 648 minutes.
• Allen has scored first in 48% of its games with a record of 27-2-3-0 (.891)
• Wichita has scored first in 47% of its games with a record of 16-11-2-2 (.581).
• Allen has been involved in 11 overtime games with a record of 3-5 in OT and 3-0 in shootouts. 
• Wichita has been involved in 15 overtime games with a record of 3-7 in OT and 1-4 in shootouts. 
• Allen is 27-0-2-0 when leading after the 2nd period, Wichita is 16-2-2-1. 
• Allen is 5-17-2-0 when trailing after the 1st period, Wichita is 6-13-1-2.
• Conclusions from these stats tell you that the team that stays out of the penalty box, scores first, and plays with the lead has a big advantage. Neither team plays well from behind.

 

- Allen has a big special teams advantage when you compare home vs road percentages. Wichita has the second-worst road power play percentage (12.9%) in the league, and Allen has the #1 ranked home penalty kill percentage (89.1). If you look at the head-to-head stats, the Americans scored at least one power play goal in six of the seven games for a total of 9-31 (35.5%). Wichita scored power-play goals in three of the seven games for a total of 4-27 (14.8%).

 

- When it comes to who to watch for the Americans tonight, it is almost everyone. Allen has won six straight games and scored 38 goals in the six games (6.33 average). FYI, the defense has also been good, giving up just 12 goals (2.00 average), and five of them were in one game. The line with Watts,  Katic, and Gildon is one to keep an eye on. Katic has a three-goal lead (35-32) in the goals race, Gildon is looking for his 20th goal, and Watts is #2 in assists and has a chance for #2 in points. I could see this line having a big game tonight, but any of the forwards could have a four-point night tonight.

 

- Here is the tentative lineup for tonight, always subject to change. Hookey will wear #55 and play center. Brett Mirwald will get the start in goal  

Forwards

67 Crone - 7 Hargrove - 92 McAuley 

29 Watts - 91 Gildon - 9 Katic

26 Asuchak  - 55 Hookey - 18 Blaisdell 

77 Sillinger  - 44 Dubois - 11 Barbashyov

 

Defense 

8 Prefontaine - 23 Sedley 

86 Anania - 22 Costantini

21 Decker - 2 Quinn Warmuth

 

Goalies

32 Mirwald 

33 Costantini (backup)

 

 

 - Here are the game notes issued by the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/game-day-preview-final-visit-by-wichita-this-season

 

LANDON HOOKEY PLAYER PROFILE 

- Allen's roster will get a boost tonight with the addition of Landon Hookey, who was just assigned by Belleville. 

Landon Hookey #55

 

 

- Landon Hookey is a 22-year-old,  6''5", 223-pound, right-shot forward from Sarnia, Ontario. Landon is a rookie who has spent the year in Belleville where he has played in 49 games and totaled 12 points (5G, 7A). Last season, Hookey had 70 points (34G, 36A) in 68 games, playing his final year in juniors, for Owen Sound Attack (OHL). He led his team in points and goals, was 2nd in penalty minutes, and was captain of the team. A true power forward who can also play center, kill penalties, and being a right shot can help on the Allen power play. Here is a get-to-know-you video with Hookey after he was signed by Belleville last August: 

 

 

- Hookey's coach last season in Owen Sound was Scott Wray. For you long-time Allen fans, that is a familiar name. In the first year of the franchise (2009-10), the Americans surprised a lot of people, making it to the CHL championship finals against Rapid City. Trailing in the series 3-2, with the final two games in Rapid City, Allen took a 3-0 lead in game six, but Rapid City scored two goals in the final five minutes of the game to send it to overtime. With 32 seconds remaining in the second overtime, Rapid City scored. Scott Wray was the player who scored the championship-winning goal. In my opinion, it was the most disappointing loss in franchise history. 

- I digress. Here is what Hookey's coach, Scott Wray, had to say about him when he named Landon captain: "Landon has been nothing but a leader for us all season. He continues to help work with the young guys to develop into everyday OHL players. He takes pride in both ends of the rink and has really become a true power forward in this league. When Hooks speaks, everyone listens and follows."

 

- Sending Hookey to Allen is an important move and says a lot about Belleville's commitment to the Americans. He needs to play five games in Allen to qualify for the playoffs, so Belleville assigned Landon even though the Senators are still battling for a playoff spot and don't have extra players. I assume he will be here for the rest of the season. Belleville is all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. They will have to win their five remaining games and hope Rochester loses its six remaining games to make the playoffs.

 

- With the players Coach Martinson expects to get from Belleville, starting with Hookey, Allen will start to resemble the type of team Martinson is known for, lots of skill and toughness made for playoff hockey. Any players who get assigned by Belleville going forward are already qualified for the playoffs. What you will see happen over the next 10 days is two-fold. Belleville is really stepping up to help Allen have the strongest playoff roster possible, and the Senators' missing the playoffs gives their players a chance to play more games in crucial situations and develop for next season. 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

-  Surprise is an understatement; shocked is a better word to describe what I felt when I saw Brett Mirwald was not selected as the ECHL Goalie of the Week last week. Nothing against the Savannah goalie who won, but how does the ECHL pass up a 22-year-old goalie making his first two professional starts and recording back-to-back shutouts? The ECHL could have had all kinds of publicity on such a feat. To me, it was a baffling snub that felt like a missed PR opportunity. A master class in missing the obvious.

 

- Allen can do a favor for the idle Tahoe Knight Monsters tonight. Tahoe will clinch a playoff spot if the Americans beat Wichita tonight. The Mountain Division will become the first division to have all four playoff teams determined. Kansas City is locked in as the #1 seed, and Tahoe will be the #4 seed and play the Mavericks in the first round. Allen and Idaho will meet in the first round. Who gets the #2 seed and home ice advantage is still to be determined.

 

- It is a light Wednesday night schedule in the ECHL with only four games on tap. Here is the ECHL Today with all of the previews:  https://echl.com/news/2026/04/echl-today-april-8              

 

- The ECHL had to extend the season a week to fit in the games that were cancelled because of the strike. Idaho made up those games during the season, so its final regular-season game is Sunday. That means the Steelheads will be sitting around for a long time waiting for the playoffs to begin. They could be waiting close to two weeks. Plenty of time to heal those bumps and bruises, but also time for the rust to form. It will be interesting to see how they play to start the playoffs.  

 

DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL Stats post today is about the mix of rookies and veterans on the top ECHL teams. I know Coach Martinson is a believer in the importance of veteran presence during the regular season and playoffs. 

What is the best combination of rookies (R) and veterans (V) to win the Kelly Cup? Here is the mix for the top 10 teams, those above .600 points percentage. When Florida won three straight Kelly Cups (2024, 2023, 2022), the Everblades roster always had the maximum veterans and fewer rookies. Will that formula be key in 2026? These numbers are current as of Monday’s transactions:

 

.821 - Kansas City, 8R, 2V

.735 - Florida, 4R, 5V

.701 - Wheeling, 13R, 1V

.682 - Fort Wayne, 6R, 4V

.679 - Toledo, 12R, 2V

.662 - South Carolina, 12R, 1V

.652 - Maine, 12R, 3V

.647 - Atlanta, 12R, 3V

.630 - Idaho, 15R, 4V

.614 - Allen, 9R, 4V

 

Mirwald with Back-to-Back Shutouts, Game Recaps, Video Highlights, Goal Scoring Records. Magic Numbers, Brabham Cup Curse Stats and More

 

There are so many storylines from the Allen Americans' 4-0 win over Greensboro last night, I don't know where to start. Here they go in no particular order:

• Rookie goalie Brett Mirwald had a 33-save shutout after a 25-save shutout on Friday, which was his first professional start. His only other game action was in South Carolina in the third period of a 7-1 Allen win, when he stopped all six shots he faced. You add it all up, and he has played 133 minutes as a pro and still hasn't given up a goal, saving all 64 shots he has faced. No doubt he will be the ECHL Goalie of the Week when that is announced on Monday.
• Allen won a three-game home series for the first time all season. The Americans did win four straight against Wichita in January, but it was two home and two away.
• Allen has won six straight games, matching the longest win streak of the season (January 4-16).
• Allen's defense hasn't given up a goal in 129 minutes and 17 seconds.  
• With the win last night, Allen has tripled the number of home wins from last season (21 vs 7), and four home games are remaining. Allen's home wins the last four seasons were 7, 17, 18, 20.
• Danny Katic scored an empty net goal, his 35th of the season. He has a three-goal lead in the race for most goals in the league this season. 

 

- Here is what happened in the 4-0 win last night. 

• Allen scored the first goal for the sixth straight game and won them all. The Americans' record when scoring first improved to 27-2-3-0 (.891).
• Allen outshot Greensboro in every period. They had 41 shots on goal, the most shots in 20 games.
• Allen scored in all three periods, leading 2-0 after the first and 3-0 after the second. Allen's record when leading after the second period is 27-0-2-0 (.966).
• Colby McAuley got the party started at 8:46 of the first period, scoring his 24th goal of the season. Colby passed to Crone in the slot and was in a perfect position to put in the rebound of Crone's shot.  
• Allen's second goal was a great give-and-go play between Maxim Barbashev and Kevin Gursoy. The first-period goal, Barbashev's eighth of the season (first in Allen) at the 11:52 mark, gave the Americans a 2-0 lead.
•  Allen extended the lead to 3-0 on the only goal of the second period at 14:54. Spencer Asuchak carried the puck into the zone and dropped a pass behind him to Ty Prefontaine in the slot, and he buried it. It was his eighth goal of the season, tied with Sam Sedley for the lead among defensemen.
• Allen finished the scoring with Katic's empty net goal with 49 seconds remaining in the game. Danny got his money's worth shooting the puck from behind the goal line the length of the ice.

 

- Check out all of the goals, great primary assists, super saves, and the Anania fight in this highlight package, plus the game recaps from both teams:

• Video highlights: https://echl.com/videos/greensboro-gargoyles-vs-allen-americans-apr-4-2026 
• Allen Americans recap: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/game-recap-americans-blank-greensboro-again 
• Greensboro Gargoyles recap: https://gargoyleshockey.com/news/2026/04/americans-sweep-gargoyles-with-4-0-shutout-saturday 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

- Danny Katic is quickly marching up the list of Allen's all-time leaders in goals in a single season, with his 35th last night. He has six games left to continue the march. Here are the all-time leaders: 

• 49 goals - Hank Crone (2022-23)
• 44 goals - Gary Steffes (2024-15)
• 41 goals - Chad Costello (2014-15)
• 39 goals - Colton Hargrove (2022-23)
• 36 goals - Jack Combs (2022-23)
• 35 goals - Greger Hanson (2016-17) 

 

- If you are still holding out hope that the Americans can catch Idaho for second place in the Mountain Division, here are the numbers. Kansas City beat Idaho again last night (4-3) after beating them 5-4 on Friday. Here are the magic numbers:

• Idaho
• 87 - points
• 4 - games remaining (1 at Utah, 3 at Tulsa)
• 95 - maximum points possible

 

• Allen
• 81 - points
• 6 - games remaining
• Wichita (H)
• Tahoe (H)
• Tahoe (H)
• Wichita (A)
• Wichita (A)
• Kansas City (H)
• 93 - maximum points possible

The first tiebreaker is regular-season wins, and Allen owns that tiebreaker 32-27. That means Idaho has to finish one point ahead of Allen to claim third place. If the Americans win their remaining six games, it would force Idaho to earn seven points in its last four games.

 

- If you are thinking about the chances Tahoe can catch Allen for third place in the division, that ship has sailed. With the Americans winning last night and Tahoe losing to Cincinnati, the Knight Monsters are mathematically eliminated from third place.

 

- Here are the points earned by each Mountain Division team over the last 10 games. The number in parentheses is the team's rank in the division standings. This list shows two things. First, 10 games is about three weeks. You can see how hard it is to gain ground. Allen is on a six-game winning streak and has gained two points on Idaho in 10 games. Second, it shows how some teams, like Tulsa, are playing much better than their division rank.  

  

19 points - Kansas City (1st)

14 points - Allen (3rd)

14 points - Tulsa (8th)

12 points - Idaho (2nd) 

11 points - Utah (5th) 

9 points - Tahoe (4th)

9 points - Rapid City (7th)

5 points - Wichita (6th)

   

 

- Brett Mirwald's back-to-back shutouts were not the first for the Americans, but they were the first to take place at home. In franchise history, there have been four back-to-back shutouts, and ironically, two of them happened within a month in 2016. 

• Riley Gill had back-to-back shutouts on November 29, 2016, in Tulsa and on the 30th in Kansas City. Definitely the best back-to-back shutout performance ever. The first game in Tulsa was a 1-0 overtime win; Greger Hanson scored the OT goal. The next night, after traveling to Kansas City, Gill beat the Mavericks 1-0, with Joel Chouinard scoring the only goal at 10:08 of the third period. 
• A month after the Gill back-to-back shutouts, he combined with Jamie Murray to do it again. This time, both games were in Wichita. On December 28, 2016, Riley had a 42-save shutout in a 5-0 win. The next game (two nights later), Jamie Murray had a 27-save shutout in a 9-0 win.
• The last back-to-back shutouts took place on March 19 & 20, 2021. On the 19th, Justin Kapelmaster shutout Tulsa 3- 0 in Allen. The next night, he shutout the Oilers 5-0 in Tulsa.

 

DID YOU KNOW: How powerful is the Brabham cup curse? The curse is so powerful, it books your tee time before the playoffs start. First place comes with an early exit guarantee.

Congrats to the Kansas City Mavericks, who won the Brabham Cup last night as the ECHL regular season champions. Now they must deal with the curse that goes with winning the regular season. The Brabham Cup is proof that the regular season and the playoffs are two completely different sports. Where regular-season Kings become playoff question marks.

 

The curse has bitten every Brabham Cup winner in the 38-year history of the ECHL except the following three. Will Kansas City overcome the odds? Here are the three teams that won the Brabham Cup and went on to win the Kelly Cup:

 

2013-14 - Alaska Aces

2007-08 - Cincinnati Cyclones

1996-97 - South Carolina Stingrays

 

Gargoyles Crumble Under Americans Onslaught, Allen Wins 6-0, Recaps, Video Highlights, Martinson Comments, Today's Lineup, Top Scorers and More

 

It is no secret that the Allen Americans expected to sweep this series against Greensboro this week. After all, the Gargoyles have the worst road record in the ECHL 9-23-3-0 (.300). You add that to the fact that Greensboro is without six of its top seven scorers because of trades and call-ups, and it is understandable why the Gargoyles have lost eight of their last 10 games. The six players who are no longer with the team represent over 40% of the offense. 

 

-  The big surprise came on Thursday when Greensboro, which had scored a total of four goals in its three previous games, laid a five-spot on the Americans in what was a one-goal game (6-5) until Allen scored two empty net goals at the end..

 

- Whatever ailed Allen defensively on Thursday got fixed last night in a 6-0 shutout win over Greensboro. Goalie Brett Mirwald, making his first professional start, was the #1 star of the game with a 25-save shutout. It wasn't Mirwald's first shutout of the season. A month ago, he was still playing college hockey at the University of British Columbia, where he recorded two shutouts.    

 

- Back-to-back delay of game penalties, four seconds apart, created a long 5-on-3 power play opportunity for the Americans. The first delay of the game penalty was on the goalie for playing the puck in the restricted area, and the second was for shooting the puck out of play. It took just 17 seconds for Sam Sedley to score. It was his team's leading eighth goal by a defenseman and proved to be the game-winner. Sam has had four game-winning goals on eight goals scored. 

 

- Allen wasn't done with the power play goals. A minute later, Brayden Watts scored his 22nd of the season and third in this series to give Allen a 2-0 lead, which they took into the first intermission. A good start proved to be effective once again for the Americans. Allen has won five straight games and scored first in all five. The Americans are almost unbeatable when they score first, 26-2-3-0 (.887). Only Kansas City (.929) has a better point percentage than Allen when scoring first. 

 

- Any thoughts of coming back from a deficit like Greensboro did on Thursday were quickly eliminated in the second period. Two even-strength goals by Colton Hargorve, his 24th at 1:58 and Quinn Warmth, his seventh at 2:58, gave Allen a 4-0 lead. Kevin Gursoy scored his third goal of the season late in the period to give Allen a 5-0 lead at the end of the second period, and the Gargoyles' fate was sealed. Allen's record with a second-period lead is 26-0-2-0. 

 

- Allen added one more goal in the third period to make the final score 6-0. Lukas Sillinger scored his second goal of the season and second in as many nights. Allen's goal totals have been something to behold:

• 14 goals in the two games against Greensboro
• 34 goals on this five-game winning streak (6.8  goals per game average)
• Season-long goals per game average is up to 3.68, #1 in the ECHL.

 

- A recap of the goal scorers: Sam Sedley (8), Brayden Watts (22), Colton Hargrove (24), Quinn Warmuth (7), Kevin Gursoy (3), and Lukas Sillinger (2). Here is another super highlight package from the Allen Americans that shows not only the goals but also how they were set up. Some great passes on these goals. Note on the 6th goal, Danny Katic doesn't get an assist, but made a sprawling play to keep the puck in the zone.https://echl.com/videos/greensboro-gargoyles-vs-allen-americans-apr-3-2026    

 

- It is always enjoyable to revisit the keys to the game after a lopsided affair like last night.

• Allen scored first.
• Allen outshot Greensboro in all three periods, 39-25 for the game.
• Allen led 2-0 after the first period, 5-0 after the second.
• Allen won the special teams battle, going 2-3 on the power play, 0-3 on the penalty kill.

 

- Here are the game recaps from both teams:

• Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/game-recap-rookie-blanks-greensboro
• Greensboro Gargoyles: https://gargoyleshockey.com/news/2026/04/gargoyles-shutout-6-0-on-friday-night-in-allen  

 

- What does Allen have to do tonight to sweep the series? Coach Martinson had the answer to that question when asked, "More of the same." 

 

- MARTINSON'S POST-GAME COMMENTS

 "I told the guys I wanted to get 8 goals again, but didn't want to give up any. It was nice to get the shutout, and our new goalie played great. He will play again tomorrow."

"It was nice to get the two power-play goals early. Then everyone is happy on the bench."

"Hank Crone is ready to go and will be back in the lineup tomorrow."

"You have heard me say defense wins championships, but the team that scores the most goals wins every game. We want to be better defensively, and tonight we showed it."

"I am not surprised some things went a little off on Thursday. When you are playing a last-place team that has traded away some guys, you can tell the players all you want that they have to be ready, but they are not listening; they have to experience it. They got a little wake-up call in that game and responded well tonight by playing a smart defensive game."

"I am still expecting to get help from Belleville, but not sure of the timing. Belleville has not been eliminated from the playoffs yet, so that will be a factor. We could get one player as soon as next week." 

     

 Here is the lineup for tonight. Hank Crone returns after a couple of injury setbacks. He has played in only three games since the end of February. 

Forwards

67 Crone - 7 Hargrove - 92 McAuley 

77 Sillinger - 91 Gildon - 9 Katic

26 Asuchak  - 18 Blaisdell - 29 Watts

11 Barbashyov - 44 Dubois - 14 Gursoy

 

Defense 

8 Prefontaine - 23 Sedley 

86 Anania - 22 Costantini

21 Decker - 2 Quinn Warmuth

 

Goalies

32 Mirwald 

33 Costantini (backup)

 

 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

 

- Allen has five players with 20 or more goals, and Gildon is just one away. The Americans have never had six players with 20+ goals since joining the ECHL in 2014-15. In 2022-23, the Americans had no players with between 13 and 32 goals. They had four with 33 or more:

 

• 49 goals - Hank Crone
• 39 goals - Colton Hargrove
• 36 goals - Jack Combs
• 33 goals - Liam Finlay 

 

 

- Allen is on a five-game winning streak and can match the lone six-game winning streak it had earlier in the season with a win tonight. The Americans are averaging close to seven goals per game during this win streak. Six players are averaging over 1.50 points per game in the last five games:

• 2.40 - Michael Gildon, 12 points (3G, 9A)
• 2.00  - Colton Hargrove, 10 points (6G, 4A)
• 2.00 - Sam Sedley, 10 points (4G, 6A)
• 1.80 - Harrison Blaisdell, 9 points (5G, 4A)
• 1.80 - Colby McAuley. 9 points (4G, 5A) 
• 1.60 - Brayden Watts, 8 points (3G, 5A) 

 

 

- Here are the players on the ECHL current streak leader board:

#1  Goals - Colton Hargrove (5 games)

#1 Assists - Danny Katic (7 games)

#2 Points - Danny Katic (8 games)

#3 Assists - Colby McAuley (5 games) 

  

 

 

- Here is another contrast between last season and this season. Allen's defensemen totaled 98 points last season. This season, the total is 166 points, and there are still seven games remaining.    

  

 

 - Tahoe has a chance to clinch a playoff spot with a win today and join the 10 teams that have already qualified for the playoffs. If that happens, the Mountain Division will be the first to have all four of its playoff teams decided. In other action, Kansas City has another chance to win the Brabham Cup, and Florida has a chance to win the South Division. Here are the details and the game previews for the 13 games on the schedule today: https://echl.com/news/2026/04/echl-today-april-4

 

DID YOU KNOW: Odd stat of the day. The ECHL top road records are better than the top home records, and one team is #1 in both:

 

Top Road Records

.859 - Kansas City (26-3-1-2)

.786 - Fort Wayne (24-4-7-0)

 

Top Home Records

.779 - Kansas City (26-7-1-0)

.765 - Wheeling (24-6-2-2)

 

The odd stat for an individual team goes to Utah. The Grizzlies' home record is dead last (.367 - 9-17-3-1). Utah’s road record is top 10 (.528 - 17-15-3-1).

  

Eight on the Board, Work to Do, Game Recap, Video Highlights, Coaches Comments, All-Time Allen Hat Tricks. Allen Defense is Best in 5 Years, and Empty Net Goals

 

It is hard to find fault with an Allen Americans home game that produced the following results:

• Largest crowd of the season, 6275, on a Thursday morning!
• Clinched Kelly Cup playoff spot 
• 8 goals scored, highest of the season (tied).
• Improved average goals per game to 3.64, #1 in the ECHL.
• Scored on the 1st shot of the game, 34 seconds after puck drop. 
• Danny Katic hat trick, his 3rd of the season and Americans' record 9th of the season. 
• Brayden Watts scored 2 goals, including a shorty, giving him 100 for his career.

 

- With all of the greatness in an 8-5 win and qualifying for the playoffs, there was a lot to like, but it wasn't exactly a complete, playoff-caliber performance.

• After scoring first, Allen fell behind 3-1.
• After taking a 5-3 lead with two goals early in the third period, Allen gave up two goals, one of them on an ill-advised 5-on-3 power play. The game was tied 5-5 with five minutes remaining.
• The game was really a 6-5 game as Allen scored two empty net goals.
• Greensboro, without its captain and assistant captain (both traded), leading scorer (recalled), and with 16 rookies on the roster, gave Allen all it could handle. 

 

- The bottom line is Allen put up eight goals and got the win over Greensboro. Allen brought a cannon on offense, but defensively, it was more like a screen door in a storm. And as Coach Martinson reminded me in his post-game interview, making the playoffs isn't the finish line; it is the starting gate. There is no need to celebrate; making the playoffs is the invitation, not the celebration.  

 

- Goal scorers for Allen were Lukas Sillinger (1), Danny Katic (32,33,34), Brayden Watts (20,21), and Colton Hargrove (22,23). Michael Gildon had three assists, Ty Prefontaine, Harrison Blaisdell, and Watts had two. Here is a great highlight package that shows all of the goals and includes how the goals were set up. https://echl.com/videos/greensboro-gargoyles-vs-allen-americans-apr-2-2026  

 

- Here are the game recaps with the goal-by-goal details: 

• Allen Americans: "Americans Clinch Playoff Spot."  https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/americans-clinch-playoff-spot
• Greensboro Gargoyles: https://gargoyleshockey.com/news/2026/04/gagnon-kuzma-score-twice-in-8-5-loss-at-allen 

 

- Talking to the coaches after the game, the pregame meetings today will go over the defensive breakdowns on the 5 goals allowed (team defense), the over-passing, and the need to compete harder against a team that should not be tied with Allen late in the game. My message is be selfish, shoot the puck, don't get outshot (it was 32-28 last night).

 

- Here is an update on the keys to the game from yesterday. 

• Keep up the recent scoring. Allen has averaged seven goals per game over the last four games (8,7,6,7). 
• Score first. Allen is 25-2-3-0 (.883) when they score 1st, enough said.
• Get off to good starts. Allen's goal differential by period is -7 (1st), +34 (2nd), and +11 (3rd). 
• Win the special teams battle. Allen has the #1 home penalty kill percentage (88.6%), Greensboro has the #28 ranked road penalty kill percentage (73.3%) 
• Play with the lead. Allen is 25-0-2-0 when leading after the 2nd period.  

 

- The game tonight will go from one referee to two. The referee from yesterday was Grant Hendrich (#5). He will be joined by Ryan Siegel (#42) tonight. There will also be one different linesmen, Aaron Schacht (#51) joins Joey Kramer (#90) from last night.

 

- The lineup tonight will be almost the same as yesterday. It hasn't been officially reported anywhere, but if you haven't heard, Jackson Parsons was recalled by Belleville. Brett Mirwald will make his first pro start tonight. There are also changes on a couple of the lines. Here is the lineup tonight:

Forwards

11 Barbashyov - 7 Hargrove - 92 McAuley 

77 Sillinger - 91 Gildon - 9 Katic

26 Asuchak  - 18 Blaisdell - 29 Watts

19 Maxwell - 44 Jax Dubois - 14 Gursoy

 

Defense 

8 Prefontaine - 23 Sedley 

86 Anania - 22 Costantini

21 Decker - 2 Quinn Warmuth

 

Goalies

32 Mirwald 

33 Costantini (backup)

 

 

- Here is the game preview issued by the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/game-day-preview-friday-night-on-ice-in-allen 

 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

-  Danny Katic's hat trick yesterday set the all-time record for hat tricks in a single season. Here is every hat trick since Allen joined the ECHL in 2014-15. The order is by most hat tricks: 

• 2025-26 (9)
• 3 - Danny Katic 
• 2 - Harrison Blaisdell 
• 1 - Hank Crone 
• 1 - Mark Duarte 
• 1 - Colton Hargrove 
• 1 - Brayden Watts

 

• 2022-23 (8)
• 3 - Hank Crone
• 2 - Liam Finlay
• 2 - Colton Hargrove
• 1 - Jakov Novak 

 

• 2021-22 (6)
• 2 - Branden Troock
• 1 - Chad Costello  
• 1 - Gavin Gould
• 1 - Luke Henman
• 1 - Josh Winquist

 

• 2016-17 (6)
• 3 - Bryan Moore 
• 2 - Greger Hanson
• 1 - Chad Costello

 

• **2014-15 (6)
• 2 - Jack Combs
• 1 - Chad Costello
• 1 - Conrad Abeltshauser*
• 1 - Kyle Follmer
• 1 - Greger Hanson

 

• 2018-19 (5)
• 1- Alex Breton*
• 1 - Jacob Doty
• 1 - Zach Pochiro
• 1 - Braylon Schmyr
• 1 - Gary Steffes

 

• 2024-25 (3)
• 1 - Spencer Asuchak
• 1 - Easton Brodzinski
• 1 - Brayden Watts

 

• 2019-20 (3)
• 1 - Gabe Gagne
• 1 - Alex Guptill
• 1 -Jordan Topping 

 

• 2017-18 (3)
• 1 - Vincent Arseneau
• 1 - Alex Guptill
• 1 - Gary Steffes

 

• **2015-16 (3)
• 1 - Dyson Stevenson
• 1 - Chad Costello
• 1 - Chris Crane

 

• 2020-21 (2)
• 1 - Les Lancaster*
• 1 - Jesse Mychan  

 *Defensemen 

**Kelly Cup Championship years

 

- I get lots of feedback every day on how the Allen Americans are performing from comments on the blog and social media, to text messages, emails, and chatting with fans at the game. Recently, there have been lots of comments about the defense. Being a stats guy, I decided to look at the offense and defense and compare this season to the last five seasons and the two Kelly Cup championship seasons. The stats say this season is the best in the last five seasons and is on par with the 2016 championship team. Here is Allen's ECHL rank on offense (1st number) and defense (2nd number) based on average goals scored and allowed per game:

• 2025-26: #1 - #16
• 2024-25: #29 - #29
• 2023-24: #12 - #26
• 2022-23: #8 - #23
• 2021-22: #9 - #20
• 2015-16: #10 - #13
• 2014-15: #1 - #7 

 

- It is a big night in the ECHL with 28 of the 30 teams in action, and there are still six playoff teams to be determined. Lots of teams are still fighting for those six playoff spots, plus other teams are trying to get home ice advantage for the first round of the playoffs. Bottom line is there are a lot of meaningful games on the schedule tonight. Here is the ECHL Today with all of the previews: https://echl.com/news/2026/04/echl-today-april-3  

 

- Danny Katic's hat trick vaulted him into the ECHL lead in goals with 34. Here are the players with 30 or more goals with games remaining. The way Katic has been scoring, 12 goals in his last 12 games, he could hit 40 goals and is the clear favorite to lead the league in goals. 

• 34 goals - Danny Katic (8 games remaining)
• 32 goals - Brendan Hoffmann, Idaho (has been loaned to the AHL since February 10)
• 31 goals - Reed Lebster, Utah (6 games remaining)
• 30 goals - Brandon Hawkins, Toledo (7 games remaining)  

 

- The Kansas City Mavericks can clinch the regular season championship (Brabham Cup) tonight if they beat Idaho on the road and Florida loses at Jacksonville. The big question is whether the Mavericks can survive the curse of the Brabham Cup. The regular season champion hasn't won the Kelly Cup since 2014. The Brabham Cup has been less of a trophy and more like a warning label the last 12 years: "contents may not survive the playoffs."    

 

- Seven players had multi-point games last night and kept their hot hand going:

• Harrison Blaisdell has a 5-game point streak, 10 points (6G, 4A)
• Michael Gildon has a 5-game point streak, 12 points (4G, 8A).
• Brayden Watts has 9 points (2G, 8A) in the last 6 games.
• Danny Katic has averaged a goal per game over the last 12 games and has a six-game assist streak.
• Colton Hargrove has a 4-game goal streak (5G, 2A).
• Ty Prefontaine hasn't had a negative plus/minus game in a month. He leads the team at +20.
• Colby McAuley has a four-game points streak, 8 points (4G, 4A).

 

DID YOU KNOW: Empty net goals for each ECHL team range from 3 to 17:

 

17: *KC*

16: ALN

14: IDH, SC, *WHL*

13: RC

12: ADK, *FLA*, MNE, REA, SAV, *TOL*

11: GVL, TUL

10: ATL, BLM, NOR, UTA

9: FW, GSO, TR

8: JAX

7: WIC

6: IND, ORL, TAH, WOR

5: IA, KAL

3: CIN

 

*Division point leaders

 

School Day Preview vs Greensboro, Asuchak Returns, Today's Lineup, Allen Win Clinches Playoffs, Goalies Assigned to ECHL, Players on IR and More

 

The Allen Americans can clinch a playoff spot today with a win over Greensboro in the third School Day game of the season (10:30 am CDT). The first two School Day games have been big hits on and off the ice. 

• November 5 - Allen beat Wichita 6-4, led by a Mark Duarte hat trick, before a Wednesday morning crowd of 6250, of which 5000 were children. It was a milestone game for Coach Martinson, his 400th win in Allen.
• December 3 - Allen beat Utah 3-2, led by a Hank Crone hat trick. Once again, it was a big crowd (6112) of mostly school kids when the 6-7 craze was in full view. Here is what I wrote in the blog after that game. You can only imagine what happened in the game yesterday when the kids heard player introductions, and Hank Crone 6-7 was in the starting lineup. The noise was off the charts. It only got louder when Hank scored a natural hat trick (3 straight goals). Each time PA Announcer, Lee Hastings, announced a Crone goal in a drawn-out 6-7, it got louder and louder. By the time Hank scored his third goal to give Allen a 3-1 lead, the 6-7 brought a level of noise as loud as I have ever heard in the arena, including the championship years.  
• The question of the day is, who gets the hat trick today to lead Allen to victory?

 

- It is always enjoyable when teams outside the Mountain Division visit Allen. It typically happens twice per season. This season, it was Norfolk, and now Greensboro (1st-year franchise). Last season, it was Worcester and Jacksonville, and in 2023-24, it was Atlanta and Adirondack:

 

- Here is a preview of the three games against Greensboro today, Friday, and Saturday. Here are some comparison stats between Allen and Greensboro:

• Allen's record is 35-23-5-0, Greensboro is 18-38-6-1. 
• Allen is 6-4-0-0 over the last 10 games, Greensboro is 3-6-1-0.
• Allen is 18-9-2-0, Greensboro is 9-21-3-0 on the road.
• Allen's goal differential is +36 (225-189), Greensboro's is -67 (164-231).
• Allen's team plus/minus is +85, Greensboro's is -272.
• Allen's team save percentage is .913, Greensboro's is .882.

 

- Here is the more traditional statistical comparison between the two teams. The league rank is in parentheses: 

• Goals scored average: Allen, 3.57 (#3) - Greensboro, 2.60 (#24)
• Goals allowed average: Allen, 3.00 (#15) - Greensboro, 3.67 (#30)
• Shots for average: Allen, 33.52 (#2) - Greensboro, 29.41 (#19)
• Shots against average: Allen, 34.63 (#28) - Greensboro, 31.08 (#20)
• Power play percentage: Allen, 20.7% (#10) - Greensboro, 15.1% (#26)
• Penalty kill percentage: Allen, 83.7% (#11) - Greensboro, 77.1% (#27) 

 

- If you look at the stats above, it is clear that Allen is the better team. How do the Americans turn that advantage into three wins against the Gargoyles? 

• Keep up the recent scoring. Allen has averaged six goals per game over the last four games (7,6,7,4). 
• Score first. Allen is 24-3-2-0 (.879) when they score 1st, enough said.
• Get off to good starts. Allen's goal differential by period is -7 (1st), +34 (2nd), and +8 (3rd). 
• Win the special teams battle. Allen has the #1 home penalty kill percentage (89.0%), Greensboro has the #28 ranked road penalty kill percentage (73.5%) 
• Play with the lead. Allen is 25-0-2-0 when leading after the 2nd period.  

 

- If any of the games go to overtime, here are the records:

• Allen: 3-5 in overtime, 3-0 in shootouts
• Greensboro: 1-6 in overtime, 2-1 in shootouts  

 

- It is hard to say who the players are to watch for Greensboro. They have been sellers recently, trading players for futures/players for next season. Five of the Gargoyles' top six players in points are gone, including their captain (Logan Nelson) and assistant captain (Patrick Newell). The leading scorer (Tyler Weiss) was recalled and assigned to another ECHL team. In their place, Greensboro has recently signed a bunch of college guys. I was talking to the Greensboro broadcaster yesterday after practice, and he shared that the Gargoyles have 16 rookies on the roster. 

 

- Who has been hot for the Americans? 

• Andre Anania is in the midst of a 9-game point streak (2G, 10A) and a 6-game assist streak.
• Harrison Blaisdell has a 4-game goal streak, scoring 6 goals in the last 4 games.
• Michael Gildon has 10 points (4G, 6A) in a four-game point streak.
• Brayden Watts has six assists in the last five games.
• Danny Katic has a 5-game assist streak.
• Colton Hargrove has a three-game goal streak (3G, 2A). 

 

- Allen's lineup today includes the return of Spencer Asuchak, who has been out since February and Chase Maxwell, who has missed the last four games with an upper body injury. Hank Crone will not play in the Greensboro series. Sam Sedley is back from a quick call-up to Belleville. Marco Costantini gets the start in goal. Coach Martinson has said all three goalies will play in this series, but that can change based on the situation. Here is the lineup for today. 

Forwards

11 Barbashyov - 7 Hargrove - 92 McAuley 

9 Katic - 91 Gildon - 29 Watts

26 Asuchak  - 18 Blaisdell - 77 Sillinger

19 Maxwell - 44 Jax Dubois - 14 Gursoy

 

Defense 

8 Prefontaine - 23 Sedley 

86 Anania - 22 Costantini

21 Decker - 2 Quinn Warmuth

 

Goalies

33 Costantini

32 Mirwald (backup)

 

- The game will be a one-referee game. The referee will be Grant Hendrich (#5). The linesmen will be Daniel Barnes (#76) and Joey Kramer (#90). 

 

- Here is the game preview from the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/game-morning-preview-americans-host-gargoyles-at-1030-am 

  

OTHER COMMENTS

 - A reminder that I no longer have an Allen Americans Blog X (Twitter) account, but those of you who have accessed the blog via X still can. I am posting the blog directly to the Allen Americans X account. Make sure you are following the Allen Americans (@AllenAmericans).    

Here are other ways to access the blog:

• Bookmark "Allen Americans Blog" on Google or whatever search engine you use.
• Go to the Allen Americans website (allenamericans.com) and click on News & Info, and there will be a drop-down menu. Click on Janssen on Hockey, and it will take you to the blog.
• If you have Facebook, follow Allen Americans Blog. 

 As of this morning, I have written 2843 blogs and had 4,362,672 page views, and it is still a lot of fun because of you, the readers! Thanks!

 

- Allen is the only Mountain Division team playing today. Last night's results helped Allen be in a position to clinch a playoff spot with a win this morning:

• Tulsa beat Rapid City 5-0 
• Idaho beat Kansas City 4-3 in a shootout. Idaho scored with one second remaining to tie the score. 
• Cincinnati beat Tahoe 4-3 in overtime 

 

- Here are the maximum points each team could earn if they won all remaining games: Current points are in parentheses:

• 120 points - Kansas City (106)
• 96 points - Idaho (87)
• 93 points - Allen (75)
• 82 points - Tahoe (70)
• 76 points - Wichita (60)
• 74 points - Rapid City (60)
• 71 points - Utah (59)
• 67 points - Tulsa (51)

 

- There are five games on the ECHL schedule today. The Americans' School Day game is the only morning start. Here is the ECHL Today with all of the previews: https://echl.com/news/2026/04/echl-today-april-2 

 

- Here is Allen's record at the end  of each month this season:

• 2-2-1-0 -  October 
• 6-7-3-0 - November
• 14-10-3-0 - December
• 22-14-4-0 - January
• 29-19-5-0 - February
• 35-23-5-0 - March

 

- This was my ECHL Stats post as of Tuesday. Notice Greensboro has two NHL-contracted goalies. The ECHL serves as a development league, especially for goalies. The numbers vary, but this week, 22 NHL contracted goalies and 23 AHL contracted goalies are assigned to ECHL teams. Here are the teams with NHL & AHL contracted goalies assigned. Rapid City had its AHL-contracted goalie recalled yesterday, and is the only ECHL team without a NHL/AHL-contracted player currently on its roster.

 

NHL - 17 teams (5 have 2)

Adirondack

Allen

Bloomington

Fort Wayne(2)

Greensboro (2)

Idaho

Iowa (2)

Jacksonville

Kalamazoo

Maine

Norfolk

Orlando

Toledo(2)

Tulsa

Utah(2)

Wheeling

Worcester 

 

AHL - 18 teams (5 have 2)

Adirondack

Atlanta(2)

Cincinnati

Florida

Greenville

Indy (2)

Kalamazoo

Kansas City (2)

Norfolk

Orlando

Reading

Savannah(2)

South Carolina

Tahoe

Trois Rivières (2)

Wheeling

Wichita

Worcester

 

 

 

DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL stats post today is about players on 14-day IR. One of Allen's players is Troy Murray. There was a question in the comments section about his status. Troy is out for the season and went home a few weeks ago. FYI, Braidan Simmons-Fischer was injured and is also out for the season. He was on loan to the Iowa Wild (AHL).

 

Injuries can have a big impact on team success, especially as the playoffs approach. Here are the number of players currently on 14-day injured reserve for each ECHL team:

 

9: JAX, IND, UTA

8: SC

6: BLM, FW, KAL, MNE, TUL, WOR

5: ADK, *FLA, GVL, REA

4: IDH, NOR, ORL, TAH

3: ALN, ATL, GSO, IA, *KC, RC, SAV

2: CIN, TR, *WHL, TOL

0: WIC

 

*Division leaders