Allen Wins 6-3, Game Recap, Martinson Comments, Jersey Auction Results, A Blogger's Trifecta

 #1 Star Dyson Stevenson - 3 goals, 1 assist and a +4

Led by Dyson Stevenson's hat trick the Allen Americans defeated the Wichita Thunder 6-3 last night before a crowd of 4729 at the Allen Event Center (AEC). The win extended Allen's home winning streak to nine games and kept intact the Americans perfect record against Wichita this season which now stands at 12-0. They will play for the 13th and final time this afternoon at the AEC with a 4:05 puck drop.


Goal scorers for Allen were Gary Steffes (17), Stevenson (6,7,8), Tristan King (9), and David Makowski (11). You can check out all of the video highlights at the Rewind Section of the ECHL website: http://www.echl.com/

- It is always a good sign when Allen scores first as they did last night when Steffes got his goal at the 7:54 mark of the first period. The Americans are the best in the ECHL when scoring first. They get 90% of the available points when they score first. That translates to a record 26-2-1-1 for the season.

- Wichita tied the score 1-1 on a power play goal at the 12:23 mark of the first period but then the Americans reeled off three straight goals in a span of two minutes which included two goals by Dyson Stevenson just ten seconds apart. Allen took a 4-2 lead into the first intermission and never led by less than two goals the rest of the game.

- It was a good win for Allen given the fact they were missing Spencer Asuchak (suspension), Chris Crane (injury) and Justin Courtnall (injury). All three will be out of the lineup this afternoon as well. 

- The one possible line up change this afternoon could be in goal. It will be interesting to see if rookie Jamie Murray, who just arrived in Allen having signed with the San Jose Sharks on Friday, will get his first professional start.



 STEVE MARTINSON'S POST GAME COMMENTS

- It was a good win tonight and we had the opportunity to give some guys more ice time with Asuchak, Crane and Courtnall out.

- On Wichita's power play goal they had a guy in front of Gill so he was screened. Riley played a good game tonight as he has since he has returned to the lineup.

- Matt Register looked real good for his first game. He will be a great addition to the line up. He has excellent vision on the ice.

- Nick Miglio did well for himself. He is a Texas guy we brought in to take a look at and with all of the missing players he had a chance to play. He skates well and drew a couple of penalties.

- I am hoping to have another player signed tomorrow and he should be here next week if all goes well. A college player just finishing his collegiate career. A big, tough forward that has some skill.


OTHER COMMENTS

- It was good see Aaron Gens at the game so soon after breaking his ankle. Aaron mentioned he was still in some pain, especially when he doesn't keep the ankle elevated but he wanted to see the guys play and support the team.

- The hat trick for Dyson Stevenson was his first as a pro.

- Heard from Tommy Daniels on his radio broadcast that today will be game 1400 for coach Steve Martinson as a head coach. Congrats!

- Quad City beat Cincinnati last night and moved into the #8 playoff seed with Tulsa falling out of the playoffs. Tulsa was idle last night but has lost seven straight games.

- It was a great night for "Barry the Blogger" in addition to the Allen win. Rick Gosselin from the Dallas Morning News was at the game as he is a big supporter of the Allen Americans. Rick has been kind enough to share his many years of experience by answering my numerous questions on the do's and don'ts of writing a blog. His advice has been invaluable. During the first intermission I jumped on the radio with Wichita broadcaster Jason Mals and talked hockey with him. Jason has also been a mentor to me as he reached out when I first started writing the blog and didn't have a clue what I was doing, to provide advice and counsel. Finally, Tommy Daniels invited me to do color commentary during the third period while his sidekick, Maurice Fitzgerald did the play by play. Tommy was feeling a little under the weather. I wouldn't even have a blog if it wasn't for Tommy Daniels. It was his idea and prodding that got the whole thing started four years ago and without his support it just would not have happened. Bottom line is I hit the trifecta last night getting to spend time with Gosselin, Mals and Daniels who have all played a major part in whatever the blog has accomplished. Thanks to all three for their willingness to go above and beyond to share what they have learned as professionals with this amateur. 


JERSEY AUCTION

The Americans wore specialty jerseys last night for the JDRF Diabetes Foundation that were auctioned after the game. Here are the results:

$1500 - Chad Costello
$950 - Gary Steffes
$850 - Dyson Stevenson
$850 - Nick Miglio
$750 - Justin Courtnall
$750 - Vincent Arseneau
$750 - Joel Rumpel
$700 - Greger Hanson
$700 - Aaron Gens
$650 - Spencer Asuchak
$600 - Reggie Traccitto
$550 - Chris Crane
$550 - Matt Register
$550 - Mike Gunn
$550 - Tristan King
$500 - David Makowski
$500 - Rick Pinkston
$500 - Jacob Poe
$500 - Eric Roy
$500 - Danny Federico
$450 - Casey Pierro-Zabotel
$450 - Reid Halabi
$450 - Nolan Bowker
$350 - Daniel Doremus

Tommy Daniels interviews Camden Costello about his dad's $1500 jersey auction

QUESTION OF THE DAY: Thanks to Jeff for today's question.

Q: How are referees graded by the ECHL?
A: Supervisory officials attend numerous games during the season to observe first hand all referees as well as linesmen. They have a system of evaluation and use that info to provide feedback to the officials. The accumulation of supervisor evaluations also serves as a source of information for training and education purposes.



DID YOU KNOW: Wichita seems to always play their opponents close even if they lose. For the season they have gone to overtime/shootout 19 times which is more than any other team in the ECHL. Wichita is 3-6 in overtimes and 4-6 in shootouts. Seven of Wichita's 13 victories this season have come in extra time (overtime or shootout).