Another Overtime Loss to Colorado, Game Recap, Steve Martinson's Comments, Rematch Preview, Playoff Race and One Year Ago Today

The Allen Americans lost to the Colorado Eagles last night but managed to pick up one very important point in a 3-2 overtime loss. There were 4107 fans at the Allen Event Center (AEC) to watch the Americans overcome the odds to get that valuable point. Allen gave up the first goal of the game to their old nemesis and former defenseman Matt Register which is never a good sign. The Americans trailed 1-0 after the first period and that wasn't a good sign since Allen's record when trailing after the first period at home is now 0-4-3-0. The Americans trailed 2-1 after the second period and that wasn't a good sign since Allen's record when trailing after the second period is 1-4-3-0.

- Despite the odds the Americans won the third period by scoring a shorthanded goal to tie the score 2-2 and send the game overtime. Allen beat the odds with their game tying shorthanded goal because Colorado is the best in the league when it comes to shorthanded goals. They were right at the top ranked #2 in shorthanded goals scored (12) and ranked #2 in shorthanded goals allowed (3). Meanwhile Allen was ranked #22 in shorthanded goals scored (6) and #16 in shorthanded goals allowed (10). When Thomas Frazee scored shorthanded early in the third period to tie the score 2-2 it looked like the Americans might overcome all of the odds and win the game.


- Neither team was able to get the game winner in the last 15 minutes of the third period which meant Allen would have to overcome more odds to get the win. Overtime has not been kind to the Americans this season. Allen has the worst overtime record in the ECHL having won twice in overtime while losing six times.  The overtime period started out okay for Allen as Thomas Frazee won the opening faceoff  and the Americans maintained possession but could not get a shot on goal. It didn't take long after Colorado got the puck to end the game as Joey Ratelle beat his man one on one and put the puck past Jake Paterson. It was the first shot of the overtime period and took just 67 seconds. Fittingly, that old nemesis, Matt Register, had the primary assist on the overtime game winner.


- Obviously Allen fans came away disappointed but the Americans worked hard to overcome 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to earn a point and that could turn out to be a big point when all is said and done.


- Thomas Frazee scored both goals for Allen, his 15th and 16th of the season and was the best player on the ice. In addition to scoring goals his net front presence, finishing checks and winning faceoffs were all key. Not being eligible for the playoffs is difficult for Frazee but he is doing everything he can to help Allen make the playoffs.


- Here is the game recap from the Allen Americans:  https://allenamericans.com/americans-get-point-ot-loss-colorado/


- Here is the game recap from the Colorado Eagles: http://coloradoeagles.com/eagles-news/ratelle-buries-ot-winner-in-eagles-3-2-win-over-allen/


- Here is a highlight package from Sporfie: https://sporfie.app.link/ykX7VM00IL


- This is the Sporfie view of the first Allen goal. Notice the nice pass from J.C. Campagna that sets up Thomas Frazee who makes a great shot. https://sporfie.app.link/xXtlrzPNIL


- This is Frazee's shorthanded goal. Allen is making a change but Joel Chouinard and Frazee rush the puck and just outwork three Colorado players. Great work by both players.
https://sporfie.app.link/SWzsIg8RIL



STEVE MARTINSON'S PREGAME AND POST GAME COMMENTS

Here is coach Martinson's pregame interview with Kayla McLain:

Here are Martinson's Post Game Comments:

- I had a chance to visit briefly with coach Martinson after the game and he reiterated the importance of getting more production from the top lines and veteran guys. He noted that David Makowski sat out as a healthy scratch for the fourth straight game in San Jose and how much help he could provide down the stretch for Allen. Martinson was clear getting one point was big but was also clear the team has to play better in the rematch with the Eagles tonight.



ALLEN VS COLORADO REMATCH

 - Allen was able to earn a point last night even though they allowed the first goal of the game, were out shot 33-23, didn't get a power play goal and lost their sixth (out of eight) overtime game. A better start, more shots on goal and success on the power play will be the keys tonight.


- The officiating crew tonight will be the same as last night. The referee will be Jeremy Tufts (#6 ) and the linesmen will be Michael Houle (#49) and Addison Brush (#80). Tufts called a total of three penalties last night (one on Colorado) and let a lot go so you can assume he will do the same tonight. Have to admit it reminded me of the playoffs last season when Colorado was called for one penalty in game five and no penalties in game six. The key for Allen is to adapt to the way the referee is calling the game.


- Allen has proven they can play with the top team in the division but have lost three straight one goal games to Colorado including overtime losses the last two games against the Eagles. Tonight the Americans need to find a way to get over the hump and come away with a victory.


- Jake Paterson played well in goal and has for his last three starts with save percentages of .942, .970 and .909. Coach Martinson has always tended to go with the hot hand at this time of the season so would expect Paterson to get the start again tonight. 


- Here is the game preview from the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/game-day-preview-allen-vs-colorado-2/



OTHER COMMENTS

- I tried to find a humorous way to describe how tight the race is in the Mountain Division but have to admit almost all were in reference to body parts. The best "G" rated one I could find is the race for the playoffs between Wichita, Allen and Tulsa is tighter than a peanut butter jar at a squirrel convention. Here is how it looks after the Allen overtime loss to Colorado and the Tulsa win over Wichita last night. Here are two views of how things stand, points with games remaining and winning percentage:

Points
74 points -  Wichita  -   Allen (H), Colorado (A), Colorado (A)
74 points - Allen  -  Colorado (H), Wichita (A), Idaho (H), Idaho (H)
73 points - Tulsa  -   Kansas City (A), Idaho (H), Rapid City (H), Rapid City (H)

Remember the first tiebreaker is wins not including shootout wins. Wichita is at 32, Tulsa is at 31 and Allen is at 30.

Winning percentage
.544 - Allen (four games remaining)
.537 - Tulsa (four games remaining)
.536 - Wichita (three games remaining)


- No need for scoreboard watching tonight because Wichita and Tulsa do not play. With a win Allen will be two points clear of Wichita and three points ahead of Tulsa going into the last week of the season. Seems like every game is the biggest one of the season at this point.


- Allen fans may be watching the AHL scoreboard tonight just to see who is in the lineup. Utica (Vincent Arseneau) and San Jose (David Makowski) both play tonight. Arseneau has sat out the last two games and Makowski the last four. To be fair you never know why players are sitting out as it could be from injury, illness or the fact they are needed for insurance. For example if San Jose only has seven healthy defensemen and Makowski is number seven he may sit out each game but can't be sent back to Allen. It is frustrating for fans and I am sure coach Martinson as well to see players sitting out in the AHL that could be a big help to the Americans. To the uninformed like me it does seem like there are other solutions that would allow Arseneau and Makowski to return to Allen. After all, Utica's NHL affiliate (Vancouver) isn't making the playoffs and the San Jose Barracuda aren't making the playoffs. The hope is one or both may return for the final three games of the regular season next week. I would not count on that however.


- If you have been following along with Kristen Wooten's series about religion in hockey here is part three of the three parts series where Kristen looks at how faith is integrated into today's game: https://thesinbin.net/hockey-and-him-part-three-christ-off-ice/



DID YOU KNOW:  One year ago today this what I wrote in the blog. It took 167 days of the season and 68 games but the Allen Americans have finally made it to the top of the Mountain, that is the Mountain Division. Allen has made quite a push to get to the top spot in the Mountain Division. They are 11-0-1-0 in the last 12 games. Even more impressive is from the end of November when the Americans were 8-11-0-0 and dead last in the Mountain Division their record is 37-6-4-2.

Oh what a difference a year makes!

   

Allen vs Colorado Game Preview, From Beer League Goalie to NHL Hero in One Day and an Inspiring Story From Former Allen Defenseman Jake Newton Titled, "I Chose Recovery"

It is out of the frying pan into the fire for the Allen Americans. After a big win in a big game against third place Wichita on Wednesday the reward for the Americans is two big games against first place Colorado this weekend.


- The good news is Colorado lost their last game but the bad news is they have won seven of their last eight games which includes two wins over Allen in Colorado on March 17 and 18. The Eagles have a seven point lead for the top spot in the Mountain Division and can clinch the division title with two wins in Allen regardless of what second place Idaho does. Colorado has plenty to play for against the Americans.


- The game tonight (7:05 pm CDT) at the Allen Event Center (AEC) will be the fifth between Allen and Colorado this season. They have split the first four games. The Americans won 5-2 and 5-1 in Allen. The Eagles won 5-4 and 4-3 in overtime in Colorado.


- The head to head stats over the four previous games gives Allen the edge in goals (17-12) and Colorado the edge in shots (131-111). Allen has the better power play at 25% (4-16) compared to 7.7% (1-13) for Colorado.


- Since Allen joined the ECHL in 2014 Colorado has been the one team that has caused the Americans problems. The Americans overall regular season record against the Eagles is 5-7-1-0. The teams have met only once in the playoffs (last season) and that didn't go well for Allen as Colorado dispatched the Americans in six games. The good news is Allen is 2-1-1-0 against Colorado this season and the two wins came at home.


- In roster news Colorado just got two players assigned this week that were playing in the AHL. Goaltender Joe Cannata who leads the ECHL in save percentage (.933) and forward Julien Nantel were with the San Antonio Rampage.  The ECHL's leading goal scorer with 39 goals in 50 games, Michael Joly, will be missing from the Colorado lineup. Joly has been in San Antonio since March 8th. Also missing for the Eagles is all-star rookie defenseman Cliff Watson who was loaned to the Stockton Heat (AHL) yesterday.


- For Allen, recently signed rookies Jared Bethune and Braylon Shmyr will be seeing the division leading and reigning  Kelly Cup champion Eagles for the first time. None of the six Allen players currently in the AHL will be back this weekend. 


Here are the updated stats between Allen and Colorado:

                                     ALLEN                              COLORADO

Team Record               33-27-5-2 (73 points)          44-17-4-2 (94 points)
Division Ranking         4th - Mountain                     1st - Mountain
Conference Ranking   7th - Western                       2nd - Western
League Ranking         13th                                      4th
Last Game                  4-1 Win (Wichita)                 3-2 Loss (Utah)
Goals For                    220                                      241
Goals Against             215                                       200
Power Play                 17.1% (50/292)                    17.5% (50/286)
Penalty Kill                 81.6% (55/299)                     85.4% (37/254)
Most PIM                    Moore (214)                          Ratelle (193)
Leading Scorers:        Pierro-Zabotel (19-46-65)     Register (14-45-59)
                              



-  Here is how Allen and Colorado rank in the ECHL in major statistical categories:

Penalty Minutes Per Game: Allen 1st (20.67) - Colorado 4th (18.39)
Goals Scored Per Game: Allen 10th (3.28) - Colorado 3rd (3.60)
Goals Allowed Per Game: Allen 15th (3.21) - Colorado 9th (2.99)
Shots For Per Game: Allen 20th (30.96) - Colorado 17th (31.46)
Shots Against Per Game: Allen 23rd (36.25) - Colorado 10th (31.67)
Power Play Percentage: Allen 13th (17.1%) - Colorado 11th (17.5%)
Home Power Play %: Allen 12th (18.4%) - Colorado 13th (17.6%)
Road Power Play %: Allen 16th (15.9%) - Colorado 12th (17.3%)
Penalty Kill Percentage: Allen 20th (81.6%) - Colorado 7th (85.4%)
Home Penalty Kill %: Allen 10th (84.7%) - Colorado 8th (86.2%)
Road Penalty Kill %: Allen 25th (78.5%) - Colorado 10th (84.5%)


- It is no surprise when the number one team in the division is playing the fourth place team but the stats above show Colorado is better then Allen in goals scored (3.50 vs 3.28), goals allowed (2.99 vs 3.21), shots for (31.46 vs 30.96) and shots allowed (31.67 vs 36.25).


- Special teams could very well decide both of the games against Colorado. Allen may have the advantage in that department. If you look at the overall averages above, Allen's home power play percentage (18.4%) is better than Colorado's road percentage (17.3%). The same is true on the penalty kill where Allen is 84.7% at home and Colorado is 84.5% on the road. Don't forget the head to head stats have Allen at 25% on the power play versus 7.7% for Colorado. Finally, I took a look at how effective both teams have been over their last 10 games on the power play. Allen has a power play goal in seven of their last 10 games with a percentage of 20% (9-45). Colorado has a power play goal in just two of their last 10 games and a percentage of 10% (4-40).


- A good start is always important but even more so against a team like Colorado. To start with the team that has scored first has won every game these teams have played this season. When scoring the first goal of the game Allen and Colorado have a combined record of 52-10-4-2 this season. Both of these teams are best in the first period with Allen out scoring their opponents 68-51 and Colorado outscoring their opponents 76-52. With a a lead after the first period at home Allen is 11-1-1-0. When trailing after the first period at home the Americans are winless (0-4-2-0). The Americans don't want to get behind.


- You can expect two rough and tumble games against Colorado who lead the ECHL with 74 fighting majors this season according to hockeyfights.com. Allen is ranked #3 in the league with 51 fighting majors. It has been feast or famine in the four games these teams have played this season when it comes to fighting majors. In two games there were no fights but on February 1st in Allen there were three fights and on March 18th in Colorado there were two. Other than the two fights in Colorado on the 18th Allen has had just two fights in the last 10 games.    


- Here is the Allen vs Colorado game day preview issued by the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/game-day-preview-allen-vs-colorado/ 


- Officials scheduled for the game are referee Jeremy Tufts (#6 ) and linesmen Michael Houle (#49) and Addison Brush (#80). It is always interesting to me to check out the background of referees that aren't as familiar to Allen fans. Tufts grew up in Exeter, New Hampshire where his dad was a college hockey coach and his uncle was his high school hockey and soccer coach and is in the New Hampshire Hockey Hall of Fame. Jeremy is in his sixth year making a living as a referee and his fourth doing pro games. This season he is splitting his time between the ECHL and AHL. Tufts was one of three American officials selected to work the World Junior Championships in Buffalo earlier this year. Back in 2016 Tufts wore a GoPro camera for a regular season game between Reading and Norfolk. Check this out as it will give you an idea of how he works a game.

OTHER COMMENTS

- At least one team chasing the Mountain Division playoffs will get two points tonight because Tulsa is in Wichita to take on the Thunder. Not sure which team Allen fans will be cheering for but I am sure they hope the game is decided in regulation time. Utah, who is holding on to the playoff race by a string is at home against Idaho. They could be eliminated tonight if they lose.


- I came across this story yesterday written by Jake Newton who you may remember played in Allen at the end of the regular season and the playoffs in the 2011-12 season. Jake is one of a number of professional hockey players that have spoken out about dealing with mental health issues by seeking professional help just like you would with a physical issue. It is a real act of bravery in my opinion to share his story in the hopes of helping others. https://nicolesorce.com/2018/03/29/guest-blog-by-jake-newton-i-chose-recovery/


- Talk about a feel good story, check out this one about goalie Scott Foster who was thrown into the fray as the EBUG last night when the Chicago Blackhawks lost both of their goalies to injury. Starting goalie Anton Forsberg was injured in warmups which gave the start to Collin Delia who started the season with the Indy Fuel where he had a GAA of 4.12 and save percentage of .887 in 10 games. Delia was making his first NHL start but was injured in the third period with a 6-2 lead over the Winnipeg Jets so the EBUG, Scott Foster, played the last 14:01 and stopped all seven shots he faced. Delia got the win and Foster was the hero. Foster is 36 and had never played in a professional game prior to last night for the Blackhawks. According to the website eliteprospects.com Scott played hockey at Western Michigan University (WMU) from 2002-2006 and after two mediocre years with save percentages of .870 and .881 he played in just one game his last two seasons. Foster's stats on elite prospects shows nothing for the last 12 years but now and forever will show one NHL game with the Chicago Blackhawks with a GAA of 0.00 and a save percentage of 1.000. By the way when Foster left WMU after the 2005-06 season the team brought in a young goalie who started as a freshman and starred for WMU the next four seasons. The young goalie from Minnestoa was none other than Riley Gill. Here is the complete story of Scott's Foster's big day yesterday starting from his nine to five job and ending as an NHL hero. A must read for sure: http://nhl.nbcsports.com/2018/03/29/scott-foster-accountant-by-day-makes-nhl-debut-with-blackhawks/

Here is Scott Foster's post game interview which will also bring a smile. The guy doesn't take himself too seriously.

DID YOU KNOW: - The Atlanta Gladiators punched their ticket to the playoffs last night when Jacksonville lost to Orlando. Atlanta will be the fourth seed in the South Division and will take on the Florida Everblades in the first round of the playoffs. Atlanta, who has a winning percentage of .486, will have to win all three of their remaining games to avoid being the only team in the playoffs with a losing record. The South Division has two very strong teams at the top in Florida and South Carolina but four of the seven teams in the ECHL with winning percentages below .500 reside in the South Division.

Allen Wins a Big One, Game Recap, Video Highlights, Steve Martinson's Comments, Playoff Battle Update, Cancer Awareness, Eric Roy Milestone and More

The Allen Americans defeated the Wichita Thunder 4-1 last night before a Wednesday night crowd of 3582 at the Allen Event Center (AEC). With the win Allen moved into sole possession of fourth place in the Mountain Division and within one point of third place Wichita.


- It was another slow start for the Americans who were outplayed in the first period. Thanks to goalie Jake Paterson the Thunder scored only one goal on 13 first period shots. The game turned around when Eric Roy sent one of his seeing eye wrist shots from the blue line into the net with 39 seconds left in the period. It was Allen's fifth shot on goal. After the late goal that tied the game 1-1 the Americans left the ice for the first intermission with all of the momentum despite being out shot 13-5.


- The Americans went on to win the second period (1-0) and the third period (2-0). It was a great performance in what coach Martinson called the most important game of the season. The revamped roster has added depth to the team and all three lines can put the puck in the net. The third line had two of the four goals and were all +2.


- The goal scorers for Allen were Eric Roy (14), Bryan Moore (19), Thomas Frazee (14) and Zach Pochiro (17). Check out all of the goals and some great saves by both goalies at ECHL Rewind: https://www.echl.com/


- Here is the game recap from the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/americans-bounce-back-slow-first-period-beat-wichita-4-1/


- Here is the game recap issued by the Wichita Thunder: https://www.wichitathunder.com/news/press-release/wichita-ends-road-trip-with-loss-at-allen.html


- Here are the video highlights from Sporfie. Worth noting a couple of nice passes, Alex Guptill on the Roy goal and Jared Bethune on the Thomas Frazee goal.

STEVE MARTINSON'S PREGAME AND POST GAME COMMENTS

- Pregame interview with Kayla McLain:

- Post game interview with Kayla McLain:

- Coach Martinson's post game comments to the season ticket holders:

"We have to work on our starts. The way we started I was saying here we go again. We had a turnover on a line change that led to their goal but the Roy goal at the end of the first period was big for us."

"Bethune stepped up and made a really nice play on the third goal and Moore made a nice play on his goal. It was good to see that line get a couple of goals which turned out to be big."

"We had a good second period but in the third period we had some guys still cheating a little bit. We got in trouble on the penalty because we weren't in position to back check. We are a work in progress but it was a much better game tonight especially in the second period."

"We were more physical tonight and there were some good hits by some of the guys. Now we will get rested up tomorrow and then get ready for Colorado."

"I thought our power play was good in the second period even though we didn't score. We had a lot of shots and I liked that."

"In the first period we didn't come out with any flow, we didn't come out with any rush. It seemed like all we did was get the puck out of our zone, dump it in and change. We got caught in our zone a couple of times. In the second period it was all of a sudden a different team. We had flow, we were skating, our defense was moving their feet."

"Paterson was great in goal coming back from an injury and stopping 32 of 33 shots."



OTHER COMMENTS

- The battle for the final two playoff spots remains close. Wichita is in third place with 74 points but has only four games remaining. Allen is in fourth place with 73 points and five game remaining. Tulsa in in fifth place with 71 points and five games remaining. If you go by winning percentage Allen is in third place (.545), Wichita fourth place (.544) and Tulsa in fifth place (.530).


- Here is the remaining schedule for Allen, Wichita and Tulsa:

Allen  -   Colorado (H), Colorado (H), Wichita (A), Idaho (H), Idaho (H)

Wichita  -  Tulsa (H), Allen (H), Colorado (A), Colorado (A)

Tulsa  -  Wichita (A), Kansas City (A), Idaho (H), Rapid City (H), Rapid City (H)


-  Congrats to Jared Bethune who got his first two professional points last night with the only assist on the goals by Bryan Moore and Thomas Frazee.


- Olivier Archambault continues to impress everyone in Syracuse (AHL). He assisted on the first Crunch goal last night and scored the second one as his team beat Binghamton 5-1. Olivier has played in 22 games for Syracuse, has 15 points (9 goals 6 assists) and is +9. Archambault leads his team and the entire AHL in shooting percentage at 30.6%.


- The Allen Americans are sponsoring an "Americans Fight Cancer Weekend" on April 6th and 7th and will be wearing special purple jerseys featuring the names of those in the Americans family who have been affected by cancer. The jerseys will be auctioned and funds donated to UT Southwestern Simmons Cancer Center to fund future research. My understanding is these jerseys will be available by live auction following the game on Saturday April 7th. Here is the jersey with all of the names. I hope you can enlarge the view to see what are many familiar names to the Allen Americans family. I am also proud that my mom, Trixie Janssen, who battled lung cancer four times before succumbing to the disease age 76 is on the jersey. I have shared this before but my mom was born and raised in Ireland, was a nurse and met my dad, who was an Army medic, during World War II. After she retired she took a part time job as the first aide nurse for the Minnesota North Stars.

   

- Beckett Dougherty's name is on the Cancer Awareness jersey and he is probably the youngest at 10 months. A reminder the Allen Americans are having a fundraiser for Beckett at the game tomorrow.  There will be a table on the concourse where items will be auctioned and you can also make cash donations. If you haven't read the story about Beckett who is part of the Allen Americans family, his dad is a former player and his mom is a former sales representative, here is a link to the blog post from last week. http://allenamericansblog.blogspot.ru/2018/03/allen-vs-tulsa-game-preview-makowski.html 

If you are not attending the game tomorrow night and would like help with Beckett's fight against a rare form of Leukemia you can do so here: https://www.gofundme.com/beckettdougherty





DID YOU KNOW: Eric Roy's 14th goal of the season last night was his 100th professional point of which 96 have been in an Allen jersey. Eric is third all-time for the Americans in career points by a defenseman trailing Tyler Ludwig (172) and David Makowski (141). Eric is also number three in career goals by a defenseman with 41. Tyler Ludwig is number one with 51 goals and David Makowski is number two all-time with 43 goals.

Allen vs Wichita Game Preview, A Story About Religion in Hockey, ECHL Coming to Long Island and Mountain Division Teams Ranked by Goals by Defensemen

How important is the game tonight against the Wichita Thunder? To quote coach Martinson, "It is obviously the most important game of the season." I attend a lot of practices and have a chance to talk to Martinson after each one and to say his approach to the game tonight is playoff intense would be an understatement. You can tell from his demeanor on the ice, the type of drills at practice, the extra video review and the extra meetings with players that Martinson is doing everything he can to put the team in position to win. It is now up to the players to be ready to play from the first puck drop.


- The game tonight at the Allen Event Center (AEC) will be the 11th of 12 meetings between Allen and Wichita this season. They will close out the series in Wichita next Tuesday night. They have split their first ten games and home ice has not been an advantage. The visiting team has won six of the 10 games. The score first win the game theory does not hold up in this series. In four of the 10 games the team that scored first lost the game.


- With a win tonight Allen will take over sole possession of fourth place in the division and trail third place Wichita by a single point. If they lose (in regulation) they will be in fifth place and trail Wichita by five points with five games remaining in the season. 


- It has been two months since Allen and Wichita last played each other. In that two game series in Allen at the end of January the Thunder won the first game shutting out the Americans 3-0. Allen won game the second game by a score of 5-2. It was a game that was much closer than the final score as the Americans scored two empty net goals in the last minute of play.


- Neither team has played well in the two months since they last met. Allen is 11-9-1-1 while Wichita is 9-12-3-1. Both teams come into the game tonight trying to get things turned around as they have lost four of their last five games.


Here are the updated stats between Allen and Wichita:

                                     ALLEN                               WICHITA

Team Record               32-27-5-2 (71 points)          33-26-6-2 (74 points)
Division Ranking         5th - Mountain                     3rd - Mountain
Conference Ranking   8th - Western                       6th - Western
League Ranking         14th                                      12th
Last Game                  6-1 Loss (Kansas City)         5-4 Loss (Fort Wayne)
Goals For                    212                                       216
Goals Against             215                                       214
Power Play                 17.0% (49/289)                    14.9% (34/228)
Penalty Kill                 81.4% (55/296)                     80.2% (52/258)
Most PIM                    Moore (214)                         Stevenson (154)
Leading Scorers:        Pierro-Zabotel (19-46-65)    Cuddemi (29-30-59)
                              



-  Here is how Allen and Wichita rank in the ECHL in some statistical categories:

Penalty Minutes Per Game: Allen 1st (20.89) - Wichita 14th (14.42)
Goals Scored Per Game: Allen 10th (3.27) - Wichita 13th (3.16)
Goals Allowed Per Game: Allen 16th (3.24) - Wichita 15th (3.21)
Shots For Per Game: Allen 20th (30.98) - Wichita 20th (30.95)
Shots Against Per Game: Allen 24th (37.14) - Wichita 19th (33.67)
Power Play Percentage: Allen 15th (17.0%) - Wichita 23rd (14.9%)
Home Power Play %: Allen 12th (18.1%) - Wichita 21st (14.7%)
Road Power Play %: Allen 16th (15.9%) - Wichita 19th (15.1%)
Penalty Kill Percentage: Allen 20th (81.4%) - Wichita 22nd (80.2%)
Home Penalty Kill %: Allen 12th (84.4%) - Wichita 22nd (80.3%)
Road Penalty Kill %: Allen 25th (78.5%) - Wichita 20th (80.2%)


- Head to head special team percentages favor Allen slightly. Against Wichita the Allen power play is 20.0% (7-35) and the penalty kill is 81.6% (7-38). Against Allen the Wichita power play is 18.4% (7-38) and the penalty kill is 80.0% (7-35).


- You have to believe special teams will play a big role in the game tonight. Allen has struggled with an inconsistent power play for a couple of months but their penalty kill has been much improved. The penalty kill has had to defend numerous five-on-three opportunities recently. Wichita's power play is ranked #23 in the league and their penalty kill is ranked #22. The Thunder penalty kill unit had a bizarre game the last time out in Fort Wayne on Saturday. They allowed three power play goals (3-8) to the Komets but scored two shorthanded goals in the process. 


- Allen and Wichita have played 10 times this season and the stats show how evenly matched they are starting with a record of 5-5 against each other. Goals scored are exactly the same (31-31) and shots are 334-331. Even penalties (65-62) and penalty minutes (209-191) are close.


- If you are looking for players to watch tonight for Allen, scoring could come from anywhere. While Joel Chouinard (9 points) and Casey Pierro-Zabotel (8 points) lead the Americans in scoring against Wichita, 18 different players have scored goals against the Thunder. With five or six Allen forwards starting their first game against Wichita tonight look for that list to grow. For Wichita, players to watch are leading scorer Ralph Cuddemi (#8) who has a goal in six of his last nine game and recently signed rookie Ryan Van Stralen (#20) who has 11 points including five goals in 11 games. You can expect Dyson Stevenson (#26) to play the agitator role for Wichita just as he did so well when he was playing for Allen. Dyson has 154 penalty minutes this season and 43 of them have been in games with Allen. After an 18 game goal scoring drought he has a goal in his last two games including a shorthanded goal on Saturday.


- I would expect Jeremy Brodeur will get the start against Wichita. He is 3-2 against the Thunder with a GAA of 2.43 and a save percentage of .926.


- Officials scheduled for the game are referee Sean Fernandez (#21) and linesmen Brian Bull (#95) and Cameron Dykstra (#0).


OTHER COMMENTS

- Here is the "Thunder Weekly" which will bring you up to date on what has been happening with the team and some of the stat leaders. https://www.wichitathunder.com/news/press-release/thunder-weekly-march-26th.html 


- There are six games on tap tonight in the ECHL. Allen vs Wichita is the only Mountain Division game tonight. Here is the ECHL Today with a preview of all six games. https://www.echl.com/echl-today-march-28-2018


- Kristen Wooten, who is a fellow member of Team Sin Bin, just published the first of a three part series where she looks at the role religion plays in hockey. Gary Steffes is one of the players profiled in this story. https://thesinbin.net/hockey-him-part-one-forming-a-relationship-with-christ/


- Here is part two of Kristen's three part series. "Hockey Culture Meets Family Life" https://thesinbin.net/hockey-him-part-two-hockey-culture-meets-family-life/


- Saw this article about a proposed new ice arena on Long Island in the hamlet of Medford with the potential of attracting an ECHL franchise. This is a long way off and there is plenty of doubt if the arena will ever be built but a road trip to NYC to watch the Allen Americans could be a possibility in the future. Here is the story: https://arenadigest.com/2018/03/27/proposal-calls-medford-echl-arena/ 




DID YOU KNOW: Which Mountain Division teams have the most offensive minded defensemen? I decided to take a look at goals scored by defensmen for the seven teams in the division. Here are the results with the number of 10 goals scorers in parentheses:

59 - Colorado  (3)
41 - Allen (3)
41 - Utah  (1)
36 - Wichita (2)
29 - Idaho (0)
25 - Tulsa  (0)
25 - Rapid City (0)

There are 23 defensemen in the ECHL with 10 or more goals. Nine of the 23 (40%) play in the Mountain Division.

Practice Update, Roster Update, ECHL Playoff Update, Quad City to SPHL, Breakdown of Allen Roster by Games Played

As I sat and watched the tail end of practice yesterday I started to reflect on how much the Allen Americans roster has changed since the team started the season winning their first three games by scores of 8-3, 5-3 and 6-2. It is a given that all ECHL teams have to deal with injuries, callups and turnover because of trades. Allen is actually in the middle of the pack when it comes to the number of players used during the season. The Americans have used 39 players this season. There are 10 ECHL teams that have used fewer than 39 players with Kalamazoo the leader having used just 27. There are 15 teams that have used more than 39 players led by Wheeling who has used 55.


-  On the ice yesterday at practice were two players in yellow no contact jerseys. Tristan King got injured in his first game with Allen after being acquired in a trade with Quad City. Zach Hall has been with the team all season but has been plagued by injuries and as played in only 23 games. Neither player will be in the lineup on Wednesday.


- There were seven forwards at practice that have played less than 10 games with Allen and four with less than five.


- Who wasn't at practice may say more about how the season has gone than who was at practice yesterday. Olivier Archambault, Vincent Arseneau, David Makowski, Colby McAuley, Alex Schoenborn and Stephon Williams are all playing in the AHL. If and when any of these players will return is unknown. I did do some checking regarding Makowski and my reporting is the Barracuda only have seven healthy defensemen so until they get one of the injured defenseman back Makowski is needed in San Jose. The Barracuda don't play again until Friday night. Since David has not been playing it is too bad he can't return to Allen for the crucial game against Wichita tomorrow (Wednesday) night and then return to San Jose for their next game on Friday. Wishful thinking.


- There have been four players that Allen has really missed. They have been gone for most of the season and their unavailability was unexpected.

Riley Gill - First and foremost is the reigning ECHL Goalie of the Year Riley Gill. As a reminder of what Gill brings to the table he is a three time Kelly Cup champion who is the winningest playoff goalie in the 30 year history of the ECHL. His record last season was 32-7-2-0, his GAA was 2.22 and his save percentage was .935. Riley had seven shutouts and didn't allow a shootout goal all season. Who would have predicted when Riley got hurt in his second start of the season it would be his last game of the season. The most frequent question I get asked is whether Gill will return for the playoffs. There has been no official word from the team or Riley but it is clear the answer to that question is no he will not return.

Peter MacArthur - Peter suffered a season ending shoulder injury on December 22. A point per game player last season as the captain of the Adirondack Thunder his veteran presence has been missed on and off the ice.

Olivier Archambault - Olivier is one of the most dynamic players ever to play for the Allen Americans. He has played 19 games for Allen this season and averaged 1.63 points per game. Everyone was thrilled when he recently signed a standard player's contract (SPC) with the Syracuse Crunch (AHL) through the 2018-19 season. While Archambault's talent is off the charts the four year pro had limited success in the AHL prior to this season. In 2016-17 he had no callups to the AHL and in 2015-16 he played just six games in the AHL with no points. I am sure coach Martinson expected Archambault would play more than 19 games in Allen and would be with the Americans for the playoffs. He will not be in Allen for the playoffs.

Jonathan Lessard - This is the fourth unexpected loss for Allen this season. For personal reasons that make perfect sense if you know the story, Jonathan made the decision to move to France at the beginning of December. Lessard brought both scoring and toughness to the team. The timing of his departure was unfortunate and it caught coach Martinson by surprise. Had he known Lessard was about to leave, Martinson would not have traded Tanner Eberle who was a similar type of player. He traded Tanner just a couple of weeks prior to Lessard's departure.


- There are 11 days left in the regular season and the Americans will be relying on seven forwards that were all playing elsewhere at the beginning of March. They will join with Pierro-Zabotel, Guptill, Moore and Pochiro to try and get Allen into the playoffs. The unanswered question is will any other forwards be added from those in the AHL or will Martinson sign additional amateurs.


- If the playoffs were to start today Allen would be out as they would lose the first tiebreaker (regular season wins not including shootout wins) to Tulsa. The Western Conference matchups would be Toledo vs Kalamazoo and Fort Wayne vs Cincinnati in the Central Division. The Mountain Division would have Colorado vs Tulsa and Idaho vs Wichita.


- There are only 11 days remaining in the season but only five teams have been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Those already making tee times are Brampton, Norfolk, Greenville, Quad City and Rapid City.


- If you look at the teams that are playing the best hockey as the playoffs approach it is no coincidence they are all teams that are at the top of the standings. Here are the best records in the ECHL over the last 10 games. If you look at the list below they are seven of the top eight teams in the ECHL in points. The only team missing from the list below is Fort Wayne who is 5-3-2-0 in the last 10 games. The Kelly Cup champion will very likely come from this list.

9-1-0-0 - Florida
8-2-0-0 - Toledo
7-2-0-1 - Idaho
7-2-0-1 - Adirondack
7-3-0-0 - Colorado
7-3-0-0 - South Carolina
7-3-0-0 - Manchester


- The race for the Brabham Cup, given to the team with the most points in the regular season is still very much up for grabs. There are five teams that have at least 90 points led by Toledo with 99 points. Here is the list with points and games remaining home and away.

99 points - Toledo (2H, 2A)
98 points - Florida (4H, 3A)
94 points - Colorado (3H, 2A)
93 points - South Carolina (3H, 4A)
91 points - Fort Wayne (3H, 3A)

With seven games remaining including four at home and a record of 9-1-0-0 over the last 10 games Florida would have to be the favorite for the Brabham Cup.


- Came across the article written by Dave Eminian of the Peoria Journal Star that has a small section on Quad City having a SPHL franchise within the next 30 days. http://www.pjstar.com/sports/20180326/eminian-rivermen-poised-to-clinch-top-spot-visit-from-qc-and-key-d-man-might-be-on-way


- I have four FREE loge tickets (second level) for the game against Wichita tomorrow (Wednesday) night. Coach Martinson has described this game as the mot important game of the season. The face value of these tickets is $45 each. I will have a drawing for the tickets late this afternoon, notify the winner and leave the tickets at will call. If you are interested let me know by email (janssenfamily@msn.com). All I need is your name and whether you are interested in two or four tickets. The tickets are in the end of the rink where the Zamboni enters the ice. Good luck!


DID YOU KNOW: Allen has played 66 games this season. Here is a breakdown of the 21 players on the current Americans roster by games played.

60+      4 players (Pierro-Zabotel, Chouinard, Roy, J. Thrower)
50-60   5 players (Gunn, Liberati, D. Thrower, Moore, Asuchak)
40-50   1 player (Guptill)
30-40   2 players (Pochiro, Brodeur)
20-30   1 player (Hall)
10-20   0
0-10     8 players (Frazee, Carrier, Campagna, Shmyr, Bethune, Poulsen, King, Paterson)    

A New Week With New Hope for Wichita, Allen, Tulsa and Utah - The Details, Tiebreaker Stats, One Goal Games Stats and More

It is a new week and a chance for the four teams struggling to make the final two playoff spots in the Mountain Division to take charge. As I mentioned yesterday the group (Wichita, Allen, Tulsa, Utah) had lost 15 of their last 20 games. The question is will any of the four start winning consistently.


- The battle for playoff positions remains very close between Wichita, Allen, Tulsa and Utah. Colorado is pretty much locked in as the #1 seed and Idaho is locked in for the #2 seed. The other two spots are there for the taking but none of the teams have stepped up. Here are the current Mountain Division standings with games played in parentheses.  

94 points - Colorado (67 games)
87 points - Idaho (67 games)
74 points - Wichita (67 games)
71 points - Allen (66 games)
71 points - Tulsa (67 games) 
67 points - Utah (67 games)
48 points - Rapid City (67 games)


- Here is the remaining schedule for Allen, Wichita, Tulsa and Utah:

Allen  -   Wichita (H), Colorado (H), Colorado (H), Wichita (A), Idaho (H), Idaho (H)

Wichita  -  Allen (A), Tulsa (H), Allen (H), Colorado (A), Colorado (A)

Tulsa  -  Wichita (A), Kansas City (A), Idaho (H), Rapid City (H), Rapid City (H)

Utah  -  Idaho (A), Idaho (A), Colorado (A), Kansas City (H), Kansas City (H)


- Allen has a game in hand and will make that up this week as they are the only one of the four teams to play three games. Wichita and Utah play two games this week and Tulsa just one. Because of the Big Red breakdown on St. Patrick's Day that resulted in postponing Tulsa's game with Kansas City the Oilers will play four of their remaining five games next week.


- The formula is pretty simple for the Americans but easier said than done. If Allen wins their three home games this week they will have sole possession of third place going into the final week of the season. Allen plays Wichita on Wednesday and their record against the Thunder this season is 5-5. The Americans play Colorado on Friday and Saturday. The last time Colorado visited Allen (March 17&18) the Americans won both games. Their record against the Eagles this season is 2-1-1-0.


- It might be a good time to review the tiebreakers since it is likely the race for the final two playoff spots will come down to the final weekend or even the final game of the season. There are eight tie breakers in total with number eight being a coin toss but here are the first two with how the four teams stand today.

1. Wins, regular season (excluding shootout wins) 
32 - Wichita
30 - Tulsa
29 - Allen
24 - Utah

2. Goal Differential
+2   Allen
-3    Wichita
-10  Tulsa
-19  Utah


- If you have been tracking the playoffs in all of the college and junior leagues in North America you know there were a lot of teams eliminated this weekend. That means a lot of players have finished their eligibility and will be looking for pro contracts. There is no doubt coach Martinson has spent a lot of time this weekend recruiting, trying to find players to improve the roster. I am sure it is more difficult because Allen is not locked into the playoffs but I would be surprised if Martinson doesn't add more players this week.


- It was a big day for Alex Schoenborn and Stephon Williams yesterday as they both played a big role in the Barracuda's 3-2 win over the Tucson Roadrunners. Alex scored his first AHL goal of the  season and Stephon stopped 27 of 29 shots in his first start for San Jose to earn the victory. David Makowski was a healthy scratch for the third straight game. David played in the first game after he was called up and then sat out the last three. If he is not going to play it would sure be nice to have Makowski back in Allen for three very tough and very important games this week. 


- Here is a Hockey News article, "Second Best Masked Men," that ranks the NHL's 31 backup goalies. It has some nice things to say about Aaron Dell who is ranked #11 on the list. http://www.thehockeynews.com/news/article/second-best-masked-men-ranking-the-nhl-s-31-backup-goalies


DID YOU KNOW: Here is a stat you might find interesting. Allen is 11-6-5-2 in one goal games this season for a winning percentage of .604 which is much better than their overall winning percentage of .538. Last season Allen was 17-6-4-2 in one goal games for a winning percentage of .690 which was much worse than their overall winning percentage of .722.

Allen Suffers Worst Home Loss in Two Years, Game Recap, Steve Martinson's Comments, Backing Into the Playoffs and More

You know it is a tough game when the first two fans that approach you after the final horn say the exact came thing, "The best part of that game is it is over." The Allen Americans embarrassed themselves and their fans losing last night to the Kansas City Mavericks 6-1 before a crowd of 4705 at the Allen Event Center (AEC). It was the worst defeat at home in two and a half years and happened as the Americans are fighting for their playoffs lives. Getting ready to play and putting in a strong effort should be easy at this time of year. After a good road trip to come home and play the way Allen has played in two of the last three games is inexcusable.


- There were seven skaters on the ice for Allen last night that were drafted by the NHL, Kansas City had just three. There is a difference between good players and a good team. Allen's inconsistent play at this critical time of the season is proving time and again how will beats skill.


- I won't bore you with all of the details but here is a "Cliff's Notes" version of the loss last night. Allen gave up the first goal of the game, was trailing after every period, did not win a single period, gave up two power play goals, got their only goal on a five-on-three power play in the third period, couldn't get the puck out of their defensive zone or into their offensive zone, gave up six goals on just 30 shots and took way too many penalties.


- Here is the game recap from the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/americans-split-kc-lose-6-1/


- Here is the game recap from the Kansas city Mavericks: http://kcmavericks.com/news/index.html?article_id=1156


- Here are the video highlights from ECHL Rewind: https://www.echl.com/


- Here is the Sporfie highlight of Allen's only goal which was a milestone. Eric Roy gets the puck to the net from the blue line and hits the cross bar. Casey Pierro-Zabotel is in perfect position to put the puck in the net for his 500th regular season point of his AHL/ECHL pro career. Congrats to Casey! https://sporfie.app.link/8twWk7iZyL



STEVE MARTINSON'S COMMENTS

- Here is coach Martinson's pregame interview with Kayla McLain:

- Here is what Martinson had to say after the game:

"After a pretty good road trip to come home and play like this has to be as disappointing for the fans as it is to me."

"It was painful to watch right from the start of the game when the first two shifts were real bad and we gave up that early goal."

"Then they got that shorthanded goal which I thought was the backbreaker."

"I said to the players after the second period we weren't ready to play again. I think what happens when we get back home after the long road trip is with all of the nice things happening around here,  the guys are not thinking about hockey enough or at least as much as they should be at this point of the season."

"I tell players all the time I am not the coach to hold your hand. I am not going to make motivational speeches every game. Part of being a pro is getting yourself ready to play. We maybe have too many guys that aren't accustomed to do what you need to do to win. Some nights we are fabulous and play physical and some nights like Wednesday and tonight we are not."

"I said before the third period we need to go out and play the game right for a period to get ready for Wednesday which will be the biggest game of the year. You know the Mavericks aren't going to fight with a 5-0 lead so go out and play right and win the third period. Instead we have a player take a seven minute penalty and get tossed out of the game."

"If I was one of those players I would go right to my apartment. I would be embarrassed to be seen after that performance. It is painful for me to be even talking to you right now. I told the team after the game we have to get better by Monday. If you go out tonight and drown your sorrows or whatever  remember we have to have guys mentally and physically sharp because one way or another we have to get better by Wednesday night. Hopefully I can bring another couple of players in. I can tell you one thing, I am not giving up."



OTHER COMMENTS

- Despite Allen losing two of three at home this week they are still very much in the hunt for the playoffs thanks to the Quad City Mallards. After Tulsa beat Allen on Wednesday they headed home for three games against the lowly Mallards who are running out the season and will fold after the season is completed. As Quad City started their three games in three days in Tulsa on Friday night the Mallards had lost eight straight games and 12 of their last 13. Quad City won 3-2 on Friday night and 2-1 last night. Last night was a particularly bitter loss for Tulsa as the Mallards scored the game winner with two seconds remaining in the game. It is probably too much to hope that Quad City wins again this afternoon when they square of with Tulsa again.


- Wichita has also helped out the Americans losing four in a row including a 5-4 overtime loss to Fort Wayne last night in a game where Wichita's first two goals came shorthanded.


- The only team contending for a playoff spot in the Mountain Division who won last night was Utah who defeated Colorado 3-2.


- The division standings now have Wichita in third place (74 points), Allen in fourth place (71 points), Tulsa in fifth place (69 points) and Utah in sixth place (67 points). Allen and Tulsa have six games remaining. Wichita and Utah have five games remaining.


- The San Jose Barracuda lost to Ontario 7-3 last night and continue to occupy last place in the Pacific Division. The Barracuda have eight games remaining and will not make the playoffs. David Makowski did not play in the game last night and was also a healthy scratch on Friday night. It has to be frustrating for coach Martinson to have Makowski, who is the third highest scorer on the Americans and the second leading scorer in the ECHL among defensmen recalled to San Jose and sit in the stands. Allen is fighting for their playoff life and the Barracuda aren't making the playoffs.


- The number of teams that have qualified for the Kelly Cup playoffs is up to eight. Manchester from the North Division, Florida, South Carolina and Orlando from the South Division, Toledo and Fort Wayne from the Central Division and Colorado and Idaho from the Mountain Division. The odds heavily favor one of these eight teams winning the Kelly Cup. 



DID YOU KNOW: The battle for the playoffs between Wichita, Allen, Tulsa and Utah has developed into who is going to back into the playoffs. If you combine the record of the four teams over their last five games they have won five and lost 15.   

Big Win for Allen Over Kansas City, Game Recap, Martinson's Comments, Video Highlights, Rematch Preview, Hanson & Costello Join Forces in Germany, Ludwig Night and More

It was a big game and the Allen Americans earned a big win last night beating the Kansas City Mavericks 3-2 before a crowd of 4465 at the Allen Event Center (AEC). A lot went right for the Americans that was predictive of a win. They scored the first goal of the game and their record when scoring first is 25-5-1-0. Allen had a 2-0 lead after the first period and their record when leading at home after the first period is 11-1-0-1. They were leading 3-1 after the second period and their record when leading after the second period at home is 13-1-0-1. Nobody bothered to tell the Mavericks their odds of winning going into the third period were slim as the Americans had to hang on to get the victory. Kansas City out shot Allen in the third period 13-5, closed within one goal (3-2) at the 17:41 mark and had some good chances for the game tying goal after pulling their goalie. With help from Allen goalie Jeremy Brodeur, who made some great saves down the stretch, the Americans prevailed and now have sole possession of fourth place in the Mountain Division standings.


- Goal scorers for Allen were Spencer Asuchak (12), Alex Guptill (27) and J.C. Campagna (12). Here are the Sporfie highlights of the three goals.

Spencer Asuchak - Spencer is roaming the front of the net as usual and gets a tip in on a shot from the blue line by Eric Roy. Eric is so good at getting shots through in a position where they can be tipped. Great play by Eric and Spencer. https://sporfie.app.link/uYBFckKOxL

Alex Guptill - You have to watch this replay at least three times to see the greatness of this goal. Alex sees Pochiro trailing the play all alone at the top of the faceoff circle and makes the pass to Zach. It looks like Pochiro is going to shoot but instead he passes back to Guptill who easily deflects the puck past the goalie. https://sporfie.app.link/hjQFu7FOxL

J. C. Campagna - A great individual effort on the game winner by Campagna who a teammate describes as long and strong. J.C. powers by the Mavericks defenseman and goes five hole on the goalie. https://sporfie.app.link/iEN6nvxOxL


 - Here is the highlight package from ECHL Rewind: https://www.echl.com/


- Here is the game recap from the Allen Americans which includes a post game interview with J.C Campagna: https://allenamericans.com/americans-beat-kansas-city-3-2-end-streak-three-games/ 



STEVE MARTINSON'S PREGAME & POST GAME COMMENTS

ALLEN VS KANSAS CITY REMATCH PREVIEW

- It was a big win for the Allen Americans last night as they were able to gain two points on Tulsa who lost and Wichita who was idle. The big win won't mean much if the Americans don't followup with another win tonight.


- When I talked to coach Martinson after the game and asked what was the difference between the loss to Tulsa on Wednesday and the win last night it wasn't a complicated answer. The guys worked hard and gave a better effort.


- The good start was obviously a key to victory last night and the Americans need to replicate that tonight. With Jake Patterson out with an injury Jeremy Brodeur will be in goal again and Allen will go with an EBUG (emergency backup goalie). Jeremy played great in goal last night stopping 34 of 36 shots for a GAA of 2.02 and save percentage of .944.


- Another key as always will be special teams. Allen was able to score a power play goal last night (1-4) and held the Mavericks scoreless on their three power play opportunities. In their seven previous games the team that scored the most power play goals won the game. That will likely be the case again tonight.


- Props to the Allen penalty kill unit which has been performing at a high level for the last six weeks with little fan fare. While the Americans penalty kill is ranked #20 at 81.6% if you look at season long stats since early February the penalty kill is 5-50 for a 90% penalty kill percentage.


- As much as having a good start is important Allen needs to do a better job in the third period. The Americans haven't won a third period in the last six games and have been outscored 12-7 in the process. Tonight would be the perfect time to break that streak. 


- The referee scheduled for the game tonight is Andy Howard (#2) and the linesmen will be Aaron Schacht (#31) and Lucas Bisbee (#72).



OTHER COMMENTS

- Allen got all the help they could ask for last night with Tulsa losing at home to Quad City and Utah losing at home to Colorado. The race for the final two playoff spots in the Mountain Division now has Wichita in third place (73 points), Allen in fourth place (71 points), Tulsa in fifth place (69 points) and Utah in sixth place (65 points). Games for scoreboard watching tonight in addition to Kansas City at Allen include Quad City at Tulsa, Colorado at Utah and Wichita at Fort Wayne.


- Alex Guptill had a goal last night to extend his scoring streak to 10 games which is the longest of the season for the Americans. He took a bad spill in the corner and limped off the ice but did return and finished the game. Hoping he is good to go today as he is probably sore this morning.


- The Allen Americans will be honoring the Ludwig family at the game tonight. Tyler and Trevor are a big part of Allen history winning three championships with the Americans.  It should be a fun night having the extended Ludwig family back at the AEC. If you are attending the game tonight arrive early so you can say hi and thank Tyler and Trevor for all they have done for the Americans over the years.

The Ludwig Twins

- For Allen fans dreaming about the return of Chad Costello and Greger Hanson to Allen next season those dreams were dashed yesterday as it was announced they have both signed in Germany for the 2018-19 season. Chad is leaving his team from this season (Iserlohn) and will be joining Greger in Krefeld. The two communities are about 65 miles apart. Chad and Greger will have their work cut out for them as Krefeld finished dead last in the 14 team DEL league this season. Here is part of the press release issued by the Krefeld Penguine (Pengiuns) which is translated from German so it may lose something in translation.

Greger Hanson remains a Penguin. Colleague Chad Costello moves from Iserlohn to the Lower Rhine.

With Greger Hanson, the Penguins could agree on a contract extension. The Swede had dissolved his contract with the San Diego Gulls (AHL) at the turn of the year and arrived in early January in Krefeld. "My wife and I immediately felt at home in Krefeld and are looking forward to the contract extension. Although I learned to play ice hockey in Sweden, at the beginning I had difficulties getting used to the larger ice surface after all these years. It went better from game to game, but I have not been satisfied with my achievements yet. Overall, I have also left too many chances to score. That will change, "says the 30-year-old Swede. In 13 games for the penguins he scored two goals and four assists and showed in the +/- statistics a value of +3.

He will be assisted by his former strike partner Chad Costello in the new season. The 31-year-old forward changes from Iserlohn to Krefeld and scored 8 goals and 19 assists for the Roosters in 37 games in his first season outside North America, as well as a score of +2. "Like Greger, I had to get used to the big ice surface first. In addition, the way of playing in the DEL is different than in the ECHL. All in all, I'm not dissatisfied with my first season in Germany, of course I still see potential for improvement. A knee injury had thrown me back during the season. We both know exactly what to expect. I am looking forward to Krefeld and I am convinced that Greger and I will be playing a strong season," Chad Costello says confidently. 

 Between 2014 and 2017, Greger and Chad had played together for the Allen Americans in the ECHL and won the Kelly Cup twice. Both were once each playoff MVP. The Swede 2015 and the American 2016. During this time Costello scored 98 goals in 216 games and gave 252 assists and a score of +66. There are also 60 games in the playoffs with 19 goals and 57 assists. Hanson has played 146 games over the same period, scoring 77 goals, giving 96 assists and scoring +59. In 59 games in the playoffs add another 30 goals and 30 assists.

DID YOU KNOW: The Ludwig family has 17 championships to their credit from high school to juniors to college to the CHL to the ECHL to the NHL. Did you know Trevor and Tyler were coached by Allen Americans President, Matt Canavan in high school.

Allen vs Kansas City Game Preview, Junior Teammates Last Weekend Pro Opponents Tonight, ECHL & PHPA Ratify New Five Year CBA, NHL's CTE Denial and More

It is game day for the Allen Americans as they start a two game set against the Kansas City Mavericks. The games tonight and Saturday night (7:05 pm) couldn't be more important as both teams are fighting to make the playoffs. Allen is tied with Tulsa for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Mountain Division. Kansas City is in fifth place in the Central Division just two points out of a playoff spot. The two games this weekend at the Allen Event Center (AEC) could very well make the difference between making the playoffs or having an early summer.


- Overall Allen and Kansas City have very similar records this season. Allen is 31-26-5-2 and Kansas city is 32-28-2-2. In their last 10 games Allen is 6-3-1-0 and Kansas City is 6-2-2-0. The Mavericks have won two in a row while the Americans have lost three straight. The game tonight will be the seventh between these teams with Missouri winning four of the first six. They have split the two games played at the AEC. Allen won 5-2 on December 19th and Kansas City won 4-3 in overtime on December 20th.


- The Allen Americans have been a team of streaks for the last two months. Here is how the season has gone since January 15. Six game losing streak, four game winning streak, losing six out of seven, six game winning streak and the current three game losing streak. The next winning streak needs to start right now if the Americans expect to make the playoffs.


- Defense and goalie play has been much different between Allen and Kansas City over the last six games. Allen has given up 24 goals (4.00 per game) while the Mavericks have allowed 13 goals (2.17 per game). Kansas City has used seven different goalies this season and recently was assigned an AHL contract goalie, Adam Carlson. Carlson has played in nine games since being assigned in the middle of February, has a record of 5-1-2-1, a GAA of 2.07 and a .922 save percentage. Unfortunately for Kansas City, Carlson was recalled to Hershey (AHL) yesterday.


- In their six head to head games this season Kansas City has outscored Allen 19-15 and has a big advantage in shots (227-164). With the exception of one game (February 24) when there was a mini-brawl with three fights the games between Allen and Kansas City have been pretty tame but you can never predict what will happen.


- Here is a comparison between Allen and Kansas City this season:

                                     ALLEN                             KANSAS CITY

Team Record              31-25-5-2 (69 points)         32-28-2-2 (52 points)
Division Ranking         5th - Mountain                    5th -Central
Conference Ranking  9th - Western                      10th - Western
League Ranking         16th                                    17th
Last Game                  3-2 Loss (Tulsa)                  3-1 Win (Wichita)
Goals For                    212                                     180
Goals Against             206                                     196
Power Play                 16.8% (47/279)                   18.5% (43/232)
Penalty Kill                  81.4% (53/285)                   79.6% (40/196)
Leading Scorer           Pierro-Zabotel  (18-45-63)   Cooper (20-20-40)
Most PIM's                  Moore - 195                         Elbrecht - 146


-  Here is how Allen and Kansas City rank in the ECHL in some statistical categories:

Penalty Minutes Per Game: Allen 1st (20.86) - Kansas City 20th (12.98)
Goals Scored Per Game: Allen 8th (3.31) - Kansas City 24th (2.81)
Goals Allowed Per Game: Allen 16th (3.22) - Kansas City 11th (3.06)
Shots For Per Game: Allen 20th (31.13) - Kansas City 16th (31.78)
Shots Against Per Game: Allen 23rd (36.41) - Kansas City 9th (30.28)
Power Play Percentage: Allen 17th (16.8%) - Kansas City 7th (18.5%)
Home Power Play %: Allen 12th (18.0%) - Kansas City 8th (19.7%)
Road Power Play %: Allen 16th (15.9%) - Kansas City 13th (17.1%)
Penalty Kill Percentage: Allen 20th (81.4%) - Kansas City 24th (79.6%)
Home Penalty Kill %: Allen 12th (84.6%) - Kansas City 24th (79.6%)
Road Penalty Kill %: Allen 25th (78.5%) - Kansas City 23rd (79.6%)


- One stat that that stands out is goal differential. Allen is +6 (212 for & 206 against) while Kansas City is -16 (180 for & 196 against). Kansas City is ranked #24 in the league scoring an average of 2.81 goals per game. Allen averages a half a goal per game more than the Mavericks.
 


 - Which team will be able to generate some offense tonight is the big question. Special teams may very well hold the answer. Allen's power play is 18.0% at home while Kansas City is at 17.1% on the road. Allen's penalty kill is 84.6% at home and Kansas City is 79.6% on the road. In their six previous games the team that scored the most power play goals won the game. That will likely be the case tonight.


- In their head to head games this season (six games) Allen is 4-15 (26.7%) on the power play while Kansas City is 7-24 (29.2%). However, the Allen penalty kill is much improved. Over the last month the penalty kill percentage is 89.4%. 


- Officials scheduled for the game are referee Olivier Gouin (#7) and linesmen Cameron Dykstra (#0) and Aaron Schacht (#31). This is the same crew that handled the game on Wednesday against Tulsa. On Wednesday the referee called a lot of stick penalties including six for slashing. Something for the players to be aware of tonight.    



OTHER COMMENTS
 
- Wichita lost last night to Kalamazoo by a score of 5-3 and remains in third place in the division with 73 points, four points ahead of Allen and Tulsa. However, the Americans and Oilers have played two fewer games than the Thunder. Tonight the scoreboard watchers will have to track Quad City at Tulsa and Colorado at Utah in addition to Kansas City at Allen to see the impact on the Mountain Division standings. Tulsa and/or Allen could close within two points of the Thunder with a win tonight since Wichita is idle.


- The ECHL and the Professional Hockey Players' Association (PHPA) announced yesterday that they had ratified a new five year collective bargaining agreement (CBA) effective July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2023. I would assume it will be a while before the complete CBA language will be available but typically all of the dollar related provisions have an escalator clause each season so the salary cap, minimum salary, rookie salary, per diem etc. will increase. The one line in the press release that piqued my interest was the "CBA has been modified to include enhancements to the Reserve System as it relates to veteran players." Will try and get more details on that provision. If you haven't seen the joint press release on the new CBA here it is: https://www.echl.com/phpa-echl-ratify-new-collective-bargaining-agreement-2


- I was reading the recent Sharks Report written by Paul Gackle and these sentences caught my eye.

 "The most compelling piece of hockey journalism this month comes from HBO Real Sports. In a recent episode, the sports magazine show looked into the NHL's continued denial of the link between head injuries in the sport and the degenerative brain disorder known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). The NHL now stands alone among the four major professional sports leagues in its refusal to acknowledge the connection between head trauma in sports and the potential for longterm brain damage."

 It is clear that hockey can do better when it comes to hits to the head and the NHL must lead the way. Here is a short video about the HBO Real Sports episode.

 




DID YOU KNOW:  Keep an eye on #91 (Jared Bethune) for Allen and #7 (Brogan O'Brien) for Kansas City if they are in the lineup tonight and on the ice at the same time. It has been quite a week for both players. Less than a week ago (last Saturday) they were Western Hockey League teammates on the Prince George Cougars playing the last game of their junior careers at home against the Kamloops Blazers. Prince George lost the game 6-5 in a shootout. Brogan was an alternate captain, had two goals and an assist, missed in the shootout and was named the #1 star of the game for the Cougars. Jared was an alternate captain, had two assists in the game, missed his shootout opportunity and was named the #2 star of the game for the Cougars. Since Saturday both players signed pro contracts and by coincidence their teams play each other tonight. Bethune played his first game for Allen on Wednesday, O'Brien has yet to make his first pro start. 

Allen Loses Key Game Against Tulsa, Game Recap, Steve Martinson's Comments, Allen Signs Forward Braylon Shmyr - Player Profile and More

The Allen Americans lost to the Tulsa Oilers last night by a score of 3-2 before a Wednesday night crowd of 3767 at the Allen Event Center (AEC) in a game that was not as close as the final score. The Americans squandered an opportunity to put some distance between themselves and the team they are battling for the final playoff spot. Allen got outscored, outplayed, outworked, outshot and any other "out" word you can think of. When you have a performance like last night in such a critical game it makes you wonder if this very talented Allen team knows how to win.


- With the win last night Tulsa is now tied with Allen for the fourth and final playoff spot with eight games remaining. Tulsa has a much more favorable schedule as they have five games at home against the two worst teams in the ECHL whose combined record over the last 10 games is 2-15-1-2.


- How bad was the game last night for the Americans? They were outshot in every period for a game total of 52-27. It was the most shots allowed by Allen in the 13 games against Tulsa this season. Combine that with the Americans tallying only 27 shots on goal, the fewest number in the 13 games against the Oilers all season. As coach Martinson said to me after the game, "You can't expect to win when you give up 52 shots on goal."


- Allen fans had to feel uneasy when Tulsa scored the first goal of the game at the 4:33 mark of the first period and rightfully so. Scoring first is prophetic when these team play each other. They played 13 times this season and the team that scored first won 12 times.


- Allen did comeback to tie the score 1-1 midway through the first period on a goal by Braylon Shmyr who was taking his third shift in his first professional game. See details on Braylon Shmyr below. As Shmyr described his first professional goal, "It was a great pass by J.C. Campagna and all I had to do was tap it in the net." The first period ended with the score tied 1-1 which was fortunate for the Americans since they were outshot 20-7.


- There was no scoring in the second period as Allen fell even further behind on shots for a two period total of 38-19. The game came down to who could win the third period and it didn't take long to know it would be Tulsa. The Oilers scored at the 3:00 minute mark and 6:08 mark to put the game away. Casey Pierro-Zabotel scored with 17 seconds remaining to make the final score 3-2.


- Despite their poor play over the first two periods, thanks largely to goalie Jake Paterson, the Americans had a chance to win the game if they could win the third period. Being good in the third period has been a hallmark of the Allen Americans in the past but not the case this season. Third period goal differential (goals scored minus goals allowed) explains this perfectly. Last season Allen's third period goal differential was +61 (120-59). After losing the third period 2-1 last night, Allen's third period goal differential is now -12 (68-80). If you do the math the Americans have scored 52 fewer goals in the third period than they did last season and they have allowed 21 more goals.


- Allen's power play has been hit or miss all season and missed last night going 0-5. The power play is now ranked #17 in the league at 16.8%. The penalty kill was good allowing one goal on seven Tulsa opportunities and that was a five-on-three goal. Allen penalty is ranked #21 in the ECHL at 81.4%.


- Here are the highlights from ECHL Rewind: https://www.echl.com/


- Here is the game recap from the Allen Americans with quotes from goalie Jake Paterson: https://allenamericans.com/americans-lose-tight-one-tulsa-3-2/


- Here is the game recap from the Tulsa World: http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/oilers/oilers-road-report-ryan-tesink-scores-third-period-goals-in/article_c9079c7e-f868-5873-bf19-1b6465e2bf9b.html



STEVE MARTINSON'S PREGAME & POST GAME COMMENTS

"Tulsa just out worked us. It was frustrating to watch. I think after our road trip we thought we could just put our skates on and come out and win at home but you can't win without effort."

"We missed Makowski on the power play which was anemic tonight. We will have to work on that at practice tomorrow. It is hard to look at just one thing as we need to work harder at in all phases of the game."

"You are not going to win many games when you allow 52 shots on goal."

"We are not working hard enough and we are not supporting the puck when we are in their zone. You can't sit in space waiting for a pass, players have to do a better job of supporting the puck."


OTHER COMMENTS

- It will be back at practice for Allen this morning as they prepare for two games against Kansas City this weekend (Friday and Saturday). Another matchup between two teams battling for their playoff lives. I know coach Martinson was up early this morning breaking down video of the game last night so he can share with the team specific examples where they weren't supporting the puck.


- Coach Martinson mentioned in his post game interview that he expects additional roster changes in the coming week and I know he continues to recruit players that are still in the college/junior playoffs. There is also the possibility of AHL players being assigned to Allen.


- The San Jose Barracuda played last night in Tuscon and beat the Roadrunners 4-3 in overtime despite being outshot 34-18. Colby McAuley was the #1 star of the game with a goal, an assist and was +2. It was Colby's first multi point game of his AHL career. Alex Schoenborn played in the game but did not factor in the scoring. It was just the third game for Schoenborn since he was recalled from Allen in January 19. David Makowski did not play.



BRAYLON SHMYR PLAYER PROFILE

- Jared Bethune and Braylon Shmyr both played in their first professional game last night and had an immediate impact. They add speed and quickness to the lineup along with a ton of scoring potential. They just finished their junior careers in the tough Western Hockey League (WHL) and combined had 157 points this season (55 goals 99 assists). I talked about Bethune in the blog yesterday. Here is some information on Shmyr.

Braylon Shmyr

- Braylon Shmyr just finished his junior career playing for the Saskatoon Blades in the WHL. On the Blades website the 20 year old left shot forward is listed at 5'10" and 167 pounds. He led the team in scoring this season with 88 points (37 goals 51 assists). Here are a few quotes from his coach and opposing WHL coaches that help describe what the Americans are getting in Shmyr.

"That is just a pure goal-scorer. He loves to score and when he doesn't, he doesn't feel right."

"He loves scoring. Anytime you get somebody who loves scoring, it can be contagious. He's just really a fun person to be around and he has played really well for us."

"His ability to see the play, offensively, is one thing, He has got some deception to his game. He can change speeds with the best of them."


- Braylon sure lived up to his reputation last night scoring his first goal in the first period of his first professional game.


- Braylon comes from a speed skating background. He has an older sister, Courtney who is a nationally ranked short track speed skater who was a gold medal  winner in the Canada Games and his older brother Tyler is also a former elite level speed skater who is now involved in mountain bike and BMX racing. Braylon has a younger brother (Cayden) who plays hockey.


- Here is a video interview from a year ago in Saskatoon where junior reporter Kayla helps you get to know Braylon Shmyr. This young Kayla may be another Kayla McLain, Allen game host, in the making. http://saskatoonblades.com/video/kayla-gets-to-know-braylon-shmyr-in-the-latest-junior-reporter-interview


- Shmyr is not a fighter at all having just two fights in his entire junior career of 300 games but one of his two fights was against Colby McAuley which was not a wise decision given the fact McAuley had 18 fights in one season (2015-16) alone. Here is that tilt:

 

Here are Shmyr's stats courtesy of hockeydb.com

Braylon Shmyr

Left Wing -- shoots L
Born May 16 1997 -- Calgary, ALTA
[20 yrs. ago]
Height 5.10 -- Weight 163

			Regular Season						Playoffs
Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2012-13	Brandon Wheat Kings	WHL	1	1	0	1	2	-1	--	--	--	--	--
2013-14	Brandon Wheat Kings	WHL	34	3	6	9	4	-3	--	--	--	--	--
2014-15	Brandon Wheat Kings	WHL	65	18	22	40	22	19	18	3	3	6	4
2015-16	Brandon Wheat Kings	WHL	28	8	8	16	4	18	--	--	--	--	--
2015-16	Saskatoon Blades	WHL	34	9	11	20	10	-15	--	--	--	--	--
2016-17	Saskatoon Blades	WHL	66	35	31	66	20	-12	--	--	--	--	--
2017-18	Saskatoon Blades	WHL	72	37	51	88	16	-2
2017-18	Allen Americans	ECHL	1	1	0	1	0	1

DID YOU KNOW: There is nobody working harder to make the playoffs than coach Steve Martinson. When I stopped by his office after the game last night he was hard at work going through the goals allowed and noting the defensive breakdowns and making plans for video review with the team prior to taking the ice for practice in the morning. He is recruiting each and every day in an effort to improve the roster. Martinson takes great pride in the fact that his teams have missed the playoffs just once in 22 years and that one time was a special situation where the team was folding and he lost six players to the AHL and six players to season ending injuries. Martinson has no intent of missing the playoffs this season and his is as driven to make that happen as he was his first season in 1995. I wouldn't count him out until Allen is mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.