An Overtime Loss Recap, Rematch Preview, Legend Night Player Update and More

 If you didn't attend the Allen game last night and checked the final score this morning you saw the Americans lost in overtime to the Utah Grizzlies 4-3 before a sparse Saturday night crowd of 2363 at the Credit Union of Texas Arena. The final score doesn't tell the story. The Americans took an early lead scoring on the first shot of the game just 48 seconds after puck drop. Utah would come back scoring the equalizer midway through the first period and establish a pattern that would continue all three periods. I can't remember a game where the Americans scored a goal in the first minute of all three periods but that is what happened last night. Allen scored at the 48 second mark of the first period, 30 seconds into the second period and 44 seconds into the third period only to see Utah get the equalizer in each period. The Americans saw leads of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 evaporate as the Grizzlies kept coming back. Utah's second goal to tie the score 2-2 was particularly disheartening as it was scored shorthanded with 47 seconds left in the period. 

- The Americans couldn't continue the magic of the first three periods by scoring in the first minute of overtime. They were out shot 8-2 and successfully killed an overtime penalty but gave up the game winning goal at the 5:37 mark. 

- It was a game where Allen took too many penalties (7) which led to a lopsided shot advantage for Utah (49-25). The penalty kill unit played well killing six of the seven Grizzlies power play opportunities including a long 5-on-3 but in the end the power play goal tied the score 3-3 and led to overtime. 

- Allen was 1-3 on the power play but also surrendered a shorthanded goal. The Utah penalty kill is dangerous having scored three shorthanded goals in its first five games. 

- Goal scorers for the Americans were Ryan Lohin (3), Jackson Leppard (1) and Jack Combs (2). Lohin's three goals leads the team while Combs leads the Americans in points (4). 

- Here is the game recap issued by the Utah Grizzlies: https://www.utahgrizzlies.com/en/grizzlies-news/d-astous-delivers-game-winner-in-4-3-utah-victory

 

- I had a chance to talk to coach Martinson about the game and the big takeaway was the team did best when they got pucks in deep and worked low to high. Utah has a strong defense with mostly contract players and they were not giving Allen much through neutral ice and at the blue line. A key to the game today is get pucks in deep and avoid all of the turnovers in neutral ice trying to make a play that isn't there.  

 

- Allen and Utah will be back at it early this afternoon with a 2:05 puck drop. Hopefully the Americans can repeat opening weekend with a win on Sunday after a disappointing loss on Saturday. For Utah it will be its third game in 44 hours with a bus trip from Wichita thrown in for good measure. Allen should have the fresher legs this afternoon. 

 

- For the Americans to be successful they are going to rely on the top line to score. Based on their ECHL history of a combined average points per game (3.56) the line of Costello-Asuchak-Combs would be at just over 10 points and they are right on track with a total of nine points. The defensive end of the ice will tell the tale on the success of the top line. Plus/minus isn't the best stat but in the loss last night the team total for plus/minus was -3 but the top line was -7. 

 

- Allen's special teams are much improved after the opening night disaster. In the last two games the Americans are 42.9% (3-7) on the power play and 90% (1-10) on the penalty kill. Utah scored its first power play of the season last night and is now 1-16 (6.3%). On the penalty kill the Grizzlies are at 75% (6-24). 

 

- Frank Marotte took the loss last night despite having the second most saves (45) in the ECHL thus far. His save percentage was a respectable .918. Look for Marotte to be in goal again this afternoon. 

 

- Jackson Leef, who sat out last night, will be in the lineup this afternoon. 

 

- The referee scheduled today is the same as last night, Logan Gruhl (#29), who called 10 minor penalties in the game with seven against Allen. The linesmen this afternoon will be Aaron Schacht (#51) and Daniel Barnes (#76).

 

OTHER COMMENTS

- It was great to see some players from the past at the game last night. It was called "legends night" but several of them are younger the Costello and Combs. It was quite a group that combined have 12 championships, mostly with the Americans, in the CHL and ECHL. I had a chance to get an update:

Riley Gill - Riley stays very busy with is own construction company (Riley Gill's Construction) but spends plenty of time with hockey. He is the head coach of one of Allen High School's two junior varsity teams and is the goalie coach for the varsity team and both JV teams. He is also helping out Aaron Gens with the McKinney North Stars one night a week as the goalie coach for the 14U and 16U teams. He also does some private goalie lessons. Gill's oldest son (Jackson) is into all sports including hockey and his youngest has also started playing hockey.

Aaron Gens - Aaron is a full time into hockey as the Hockey Programs Manager for the Dallas Stars Children's Health StarCenter - McKinney where he is responsible for all hockey programs at the rink. In addition, he also coaches the McKinney North Stars as the head coach for the Tier 2 16U and assistant coach for the 18U. Throw in private lessons and Aaron spends at least 25 hours a week on the ice. 

Erik Adams - Erik is the head coach of the Allen High School varsity hockey team. His full time job is in Health Care Staffing, helping facilities find temporary doctors. His son, Henrik, is playing in the program Aaron Gens runs in McKinney. Erik's also coaches his son's 8U team.

Darryl Bootland - The guy known as Booter lives in Houston and is a manger for a steel company (PMP). He is still involved in hockey, coaching an appropriately named Texas Outlaws Hockey Club at the U14 and U12 level.

Mathieu Aubin - Mathieu played briefly in Allen after an illustrious 11 year career in the ECHL which included two Kelly Cups with Cincinnati. Aubin is the fifth leading scorer in the ECHL since 2006-07 with 487 points. Incidentally #4 on the list is Chad Costello (491 points) and #2 is Casey Pierro-Zabotel (543 points). Mathieu just completed the fire academy and EMT certification and is currently applying for firefighter positions in the area. He still plays men's league hockey on Sunday's and his team wins pretty much every season which isn't a surprise with teammates including Jason Deitsch and the Ludwig brothers. Aubin has an eight month old son who was attending his third Allen game last night.

Nolan Descoteaux - Nolan who grew up in the area, recently purchased two existing Fastsigns franchises, both in Plano. He was done with hockey and not interested until he went to the Dallas Stars outdoor game and got the itch to play. He called a friend and now has a lot of fun playing beer league hockey in Mansfield. 

 

DID YOU KNOW: Some interesting info on the capacity of ECHL arenas:

The range of arena capacities ranges widely between divisions. Here are the ECHL arena capacities by division, per the ECHL website:

 

Mountain

17,096 - Tulsa

13,400 - Wichita

10,207 - Utah

6200 - Allen

5800 - Kansas City

5119 - Rapid City

5006 - Idaho

 

Central

10,500 - Fort Wayne

7431 - Toledo

6955 - Cincinnati

6145 - Indy

5200 - Wheeling

5113 - Kalamazoo

5100 - Iowa

 

South

9119 - Atlanta

9049 - Orlando

8500 - Jacksonville

8468 - Norfolk

7250 - South Carolina

7186 - Florida

7044 - Greenville 

 

North

7160 - Reading

6733 - Maine

6287 - Newfoundland

5600 - Worcester

4794 - Adirondack

4390 - Trois-Rivières

  

Allen vs Utah Series Preview, Goalie Frank Marotte and Defenseman Ben Owen Added to Roster and More

 

- On a personal note I am back in Texas after spending a month in Minnesota and North Dakota. In addition to spending time visiting friends and family the trip included a 10 day pheasant hunting trip. I traveled from Minneapolis to northwest North Dakota (620 miles) with my high school hunting buddy of over 60 years (Dave Carter) and his 10 year old black lab (Jett), which made for a fun and very successful pheasant hunt. We relived a lifetime of hunting experiences which we do every year and they get better and funnier each year. Welcome to old age! The fall colors were gorgeous and the wildlife was abundant. We saw hundreds of Sandhill Cranes, thousands of geese and ducks migrating south, a herd of antelope and even spotted a few moose and of course wild turkeys and plenty of deer. If you like nature and the outdoors, you can't beat the fall in the upper midwest. We had so much fun we are going back on another pheasant hunting trip in mid December, as there is nothing like late season pheasant hunting in the cold, wind and snow of North Dakota.    

 

- Welcome to the second weekend of the ECHL season as the Allen Americans prepare to take on the Utah Grizzlies tonight (7:05) and Sunday afternoon (2:05). Both teams come into the weekend with a .500 points percentage and similar yet different starts to the season.

 

- Allen suffered its worst shutout in team history (7-0) in game one of the season against Wichita before bouncing back with 6-3 win over the Thunder. Utah has already played four games, losing the first two to Idaho (7-3 & 5-3) before bouncing back with two wins, both shutouts. The Grizzlies beat Idaho 4-0 last Sunday and followed that up with a 3-0 win over Wichita last night. 

 

- Utah arrives in Allen having not given up a goal in the last 125:07 minutes. Goalie Trent Minor has back to back shutouts. After a rough start on opening night where Minor allowed seven goals on 26 shots, he arrives in Allen stopping 56 straight shots. Since Utah and Minor played in Wichita last night and had to travel to Allen after the game, it remains to be seen if he will be in goal tonight but back to back shutouts typically earns a start in the next game. However, it is hard to see Minor playing both tonight and again Sunday afternoon with the early start. Three games in less than 48 hours for the Thunder probably means Utah's other goalie, Peyton Jones, may get a start in Allen. 

- Allen had to play with an EBUG last weekend with rookie goalie, Alexis Gravel, carrying the load playing every minute of the series against Wichita. The Americans got some help this week as the San Diego Gulls (AHL) loaned goalie Frank Marotte to the Americans. Marotte is a depth goalie for San Diego so should spend a lot of time in Allen this season barring injuries in San Diego or its NHL affiliate, Anaheim. If you wonder why Marotte was loaned to Allen rather than Tulsa who is affiliated with Anaheim and San Diego, it is because Marotte signed with Allen before he got his AHL deal so the Americans retain his ECHL rights. In 12 games with Allen last season, Marotte had a record of 8-3-0-1, a GAA of 2.54 and save percentage of .917. Marotte will be in goal for Allen tonight. 

 

- Allen played Utah 21 times last season. In 18 regular season games the Americans record against the Grizzlies was 10-6-1-1. In the playoffs Allen swept Utah 3-0.  

 

- Scoring first is always important. Allen is 1-1 this season, Utah is 2-2 and in all six games the team that scored first won the game. In the 21 times these teams played last season the team that scored first won 15.

- Special teams is always key and though it is a small sample, Allen has the advantage early in the season. The Americans were 0-6 on the power play on opening night but followed that up with 2-4 on Sunday. Allen's power play will be very good this season. Utah's power play is still looking for its first goal of the season going 0-9 in four games. Both teams have struggled on the penalty kill with Allen at 62.5% (3-8) and Utah at 76.2% (5-21). Shorthanded goals could be a factor this weekend, Utah has two shorties in four games, Allen has one in two games. Utah hasn't given up a shorthanded goal, Allen has allowed one. 

- Coach Martinson signed local defensemen Ben Owen this week. Ben is from Allen and has played 18 games with the Americans in the past (2018-20). Allen will be missing two defensemen tonight. Nolan Kneen who as he is still recovering from a season ending injury from last season.  Kneen has been practicing with the team and should be back in the lineup very soon. Eric Roy will not play tonight and will likely miss the game tomorrow. He suffered a lower body injury blocking a shot last weekend and is listed as day to day. Phil Beaulieu will be back in the lineup tonight, playing in his first game since being injured last season on April 25.  

 

- The referee scheduled tonight is Logan Gruhl (#29). The linesmen will be Jordan Solomon (#78) and Trent Williams (#48).

OTHER COMMENTS

- There was major news in the ECHL this week with one team announcing a name and logo and another forced out of their home arena. Savannah will start playing in the ECHL in 2022-23 and will be known as the Ghost Pirates. Here is a link to the details from the local paper that covers the new name, construction of their new arena, franchise owners and the embrace of the community (1500 season tickets already sold): https://www.savannahnow.com/story/sports/minors/2021/10/27/savannah-ghost-pirates-unveiled-pro-hockey-team-enmarket-arena/8559823002/

At the other end of the Spectrum is the Newfoundland Growlers who have been suspended from playing home games at their arena (Mile One Centre) pending a third-party investigation into allegations of "disrespectful workplace conduct." The Growlers will temporarily plays their home games in Toronto. Here is a link to the story: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/article-echls-newfoundland-growlers-suspended-from-mile-one-centre-pending/

 

- It is very early in the season with teams playing between one and four games into tonight but already 22 of 27 teams have won and lost a game.  Only three teams (Newfoundland, Jacksonville, Cincinnati) haven't lost and two teams haven't won (Indy, Greenville). 

 

- The Mountain Division has four teams at .500 (Allen, Idaho, Utah, Kansas City), two at .667 (Rapid City, Tulsa) and Wichita at .333. Based on early results the division could be the most balanced in the league.

 

- Here is the ECHL Today with a preview of all nine ECHL games tonight: https://www.echl.com/en/news/2021/10/echl-today-oct-30

 

DID YOU KNOW: From my ECHL Stats post this morning:

Some stout defense and goalie play in the ECHL last night. In nine games there were four shutouts, Cincinnati (1-0), Trois-Rivières (2-0), Kansas City (3-0) and Utah (3-0). In addition, three teams allowed a single goal, Jacksonville (2-1), Norfolk (2-1) and Toledo (10-1) plus Kalamazoo allowed one goal and lost 1-0. The cumulative save percentage for the nine winning teams was .959. The nine winning teams gave up a total of 11 goals, an average of 1.22 per game. 

 

 

 

How good has the goalie play been so far in 2021-22?

- Six goalies have a GAA of 1.01 or less

- Nine goalies have a save percentage above .940

 

Allen Americans Weekend Review - A 1-1 Record Does Not Tell the Story

 If you look at the ECHL standings the Allen Americans are 1-1 in the Mountain Division. Every team in the division is 1-1 with the exception of Utah and Idaho who played three games against each other with Idaho winning twice. Nothing says parity better than an opening weekend when every team in the Mountain Division has won and lost a game.

- Allen's 1-1 record sounds mundane if you didn't follow the team and know the vast differences between its loss on Saturday (7-0) and win on Sunday (6-3). The 7-0 loss on Saturday was the worst shutout loss in team history which is saying a lot when you consider Allen has played 955 regular season games since 2009.      

- Veteran leadership made the difference as the Allen Americans bounced back from a 7-0 loss to Wichita on Saturday with a 6-3 win on Sunday afternoon to gain a split of the two game series. The top line of Combs-Asuchak-Costello was held without a point in the game Saturday night. They answered the bell on Sunday with a goal apiece and four assists. Another veteran, defenseman Eric Roy added a three point game with a goal and an assist.

- The contrasts between Saturday and Sunday could not have been more stark. Here are a few examples  comparing Saturday and Sunday:

Score: 7-0 loss vs 6-3 win

Power play: 0% (0-6) vs 50% (2-4)

Penalty kill: 40% (3-5) vs 100% (0-3)  

Shots allowed: 39 vs 34

Shots for: 30 vs 36

Shooting percentage: 0% (0-30) vs 16.7% (6-36)

Attendance: 5443 vs 1799

- Everything Allen didn't accomplish on Saturday they did on Sunday. The Americans scored first, out shot the Thunder, scored on two of four power play opportunities and the penalty kill was a perfect 0-3 and Ryan Lohin added a shorthanded goal. The only disappointment was the small crowd (1799) that saw the game on Sunday.

- In talking to coach Martinson it is clear he never saw what happened on opening night coming and is hard pressed to explain it. Some players didn't get much practice time in training camp, there was not a preseason game, expected goalies were with AHL teams and some players hadn't played a game since the 2019-20. Martinson did make some adjustments to the power play for the game on Sunday and that made a difference. The penalty kill was improved on Sunday because the penalty killers made better decisions, Martinson explained it as going back to Hockey 101 on the penalty kill. 

- The players had Monday off  and will be back at practice today. Practices early in the season are vitally important to work on a host of system issues. With two games in the books there is now video to review and target areas for improvement. The one specific Martinson mentioned he will work on was the role of the third player going through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone. 

- Martinson also talked about three defensemen that are not available right now, Phil Beaulieu, Nolan Kneen and Will Lochead. All had their last season cut short because of injuries. Beaulieu had nine points in the nine games before he went down with a knee injury at the end of April. Nolan Kneen had a season ending injury in mid March and Lochead was injured when he was on loan to the AHL. Lochead's return is still quite a ways off but Beaulieu and Kneen will return soon.  

- The bottom line is the Americans are loaded with talent and will improve as they play a few games and get some missing pieces in the lineup. This should be a fun team to watch this season. 

- Allen has always had defensemen at or near the top of the list in points in the ECHL. Les Lancaster, Matt Register, Alex Breton, David Makowski, Aaron Gens and Tyler Ludwig to name a few. Coach Martinson has said this publicly a couple of times and mentioned it to me again yesterday that he thinks Eric Roy has a chance to add his name to this list this season. With three points (1G, 2A) in two games, Eric is currently #3 in scoring by defensemen.  

OTHER COMMENTS

- Next up for the Americans are two games against the Utah Grizzlies at home on Saturday and Sunday. Utah is in last place in the Mountain Division having lost two games to Idaho on opening weekend but don't let that fool you. Utah is loaded with contract players from Colorado including the ECHL rookie of the year from last season, Matthew Boucher. 

- Everyone will be keeping an eye on the AHL transactions list this week to see if either of the goalies (Antoine Bibeau & Frank Marotte) Allen is expecting to be assigned "soon" will happen before Saturday. 

- Here is an example of great starts bearing fruit. Forward Eduards Tralmaks had a hat trick in Maine's opening game on Friday, was recalled by Providence (AHL), the Mariner's affiliate, on Saturday and was in the Bruin's lineup on Sunday. 

- Allen released defensemen Zach Wilkie yesterday who will head back to his SPHL team, Peoria Riverman. Wilkie was signed for the games against Wichita because the Americans were short defensemen. 

- Former Allen forward Scott Conway is off to a great start playing for the Belfast Giants in the EIHL. In seven games Scott has 13 points (5G, 8A). 

DID YOU KNOW: There were 17 games in the ECHL thus far (opening weekend) when a team was trailing after the second period and the team trailing didn't win a single one going 0-17. It is very hard to comeback when trailing after the second period. Last season Allen had a second period lead in 34 games and its record in those games was 30-2-2-0 which is a points percentage of .912. Best not be trailing after the second period, it is a losing proposition. 

A Loss for the Ages Put in Perspective Plus the Rematch Preview

The opening game of the season hasn't always been kind to the Allen Americans when you consider its record on opening night since joining the ECHL is now 3-5.  If you look at home openers the record isn't much better at 4-4. There have been some doozies including Allen's first season in the ECHL (2014-15) when it lost 9-6 to Tulsa at home with Aaron Dell, who had led Allen to the CHL championship a few months earlier in goal. Despite the poor start for Dell and the Americans the season was a big success. Dell was in the AHL for good by January and in the NHL the following year. Allen went on to win the Kelly Cup that season (2015). FYI, Allen also lost its home opener in 2015-16 (2-1 to Quad City) and went on to win a second Kelly Cup. Just maybe, losing the home opener is a good luck charm and predictive of a great end of the season. 

- Allen lost 7-0 to Wichita last night and yes it was the worst home opener loss in team history. It was actually the worst shutout in franchise history. There is no way to sugarcoat the result. Allen has played 955 games since it became a franchise in 2009-10 and has never been shutout 7-0. The Americans have been shutout 5-0 five different times but only one of those was at home. The worst shutout ever prior to last night was a 6-0 loss at home to Kansas City on March 6, 2018. You may remember that game as Mavericks forward, Greg Betzhold, had a rare four goal and five point game.

- While you will not win many games when you give up 39 shots, the first goal of the game and lose the special teams battle as Allen did last night, it is important to put the loss in perspective. The Americans gave up three power play goals on just five opportunities and were 0-6 when they were on the power play. That is not who this team will be this season. Allen did not play a preseason game, Wichita played two. The Americans had numerous grade A scoring chances in their 30 shots on goal but didn't convert. Some of that is hats off to the #1 star of the game, Wichita goalie, Evan Buitenhuis, who picked up where he left off last season, as the best goalie in the league. Allen goalie Alexis Gravel, playing in his first pro game with an EBUG as his backup didn't get a lot of support, facing way too many odd man rushes. While there were a couple of goals I am sure Gravel wishes he had back on most of them there was nothing he could do.

- As co-captain Spencer Asuchak said after the game, the best thing about a loss like last night is the team doesn't have to wait a long time to do something about it as the teams play again this afternoon at 2:05 pm. 

- Despite the loss there were some positives in the game. Branden Troock led the Americans with eight shots on goal, played tough and was one of just two players that didn't have a negative plus/minus (Jackson Leef was the other). You could also see the skill of Chad Costello and Jack Combs on the ice. They didn't convert but created numerous quality scoring opportunities for each other. You will be able to count on one hand the number of games this season Combs and Costello are both shutout in points in the same game. 

- Look for a much better game from Allen this afternoon. They have a game under their belt, will improve on special teams, reduce the number of odd man rushes and hopefully give up fewer shots on goal. If Gravel can bounce back and play with confidence the Americans will be fine.

- I had a chance to talk to coach Martinson as he was headed to the rink to review last night's game and plan for the early start today. He obviously didn't see what happened last night coming and was frustrated. He saw the loss as a combination of factors with everyone from the forwards to the defensemen to the goalie needing to play better. The game was Martinson's first opportunity to see the players in game conditions and a couple of his observations were: 

- too many turnovers entering the offensive zone

- too many pucks shot wide or over the net

- players trying to do too much 

- a penalty kill that needs some adjustments. As he said to me, a lot of players say they can kill penalties, but until you see them in game conditions you don't really know. Martinson learned plenty as Allen gave up three power play goals on five attempts last night.   

- The referee for the game this afternoon will be the same as last night, Trevor Wohlford (#38). He called 13 penalties last night, six on Allen and seven on Wichita, for a total of 32 minutes. Have a feeling those numbers might be exceeded in the game today.

OTHER COMMENTS

- Kevin Colley, who was an assistant coach in Allen in 2015-16 when they won the Kelly Cup is back helping Steve Martinson this season. Kevin had 214 AHL games and 16 NHL games with the New York Islanders during his playing career and won the Kelly Cup in 2003 playing for Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies. He was the ECHL playoff MVP scoring 20 points in 14 games (7G, 13A). Kevin was the head coach of the Utah Grizzlies for five seasons (2008-13) and never missed the playoffs. He will be a big help for coach Martinson this season.  

- Newfoundland has jumped out to the early lead in the ECHL standings which is no surprise. The Growlers are the only team that has played three games and they have won all three, outscoring its opponents 12-6. Newfoundland is again loaded with many NHL/AHL contracted players and will be a contender for the Kelly Cup, which they won in 2019, the only season they have competed for the championship. 

- There are only two games in the ECHL today. In addition to Wichita at Allen, Idaho is at Utah.

- Some great early performance around the ECHL include Alex Tonge (Norfolk) leading the league in points (6 in 2 games) and Patrick Bajkov (Reading) and A.J. White (Idaho) leading the league in goals (4 in 2 games). Also notable is Wichita's Matteo Gennaro with five assists last night.

DID YOU KNOW: There was a great crowd on hand last night as 5443 attended the game which was the best opening night crowd since Allen joined the ECHL. The best home opener in team history was the very first one. In 2009 Allen had to play its first seven games on the road because the Allen Event Center wasn't completed. The home opener took place on November 7, 2009 as the Americans lost to Corpus Christi by a score of 4-1. The first Allen Americans hockey game in the AEC drew a record opening night crowd of 5808. 

Allen vs Wichita Game Preview Plus Some This and That

 Opening night for the Allen Americans 2021-22 season has finally arrived. It has been 140 days since the Americans last regular season game. While that sounds like a long time it is exactly half the time fans had to wait between the end of the shortened 2019-20 season and the start of the 2020-21 season when it was an agonizing 280 days between games. 

- It is only fitting Allen opens the season against long time rival Wichita. You could write a book on the history between these teams from the game seven overtime win in 2013 when Allen won its first championship to the period of time the Wichita owners also owned the Allen franchise. Allen has clearly outshined Wichita since these teams joined the ECHL in 2013-14. The Americans have won two Kelly Cups and missed the playoffs just one time. Wichita has missed the playoffs four times and lost in the first round the two times it made the playoffs. Over the last five seasons Allen's record against Wichita is 29-14-4-2 and last season it was 7-3-1-0.

- Past is not prologue so what has happened in the past bears little resemblance to the possibilities this season. Most players on both teams have no idea of the history between these teams. Stats from the past don't mean much in 2021-22.

- Here is how the Allen and Wichita rosters compare as the season begins:

AHL experience: Allen has eight players with AHL experience and they have played a total of 432 AHL games. Wichita has three players with AHL experience and they have played a total of 289 AHL games. Defenseman Dylan Olsen has 222 games of AHL experience to go along with 124 NHL games played.

The players on Allen's roster have played a total of 1704 games for the Americans. The players on the Wichita roster have played 1041 games for the Thunder.

Allen in the heaviest team in the ECHL averaging 199 pounds per player. Wichita is ranked #17 at 191 pounds per player. 

The goalie advantage has to go to Wichita. Evan Buitenhuis had the best GAA (2.29) and save percentage (.931) in the ECHL last season and was runner-up for Goalie of the Year. 

It is hard to overstate the success that Chad Costello and Jack Combs have had in the ECHL. Since 2009-10, if you look at players with at least 200 ECHL games played, Chad Costello is #1 in average points per game (1.59) and Jack Combs is #2 (1.26). 

As I will say in most previews this season scoring first and special teams will be key. The team that scores first will win about 75% of the time. Last season Allen's point percentage win scoring first was one of the best in the ECHL at .791 and Wichita was not far behind at .775. First goal wins most of the time. 

It might take some time for Allen's power play to get up to speed but Chad Costello is a master at quarterbacking the power play. In his three previous seasons in Allen the power play was never below 21%. The power play was a key in Allen's second Kelly Cup win in 2016 when they had a playoff leading 27.2% power play. Allen scored 80 goals in the 2016 playoffs and 35% came from the power play. 

The referee scheduled tonight is Trevor Wohlford (#38). The linesmen will be Daniel Barnes (#76) and Trent Williams (#48). 

OTHER COMMENTS

- The chemistry between Chad Costello and Jack Combs is undeniable. Steve Martinson has described it as the best he has seen in AA hockey. They have played together for the Allen Americans, Colorado Eagles, Tulsa Oilers, Worcester Sharks, Bridgeport Islanders and Iserlohn Roosters (Germany). 

- Opening night has been a mixed bag since Allen joined the ECHL with a record of 3-4. Tonight will be the first time the Americans have opened against Wichita:

2014-15: Lost 9-6 at home to Tulsa

2015-16: Lost 2-1 at home to Quad City

2016-17: Won 6-3 at home against Kansas City

2017-18: Won 8-3 on the road in Rapid City

2018-19: Lost 5-1 on the road in Kansas City

2019-20: Won 3-2 in OT at home against Rapid City

2020-21: Lost 4-3 on the road in Tulsa

- Trois Rivieres lost to Newfoundland at home last night but all other home teams (Maine, Norfolk, Iowa, Rapid City, Idaho) won. Idaho had 11 power play opportunities in its 7-3 win over Utah and scored four power play goals, a power play percentage of 36.4%. Maine was 2-3 on the power play in its win 6-3 win over Worcester for a 66.7% power play percentage.  

- Two former Allen Americans goalies went head to head last night. Justin Kapelmaster played for Worcester and Jeremy Brodeur played for Maine. Brodeur had a great game stopping 51 of 54 Worcester shots including 25 of 26 in the first period as Maine beat Worcester 6-3. As a frame of  reference of Brodeur's effort, last season the most shots in the first period was 25 (Orlando) and the most shots in a game was 53 (Utah). Jeremy's great effort was only good enough for the #2 star of the game as his teammate, Eduards Tralmaks, had a hat trick and was named the #1 star of the game.

DID YOU KNOW: From my ECHL Stats post today: 

Last season the1st ECHL hat trick wasn't until three weeks into the season and the 2nd took a month. This season there were two hat tricks on opening night as Eduards Tralmaks (Maine) and A.J. White (Idaho) had hat tricks.

Allen Americans 2021-22 Season Preview

 The best place to start a preview of the 2021-22 season for the Allen Americans is to look back at last season. The Americans finished with the best record in the Western Conference and the second best record in the ECHL with a record of 42-19-5-3 and points percentage of .653. Allen was #3 in average goals per game (3.28) and #3 in average goals allowed (2.72). The Americans had the #2 power play in the ECHL at 20.5% and #9 ranked penalty kill (81.7%). 

-The challenge Allen faces in 2021-22 is replacing nine of its top 11 scorers. Only Spencer Asuchak and Phil Beaulieu will return from the top 11 scorers. Allen had a total of 639 points last season. The nine players that are not returning had 55% of the offensive production (Lancaster, 64 points, Mackin 62, Register 52, Laberge 37, Lammon 36, Franklin 32 and Mychan 24, Butcher 22, Conway 20. This group also accounted for 56% of Allen's goals.

FORWARDS

- All Steve Martinson did in the off season to replace some of the lost offense from last season is recruit the most prolific scorers in Allen history and two of the best in the ECHL, Chad Costello and Jack Combs. The top three single seasons in points per game average in Allen history belong to Costello and Combs.

When you consider the top points per game average in the ECHL last season (minimum 30 games) was 1.15 and just six players were above 1.00 per game, you can see the damage Costello and Combs are capable of.

1.75 - Jack Combs (2014-15)

1.74 - Chad Costello (2014-15)

1.69 - Chad Costello (2016-17)  

- Add in Spencer Asuchak as the net front net guy with Costello and Comb and it should be quite a show. Asuchak was Allen's third leading goal scorer last season with 21 goals. 

- As potent as the Combs-Asuchak-Costello line could be the Americans will have three lines that can score. As I mentioned yesterday, Brenden Troock has according to reports scored more goals during training camp than any other player and the team was strengthened this week when Seattle sent contracted player Ryan Lohin from Charlotte to Allen. It is worth re-stating Martinson's comment to me about the forwards on the roster, "We are going to have three scoring lines. Two lines are veteran proven scorers, the next has a bunch of nasty guys that can skate, make plays, score goals and kick your ass."

- Steve Martinson has often described the toughness on his teams in these terms, "Sometimes you have a lion and sometimes you have a pack of wolves." This season the Americans will have both. Darian Skeoch is the lion that will fight anyone in the league to protect his teammates. But right behind him will be the pack of wolves making it difficult for the opposition. Kelly Bent is a second year pro who is an agitator and had over 50 fights in his junior career in the QMJHL. Rookies Dawson Butt, D-Jay Jerome, Jackson Leppard all come out of the tough WHL and will play with toughness and skill. The Americans have finished #1 in penalty minutes in four of the seven seasons they have played in the ECHL and it looks they will be competing for the top spot again in 2021-22.

- With Chad Costello quarterbacking the power play it should be one of the best in the league. In the three seasons Chad played in Allen the power play was ranked:

 #1 in 2014-15 (21.9%)

 #1 in 2015-16 (21.1%) 

#3 in 2016-17 (24.4%). 

In the three seasons after Chad went to Europe the Allen power play was ranked; 

#15 in 2017-18 (17.1%)

#15 in 2018-19 (16.7%) 

#9 in 2019-20 (18.5%)

DEFENSEMEN

-  Allen returns five defensemen from last season; Beaulieu, Carroll, Kneen, Myllari and Skeoch but will struggle to replace the offense power lost by the top two scoring defensemen in the ECHL last season, Les Lancaster and Matt Register, who are playing in Europe. Lancaster was arguably the best player in the ECHL last season. His 26 goals were the most goals scored by a defenseman in 20 years and his 64 points ranked him #5 in points among all  ECHL players. Among Allen defensemen, Lancaster (64 points) and Matt Register (52 points) had more points (116) than all other defenseman combined (94). If you look at other ECHL teams last season, none had a defensive duo of defensemen with more than 78 points.

Coach Martinson was hoping to replace some of the lost offense with the signing of former Americans player, Miles Liberati, who was the ECHL's second leading scorer among defensemen in 2019-20 when he played for Tulsa. Liberati never reported to training camp because of the ECHL COVID protocol but Allen still has his rights so it is possible you could see him at some point. 

It is unfair to expect anyone to produce the points Lancaster and Register contributed last season but the Americans will be the typical team of the past with the defensemen being expected to jump into the play and score points. Two players that will contribute more offensively are second year defensemen Phil Beaulieu and Nolan Kneen whose seasons were cut short because of injuries. Beaulieu had nine points in the nine games before he went down with a knee injury at the end of April. Nolan Kneen had a season ending injury in mid March and will also contribute more this season. Rookie Josh Burnside will also add offensive power to the blueline.

It seems like every season Steve Martinson signs a player that surprises everyone when announced. That player this off season was a familiar name, defenseman Eric Roy. The 5th round draft choice of the Calgary Flames in the 2013 NHL draft hasn't played professionally since the 2018-19 season. Eric is in a better place now than when he left pro hockey and went home for a couple of years. He is still a young man at 26 years old. It seems like a long time ago but in 2016, as a 21 year old rookie, Eric had an amazing performance in the playoffs as the Americans won their second Kelly Cup. Had it not been for Chad Costello's record setting playoffs (36 points - 7G, 29A), Eric Roy would have probably been the playoff MVP. Eric had 21 points (5G, 16A) in 23 games and led the team in plus/minus at +12. Most fans don't remember this but Roy's 21 points in the 2016 playoffs were more points than Steffes, Pierro-Zabotel, Arseneau, Asuchak, Register and Makowski scored.

If you look at all time records for Allen Americans defensemen (regular season & playoffs), Eric is #6 in games played but #3 in goals (48), #4 in assists (81) and #4 in points (129).

From my reporting Eric has looked very good in training camp and will be a great addition to the blueline this season. 

GOALIES

Allen lost both experienced goalies from last season, as like so Allen many players, Jake Paterson and C.J. Motte are playing in Europe. Things look good for the 2021-22 season with two contract goalies expected to be in Allen. Antoine Bibeau is under contract with the Seattle Kraken and is currently assigned to Charlotte (AHL) and Frank Marotte is under contract with San Diego (AHL) and is currently with the Gulls. It is always a two edged sword when you have two contract goalies. On one hand you get top goalies assigned, on the other hand they are susceptible to being recalled.  Bibeau is the #4 goalie in the Kraken organization. Martinson expects Bibeau to be one of the best goalies in the ECHL. This will be his 8th year as a pro but his first ECHL assignment. He has played four NHL games (GAA 2.54, .907 save percentage) and 192 AHL games (2.73 GAA, .908 save percentage). Frank Marotte impressed San Diego at their camp and they signed him to an AHL deal as a depth guy. Last season Marotte played 12 games for the Americans with a GAA of 2.54 and save percentage of .917. It is expected both Bibeau and Marotte will be in Allen soon. The only goalie on the Allen roster right now is Alexis Gravel who was signed to a contract on October 13. Based on past conversations I assume Martinson would prefer to not carry three goalies long term but that is clearly not an issue as the season gets underway. 

CONCLUSIONS

- Steve Martinson has once again put together a team that is capable of a deep playoff run. Martinson's teams are always a combination of skill and toughness and the 2021-22 roster has plenty of both. 

- Injuries will play a key role in Allen's success. Yes, this is true for all ECHL teams but it is clear the Americans will need Chad Costello and Jack Combs to stay healthy and play like they have in the past. In 2020-21 Allen overcame the season ending injury to Jesse Mychan after he scored 15 goals in 25 games to start the season. It will be very difficult for Allen to win the division if Combs and Costello don't have good seasons.

- A big key this season will be how many contract players will Allen receive versus how many players will be recalled and loaned. This is particularly the case with goalies. If Bibeau and Marotte spend the majority of the season in Allen it will be a big help. It is a huge advantage when some ECHL teams getting 10+ contracted players from their NHL/AHL affiliate. It is unlikely Allen will see more than three or four contracted players unless Seattle signs more players later in the season. The first year of a new affiliation is always a learning experience. The first year of a new affiliation with a new NHL teams will be even more of a learning experience.

The X-factor for Allen is the experience of coach and general manager Steve Martinson. He has time and again overcome all kinds of obstacles to turn lemons into lemonade. There is no doubt he will be called on to do that again this season. I know first hand he is pleased with the team he has put together for 2021-22 and expects another great season. I also know first hand he will work hard everyday on and off the ice to improve the team. Allen is fortunate to have a coach with the experience and knowledge of Steve Martinson. He will hit another milestone early this season when he records his 1100th win as a professional coach. Martinson enters the season with 1088 wins and could care less about milestones.  

   

DID YOU KNOW: The top five goalies in total games played (regular season and playoffs) in Allen Americans franchise history. 

175 - Riley Gill (won Kelly Cup in 2015 & 2016)

112 - Chris Whitley

79 - Jake Paterson

75 - Aaron Dell (won CHL championship in 2013)

60 - Bryan Pitton (won CHL championship in 2014)

Allen Gains a Center and Loses a Goalie, Season Opening Roster Update, ECHL Kicks Off Tonight, A Martinson Quote on Lines and More

It was good news/bad news for the Allen Americans yesterday. The good news was the loan of center Ryan Lohin from Charlotte (AHL) to Allen. Lohin was the seventh round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2016 NHL draft. He left college after his junior season where he was the captain of his team (UMass-Lowell) to sign a two year entry level NHL deal with the Lightning in March of 2019. He split last season between the AHL and ECHL (Orlando). He played 25 AHL games with the Syracuse Crunch scoring seven goals and 15 points. A six foot, 195 pound center, scouting reports list his strengths as good hands, playmaking ability and high hockey IQ. He is obviously a leader having been selected captain of his college team as a junior and he was also captain of his junior team in the USHL (Madison Capitols). If you are interested in getting to know a little about Ryan Lohin here is a 52 minute interview he did with Method Hockey in October, 2020 where he covers his entire hockey career for some youth hockey players. It starts slow but some good stuff later in the interview and good advice if you have a relative or friend playing youth hockey:

- The bad news for the Americans was the recall to Charlotte of goalie Antoine Bibeau who was assigned to Allen on Monday and recalled on Wednesday. An injury in Seattle (Chris Driedger) created the domino effect of recalling Seattle goalie, Joey Daccord from Charlotte to the Kraken and Seattle goalie Antoine Bibeau from Allen to the Checkers. While Bibeau is expected back in Allen soon he is Seattle's #4 goalie so if one of the other three goalies get injured he will be recalled to Charlotte. FYI, Frank Marotte, who is with the San Diego Gulls, is also supposed to be back soon.

- Martinson told me last night he changed practice today to 3:35 so Ryan Lohin can skate with the team. He will center one of the lines in the opener. Martinson doesn't like to refer to his lines as first, second and third line. While everyone expects the Costello, Asuchak, Combs line to be the top scoring line, the reports I have gotten say Branden Troock has scored more goals in practice than any other player. Here are Steve Martinson's exact words when I asked him about the lines, "We are going to have three scoring lines. Two lines are veteran proven scorers, the next has a bunch of nasty guys that can skate, make plays, score goals and kick your ass." Enough said!

-  Here is Allen's season opening roster that was submitted to the ECHL yesterday with 11 forwards, eight defensemen and one goalie, Remember, this is just the starting point and changes can and will happen frequently.

Goalies

#34 - Alexis Gravel

Defensemen:

#3 - Darian Skeoch

#4 - Kris Myllari

#7 - Eric Roy

#15 - Josh Burnside

#20 - Ben Carroll

#24 - Nolan Kneen

#25 - Phil Beaulieu

#28 - Miles Liberati

 

Forwards

#5 - Jackson Leef

#9 - Ryan Lohin

#10- Jackson Leppard

#11 - Branden Troock

#13 - Chad Costello

#19 - Jared Bethune

#21 - Jack Combs

#26 - Spencer Asuchak

#28 - D-Jay Jerome

#29 - Kelly Bent

#49 - Dawson Butt

- As expected Zane Franklin (college) and Josh Brittain (Europe) were suspended by the Americans to retain their ECHL rights. It is a little surprising to me that Miles Liberati was not suspended and is still shown on the roster, having been placed on reserve. Liberati never reported to camp so must have been placed on reserve for insurance. Remember, for the first month of the season, teams can have 21 players on the active roster plus two on reserve. Allen currently has 18 on the active roster with a goalie having to be added to make 19, plus two on reserve (Liberati and Nolan Kneen). That makes a total of 21 players so below the 23 max. 

- The Americans roster on average is the biggest in the ECHL averaging 199 pounds per player. Despite having two players in their mid 30's Allen is mid pack in average age at 25.35. There are 14 teams older and 12 teams younger than the Americans.  

- I will have more details in a team preview tomorrow but the current roster has eight players with AHL experience, a total of 432 games. As usual the team has a Western Hockey League emphasis with 10 players playing junior hockey in the WHL. 

- The ECHL kicks off the 2021-22 season tonight with the league’s two Canadian franchises going head to head. The Newfoundland Growlers will visit the Trois Rivières Lions. It will be the first game in Lions history and will christen their new arena. These are two teams that could contend for the Kelly Cup.

Newfoundland won the Kelly Cup in its first season (2019) with the help of an unprecedented number of contract players from Toronto. The Growlers are loaded again with 13 contracted players on the roster including the return of Zach O’Brien who spent last season in a Germany when Newfoundland opted out of the season. O’Brien was the Kelly Cup playoff MVP in 2019.

Trois Rivières, is looking to match Newfoundland in winning the Kelly Cup in its first year of operation. The Lions have assembled an impressive team with players that have NHL, AHL and KHL experience, yet they are a younger ECHL team (15 teams are older than the Lions). There are 14 players on the roster that have played in the AHL and their total games played of 1307 is the second most in the league. It looks like many players gave Trois Rivières a hometown discount to play close to home in the Montreal area. Most played their junior hockey in the QMJHL.

DID YOU KNOW: If you haven't seen the season opening rosters here is the ECHL press release with the rosters for all 27 teams. https://www.echl.com/en/news/2021/10/echl-announces-season-opening-rosters

The Costello/Combs Legacy, Goalie Antoine Bibeau Assigned to Allen by Seattle, ECHL Primer, Steve Martinson's ECHL Coaching Stats and More

The Allen Americans training camp is in full swing as the team prepares for opening night next Saturday (October 23) at the newly named Credit Union of Texas Event Center, formally the Allen Event Center. The Americans will open the 2021-22 season against their fiercest rival, the Wichita Thunder.

- The biggest news last week was the announcement that Jack Combs will return to Allen to join forces with his good friend and longtime linemate, Chad Costello. As Steve Martinson stated in the press release announcing the signing of Combs, "His chemistry with Chad Costello is simply the best I have ever witnessed at this level of hockey." Allen had a chance to witness this chemistry at the beginning of the 2014-15 season when Jack started the season with the Americans before leaving for Europe after 32 games. In those 32 games, Combs had 56 points (22G, 34A) and was selected for the ECHL All-Star game. Costello had 49 points (17G, 32A) in those 32 games. Two players with 105 points (39G, 66A) in 32 games to start the season tells you all you need to know about the chemistry between Combs and Costello. If they can stay healthy and play anywhere close to they way they played in the past, given Costello is now 35 and coming off a season ending injury last year and Combs will be 34 in January and has played just 65 games since 2017-18, it will be quite the show. 

- I have had numerous questions and comments about Jack Comb's history of leaving teams midseason for better opportunities elsewhere, usually in Europe. There is no doubt Jack has been well traveled since turning pro in 2009-10. I count 25 different teams in 13 years which includes callups to the AHL. Jack has 79 points (40G, 39A) in 162 AHL games over six different seasons averaging .49 points per game. Why is this season different? A combination of his family with a young child, his age, playing with his best friend with a chance to win a championship and living in Texas all contribute to staying all season in Allen. Bottom line is in my opinion Jack is in Allen to stay. 

- Combs has been playing in Europe so is already in shape. He will join the Americans on the ice for the first time tomorrow (Tuesday). 

- Here is another stat that shows what Jack Combs could bring to Allen this season. Here are the top three points per game seasons in Allen Americans history:

1.75 - Jack Combs (2014-15)

1.74 - Chad Costello (2014-15)

1.69 - Chad Costello (2016-17)  

It is unfair to expect these gaudy per game averages this season. However, when you consider if you look at Allen players with 50+ games in a season who have reached 1.25 points per game in a single season, it has only been reached seven times in the history of the Allen Americans and Chad Costello has three of the seven (the others were Bruce Graham, Colton Yellow Horn, Greger Hanson and Alex Lavoie). If Combs and Costello can play 50 games and average 1.25+ points per game, Allen will have a great season.

- With opening day rosters due on Wednesday (3:00 pm EDT) coach Martinson has a couple of outstanding issues to deal with. The most pressing is at the goalie position which got some help today. The plan was to have Frank Marotte return and a goalie assigned by Seattle. Marotte has signed a deal with the San Diego Gulls (AHL) and served as the backup goalie in the Gulls first game of the season on Saturday. While the Gulls show five goalies on their roster, injuries have complicated the situation. In talking to coach Martinson it is clear to everyone, including Marotte, that he is the depth goalie for San Diego and will be assigned to Allen when the Gulls injury issues as resolved. While the situation can always change it is expected Marotte will be assigned in the next couple of weeks. The Seattle goalie that was assigned to Allen today is Antoine Bibeau. Coach Martinson has talked to him and he will be in Allen for the game against Wichita on Saturday. Martinson expects Bibeau to be one of the best goalies in the ECHL. This will be his 8th year as a pro but his first ECHL assignment. He has played four NHL games (GAA 2.54, .907 save percentage) and 192 AHL games (2.73 GAA, .908 save percentage).

- The other unanswered question is when will Allen be assigned one or two forwards from Seattle that are expected. According to eliteprospects.com, Charlotte has 15 forwards on the roster but AHL teams dress 12 for each game so that is not a lot of extra forwards given all of the injuries that could occur. Since the Checkers have players from two NHL teams (Seattle & Florida) there will be more need to provide players to the NHL.    

OTHER COMMENTS  

- This story written by Andrew Zadarnowski is a primer on the ECHL covering everything from the history of the league to the size and composition of the ECHL. He also tackles some topics that can be confusing, related to contracts, salary cap, active rosters, veteran limits, reserve, free agency and gameplay rules. This story was written in June but if you haven't read it, it is a good read no matter how experienced you are on all things ECHL. https://www.habseyesontheprize.com/2021/6/11/21438431/an-eotp-guide-to-the-echl-lions-trois-rivieres-contracts-two-way-team-roster-rules  

 

- When it was announced in July that defenseman Miles Liberati would be returning to Allen for the 2021-22 season it was expected he would continue where he left off in being a high scoring offensive defenseman. Miles didn't play last season but in 2019-20, playing for the Tulsa Oilers, he was the second leading scorer in the ECHL among defensemen behind Allen's Alex Breton. Liberati never reported to training camp. With the burden and cost the ECHL Covid protocol rules place on unvaccinated players, you have to assume this is the reason Liberati has opted not to play. When the opening day rosters go to the league office on Wednesday three players will show as suspended to retain their ECHL rights. Liberati who never reported to training camp, Zane Franklin who opted to go to college and Josh Brittain who signed in Europe. Because these three players signed with Allen before they made the change, the Americans can retain their rights by suspending them. 

DID YOU KNOW: I posted this information about Steve Martinson's ECHL coaching records on my ECHL Stats pages on Facebook and Twitter because he is approaching the top of the list in a couple of categories. It is important to note Martinson has spent just 12 of his 25 years in coaching in the ECHL. He has won championships in four different AA leagues (WCHL, UHL, CHL, ECHL). His most impressive record is his1088 professional wins, the most by any American pro coach and 156 wins behind Scotty Bowman for the most pro wins of any North American coach. 

Here is where Martinson stands all-time as an ECHL coach:

- 5th in games coached (854)

- 4th in regular season wins (483)

- 3rd in playoff wins (53)

- 2nd in playoff games coached (99)

- 2nd in ECHL championships

Martinson needs 10 more playoff games coached and three more wins to reach #1 all-time in both categories. With another Kelly Cup, Martinson will join John Brophy as the only ECHL coaches with three championships. 

Roster Update, Training Camp News, Covid Protocol Impacts, Costello's Dual Roles and ECHL Top Scorers Not Returning

Allen's training camp this season is going to be different than in the past. The roster will be the players the Americans plan to start the season with. No camp fillers, tryout guys and players competing for jobs. It doesn't mean there won't be trades, players added or players released during training camp but for the most part this will be a training camp devoted to getting ready for the season. The full group will not be on the ice for the start of camp. The contract players from Seattle will be assigned later and the players Steve Martinson has recently signed and have not been announced may not arrive in time. No doubt these last few players will be big additions to the roster. 

- Martinson will have to find a couple of goalies for training camp with Frank Marotte attending AHL camp with the San Diego Gulls and the goalie from Seattle that is expected to be assigned to Allen at the Charlotte Checkers training camp. 

- Here is Allen's announced roster with nine forwards, eight defensemen and one goalie:

Goalies

#35 - Frank Marotte

Defensemen:

#5 - Phil Beaulieu

#16 - Darian Skeoch 

#18 - Kris Myllari

#20 - Ben Carroll

#24 - Nolan Kneen

#28 - Miles Liberati

#?? - Josh Burnside

 

Forwards

#8 - Jackson Leppard

#9 - Dawson Butt

#11 - Branden Troock

#13 - Chad Costello

#14 - Jackson Leef 

#15 - D-Jay Jerome

#25 - Kelly Bent

#26 - Spencer Asuchak 

#91 - Jared Bethune

- The recently released ECHL Covid protocol has already resulted in unvaccinated players opting out of the upcoming season. The rules make it very difficult financially for unvaccinated players given the salaries in the ECHL. They will have to pick up part of their rent and will also be required to cover 50% of their hotel costs because they must stay in a single room on the road. These costs are not considered salary so teams and/or fans can help unvaccinated players with these costs. It remains to be seen how this plays out. I asked coach Martinson about the ECHL Covid protocol, unvaccinated players and how it will impact the Americans and this is what he had to say,

 "We have lost one player and a second is seeking sponsorships from his hometown to cover costs. Two other players, who have had Covid, have opted to get vaccinated. If you have the budget and the player is not a rookie you can essentially just pay the player more to cover the cost. My frustration is we didn't miss a game last season without vaccinations and I don't believe in punishing unvaccinated players when we are 90% vaccinated. The science is very clear that it is better to have had Covid than to be vaccinated. These players are essentially the healthiest people on the planet. The more players we have that have had Covid the better off we are." 

  

- When the Allen Americans announced the return of Chad Costello last week coach Martinson mentioned Chad will be a co-captain along with Spencer Asuchak but will also take on additional responsibility as Allen's player/assistant coach. First and foremost, Chad will be a player but with Allen not having an assistant coach, Chad will be more involved with coach Martinson. Chad already has respect in the locker room and he will now get valuable coaching experience he may be able to use in his post-playing career. The rule in the ECHL is players can't get compensated for being an assistant coach, for Costello he is taking on this role to learn and also to help the team improve.

DID YOU KNOW: Only two of the top 15 in points in the ECHL last season have re-signed with their ECHL team. Of the other 13, eight are playing in Europe including Les Lancaster, Matt Register and Corey Mackin. Two have signed AHL deals and three are unsigned/unannounced. 

Big Week for the Allen Americans as Chad Costello Returns, Seattle Becomes Affiliate, Lancaster and Sheehy Off to Great Starts

 

- It has been a big week for the Allen Americans with the announcement that Chad Costello has returned after spending the last four seasons in Europe, playing three years in Germany and last season in Norway. Another big piece of the puzzle fell into place on Friday as it was announced the Americans would affiliate with the Seattle Kraken for the 2021-22 season.

 

- I am sure these two announcements were not a surprise to most Allen fans since Costello shared he was moving to North Texas a couple of months ago and Allen goalie, Frank Marotte, attended the Seattle Kraken training camp. So while these announcements were anti-climatic for many, they couldn’t be more important for the success of the Americans 2021-22 season. After talking to coach Martinson there will still be some surprises as he puts the final touches on the roster before the start of training camp later this week.

 

You could write a book about Chad Costello’s ECHL/Allen records but I will highlight just a few for the future Hall of Famer:

 

• In the history of  the ECHL the scoring champion has won the scoring title by more than 20 points just six times. Costello has three of the six including 2014-15 when he won by  the largest margin ever, 45 points. In that season Chad had more assists (84) than any other player in the league had points.
• Chad is #1 (125), #2 (122) and #3 (103) in Allen history in points in a single season. No other player has more than 88 points.
• Chad is #1 (89), #2 (84) and #3 (79) in Allen history in assists in a single season. No other player has more than 55 assists.
• In three seasons in Allen, Chad didn’t miss a single game, regular season or playoffs, playing in 276 straight games.
• Chad has won the ECHL MVP award three times (2012, 2016, 2017) and was selected by the players association (PHPA) as the MVP in 2015.

 

With all of his past accomplishments it is important to put the 2021-22 season in perspective as it relates to Costello. He is now 35 and coming off an injury that ended his season after just 11 games last year in Norway. With his skill, vision and leadership what he brings to the Allen Americans is immeasurable but everyone should tamp down expectations and just enjoy watching what I believe is the best player in the ECHL.

- The affiliation with Seattle is another important step for the Americans and is a unique opportunity given the Kraken is a first year team. Seattle has an AHL franchise that will not start operating until the 2022-23 season. For the 2021-22 season Seattle has a temporary AHL affiliation with the Charlotte Checkers. Charlotte also has an affiliation with the Florida Panthers (NHL) and Greenville Swamp Rabbits (ECHL). This startup situation could be a mixed bag for Allen. On the plus side, with Seattle not fielding their own AHL team, the Americans are slated to the get the #4 goalie in the Kraken system rather than the #5 goalie they would typically get assigned. The downside is Seattle will not be signing all of the depth players that would be at the ECHL level for their AHL team. It means the Americans will not get as many contract players, especially early in the season, but the players that are assigned to Allen will be prospects. As the Kraken sign players later in the season you could see more players sent to Allen. Steve Martinson always talks about how it takes time to develop a good working relationship with a new affiliate that benefits everyone. 

- I have had several questions about the fact the Charlotte Checkers have a dual affiliation (Seattle & Florida) and will be working with two ECHL teams (Allen & Greenville). With Charlotte providing players to two NHL teams could it mean more Allen players going to the Checkers and fewer coming to Allen?  I posed this question to coach Martinson and he expects if Charlotte needs players because they supply reinforcements to Florida they will come from Greenville and if the Checkers need players because they send players to Seattle they will come from Allen. The bottom line is he is not concerned the dual affiliation will have a negative impact.

- If you haven't seen the press release announcing the affiliation with Seattle here is the link. Seattle's GM Ron Francis had this to say, "The ECHL plays such a key role in the development of NHL players. This is a very important decision for the long-term success of our organization and we are excited to be engaged with a championship level organization in the Allen Americans."   https://allenamericans.com/media/americans-seattle-kraken-sign-nhl-echl-affiliation-for-2021-22-season/

 

- If you haven't been following how Allen players from last season are doing in Europe check out these great starts. Tyler Sheehy and Les Lancaster went to top leagues in Europe. Sheehy to the DEL in Germany and Lancaster to the Liiga in Finland. Lancaster leads his team (Ilves) and is tied for the league lead among defensemen with eight points (all assists) in six games. He is #1 in points per game at 1.33. Sheehy leads his team (Nurnberg) and the entire league with eight goals in eight games. It is clear in my mind that both of these players would have been successful in the AHL had they been given the opportunity. 

DID YOU KNOW: I posted on ECHL Stats recently the stats for the percentage of rookies to total players in the ECHL the last three seasons. Here is that information with a comparison to the percentages for the Allen Americans:

2021-22: 38.9% of all ECHL players and 50% of Allen players were rookies

2020-19: 37.3% of all ECHL players and 39% of Allen players were rookies

2019-20: 46.3% of all ECHL players and  24.4% of Allen players were rookies