Allen Americans Update - 10/12/2023

I am back from the hinterlands after another very successful pheasant hunting trip. I have been hunting pheasants since I was nine years old growing up in South Dakota and it is still as exciting as it was in 1956. The crisp fall air, two old guys and an old black lab walking through sloughs and fields with the only sounds the sounds of nature and the distance roar of combines as farmers were harvesting their crops. Where we were this year in small town North Dakota which is a special place in the fall. There was wildlife in abundance with ducks and geese in every pothole in the area. Also saw big flocks of sandhill cranes, lots of deer and the occasional moose.  Most enjoyable were the people who are the salt of the earth and so friendly. 

Alot has happened in the last week with the Allen Americans. Here is a recap of a few of the items on my list:

• Allen announced the signing of forward Matt Marcinew who played for Rapid City last season and led the Rush in points (68) and goals (30). Matt adds to the Allen Americans connection to the University of Denver. He was a teammate with Liam Finlay in 2017 when Denver won the NCAA national title.
• Another Denver connection signed by coach Costello is defenseman Stanislav (Slava) Demin. The ECHL rookie was a teammate of Hank Crone and Liam Finlay on the 2019-20 University of Denver team. Demin was at the Montreal Canadiens training camp before signing with the Americans. 
• Spencer Asuchak is back with the Americans for his 11th season. Spencer has played in 585 games regular season and playoffs games for the Americans (CHL and ECHL) which is 238 more games than second place Chad Costello (347 games). 
• The four Allen players that attended Belleville's training camp (Ryan Gagnon, Grant Herbert, Mikael Robidoux, Eric Williams) have returned to Allen. Always a good opportunity for players to become known by Allen's affiliate.

  

- If you haven't had a chance to see the new look Allen American website the format has been changed to match the other Zawyer operated teams. It is a very familiar format around the ECHL. I asked team President, Jonny Mydra about the change, "On Wednesday we made the change to the ECHL's official website platform. I would like to thank Jackie and his team at Atomic DC for providing us with a great website for many years." I spent some time looking at the new website format and it is very user friendly. I am sure there will be some hiccups as is the case with any change of platforms, but this is an exciting change for fans. Go to allenamericans.com to check it out.

- Allen's first preseason game against the Tulsa Oilers is tomorrow night (7:30 pm) at NYTEX Sports Centre in North Richland Hills. A chance for Allen Americans fans to get the first look at the 2023-24 roster in game conditions. You can buy tickets at etix.com. Allen will wrap up its preseason games on Saturday with a rematch against the Oilers in Tulsa.  

- Here are the upcoming dates leading to the first Allen games of the season:

• October 18 - Season opening rosters due to the league office (3:00 pm EDT). Allen could have as many as 21 players on the active roster but they all must fit under the salary cap so don't expect the Americans to be at that number. In addition, up to four players can be put on regular reserve and don't count against the salary cap. Allen will also have players on the 14-day injured reserve to start the season.
• October 19 - regular season begins with two games (Florida at Orlando and Rapid City at Iowa).
• October 20 - regular season begins for Allen on the road in Idaho. 
• October 28 - Allen's home opener against Atlanta.

- Talk about ECHL experience, here are the six players that will be playing in the ECHL in 2023-24 that have 500 career ECHL games played (regular season plus playoff games):

• 867 games - Justin Taylor, Kalamazoo
• 779 games - Garet Hunt, South Carolina
• 686 games - Matt Register, Idaho
• 611 games - Shawn Szydlowski, Fort Wayne
• 538 games - Mathieu, Roy, Norfolk
• 505 games - Spencer Asuchak, Allen 

DID YOU KNOW: My ECHL stats post today was about the five ECHL teams that have won back-to-back championships trying for a three-peat. This season Florida will try to be the first ECHL three-peat winner ever, but based on history it will be a tall task. Here is how the previous four fared:

- Colorado won back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018 but never had a chance to three-peat as the Eagles moved to the AHL after the 2017-18 season.

- Allen won back-to-back championships in 2015 and 2016 but lost to the eventual Kelly Cup champion (Colorado) 4-2 in the second round in 2017.

- Toledo won back-to-back championships in 1993 and 1994. The three-peat effort in 1995 fell short when Toledo lost in the first round to Nashville (3-1)

- Hampton Roads won back-to-back championships in 1991 and 1992. The three-peat effort in 1993 fell short when Hampton Roads lost in the first round to Raleigh (3-1).