Allen vs Wichita Preview, Allen Adds Players, Allen Stat Leaders, ECHL Top Goalies and More

 

The grind of the ECHL schedule continues tonight for Allen and Wichita. They are in the midst of four games against each other in five days. Game two is tonight in Allen, after which the teams will get on the bus for the 365-mile trip to Wichita, where they will play tomorrow night and Sunday afternoon. These weekends always get reported as three games in three days, but in actuality, from the drop of the puck tonight until the end of the game on Sunday, these teams will play three games in 46 hours, plus spend six hours overnight on a bus. 

 

- Hopefully, Allen can build on the momentum gained from the 6-4 comeback win over Wichita on Wednesday. The Americans spotted the Thunder a 3-0 lead after the first period, and then outscored Wichita 6-1 over the final two periods. 

 

- Here are the head-to-head stats for the three games Allen has played against Wichita this season. Allen won all three games: 3-2 (shootout), 6-4, 6-4.  

• Allen has outscored Wichita 15-10.
• Wichita has outshot Allen 120-84. 
• Allen had a power play goal in all three games, 4-16 (25%).
• Wichita was 1-12 (8.3%) on the power play.
• Allen took 13 penalties for 29 minutes, including just one minor penalty on Wednesday.
• Wichita took 17 penalties for 37 minutes.

 

- Allen gave up the first goal in two of the three games. Obviously, a key to the game tonight is to get off to a better start. Allen's worst period has been the first. They have scored 26 goals in the first period and allowed 35, resulting in a -9 goal differential. Wichita's best period is the first. They have scored 29 first-period goals and allowed only 20, a goal differential of +9. 

 

- You will see some new faces in the Allen lineup tonight. Coach Martinson has signed a forward and a defenseman who are expected to be in the lineup tonight if all goes as planned. Look for the official announcement from the Americans later today. Troy Murray is listed as day-to-day, so he could also be in the lineup tonight. 

UPDATE: The Allen Americans have signed defenseman Mike Greco (#3), who played for Coach Martinson in Athens last season, and forward Timofei Spitserov (#10), who played two games in Norfolk back in November. Both will be in the lineup tonight.  

 

Here is Allen's lineup tonight against Wichita:

Forwards

• 92 McAuley - 7 Hargrove - 67 Crone 
• 26 Asuchak - 29 Watts - 18 Blaisdell 
• 77 Morrison - 91 Gildon - 9 Katic 
• 10 Spitserov - 14 Gursoy 

Defense

• 86 Anania - 23 Sedley 
• 8 Prefontaine - 22 Costantini 
• 21 Decker - 3 Greco

 Goalies

• 32 Tendeck 
• 33 Costantini  (backup) 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

- Haven't done this for a long time. Here are the top three players for all of the stats:

• Points
• 29 - Watts
• 26 - Crone
• 25 - Katic

 

• Goals
• 13 - Katic
• 13 - Watts
• 11 - Blaisdell

 

• Assists
• 21- Sedley
• 19 - Crone
• 16 - Watts

 

• Plus/Minus
• +10 - Hargrove
• +10 - Sedley
• +8 - Anania, Katic 

 

• Penalty Minutes
• 67 - Simmons-Fischer
• 43 - Katic
• 37 - Morrison

 

• Points Per Game Average
• 1.19 - Katic
• .94 - Watts
• .84 - Crone

 

• Shots
• 90 - Gildon
• 88 - Crone
• 86 - Hargrove

 

• Power Play Points
• 13 - Sedley 
• 10 - Watts 
• 9 - Crone 

 

• Game Winning Goals
• 3 - Asuchak
• 2 - Blaisdell, Crone, Hargrove, Katic, Watts

 

• Points by Defensemen
• 23 - Sedley
• 17 - Anania
• 10 - Warmuth

 

• Goals by Defensemen
• 4 - Warmuth
• 3 - Anania
• 2 - LeDonne, Prefontaine, Register, Sedley 

 

• Assists by Defensemen
• 21 - Sedley
• 14 - Anania
• 6 - Warmuth

 

• Save Percentage
• .921 - Costantini
• .921 - Tendeck

 

• Goals Against Average
• 2.79 - Costantini
• 3.02 - Tendeck

 

- Allen's scoring has really picked up recently. Here are the six players who have averaged a point or more per game over the last 10 games:

• 14 points (6G, 8A) - McAuley 
• 12 points (8G, 4A) - Katic
• 11 points (4G, 7A) - Watts 
• 11 points (3G, 8A) - Hargrove 
• 11 points (1G, 10A) - Crone 
• 10 points (0G, 10A) - Sedley 

 

- The ECHL is quickly approaching the halfway point of the season, and this weekend is very busy. There are 12 games on the schedule tonight, and on Saturday, all 30 teams will be in action. Teams below .400 in points percentage at the halfway mark will not make the playoffs unless they have a miraculous turnaround. The teams below .400 are Norfolk, Greensboro, Iowa, and Tulsa. Here is the ECHL Today with the preview of tonight's games: https://echl.com/news/2026/01/echl-today-jan-9  

 

DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL Stats post this morning is about the top goalies in the ECHL in save percentage and GAA. Just missing the list was former Allen Americans goalie Jeremy Brodeur, who is having a great season playing for Adirondack. Here are his stats:

• #1 Shootout Wins - 2 (0 goals, 5 attempts) 
• #2 Wins - 12
• #4 - Minutes - 1042 
• #5 GAA - 2.02
• #5 Save % - .929

 

Three ECHL goalies stand above the rest, and they are all from the South Division. Here are the top three ECHL goalies in save percentage and GAA (minimum 540 minutes played):

 

T.J. Semptimphelter, Atlanta (rookie & all-star)

.947

1.44

 

Connor Ungar, Orlando (also Greensboro & Fort Wayne this season)

.944

1.54

 

Will Cranley, Florida

.934

1.78