Belleville Assigns Four More Players to Allen, Affiliation Agreement Extended, Mountain Division Playoff Matrix and Stick Taps to the Ironmen

 The ECHL playoff rosters will be released later today, but if you track AHL transactions, you'll see Ottawa stepped up big time yesterday, sending four players to the Americans to add to the two already here. Here are the six NHL/AHL contracted players from Ottawa/Belleville assigned to Allen for the playoffs. In addition to getting some talented players, adding three more right-shot players helps solve what has been an imbalance:

• Mark Duarte - Right Wing (Right shot)
• Landon Hookey - Center (Right shot)
• Danny Katic -  Left Wing (Left shot)
• Riley Kidney - Center (Left shot) 
• Jackson  Parsons - Goalie
• Djibril Touré - Defensemen (Right shot) 

If you add Maxim Barbashev, who is an AHL-contracted player from Tucson, the Americans will have more NHL/AHL-contracted players (7) than they have ever had going into the playoffs, and more than many other playoff teams. 

There were several other players eligible to be assigned to Allen who were on amateur tryout contracts, who opted not to play and went home. I heard two of them had to return to school to finish their degrees. 

It is clear to me that the number of players sent to Allen also says it is likely Ottawa/Belleville will be the Americans' affiliate next season. Stay tuned. 

UPDATE: Affiliation agreement with Ottawa/Belleville has been extended for one year through the 2026-27 season. https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/04/senators-extend-affiliation-with-americans 

 

- Thursday, I will look at the first round matchup between Allen and Idaho. Today, I wanted to preview the four Mountain Division teams in the playoffs and compare them to help determine which are the strongest based on regular-season results. The "Barry the Blogger Matrix" has been spot-on some seasons and so-so in others at predicting the outcome of the first round, which pits #1 seed Kansas City vs #4 Tahoe and #2 Allen vs #3 Idaho. This matrix is a way to compare teams across a number of statistical categories and then come up with an overall score.

- Below is how the four teams in the Mountain Division playoffs rank in 13 statistical categories based on regular-season stats. Fairly easy to see the strengths and weaknesses of each team. 


Goals Scored (average per game)

• 3.72 - Allen 
• 3.57 - Tahoe 
• 3.54 - Kansas City
• 3.49 - Idaho

Goals Allowed (average per game)

• 2.21 - Kansas City 
• 2.90 - Allen
• 3.04 - Idaho
• 3.61 - Tahoe

Goal Differential (goals scored minus goals allowed)

• +96 - Kansas City
• +59 - Allen
• +32 - Idaho
• -3 -  Tahoe 
  

Shots For (average per game)

• 34.24 - Idaho
• 33.72 - Allen
• 33.46 - Kansas City
• 32.22 - Tahoe

Shots Against (average per game)

• 26.60 - Kansas City
• 32.35 - Idaho
• 34.33 - Allen
• 37.13 - Tahoe

Shooting Percentage (goals as a percent of total shots)

• 11.0% - Tahoe
• 10.9% - Allen
• 10.6% - Kansas City 
• 10.0% - Idaho

Power Play Percentage

• 23.0% - Kansas City
• 22.0% - Tahoe 
• 21.7% - Allen 
• 18.5% - Idaho

Penalty Kill Percentage

• 88.4% - Kansas City
• 84.1% - Allen
• 79.4% - Idaho 
• 78.1% - Tahoe 
  

Power Play Goals Scored

• 64 - Kansas City 
• 60 - Allen
• 54 - Tahoe
• 50 - Idaho 
  

Plus/Minus

• +304 - Kansas City 
• +169 - Allen 
• +133 - Idaho
• -7 - Tahoe  

Goals Against Average (GAA)

• 2.15 - Kansas City
• 2.87 - Allen
• 2.97 - Idaho
• 3.53 - Tahoe

Save Percentage

• .918 - Kansas City
• .915 - Allen  
• .906 - Idaho
• .904 - Tahoe

Record Last 10 Games

• 9-0-1-0 - Allen
• 6-2-1-1 - Kansas City 
• 5-4-1-0 - Idaho
• 4-4-2-0 - Tahoe

- Finally, I tallied up the rank for each team in every category to get an overall score. The lower the score, the better. If you finished first in every category, you would get a final score of 13. Here are the results:

• 20 - Kansas City  (1.54 average)
• 26 - Allen  (2.00 average)
• 40 - Idaho  (3.08 average)
• 44 - Tahoe  (3.38 average)

 - Based on the stats:

• Kansas City is a huge favorite over Tahoe. You add the fact that during the regular season, the Mavericks' record against the Knight Monsters was 6-1-0-0, and this series could be 4-0 or 4-1.
• Based on the stats, Allen is the favorite over Idaho. However, counterbalancing the matrix is Allen's 1-4-2-0 regular-season record against Idaho. Odds are this will be a long series.  
• This is just a fun way to look at stats and not very sophisticated. Two of the biggest flaws are that it doesn't factor in the differences between teams, which can be small or large, and how teams are performing as the playoffs begin. If you looked at these stats over the last six weeks rather than the entire season, you could see a very different picture.  

 

 

DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL Stats post today recognizes the Ironmen from this season who played in all of their team's games. I have always felt this is an underrated stat. The Allen Ironmen this season were Harrison Blaisdell and Michael Gildon, two players who go full speed all of the time. Here is Allen's all-time list of Ironmen:

Congrats and stick taps to all Allen Ironmen past and present! It is a very exclusive club. Special stick taps to the Hall of Fame of Ironmen, Chad Costello and Kris Myllari, who didn't miss a game for three straight seasons!

• 2025-26 - Harrison Blaisdell, Michael Gildon 
• 2024-25 - None
• 2023-24 - Kris Myllari
• 2022-23 - Kris Myllari, Ryan Gagnon
• 2021-22 - Kris Myllari 
• 2020-21 - Les Lancaster
• 2019-20 - None
• 2018-19 - Spencer Asuchak  
• 2017-18 - Joel Chouinard, Casey Pierro-Zabotel
• 2016-17 - Chad Costello, Joel Chouinard
• 2015-16 - Chad Costello
• 2014-15 - Chad Costello, Aaron Gens, Jamie Schaafsma
• 2013-14 - Spencer Asuchak, Daniel Tetrault, Mike Berube
• 2012-13 - Jamie Schaafsma, Jason Deitsch
• 2011-12 - Jason Deitsch
• 2010-11 - Colton Yellow Horn, David Strathman
• 2009-10 - Bruce Graham, Christian Gaudet   

 

 

THE IRONMEN (2025-26)

 

The value of players that can be counted on each and every game can’t be overstated. Of the 1195 players who played in the ECHL this season, there were only 42 (3.5%) who played in every game for their team. Stick taps all! 

 

Special recognition to these Ironmen of all Ironmen. To go multiple seasons without missing a game is extraordinary:

 

- Haven’t missed a game in three seasons:

Jay Dickman, Wichita

Devon Paliani, Tahoe, Savannah, Reading 

 

- Back-to-Back Ironmen who haven’t missed a game in two seasons:

Peter Bates, Wichita

Ryan Cox, Kalamazoo

Carson Denomie, Atlanta

Aaron Luchuk, Orlando