Friday, January 30th, 2009

CENTRAL HOCKEY LEAGUE HEADLINES

1) Jacks Keep on Winning
2) Jaeger-Master
3) Critical Home Stand for Champs

1- The Odessa Jackalopes (29-10-3) are back at it winning five straight games extending their lead in the Southwest Division to an astonishing 22 points over Arizona.  The Jacks are just one point in front of the Texas Brahmas for the top spot in the Southern Conference.  The Jacks have outscored their opposition 26-9 during their five game win streak.  Kenny Bernard has been a nice addition scoring four goals during the win streak and posting a team-high +5.  Dominic Leveille has led the way with nine points (3-6=9).  Odessa hosts Corpus Christi on Friday and Rio Grande Valley on Saturday.     

On a side note: Leveille and Sebastien Thinel are 1, 2 on the league’s scoring list with 63 and 62 points respectively.  Thinel is also tied for the league lead with 27 goals (tied with Arizona’s Joel Irving).
 
2- Texas goaltender Brett Jaeger has been one of the top stories of the season grabbing hold as one of the top few goalies in the CHL.  This season, the second-year Brahma is 20-5-4 with a 2.39 goals against average and a .923 save percentage.  His 20 wins are tied for second in the league, two behind Colorado’s Andrew Penner.  In early December, Jaeger struggled for a little over a week going 1-3-2 but has since gone 11-1-1 allowing 27 goals over that stretch.    

3- The Arizona Sundogs are in the midst of a critical eight-game home stand that has them 1-2-0 thus far.  They hope to have righted the ship after Wednesday’s 4-2 win versus Rocky Mountain and again this weekend the Sundogs will host the Rage in a pair of games.  Arizona has made a trio of additions this week adding defensemen Jason Lawmaster in a trade with Tulsa and Matt Hanson in a trade with Texas.  On Thursday, Arizona signed former NHL player Dwayne Hay to a contract.  Hay played in 79 career NHL games seeing action with Tampa Bay, Calgary, Florida and Washington.   

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
60  The number of points taken out if the lineup with Laredo’s Jeff Bes being placed on the 14-day injured reserve with a lower body injury…Bes is third in the CHL on the point list with 14 goals and 46 assists…The Bucks have added high-scoring forward Mitch Stephens (46 points) from the New Mexico Scorpions in a trade that send goaltender Ryan Gibb (9-3-2 on the season) to New Mexico
6  The number of consecutive wins the Southeast Division leading Texas Brahmas have had on home ice…For the season, the Brahmas are 15-3-1 at NYTEX Sports Centre…On Friday, Texas faces-off against the Mississippi RiverKings putting the streak on the line…Grant Jacobsen has 10 goals and 27 points on home ice leading the way
4  The current Tulsa losing streak after being shutout, 6-0, by Oklahoma City on Thursday night…The Oilers are 4-12-3 since mid-December and are currently tied with Amarillo for the fewest wins in the league…The Oilers and Gorillas meet Friday in Amarillo
14  The number of points (6g, 8a) that Kory Karlander has totaled during his current nine-game point streak…The veteran has five points in his last two games (2-3=5)
0-4-0 The Amarillo Gorillas record this season in games versus the Northeast Division…This weekend, the Gorillas are at home versus Tulsa and Oklahoma City
19  The difference in first period goals scored by the Colorado Eagles this season…Colorado has outscored their opponents 56-37 in the opening period…The New Mexico Scorpions are the slowest starters being out-dueled 65-41 in the opening frame

TIDBITS
-Mississippi goaltender Tyler Sims has been called-up by the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL…Sims is 5-4-0 with a shutout and a 2.80 goals against average with the RiverKings
-The Texas Brahmas will have defenseman Mike Vellinga (14 points) and forward Pete Rouleau (23 points) back in the lineup this weekend
-Rick Kozak (Laredo) had his goal streak snapped at six games when he did not score a goal in last night’s 1-0 win versus Rioi Grande Valley…During his streak, he scored six goals…For the season, Kozak has 17 goals and 17 assists and is a +9
-The Wichita Thunder have struggled in the close ones going 4-8-2 in one-goal contests…The Thunder’s opponents this weekend are both two of the top teams in the CHL in one-goal games with Oklahoma City posting a 9-5-5 mark and Bossier-Shreveport sitting with a 12-4-3 record
-Be sure to check out the new www.centralhockeyleague.com …the new-look site is full of new features and ways to keep the fans in tune with their favorite CHL teams and players