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Texas Stars

Game Day Preview - Milwaukee at Texas

November 20, 2010 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Milwaukee Admirals (9-3-1-3, 22 points) at Texas Stars (9-6-0-0, 18 points) Texas and Milwaukee meet for the first time this season and ninth time in history. The two teams played a total of eight times last year with the Stars taking the season series by posting a 5-3-0-0 mark against the Admirals. Texas enters tonight’s game on a three-game winning streak, matching their longest winning streak of the season. The Stars are coming off a 2-1 shootout win at Oklahoma City on Friday night. Milwaukee enters Saturday’s game with a seven-game unbeaten in regulation streak (5-0-0-2). The Admirals suffered a 4-3 shootout loss at San Antonio on Saturday night.

Texas is 5-4-0-0 at home this year and 6-4-0-0 in the last ten games played. The Stars play five of their next six games at Cedar Park Center. Milwaukee is 5-3-0-2 on the road this season and 6-2-0-2 in the last ten games played. The Admirals are deeply entrenched in a ten-game road trip, posting a 3-0-0-1 record over the first four games. Milwaukee will return to Cedar Park next week after a pair of games in Oklahoma City. The Admirals will also visit Houston and San Antonio for a game.

Stars Recall Goalie Tyler Beskorowany from Idaho, LeMay Assigned Back to Allen

Cedar Park, TX – The Texas Stars announced on Thursday the club has recalled goalie Tyler Beskorowany from the Idaho Steelheads, Texas’ ECHL Affiliate. The team also announced that goalie Adrien LeMay has been assigned to the Allen Americans, the Stars’ Central Hockey League Affiliate.

At the time of his call up, Beskorowany ranked among the best goalies in the ECHL, including the third best save percentage (.932) and the fifth best goals against average (2.27). In ten games with Idaho, the rookie netminder is 4-3-2 and sits fourth in the league for minutes played (582) and third with 303 saves. The 20-year old played in one preseason game for Texas on Oct. 2, posting 20 saves in a 4-2 loss to Oklahoma City.

The Dallas Stars drafted Beskorowany in the second round (#59 overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. The 6-foot-5, 205-pounder spent the 2009-10 season with the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL. In 62 appearances, Beskorowany posted a 29-25-4 mark with a 3.52 goals against average and a .903 save percentage. For his OHL career, the Hammer, ONT native went 52-56-17 with a 3.69 goals against average and a .902 save percentage.

The Texas Stars returned goalie Adrien LeMay to the Central Hockey League’s Allen Americans. LeMay dressed in Tuesday night’s 8-2 win over Chicago, but did not play. In six games with Allen, LeMay is 4-1-0 with a 2.85 goals against average and a .914 save percentage.

What’s Ahead:

DATE OPPONENT TIME TV/RADIO

Sunday, Nov. 21 at Houston 4:05 PM 1530 AM

Wednesday, Nov. 24 vs. Houston 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

Friday, Nov. 26 vs. Milwaukee 7:30 PM 1530 AM

Saturday, Nov. 27 vs. San Antonio 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

Wednesday, Nov 30 vs. Oklahoma City 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

* All times listed are local time

Upcoming Home Games and Promotions:

Houston at Texas on Wednesday, November 24, 2010 at 7:30 PM

Milwaukee at Texas on Friday, November 26, 2010 at 7:30 PM

· 3-2-1 Friday’s ($1 hot dogs, $2 sodas, $3 domestic drafts)

· The first 2,500 fans receive a Texas Stars Ear Buds compliments of Best Buy

GAME RECAPS:

Texas 2 at Oklahoma City 11/19/10

The Texas Stars defeated the Oklahoma City Barons 2-1 in a shootout in front of 4,481 fans on Friday night at the Cox Convention Center. Texas center Aaron Gagnon ended the shootout in the fifth round, scoring the decisive goal for the road win. Stars goalie Richard Bachman (4-2-0) did the rest, stopping 35 shots in regulation and four of five in the shootout to preserve the win. Texas forward Travis Morin scored the only goal in regulation as the Stars improved to 4-2-0-0 on the road this year. Barons goalie Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers (0-3-0) made 17 saves in the third period and finished with 34 in the defeat.

Chicago 2 at Texas 8 11/16/10

The Texas Stars defeated the Chicago Wolves 8-2 on Tuesday in front of 4,699 fans at Cedar Park Center. Texas broke three team records in the lopsided win, including five power-play goals and six second-period goals. Right wing Tomas Vincour scored two of the team’s record setting eight goals. Seven different forwards lit the lamp for the Stars and all but two skaters picked up a point as the team improved to 5-4-0-0 on home ice. Defenseman Dan Spang and forward Fabian Brunnstrom each picked up three assists as Texas handed Chicago its sixth straight defeat. Center Travis Morin (1g,1a) and right wing Ray Sawada (2a) also enjoyed a multi-point night as the Stars improved to 3-0-0-0 against Chicago this season. Texas goalie Richard Bachman stopped 26 shots in the win. Chicago goalie Drew MacIntyre (0-3-0) stopped 21 of 28 shots in the loss and was pulled after 40 minutes of play.

Chicago 2 at Texas 3 11/10/10

Cedar Park, TX – The Texas Stars defeated the Chicago Wolves 3-2 on Wednesday in front of 4,090 fans at Cedar Park Center. Stars left wing Francis Wathier scored the game-winning goal with 4:25 left in the third period, helping Texas get back to .500 on home ice. Stars right wing Greg Rallo also tallied as Texas improved to 2-0-0-0 against Chicago this season. Texas goalie Brent Krahn stopped 20 shots in the victory, which ended the Stars four-game losing skid. Chicago goalie Edward Pasquale stopped 27 of 30 shots in the defeat.

The Texas Stars

After 15 games of action, center Travis Morin leads Texas in scoring with six goals and 13 points. Left wing Francis Wathier is tied for the team lead with six goals, including a team-high four on the power play. Wathier is also tied for second overall in points with defenseman Dan Spang, both have seven. Left wing Scott McCulloch has four goals in eight games, and he is tied for fourth in points with five other skaters. Forwards Aaron Gagnon, Fabian Brunnstrom, Tomas Vincour, Greg Rallo and Mathieu Tousignant are all tied with six points each. Mathieu Tousignant’s 27 penalty minutes are tops on the team.

Texas Stars goalies Richard Bachman and Tyler Beskorowany split time in net for Texas. Brent Krahn is currently out with an injury. Krahn has appeared in nine games, posting a 5-4-0 mark, a 2.93 goals against average and a .898 save percentage. Bachman has appeared in seven games, going 4-2-0 with a 2.19 goals against average and a .929 save percentage. Bachman ranks tenth overall in the AHL for goals against average. Beskorowany has yet to make his AHL debut.

The Stars 25-man roster is composed of three goalies, eight defensemen and 15 forwards. Texas returns 15 players from the 2010 Western Conference Championship squad. The players range from ages 19 to 34 with an average age of 24.16. Eight players are 22-years old or younger, including two 19-year olds. The roster is made up of six different nationalities. The roster also features 17 NHL draft picks, including ten Dallas Stars draft picks.

The most notable forward returnees on the Stars roster include Aaron Gagnon, Travis Morin and Greg Rallo, three of the top scorers on the team in 2009-10. Gagnon scored a team-high 27 goals and totaled 58 points in a breakout year. Morin and Rallo also had breakout years. As an AHL rookie, Morin finished in the top ten for points by a rookie and was second on the team with 52 points. Rallo had a career-high 19 goals and 44 points on the year.

On defense, the Stars return Maxime Fortunus, Matt Stephenson and Trevor Ludwig. Also, veteran defender and two-time Stanley Cup Champion, Brad Lukowich rejoins the team. Last season, Lukowich started the year with Texas and played in the first 29 games. He was recalled to Vancouver on New Year’s Day and did not return.

Both goaltenders saw action for Texas last season. Returning starter Brent Krahn played in 22 games, going 17-4-0 with a 1.83 goals against average and a .945 save percentage. His season was shortened due to injuries. Richard Bachman played in seven games for Texas last year, posting a 4-3-0 record, a 2.02 goals against average and a .933 save percentage.

The Milwaukee Admirals

The Milwaukee Admirals are the AHL Affiliate of the Nashville Predators. Head Coach Lane Lambert is in his third season with the Admirals. Milwaukee returns eight players from last year’s team that posted 41-30-2-7 mark (91 points).

Newcomer Linus Klasen leads the Admirals with 14 points in 14 games played, including a team-high eight goals. The Swedish newcomer was signed as a free agent over the summer by the Predators. Klasen is playing in his first North American pro season. He was named the AHL Player of the Month in October after scoring seven goals in his first seven games. Right wing Andreas Thuresson is tied for second on the team with right wing Matt Halischuk, both have 11 points in the first 16 games of the year. Veteran center Steve Begin has played for the Boston Bruins, Dallas Stars, Montréal Canadians and Calgary Flames. Begin tallied five goals and nine assists in 77 games with the Bruins last year. This season, Begin has registered a goal and an assist in nine games with Milwaukee.

Defenseman Jonathon Blum enters his second season with Milwaukee. He is fourth on the team with eight points (all assists). Last season, Blum finished fourth among the Admirals with 41 points in 80 games as a rookie. Last year he ranked 12th among all rookies in points and 14th among all AHL defensemen.

In net, the Admirals feature goalies Mark Dekanich (8-1-2) and Jeremy Smith (1-0-0). Dekanich is among the league leaders in a handful of categories for goalies. His 1.60 goals against average and .945 save percentage both rank second best in the league. He is also tied for fourth with eight wins. Dekanich was drafted in the 5th round (146th overall) by the Nashville Predators in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Smith was drafted in the 2nd round by Nashville in 2007.

Special Teams

After finishing second overall last season on the penalty kill, the Stars rank 16th overall at 82.3%. Texas sits 15th in the AHL, converting 18.2% of its power plays. The Admirals are 20th overall on the power play, converting 16.9% of the time. Milwaukee is 17th in the AHL on the penalty kill, stopping 82.3% of its opponents’ power plays.

Offense and Defense

The Texas Stars are eight overall in team defense, allowing 2.67 goals against per game. Texas is ranked 18th out of 30 teams, scoring an average of 2.73 goals per game. Milwaukee’s defense ranks second overall with a 2.25 goals against per game. The Admirals sit 18th offensively, averaging 2.88 goals per game.

Check out the Texas Stars Statistics

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