Category: AHL

05Nov

Danny Taylor(1) Springfield Falcons

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danny-taylor-1

By the numbers, 6th year pro goaltender Danny Taylor(1) is making an argument for Springfield Falcons to sign him to an American Hockey League standard player contract.

He is currently signed to a pto.

His 2.31 GAA puts him at #17 on the AHL goalie leaders and his .931 SV% ranks 6th.

As of October 7 he signed a contract with Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL but did not appear in a regular season game.

We’ve seen it: this former Los Angeles Kings‘ 7th round pick in the 2004 draft (#221 overall) may have found his zone.

He has one game of NHL experience.

05Nov

Cody Eakin(14) Hershey Bears

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Washington Capitals‘ 2009 3rd round draft pick (#85 overall) rookie center Cody Eakin(14) has lit the AHL up with 3 goals and 5 assists in 10 games played for Hershey Bears.

The impressive start has earned him an early call up to the NHL and he skated in his first game with the Caps on the first of the month. He produced no points but had 3 shots on net in over 13 minutes of ice time. Probably won’t be long until he pops in a goal.

11/4: He puts in his first NHL goal and assist and has followed it up with his 2nd and added 2 more assists to his totals in 11 games played.

04Nov

Ryan McDonagh(17) New York Rangers

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2nd year defenseman Ryan McDonagh(17) is stepping it up big time with the only NHL team he has ever played for, New York Rangers.

He was originally picked by Montreal Canadiens in the 1st round of the 2007 draft (#12 overall).

Last season in 40 games with the Rangers he put up 1 goal and 8 assists but most impressively was a +16 for the team. In the first 11 games of the 2011/2012 season he already has 3 goals to go along with a pair of assists.

Very doubtful that he’ll be back in Connecticut anytime soon, unless he gets injured and it’s on a conditioning stint.

04Nov

Carter Ashton (18)

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Tampa Bay Lightning think a lot of rookie wing Carter Ashton(18).

He was chosen #29 overall in the 1st round of the 2009 draft.

He’s off to a quick start with their AHL affiliate Norfolk Admirals putting up 13 points (9 goals, 4 assists) in 10 games.

For the first month of the season he was named Reebok/AHL Rookie of the Month.

Last Friday night in Providence he didn’t fare so well in the fisticuffs with Bruins‘ Zach McKelvie.

Oddly enough though he did get the Admirals‘ first goal and was picked as the game’s #1 star.

04Nov

Tyson Sexsmith(31) Worcester Sharks

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San Jose Sharks 3rd round pick in the 2007 draft (#91 overall) goaltender Tyson Sexsmith(31) is in his 3rd year pro and third with Worcester Sharks, but is still considered a rookie in the AHL, because he hasn’t appeared in enough games to qualify him for a complete season.

He’s currently the #2 leading goalie in the league after 4 games played with 2 wins, 0 losses and 2 overtime losses and a 1.69 GAA and .930 SV%.

In 19 ECHL games over two seasons with Stockton Thunder and Kalamazoo Wings he posted a 12-3-3 record.

San Jose has a ton of good goalies in their system. His nickname is Sexy. It’s written on his mask.

03Nov

Jonathan Audy-Marchessault(18) Connecticut Whale

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My new favorite last name in pro hockey is Jonathan Audy-Marchessault(18).

Undrafted, he was signed by Connecticut Whale to a AHL player contract in early summer but by all means is one-year property of New York Rangers.

He’ll definitely get some looks and before the end of the season he could sign himself an NHL contract. He’s small at 5’9″ 175 lbs. but he’s quick and plays a tough enough game to survive out there. In 10 games he already have 4 goals and 4 assists.

Reminds me a tiny bit of a small Teemu Selanne or maybe a Paul Kariya?

His name beats older favorite Harry Zolnierczyk.

03Nov

Joe Sova(6) Kalamazoo Wings

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Undrafted defenseman Joe Sova(6) was signed by New Jersey Devils to a two-year entry level contract upon completion of his college career.

He was assigned to Albany Devils and appeared in their last 11 games of the regular season, where he put up a goal and 3 assists but was an unfortunate -6 on a team that struggled.

To start his pro career he was reassigned to their ECHL affiliate Kalamazoo Wings.

In this early part of the 2011/2012 season, he finds himself a +8 player, good enough to get him the nod of AMI Graphics ECHL Plus Performer Of The Month for October.

Pretty likely we’ll see him back up in the AHL sooner than later.

11/4: Good ECHL player feature story was just put out there.

03Nov

Jared Cowen(4) Ottawa Senators

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Ottawa Senators‘ 1st round pick in the 2009 draft (#9 overall), big-as-can-be defenseman Jared Cowen(4) scored his first regular season professional goal in the team’s 5-3 loss to Boston Bruins on Tuesday night at the TD Garden.

He played 10 postseason games with Binghamton Senators last season after his junior team was knocked out of the playoffs and put up four assists on their way to winning the AHL Calder Cup Championship.

Most folks thought that was pretty much the only time they would see him in the league as he was pegged to become a top 6 defenseman in his rookie season and from the looks of it he’s been successful in achieving that goal.

 

02Nov

David Aebischer(1) St. John’s IceCaps

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Here’s this year’s pro hockey thinker.

33-year old, Swiss-born 1997 Colorado Avalanche 6th round draft pick (#161 overall) David Aebischer(1) is back playing in a league he hasn’t played in for over a decade, the AHL.

He won the Stanley Cup in 2001. Sure he only played in one game, because some goalie named Patrick Roy happened to be the starter.

To his credit he has 214 games of NHL experience and posts a fairly impressive 2.52 GAA and .912 SV%.

During the last four seasons he has been playing net in his native Switzerland for the team he signed with the year of the lockout, HC Lugano.

In 2011/2012 seemingly out of nowhere, Winnipeg Jets offered him a training camp tryout and he was subsequently signed and reassigned to their AHL affiliate, St. John’s IceCaps.

Weirdo fact: he has an action figure of his goaltending likeness with the Avalanche.

01Nov

Joe Colborne(22) Toronto Marlies

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Interesting little stats fact has popped up recently.

Boston Bruins‘ 2008 1st round draft pick (#16 overall) jumbo Joe Colborne(22), he stands at 6’5″ 213 lbs., is the points leader in the AHL. He currently plays for Toronto Marlies and has 8 goals and 8 assists in 9 games played.

The points leader in the NHL is old friend Phil Kessel, who in 11 games has 10 goals to go along with 8 assists for Toronto Maple Leafs.

He was also a 1st round pick (in 2006) of Boston.

Dishing both players to the Canadian team gave the Bruins a Stanley Cup Championship in 2011 but in the new season are the trade dividends finally paying off for the Leafs?

11/2: Joe Colbourne was named AHL Player Of The Month.