On The Rise |
Jozef
Balej
11GP 7-4-11 9PIM
42GP 12-15-27 34PIM |
Just as Jozef Balej appeared to be regaining his form from last year, a
cross-check to the back forced him out of the line-up. It's hoped that the speedy winger will be back soon to continue on from where he left
off. |
Ryan
Callahan
11GP 6-8-14 10PIM
43GP 22-19-41 63PIM - WHL
7GP 1-2-3 27PIM - WJC |
The experience of playing for the US in the World Juniors
appears to have sparked Callahan's play in the month of January. After a so-so December, Callahan has rebounded with 14 points in 11 games
for the inexperienced Storm. |
Joey Crabb
8GP 6-1-7 8PIM
28GP 13-9-22 26PIM |
Colorado College continues to lead the NCAA polls and Crabb has been both a
beneficiary and contributor to their success. The 21 year old winger is now just two goals and four points shy of the numbers he put up last
season. He ranks third on the team in goals, and second on power play goals. |
Brandon
Dubinsky
12GP 5-10-15 16PIM
47GP 16-26-42 101PIM |
Dubinsky equaled his output from December last month, and continues to be one
of the hottest Ranger prospects at this point. It looks as if his team, the Portland Pirates, are finally turning the corner too.
Dubinsky is now ranked third on the team in points. |
Alexandre
Giroux
13GP 7-9-16 8PIM
46GP 19-14-33 43PIM |
The hot streak continues for the lanky left winger. Giroux put up
impressive numbers for the Pack as he moved up into second place in terms points of points scored and continues to lead the team in goals and power play goals. Despite
the positive results, Giroux could still do more to enhance his chances of moving to the NHL in the future. |
Chris
Holt
7GP 5-1-1 .943 1.85
24GP 13-9-2 .912 2.61 |
The Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks and Chris Holt continue to be
one of the biggest surprises in the NCAA. The 6'2" goaltender recovered from a .500 record in December to post an impressive 5-1-1
record and pick up the CCHA goaltender of the week award in the middle of January. |
Jarkko
Immonen
10GP 3-6-9 4PIM
43GP 16-25-41 20PIM |
Despite a four game streak where JYP was shutout completely
from the scoring column, Immonen continues to be the offensive leader for the team at almost a point a game pace. |
Rick
Kozak
11GP 4-6-10 42PIM
32GP 11-7-18 93PIM |
Kozak continues to put up the points with Prince Albert and
appears to have his anger a little better under control. There have been fewer misconducts in the last month, though still plenty of time in
the penalty box. |
Henrik
Lundqvist
9GP 8-0-1 .952 1.31
37GP 28-7-2 .936 1.76 |
Ludnqvist bounced back to the top of the Swedish Elite League with another
impressive month in January. The young Swede regained the top rank in Goals Against Average and Save Percentage as he registered one shutout
and went undefeated in an 8-0-1 streak. |
Dominic
Moore
13GP 5-4-9 4PIM
48GP 12-25-37 26PIM |
Moore completed a season high nine game point scoring streak
in January, but has had his production drop since the milestone, along with much of the rest of the team. Reports out of Harftord are that
management have been impressed with his play this year as he has switched to a more two-way style than he was known for in college. |
Greg
Moore
7GP 4-2-6 6PIM
21GP 7-3-10 8PIM |
After a couple of quiet months, Moore's continued solid play has been rewarded
with some timely offensive success. One of the veteran leaders in the Black Bear line-up, Moore has proven to be a solid contributor at both
ends of the ice. |
Lawrence
Nycholat
13GP 0-9-9 26PIM
34GP 5-16-21 46PIM |
Another solid month for Nycholat has been rewarded with a
selection to the AHL All Star game in Feburary. Nycholat has been one of the few stalwarts on the Hartford blueline as others have succumbed
to injury, and has continued to play with an edge while contributing on offense and defense. |
Jakub
Petruzalek
11GP 3-8-11 10PIM
40GP 17-30-47 34PIM - WHL
7GP 1-1-2 4PIM - WJC |
Petruzalek continues to do all that he can to raise his profile in North
America. While there will still remain questions about his size and how much he benefits from playing with Lukas Kaspar and as a 19 year old
in the CHL, there's little else he could do to press his case. |
Corey
Potter
6GP 0-1-1 6PIM
17GP 0-2-2 47PIM |
The Spartans have begun righting the ship and have steadily
moved up the CCHA standings in recent weeks. The steady play of Corey Potter on the blueline has certainly been a big part of that, and
perhaps his absence in the early part of the season contributed to MSU's woes. |
Dylan
Reese
4GP 1-1-2 6PIM
19GP 5-6-11 16PIM |
Harvard has been a modest surprise this season, knocking off some much more
vaunted opponents in the process. Reese has emerged as the leading offensive blueliner and has quietly put up a solid season to date.. |
Layne
Ulmer
13GP 1-14-15 6PIM
40GP 4-22-26 17PIM |
Apparently Ulmer has been hampered by a shoulder injury much
of this season, which has no doubt contributed to his drop in goal scoring. Still he has battled through the injury and put up an impressive
14 assists in 13 games last month, and has quietly been one of the more consistent offensive contributors for the Pack. |
Stephen
Valiquette
8GP 4-2-0 .944 1.18
21GP 11-7-1 .939 1.54 |
Playing behind the reigning AHL MVP and AHL All Star selection Jason
Labarbera is not exactly the easiest thing to do. But Valiquette seized his opportunity in January with both hands, shutting down the
opposition for the second longest period in franchise history. The shut out streak featured three complete games, and a 6-4 game in relief
where he helped the Pack battle back from a 4-1 deficit to win the game.. |
|
Holding Steady |
Zdenek
Bahensky
15GP 5-2-7 23PIM
47GP 12-13-25 64PIM |
It wasn't a complete rebound, but Bahensky did improve a little after his
Christmas break and visit to his homeland. The streaky winger started the month strongly, before settling into a lesser role as January
progressed. |
Ivan
Baranka
11GP 1-1-2 6PIM
44GP 5-9-14 34PIM - WHL
6GP 0-2-2 4PIM - WJC |
The Everett Silvertips have struggled this season after being
the Cinderella story in their debut season. Baranka has certainly been a part of the struggles in the past month, putting up a less than
impressive -7, to put his season rating at -14. Still this doesn't tell the whole story, and he continues to learn and get quality ice time
for Everett. |
Dane
Byers
10GP 3-1-4 13PIM
44GP 6-6-12 123PIM |
Byers continues to have a quiet season offensively, but is at least having a
little more success. The addition of Kozak to the Raiders has appeared to help his game, perhaps allowing the two to feed off each other to
some extent. |
Nigel
Dawes
13GP 3-7-10 10PIM
41GP 21-16-37 24PIM - WHL
6GP 2-4-6 6PIM - WJC |
Dawes took a lesser role for the Canadians in the World
Junior Championships on their way to the gold medal, and it appears that he is still yet to return to his pre-competition form. It appears
too that he will fall short of last year's sparking performance which saw him register 47 goals and 70 points in just 56 games |
Lee
Falardeau
10GP 4-1-5 21PIM
37GP 14-7-21 33PIM |
His production dropped a little in January, though he did have his first pro
career fight during the month. Still Falardeau must continue to improve if he hopes to beat out Ryan Cuthbert and earn a call-up to Hartford. |
Philippe
Furrer
4GP 0-0-0 0PIM
34GP 3-3-6 14PIM - SWI
6GP 0-0-0 10PIM - WJC |
It's been a quiet month for Furrer since winding up his tour
with the Swiss under 20 squad at the World Juniors. Having turned some heads with his play in the tournament, he has played just four games
with SC Bern after some time off and a light schedule in the Nationaliga. |
Mike
Green
8GP 2-3-5 6PIM
41GP 9-16-25 36PIM |
Green continues to put up the points in Germany as he plays a two way role for
the Nurnberg Tigers of the German league. |
Nate
Guenin
8GP 1-2-3 34PIM
27GP 2-7-9 100PIM |
Guenin has not been the standout that he was last season, but
continues to be a solid contributor for the second placed Ohio State Buckeyes. Still there's one thing that hasn't slacked off...his
willingness to play an aggressive game, as evidenced by his 34 penalty minutes in just 8 appearances in January. |
Ryan
Hollweg
13GP 2-2-4 68PIM
46GP 6-5-11 134PIM |
He has earned the reputation as the type of guy that the opposition hates to
play against, and Hollweg made sure that the tradition was continued last month. He more than doubled his season penalty minute total as he
tried to inspire the Wolf Pack through a series of ups and downs late in January. |
Maxim
Kondratiev
13GP 0-2-2 18PIM
18GP 1-3-4 47PIM - RUS
13GP 1-4-5 8PIM - AHL |
After a solid start to his season in Russia, Kondratiev
appears to have settled into a rhythm with Lada Togliatti, registering just two assists and finishing the month even in the plus/minus
column. Togliatti continues to be amongst the better performing teams in the Russian Super Leagues. |
Bryce
Lampman
13GP 2-3-5 4PIM
44GP 7-9-16 42PIM |
Lampman's season continues to stay on track despite a couple of injuries.
Mixing in some offense this year, Lampman continues to be a dependable if unspectacular contributor on the blueline and has formed a steady pairing
with Lawrence Nycholat. |
Steven
MacIntyre
12GP 1-1-2 117PIM
18GP 1-1-2 139PIM - AHL
24GP 0-0-0 93PIM - ECHL |
MacIntyre managed to stay with the Pack the entire month of
January, even registering his first goal of the season in an impressive performance against Hershey on the road. The coaching staff continue
to demonstrate faith in "Big Mac", who has played both on the blueline and at wing during the past month. |
Jeff
MacMillan
11GP 0-0-0 37PIM
34GP 1-4-5 29PIM |
The "veteran" defenseman continues to provide a steady influence on
the blueline and has contributed with his physical play rather than his offense in the past month. |
Darin
Olver
8GP 1-3-4 4PIM
26GP 6-17-23 20PIM |
We were starting to wonder whether Olver might finally be
breaking out after a solid December, but it appears that his scoring woes are continuing. Despite working and skating hard, the young center
has had trouble finishing this year and has slipped a notch in our estimation as a result |
Jonathan
Paiement
10GP 3-3-6 16PIM
37GP 4-34-38 116PIM |
Paiment's has seldom appeared in the top three stars of the game this season
and perhaps continues to benefit offensively by his surrounding cast and his veteran status within the QMJHL. It's hard to ask him to have
done more, but the statistics in this case perhaps paint an overly optimistic picture. |
Thomas
Pöck
4GP 0-0-0 0PIM - AHL
3GP 0-2-2 2PIM - ECHL
19GP 0-4-4 8PIM - AHL
3GP 0-2-2 2PIM - ECHL |
Returned from an ankle injury with a short conditioning stint
in the ECHL before returning to the Pack line up late in the month. Pöck's offensive production continues to be disappointing, but in his
defense he has been working on his defensive game. |
Petr
Prucha
4GP 1-0-1 2PIM
37GP 2-7-9 16PIM |
For whatever reason, Prucha missed several games last month and continues to
see the majority of his time on the lesser lines. It's hard to evaluate Prucha's progress this season with the reduced responsibilities...so
we'll just write this month off as another in a disappointing season that has little to do with Prucha's potential. |
Roman
Psurny
13GP 4-5-9 20PIM
47GP 15-18-33 47PIM |
The young Czech continues to quietly have a solid season with
the Central Division leaders of the WHL, and apparently has demonstrated a willingness to get in there and do the dirty work not shying away from
contact. |
Rory
Rawlyk
10GP 3-4-7 12PIM
40GP 7-12-19 57 PIM |
The offense continues for Rawlyk this season in Charlotte, but he remains low
on the depth chart for the Rangers in terms of depth prospects. A call-up in February was largely a result of injuries, though he did manage
to skip over Ryan Glenn. |
Jake
Taylor
11GP 0-1-1 35PIM
28GP 0-2-2 85PIM - AHL
9GP 0-2-2 29PIM - ECHL |
The biggest improvement in Taylor's game in the past month
has probably come in his fighting ability. Unable to demonstrate that aspect of his game in the NCAA, the sizable d-man has made some strides
this year in refining his technique. |
Fedor
Tyutin
8GP 2-0-2 6PIM
20GP 3-2-5 24PIM - RUS
13GP 2-1-3 10PIM - AHL |
It continues to be tough going playing for the struggling St Petersburg, who
continue to draw weak crowds and have limited success on the ice. Tyutin's plus/minus for the month was a disappointing -6, though he did
manage to pot two goals. |
Craig
Weller
13GP 2-1-3 19PIM
48GP 8-7-15 80PIM |
No doubt his move back to the blueline has been one of the
primary reasons that his production has dropped. Weller continues to play both ends, fill in at forward on occasion and continues to show a
willingness to drop the gloves when necessary. |
Chad
Wiseman
13GP 5-4-9 23PIM
48GP 16-16-32 53PIM |
Wiseman continues to contribute offense, but has perhaps has failed to build on
last year's success. The 2004 AHL All Star will not return to this year and will instead have time to focus on improving his finishing. |
|
On The Decline |
Ivan
Dornic
6GP 2-2-4 0PIM
17GP 2-2-4 2PIM - SLK
8GP 0-1-1 5PIM - WHL |
A brief stint in the second tier league seems to have motivated Dornic to
higher levels briefly. But after a 4 game point streak, Dornic has once against struggled to score in the Slovakian Extraliga. |
Rob
Flynn
3GP 1-0-1 4PIM
16GP 1-3-4 6PIM |
Flynn continues to be in and out of the line-up for Harvard
as a fourth line grinder |
Jordan
Foote
0GP 0-0-0 0PIM
13GP 1-1-2 6PIM |
Foote continues to be left out of the Tigers line-up |
Sven
Helfenstein
11GP 0-2-2 2 PIM
24GP 8-6-14 16 PIM |
Helfenstein's struggles continue away from the top line and
better linemates |
Dwight
Helminen
13GP 2-1-3 8PIM
31GP 2-6-8 12PIM - AHL
10GP 4-4-8 0PIM - ECHL |
Helminen has struggled a little at making an impression in the AHL. He
has shown some positive signs, and did manage to score his first AHL goal last month. Still Helminen may require more time to adjust to the
professional game before he can be considered a key member of the Wolf Pack. |
Kim
Hirschovits
10GP 2-0-2 12PIM
32GP 5-8-13 41PIM |
A longshot for an NHL career to begin the season with,
Hirschovits has done little to alter anyone's opinion this season. |
Marcus
Jonasen
12GP 1-3-4 6PIM
46GP 14-13-27 45PIM |
Jonasen has not been able to build on the success he had at the beginning of
last year, and continues to struggle with his offense. The Tri-city captain will be looking to try and help his team to struggle back into
the playoffs as the regular season enters a critical stage. |
Matt
Kinch
6GP 0-4-4 4PIM
31GP 1-12-13 18PIM |
A modest improvement in Kinch's game is hardly enough to
offset the expectations of the former star blueliner for the Calgary Hitmen |
Lauri
Korpikoski
7GP 0-1-1 0PIM
32GP 0-3-3 10PIM - FNL
6GP 2-0-2 6PIM - WJC |
A one game cameo appearance for the TPS Junior team was perhaps the highlight
of the month for Korpikoski, who has slipped back down to the fourth line. No reason to panic though, the 18 year old has plenty of time
ahead of him and is probably playing above his level at this stage of his career, something that could bode well for the future. |
Aarto
Laatikainen
12GP 1-1-2 8PIM
43GP 6-6-12 28IM |
A goal and an assist was all that Laatikainen could manage in
the month of January. It appears that he has topped out in terms of potential. |
Jason
Labarbera
7GP 4-2-0 .884 2.33
30GP 21-6-1 .930 1.87 |
Labarbera's hot streak has well and truly ended. After carrying his
winning streak into mid-January, Labarbera's form has taken a dramatic nose dive. Despite the lack of form, Labarbera will be won of two Wolf
Pack representatives at the AHL All Star game in February. |
Lucas
Lawson
12GP 1-3-4 9PIM
22GP 1-6-7 21PIM |
With the number of injuries on the team, Lawson has managed
to appear in a number of games though he remains one of the first players to be scratched when those injured players return. |
Al
Montoya
8GP 6-2-0 .889 3.25
26GP 19-6-1 .894 2.73 - NCAA
7GP 3-3-0 .904 3.35 - WJC |
Things have not gotten any better for Montoya since the less than impressive
run at the WJC. Despite continuing to win, Montoya's form has been spotty at best and in many respects disappointing. The 2004 first
round draft pick has put together few solid 60 minute performances this season and remains well down the rankings in terms of goalie statistics. |
Garth
Murray
10GP 2-0-2 10PIM
25GP 3-1-4 58PIM |
Murray continues to play below the expectations, though it
has not been through a lack of effort. The rugged winger continues to be a willing combatant, but is not considered a strong offensive or
defensive contributor. |
Martin
Richter
8GP 0-1-1 6PIM
35GP 3-4-7 24PIM |
Richter continues to chip in the odd point, but his fast start to the season is
now a distant memory |
Ken
Roche
7GP 0-0-0 2PIM
23GP 2-5-7 31PIM |
Any promise that Roche showed earlier in the season was wiped
out by a non-productive January. Roche has not shown the expected improvement in his offensive abilities, though he continues to work hard. |
Billy
Ryan
5GP 0-0-2 0PIM
23GP 3-7-10 26PIM |
Ryan has found it difficult to get quality playing time in Maine and has been
pushed out of the line-up on a couple of occasions. The young freshman still has a solid future, but needs to bide his time and continue to
improve his play away from the puck. |
Juris
Stals
13GP 1-4-5 12PIM
32GP 8-7-15 27PIM |
Even at the ECHL level, Stals has found it difficult to find
his offensive touch. He will represent Latvia in their attempts to qualify for the Olympics in 2006, but it appears that his NHL aspirations
have distinctly faded. |
Mike
Walsh
11GP 0-1-1 6PIM
26GP 1-6-7 24PIM |
Walsh's stock appears to have hit rock bottom with an abysmal record in
January. The lanky winger has not looked as bad as his record would suggest, but the entire Notre Dame team has struggled this year,
particularly for offense. |
|
Injured |
Blair
Betts
0GP 0-0-0 0PIM
16GP 5-4-9 4PIM |
Remains out with what could be season ending shoulder surgery |
Dan
Blackburn
Injured in 2003 |
Will make his return in February for the Victoria Salmon
Kings of the ECHL |
Brandon
Cullen
1GP 0-0-3 0PIM
14GP 2-3-7 48PIM |
A broken leg will keep Cullen out of the Checkers line up for most if not all
of the remainder of the season. |
Trevor
Gillies
0GP 0-0-0 0PIM
24GP 0-1-1 140PIM |
Is expected back in mid February from a broken foot |
Bruce
Graham
1GP 1-1-2 4PIM
41GP 22-17-39 44PIM |
In his first game of 2005, Graham was slashed and suffered a broken leg that
will likely keep him out until March. |
Martin
Grenier
0GP 0-0-0 0PIM
8GP 0-3-3 45PIM |
Could miss much of the remainder of the season with thumb
surgery |
Hugh
Jessiman
0GP 0-0-0 0PIM
4GP 1-1-2 6PIM |
Has begun light workouts, but remains weeks away from an on ice appearance |
David
Liffiton
0GP 0-0-0 0PIM
24GP 0-0-0 41PIM |
Missed all of January with a shoulder injury, but is expected
back this month |
Jan
Marek
5GP 0-2-2 4PIM
32GP 5-14-19 18PIM |
Not sure if he is indeed injured, but he has seldom played this past month and
I've been unable to find any news whatsoever. |
Richard
Scott
Injured in 2003 |
Remains
out of action with concussion like symptoms |
|
|
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