Heat Index 1/11/16

Records:
Last Week’s Record: 0-1-1-0, 1 point
Overall Record: 12-15-1-2, 0.450 Win Percentage, 7th in the Pacific Division

Last Week’s Results:
Jan. 6 – Stockton Heat 3 at San Jose 4 (OT)
Jan. 8 – Stockton Heat 1 at Ontario 6

This Week’s Schedule:
Wed. Jan. 13 – Stockton Heat vs. San Antonio Rampage – Stockton Arena (7:00 p.m.)
Sat. Jan. 16 – Stockton Heat at Rockford IceHogs – BMO Harris Bank Center (5:00 p.m. PST)
Sun. Jan. 17 – Stockton Heat at Iowa Wild – Wells Fargo Arena (3:00 p.m. PST)

Recent Transactions
1/11 – Mitchell Heard loaned to Adirondack by Stockton
1/4 – Kent Simpson loaned to Adirondack by Stockton
1/4 – Aaron Johnson returned from loan to Stockton by Team Canada (Spengler)

Team Leaders
Goals: Derek Grant with 15
Assists: Drew Shore with 14
Points: Derek Grant with 21
PIMs: Austin Carroll with 44
Wins: Joni Ortio with 7
Losses: Joni Ortio with 8
GAA (Played at least 5 games): Jon Gillies with 2.31
SV% (Played at least 5 games): Jon Gillies with 0.920

Team Stats
Goals For: Week: 4 | Overall: 85
Goals Against: Week: 10 | Overall: 94
Power Play: 23-149 (15.4%), 18th in AHL
Penalty Kill: 98-121 (81%)), T-24th in AHL

Records vs. Opponents

Pacific Division:
Bakersfield Condors (3-4-0-0)
Ontario (1-4-0-0)
San Antonio (1-1-0-1)
San Diego (2-1-0-1)
San Jose (1-4-1-0)
Texas (3-1-0-0)
TOTALS vs. PACIFIC: (11-15-1-2)
Central Division:
Rockford (1-0-0-0)
TOTALS vs. CENTRAL: (1-0-0-0)

Calgary Flames (NHL)
Record Last Week: 1-1-0, 2 points
Record Overall: 19-119-2, .500 Win Percentage, 6^th in Pacific Division
This Week’s Schedule:
Mon. Jan. 11 – Flames vs. San Jose (6:00 p.m. PST)
Wed. Jan. 13 – Flames vs. Florida (6:30 p.m. PST)
Sat. Jan. 16 – Flames at Edmonton (7:00 p.m. PST)

Adirondack Thunder (ECHL)
Record Last Week: 2-1-0, 4 points
Record Overall: 21-9-2, .688 Win Percentage, 2nd in East Division
This Week’s Schedule:
Tue. Jan. 12- Thunder vs. Norfolk (4:00 p.m. PST)
Sat. Jan. 16 – Thunder vs. Reading (4:00 p.m. PST)
Sun. Jan. 17 – Thunder at Elmira (1:05 p.m. PST)

News and Notes

• Derek Grant leads the league in shots with 111, a shot more than Albany’s Reid Boucher and Hartford’s Jayson Megna
  • Grant is also tied for eighth in the AHL with 15 goals.  The league leader, Scott Wilson of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins leads with 18 goals
• Stockton averages the seventh most penalty minutes in the league with 16 minutes per game
• The Heat have played the fewest number of home games in the league (13) however five of the next seven will take place at Stockton Arena
• Stockton was the last team in the AHL to have a game decided in the three-on-three overtime on Wednesday when they fell to the Barracuda in San Jose during the five-minute extra session
• The Heat have the second best goal differential in the third period, scoring 16 more goals then they allow.  The only team with a better differential are the Toronto Marlies who have scored 19 more than they’ve allowed in the final period
  • 53.3% of the AHL has a positive goal differential in the third period compared to 43.3% with a negative goal differential and 3.3% are even
• The Heat are tied for the fourth best shot differential in the AHL with the Albany Devils as the Heat have outshot opponents by 164 shots
  • The Heat have the highest shot differential in the AHL in the third period, outshooting teams by 99
  • Stockton leads the AHL in shots per game with 35.60

Approaching Milestones

• Turner Elson is 1 point away from 50 career AHL points
• Garnet Hathaway is a game away from 100 career AHL games
  • Hathaway is also 5 points away from 50 career AHL points
• Colton Orr is 2 PIMS away from 600 in his AHL career. The forward has 1186 PIMS in the NHL
• Kenny Agostino is 4 games away from playing in his 100th AHL game
• Heat captain Aaron Johnson is just 6 points away from 200 career AHL points
• Bill Arnold is 11 games away from his 100th AHL game

Recently Accomplished Milestones

• Joni Ortio played in his 100th career AHL game on Friday last week against Ontario however the Reign spoiled his three-game winning streak in his 100th AHL game

Syracuse Bound

With the AHL announcing their All-Star selections for the 2016 Toyota AHL All-Star Classic, Heat forward Derek Grant was selected for the first time in his pro career.

Grant is having a career season, leading the team with 15 goals and 21 points while playing in just 22 games for the Heat and 9 additional games for the Calgary Flames during this campaign.  Grant’s 15 goals actually place him in the top 10 in the AHL.

The All-Star festivities kicks off on January 31with a skills competition followed by a round robin tournament comprised of All-Star teams from each division.

Heat See Plenty of Players Return 

Last week the Stockton Heat saw the return of a number of players to the lineup after stays off of the game sheets for various reasons.

After winning the Spengler Cup on December 31, team captain Aaron Johnson returned to the lineup on Wednesday, January 6.  In that same game the Heat saw goalie Kevin Poulin get the nod after missing 15 games with a lower body injury suffered on November 21.  In addition, Drew Shore returned to the lineup on January 6 after missing six games due to an upper body injury.

The Heat also received good news on Friday as alternate captain Garnet Hathaway returned to action against the Reign on January 8 after missing the last 10 games due to an upper body injury.

Shore are Glad He’s Back!

One of the aforementioned players who returned to the lineup was Drew Shore, who picked up right where he left off!

Shore suffered an injury after putting up points in back-to-back games on December 19 and 20 before missing the next six.  He returned on January 6 putting up 2 assists and added the Heat’s lone goal on January 8 pushing his point streak to four games (1-4-5).

Shore retook the team lead in assists (14) thanks to his two-assist night on Wednesday and finds himself tied for third on the team in points with 18.

After a slow start with just a goal and an assist in 6 games during October, Shore began to heat up in November with a goal and 7 assists in 9 games and posting a goal and 4 assists in 7 games during December.  In his first two games of January, Shore has a goal and two assists.

He’ll look to carry the momentum tonight in hopes of tying Derek Grant’s team long 5-game point streak (4-4-8).

Heat are Midwest Bound

After welcoming in San Antonio to Stockton Arena this Wednesday for the first time this season, the Heat will embark on a Midwest roadtrip as Stockton takes on the Rockford IceHogs on Saturday, January 16 for the second and final time this season before a short bus trip to Des Moines, Iowa to play the Iowa Wild for the first time on Sunday, January 17.

The Heat are 1-1-1 against San Antonio with all three previous meetings taking place in Texas while the Heat opened up their season with a 7-0 win over the IceHogs back on October 10.  Since then however the IceHogs have regained their traction and are the first placed team in the Central Division.

Meanwhile the Wild, are the last team in the AHL who’ve not cracked double digit wins as they rank last in the Central Division.

Teddy Bear Toss Coming Up on January 23

On January 23, the Stockton Heat will feature one of our favorite promotions as Teddy Bear Toss returns for the 11th season in Stockton.

The Heat host the event for the first time, where you, the fans, are encouraged to bring stuffed animals to the game and once the Heat score (make sure it’s a good goal too because San Diego had this problem this season), fans chuck their teddy bears and stuffed animals onto the ice which will then be collected, counted and distributed to local charities courtesy of the United Way.

This year, the Heat’s ownership group has already seen one team they own, the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL, break world records for the amount of bears collected 28,815 bears and stuffed animals.

While the Heat might not be able to keep up with the Hitmen, one team should certainly help motivate Stockton fans to bring a bunch of bears to the game as the Heat’s biggest rival, the Bakersfield Condors, collected 7,908 and we want to beat that number right here at Stockton Arena.

For tickets to the game, visit StocktonHeat.com or call the Front Office at 209-373-1500.