View from the Pressbox: A quickie on last weekend

This story is all over the place, so please forgive the ADD.

The Aeros are several men down because of a rash of injuries to defenseman, but that did not keep them from picking up three points and moving up from 10th to 9th in the overall standings.

Hackett with a great stop - Morris Molina, Houston Aeros

Three great comebacks in all three games, but they only win one of them as John alluded to last night. But, to look on the bright side is better. The win on Saturday at OKC was most satisfying, and Sunday was an even matchup overall that just ended up going the other way because the Aeros did not get the breaks in the first eight minutes and in the shootout.

Early on (already) health is going to dictate their fate far more than any other factor in the short-term. The team is loaded and they really look like they love playing and going to battle together. I'd love to see this group play for two straight months at 95 percent healthy.

There is some definite leadership and a fighter's mentality. That will go a long way down the stretch when they are playing all those road games in late winter.

Get ready for a lot of close games and a weaker power play until Granlund returns.

Big-picture wise, the Aeros have 10 more games this month, and six of those games are against San Antonio, Rockford and Oklahoma City. Only one of those teams (Lake Erie) has scored more goals than the Aeros, but four of those teams have allowed fewer goals.

Lake Erie and Abbotsford are ahead of the Aeros in the standings, but every other team on the schedule is within a game of .500 - translation? Get ready for a lot of close games.

Right now the Aeros are on pace for 91 points. Last year, that is good enough for a  three or four seed in the Western Conference. What I want to see -  to call the Aeos an elite AHL team like I believe their coaches think they are -  is for the Aeros to start playing better at home.

They have already lost three of five at home this year, and last year, they were 17-21. I realize they get points for getting to the fourth period, but OT and SO losses are losses.

All three games are at home this week, and the Aeros need to win two of them to stay in the upper half of the league standings. I think they can do just that if Hackett plays like he did the last two games, and the Aeros keep plugging away with their no-quit style of hockey.

Unfinished Business: 2011-2012

The Aeros are calling this season "Unfinished Business." So I guess that tells you what they're aiming for. There are a lot of changes to the team, new coach, new coaching staff, new players, and we'll get into all of that later on, but the big news is that we finally have a schedule.

The season opens at home on Sunday, October 9, when the Aeros host the Chicago Wolves at 5:05. That's one thing you'll notice, lots of Sunday games, which might cause some problems for those of you happen to be football fans as the Aeros are playing nine games at home on Sunday during the NFL regular season. Plus some Sunday games during the playoffs, and they're also playing a home game on Super Bowl Sunday. The good news is that we don't have to worry about any team from Texas making the playoffs, much less the Super Bowl, and the Super Bowl Sunday game is at noon, so you'll only miss about five hours of the pregame show and not the game itself.

There's some really good news about the schedule. Most of the home games are on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. There are seven games on a non-Friday weekday, including the annual kiddie game in early December and a Monday game on the day after Christmas. And as always, they'll have a game at home on the Friday after Thanksgiving as well as a game on New Year's Day, so don't party too hard on New Year's Eve.

And the Aeros only have nine10 three-in-threes this season.

The one troubling aspect of the schedule, to me at least, is that the Aeros have an 11-game road trip in February/March that will see them away from Toyota Center for a month. They have three home games at the first of February, then they're gone from February 7 until March 10. Four of those games will be up at Abbottsford, which they'll visit for two games midway through the road trip and then again for the final two games of the road trip. They'll play Grand Rapids twice on the trip, the Stars twice, and the Ads, Wolves, and Rampage once each.

But of the Aeros last 10 games, seven will be at home. So if the team can survive that road trip in good shape, then they're in a good position to cement a playoff spot. So there you go.

Look the schedule over and give us your thoughts.

Townhall and Game Info

We've been away for awhile, so I thought I should apologize. Andrew's busy doing that real job with the airline thing. I've been so busy on the current, probably soon to end temp job, that I even missed the tryouts for the Dynamics on Saturday, and you know how I am with the Dynamics. As for Ms. Conduct, who knows what all she's been up to, and I'm not sure I even want to know.

There's not much new on the team front. The assistant coaches still haven't been named, and there is still no schedule, though that should be coming in a few weeks. However, the team did announce last week the dates of five home games for the 2011-12 season.

Saturday, October 15:
Saturday, October 29;
Friday, November 18;
Friday, December 16;
Friday, January 20.

The Aeros also announced today that the team has hired a new team president, David Burke, who from 2007-11 was the Vice President of Ticket Sales for the Phoenix Coyotes. He's previously worked for the Dallas Stars, the Texas Motor Speedway, the New Orleans Hornets, and the Charlotte Bobcats. And he's going to oversee the day-to-day business operations of the franchise.

You should find this interesting because the press release from the team says that sometime in late August Burke and the team will be holding a townhall meeting with season tickets holders and other fans. So all of the complaints and gripes you've had, well instead of telling them to us, who can't do anything about them, now you'll have the chance to let someone with the team know about your problems. In person. He won't be able to hang up the phone. He won't be able to delete the email, he'll have to listen.

We'll send along the date when we get it. Until then, happy off-season.

Random Thoughts from Last Night

Is anybody else like me where at this point in the season, it's all sorta running together?

Never the less, that was one of the most exciting games I've seen in a while and I'd been wondering when this "rivalry" was actually going to start looking like a rivalry. With 3 fights and more boarding than an airport, I'd say we're getting darn close to this one getting as nasty as San Antonio, especially as they get more desperate.

Like I always say, "If you can't beat 'em, beat 'em up."

I know you guys might think I don't like Anton because I'm hard on him, but it's not true. I'm hard on him because I know he's a good goalie. But I'm gonna say something good about him, in spite of that abysmal first goal against: When he lands on his butt and rolls through the splits to get back on his knees/feet... well, that's just fantastic bendy goalie porn and I (and others, trust me) appreciate the show. The kid is cuh-razy flexible.

So, don't say I never said anything nice about Anton.

How sick is that DiSalvatore, O'Sullivan, Wellman line? Good gravy. I kinda would have thought that line would be too much "soft and handsy" without Almond's grit, but honestly, they battled through bodies and protected the puck just fine. Being small, quick, and slippery like Wellman is can work pretty well if you've got solid hockey sense.

And while his OT game winner was a thing of beauty (how's that for a "Honey, I'm home!"), his back handed pass to DiSalvatore on that gorgeous tic-tac-toe goal impressed me even more. Awareness and finesse. Man. Welcome back. Stay healthy!

Since the game was at home Tuesday, I dunno how many of you heard Joe's 2nd intermission interview with Kalus, but I had to leave early and heard it on my way down to Space City to stop some pucks.

Anyway, if you haven't noticed, Kalus has been a healthy scratch a lot this season, so I was glad to hear the interview. Sometimes we only want to talk to guys who have a happy story to tell, but Kalus really doesn't right now. I thought he had matured a lot last season, but maybe wasn't finding his niche on this team, though he said in the interview that Yeo's system suits his game well.

The interview made me sad for the guy, because he clearly just wants to play and said they haven't really told him why he's not playing nor what he can do to get in the lineup (other than wait for guys to get hurt or called up, which is how he got in last night).

One really honest bit that stood out to me was when Joe asked him how this coaching staff is working for him, Kalus said that's hard to answer. On one hand, their style suits him and the team is doing well, but on the other hand they don't play him. I don't wanna put words in his mouth but I felt the gist was, "Well, no, they're not really doing it for me, to be honest."

I would think it's tough to see everybody else buying in and having success while basically looking in from the outside.

Anyway, kudos to Joe for doing an interview that was bound to get a little awkward. He was in the Terry Gross zone there.

I just checked out my magnet schedule while I was making my decaf (ugh--I miss caffeine) this morning and, man, is there ever a LOT of home ice hockey coming up. Wee! Gonna be a fun month if the guys play like we know they can (and now EXPECT them to).

Aeros Defeat Texas Yet Again - UPDATED

The Aeros got the 4-1 win over Texas tonight, in Austin. They scored in each period, with Justin Falk getting the game's first goal. With Milwaukee and San Antonio idle tonight, the Aeros are back in a tie for first with the Admirals and Rampage, each with 64 points.

Before you read some good notes below, be sure to click here to read the game story from the Stars' hometown paper. Lots of good nuggets in here about the Aeros absolutely domination of the Stars this year.

For example, the Stars are now just 1-6-1-1 again Houston. Against the REST of the West, which is by far and away the best division in the AHL, Texas is 21-6-0-1. Crazy.

Some Miscellaneous Notes:

Justin Falk, Patrick O'Sullivan, Cody Almond, and Jed Ortmeyer got the goals for Houston. O'Sullivan and Almond also had assists. Jon DiSalvatore had three assists on the night with Max Noreau, Tyler Cuma, and Colton Gillies also getting assists.

The three stars were 1) Anton Khudobin, 2) Cody Almond, and 3) Colton Sceviour.

The Aeros are 8-1-0-0 versus the Stars this season.

The Aeros play in Rockford tomorrow night, then their next two games are against the Peoria Rivermen, one of the teams the Aeros are in a tight race for a playoff spot with. They play Friday in Peoria, then have the "home" game against Peoria in St. Paul on Sunday afternoon. So maybe there will be some spacing in the standings after this weekend.

The Aeros next actual home game is next Thursday morning at 11:05 a.m. against the Chicago Wolves.

Some Thoughts On The Aeros Schedule

First, let me say that I'll be addressing this more, in depth, on the mothership blog on Friday. But...

I've been reading your comments to Andrew's post, and over at the Aeros Facebook site and on twitter, and I wanted to add my own two cents. And a brief aside, these are my thoughts, my comments, and I'm writing this without the knowledge of Andrew or Heather, so don't hold anything against them.

You, my friends, are being screwed over. Especially if you're a season ticket holder. You purchased tickets for 40 games. But you're only going to get to see 39. It's good for the players to play a game on the Wild home ice in front of Wild fans, but it doesn't do too damn much for you. The Aeros/Wild have stated that you will receive a ticket for that game in St. Paul as part of your season ticket package. But what you won't be receiving are airline tickets or hotel vouchers. You also won't get a ticket to the Wild game that night. So you're more than welcome to spend even more of your cash to fly to St. Paul, get a hotel room, and make your way out to the arena for the Aeros game, just don't bother sticking around to watch the Wild.

They'll also let you exchange that ticket for a ticket to another Aeros home game. But think about that for a moment. You're still paying to see 40 games. You're still only getting to see 39 games. Just what does an extra ticket do for you?

I'm also not too pleased by the two weekday matinee games because I'm sure that most of you season ticket holders actually have jobs, so it's hard for you to get away during a weekday morning to see a hockey game. So what we're actually looking at is that lots of you will be paying for 40 games, but you'll only be seeing 37.

I'll sign off now -- remember, read the mothership on Friday -- but let's just say that I'm a bit pissed about this thing. It's good news for the players, but bad news for you.

Meanwhile, About The Schedule

I've got a post over at the mothership on the AHL scheduling process for anybody who might be interested. I tried to get some comments from the Aeros, but curiously, no one wanted to talk about it on the record. Still, expect a schedule sometime before the end of the month.

Updated - Guaranteed Home Dates

EDIT - I wanted to make one update to John's post here. The Aeros did confirm that their home opener is on Oct. 16. I read through the release a few times and that was not specified.

This means, for the second year in a row, the Aeros will open their weekend on the road. I think the team benefits from opening away from home ... and I know they'd love to start the year with a pair of games at Manitoba, Abbotsford or Oklahoma City.

The Aeros released a list of six dates on which they will be playing home games for the 2010-2011 season today. The times and opponent are still not known, but if you're really curious, here are the dates:

Saturday, October 16 (HOME Opener)
Friday, October 22.
Friday, November 5.
Thursday, December 2.
Sunday, December 26.
Saturday, January 15.

The full schedule is expected to be released next month.

Aeros Release List of Teams They'll Be Facing

While we still don't know the schedule for this season, at least now we know who the Aeros will be playing this season, and how many times we will be playing them.

WEST DIVISION:
Texas - 6/6
San Antonio - 5/5
Oklahoma City - 5/5
Rockford - 4/4
Chicago - 3/3
Milwaukee - 3/3
Peoria - 3/3

NORTH DIVISION:
Abbotsford - 2/2
Grand Rapids - 2/2
Lake Erie - 2/2
Manitoba - 2/2
Hamilton - 1/1
Toronto - 1/1


EAST DIVISION:
Syracuse - 1/1

The only North Division team the Aeros won't play are the Rochester Americans. And the only Eastern Conference team they'll be playing are the Syracuse Crunch. They get to play the Western Conference Champs, Texas Stars, 12 times, the Rampage 10, and the recently located to Oklahoma City club 10 times.

2009-10 Schedule (with Post-Game Links)

Date	Time	Opponent/ Opposing Game Story	Score/ Gamesheet	Andrew/ Chron	John	Heather	Photos/ Highlights
10/2/2009	7:30	@ Manitoba	L 3-4	Chron		T3I	Highlights
10/3/2009	7:30	@ Manitoba	W 4-2	Chron		T3I	Highlights
10/9/2009	7:35	Texas Stars	L 3-2	Chron	T3I	T3I
10/10/2009	7:35	Texas Stars	W 2-1 (S)	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
10/16/2009	7:35	San Antonio	W 5-2	Chron	T3I	T3I
10/17/2009	7:35	Texas Stars	L 5-1	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
10/21/2009	7:05	Lake Erie	L 1-0	Chron	T3I	T3I
10/24/2009	7:00	@ SanAntonio	W 3-2 (O)	Chron		T3I
10/25/2009	3:00	@ SanAntonio	W, 2-0	Chron		T3I	Highlights
10/27/2009	7:05	Hamilton	W, 4-3 (S)	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
10/29/2009	7:00	@ Grand Rapids	L, 0-2	Chron			Highlights
10/30/2009	7:00	@ Grand Rapids	L, 1-3	Chron			Highlights
11/1/2009	5:00	@ Texas Stars	L, 1-3	Chron			Highlights
11/5/2009	7:05	Manitoba	W, 4-1	Chron	T3I	T3I
11/7/2009	7:35	San Antonio	W, 5-2	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
11/13/2009	7:30	@ Lake Erie	W, 6-0	Chron		T3I	Highlights
11/14/2009	1:00	@ Lake Erie	L, 1-3	Chron		T3I	Highlights
11/15/2009	4:05	Chicago	L, 2-1	Chron		T3I	Highlights
11/18/2009	7:05	Peoria	W, 1-0	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
11/20/2009	7:05	Milwaukee	L, 3-2	Chron	T3I		Highlights
11/22/2009	4:05	Milwaukee	L, 2-1 (O)	Chron	T3I		Highlights
11/25/2009	7:30	@ Hamilton	W, 1-0	Chron			Highlights
11/27/2009	7:30	@ Syracuse	L, 4-3 (S)	Chron			Photos
11/28/2009	4:00	@ Toronto	W, 2-1 (O)	Chron			Highlights
12/3/2009	11:05	San Antonio	L, 6-3	Chron		T3I	Highlights
12/4/2009	7:00	@ SanAntonio	L, 3-2 (O)	Chron			Highlights
12/11/2009	7:35	Peoria	L, 2-1	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
12/13/2009	4:05	Rockford	W, 4-1	Chron		T3I	Highlights
12/15/2009	7:30	@ Texas Stars	W, 5-2	Chron		T3I	Highlights
12/16/2009	7:05	San Antonio	W, 2-1 (O)	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
12/18/2009	7:35	Texas Stars	L, 5-2	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
12/20/2009	4:05	Grand Rapids	W, 5-3	Chron	T3I		Highlights
12/26/2009	7:35	San Antonio	L, 4-2	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
12/28/2009	7:05	Syracuse	W, 4-5 (O)	Chron	T3I	T3I	Highlights
12/30/2009	7:00	@ Chicago	L, 1-5	Chron		T3I	High/Photos
12/31/2009	7:05	@ Rockford	L, 4-5 (O)	T3I		T3I	High/Photos
1/1/2010	7:00	@ Milwaukee	W, 6-2	Chron		T3I	Photos
1/3/2010	4:05	Abbotsford	L, 4-3 (O)	Chron	T3I		Highlights
1/6/2010	7:30	@ Texas Stars	L, 3-2 (O)	Chron			Highlights
1/8/2010	7:35	Rockford	W, 5-3	Chron	T3I	T3I
1/10/2010	4:05	Rockford	L, 2-1 (O)	Chron	T3I
1/13/2010	7:05	@ Rockford	L, 3-2	Chron			Highlights
1/15/2010	7:05	@ Rockford	L, 5-1	Chron			Highlights
1/16/2010	7:35	Toronto	W, 5-2	Chron
1/22/2010	7:30	@ Abbotsford	W, 7-1	Chron
1/23/2010	4:00	@ Abbotsford
1/27/2010	7:00	@ Chicago
1/29/2010	7:00	@ Milwaukee
1/30/2010	7:00	@ Peoria
2/1/2010	7:05	Abbotsford
2/3/2010	7:05	Peoria
2/5/2010	7:00	@ Milwaukee
2/6/2010	7:00	@ Grand Rapids
2/12/2010	7:35	Grand Rapids
2/13/2010	7:35	Grand Rapids
2/14/2010	4:05	Chicago
2/19/2010	7:00	@ Milwaukee
2/20/2010	7:00	@ Chicago
2/21/2010	3:00	@ Peoria
2/25/2010	7:05	Manitoba
2/26/2010	7:30	@ Texas Stars
2/27/2010	7:35	Texas Stars
3/3/2010	7:00	@ SanAntonio
3/5/2010	7:35	San Antonio
3/6/2010	7:00	@ Texas Stars
3/12/2010	7:35	Peoria
3/13/2010	7:00	@ Chicago
3/14/2010	5:00	@ Rockford
3/20/2010	7:35	Milwaukee
3/21/2010	4:05	Milwaukee
3/26/2010	7:35	Lake Erie
3/27/2010	7:00	@ Peoria
3/28/2010	2:00	@ Peoria
3/31/2010	7:05	Chicago
4/2/2010	7:35	Chicago
4/3/2010	7:00	@ Texas Stars
4/6/2010	7:05	Rockford
4/8/2010	7:00	@ SanAntonio
4/10/2010	7:35	Texas Stars
4/11/2010	2:00	@ SanAntonio

2009-2010 AHL Schedule

Here is the AHL schedule for this season. Note that the Aeros open the season in Manitoba on October 2 and 3, then they open the home schedule against Texas on October 9. I haven't really looked it over yet, but I'm sure everybody will find something to gripe about, so have it.

UPDATE: Well, I just noticed that for the first time in years, the Aeros will be on the road for Thanksgiving instead of playing San Antonio here at Toyota Center on Black Friday. I also note that the Aeros are at home for Christmas, but play three-in-three on the road at New Year's. Still, I don't see anything really outrageous.

Also, here is the Chronicle story on the schedule. A few good notes here ... also looks like a few more weekday games this year. (TWO cricket-filled Monday games on the slate too ... )

Correction / Update -- AHL Schedule (not) delayed

The information that I got earlier today about the AHL schedule was not entirely correct ... and the AHL has confirmed that its schedule is not delayed and could be release some time the week of August 3.

No date at this time has been confirmed, and a league spokesperson said in an e-mail to me this afternoon that the AHL "does not wait for the NBA schedule to be released publicly to finish" its own schedule.

The e-mail goes on ... "Once the NBA gets deep enough into its own schedule-making that its teams can release available dates back to their buildings, our clubs in Houston, Milwaukee, Cleveland and San Antonio can provide us with the missing pieces we need to fill out the rest of our schedule. That should be as soon as next week."

After that, he said, it should take another week to be approved by the board of directors.

First of all, I am glad that the league reviews blogs about its teams so they can snuff out any incorrect information. Ironically, I kind of do the same thing "at my real job" so even though I kind of look like an idiot here, getting the right info clearly outweighs my mistake.

Anyway, this great news on all counts.

Aeros Schedule Grid

The AHL gave the team's PR reps a nugget to release for themselves today.
Scott Henninger with the Aeros says the team's schedule grid is as follows.

Per Aeros.com:

The 2009-10 regular season will begin on Oct. 2. The Aeros complete schedule will be announced later this summer. Houston is slated to host 28 games within the West Division, 11 against the North Division and one versus the East Division. The Aeros opponents and number of home games are as follows (Houston plays each team an equal number of times on the road):

West Division
Texas Stars – six games
San Antonio Rampage – six games
Chicago Wolves – four games
Milwaukee Admirals – four games
Peoria Rivermen – four games
Rockford IceHogs – four games

North Division
Grand Rapids Griffins – three games
Abbotsford Heat – two games
Lake Erie Monsters – two games
Manitoba Moose – two games
Hamilton Bulldogs – one game
Toronto Marlies – one game

East Division
Syracuse Crunch – one game

Division Alignment Released

No real surprises here; Syracuse moves to the East, Abbotsford, as expected, joins the Canadian teams in the North, and Iowa is suspended for the year.

I think due to the economy and other factors, you won't see the Aeros playing a ton of games east of Cleveland. Could be wrong, but this division fits well and I anticipate the Aeros playing 24 of their games against San Antonio and Austin this year.

The schedule grid will be announced later this week, I am sure. (UPDATE - Well check that ... some teams are already announcing which teams they will be playing and how many times, so I guess we'll get that grid sooner ... )

(from the AHL)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 7, 2009

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AHL ANNOUNCES DIVISION ALIGNMENT FOR 2009-10
29 teams set to compete in league’s 74th season

---

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … American Hockey League President and CEO David Andrews announced that the league’s Board of Governors has approved the following conference and division alignment for the AHL’s 2009-10 season (NHL affiliates in parentheses):

Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI)
Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR)
Lowell Devils (NJ)
Manchester Monarchs (LA)
Portland Pirates (BUF)
Providence Bruins (BOS)
Springfield Falcons (EDM)
Worcester Sharks (SJ)

East Division
Adirondack Phantoms (PHI)
Albany River Rats (CAR)
Binghamton Senators (OTT)
Hershey Bears (WSH)
Norfolk Admirals (TB)
Syracuse Crunch (CBJ)
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (PIT)

Western Conference
North Division
Abbotsford Heat (CGY)
Grand Rapids Griffins (DET)
Hamilton Bulldogs (MTL)
Lake Erie Monsters (COL)
Manitoba Moose (VAN)
Rochester Americans (FLA)
Toronto Marlies (TOR)

West Division
Chicago Wolves (ATL)
Houston Aeros (MIN)
Milwaukee Admirals (NSH)
Peoria Rivermen (STL)
Rockford IceHogs (CHI)
San Antonio Rampage (PHX)
Texas Stars (DAL)

The 2009-10 regular season will begin on Oct. 2. The complete schedule will be announced later this summer.

In operation since 1936, the AHL continues to serve as the top development league for all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 84 percent of today’s NHL players are American Hockey League graduates, and for the eighth year in a row, more than 6 million fans attended AHL games across North America in 2008-09.

Western Conference Finals Playoff Schedule

Before I forget. The schedule of games is as follows.

Games One and Two in Winnipeg on Friday and Saturday.

Games Three, Four, and Five are in Houston next Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Games Six and Seven (if needed) are in Winnipeg the Monday and Wednesday after that.