From: Robert Desimone, Communications Manager
(713) 361-7920
Palmer Hestley, Asst. Communications Manager
(713) 361-7930
January 22, 2010
NOREAU TIES FRANCHISE RECORD WITH FIVE POINTS
HOUSTON - D Maxim Noreau tied a franchise record with five points (2-3=5), RW Jon DiSalvatore added three helpers and the Houston Aeros (21-17-6-1) tied a franchise record with five powerplay goals as they defeated the Abbotsford Heat (21-19-3-3) 7-1 in front of 3,470 at the Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre Friday night. G Wade Dubielewicz (10-9-0) saved 26 of 27 to earn his 10th win of the season while G Leland Irving (11-15-2) made 16 saves in the loss.
BOXSCORE
The Aeros jumped out to a quick two-goal lead in the first period off a pair of powerplay markers. Noreau tallied the first goal at the 6:05 mark when he fired a center-point bid through traffic past Irving. Just 92 seconds later, LW Petr Kalus gathered the puck in the slot off a rebound and hammered it to the back of the net to give Houston a 2-0 lead through the opening 20 minutes of play.
Abbotsford cut the Aeros’ lead in half early in the middle frame. D John Negrin took possession off a left circle faceoff and snapped the puck past Dubielewicz from the left point at 1:42. Houston would answer with another powerplay goal off the stick of Noreau at the 8:52 mark. C Nathan Smith found Noreau alone at the top of the left circle where the Aeros blue-liner sent a slap shot top shelf for his 12th of the year to lead all AHL defensemen. With two minutes remaining in the second period, RW J-M Daoust got into the act when he found himself staring at a wide open net after a Heat defensemen ran into Irving, forcing him out of the crease. Daoust flicked the puck into the open net for his 15th of the year tying him with DiSalvatore for the team-lead.
The Aeros added a trio of goals in the final stanza. RW Carson McMillan sent a seeing-eye wrister from the right point that bounced past Irving at 9:46. LW Matt Kassian and Noreau were credited with the helpers. Negrin sent the puck over the glass for a Delay of Game penalty at 8:41 setting up the Aeros’ fourth man advantage of the game. Less than a minute in Smith tipped home the Aeros fourth powerplay goal of the game off assists from DiSalvatore and Noreau at 9:37.
The Aeros would strike once more on the powerplay when C Cody Almond found the netting at 11:15 to make it 7-1 in favor of Houston; DiSalvatore and Noreau were again the helpers. The Aeros had scored five powerplay markers twice before in team history. The last was Feb. 8, 2008 at Rockford in a 6-1 win over the IceHogs. Noreau’s five points also tied a franchise record. It marks the fifth time an Aeros skater has tallied five points; the last was Kirby Law (3-2=5) on Oct. 7, 2005 in a 6-5 win over San Antonio.
In a game that saw 21 penalties for 60 PIM, Houston finished the game 5-for-7 on the man advantage while the Heat went 0-for-6. Abbotsford outshot the Aeros 27-23 on the evening. The seven goals scored is a season-high for Houston.
The Aeros and Heat faceoff again tomorrow night (6:00 p.m. CST) at the Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre. Watch the game live on ahllive.com, listen to Joe O’Donnell’s call on 1070 AM-KNTH and follow the interactive in-game blog on aeros.com.
Joe O'Donnell's Calls of the Game
Kalus PPG
Noreau 2nd PPG
Daoust goal
McMillan goal
Almond PPG
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