From: Ryan Stanzel
Director of Communications
Thursday, January 12, 2006
713.361.7930 (Direct Line)

HARDING, LAW, MURPHY NAMED TO CANADIAN AHL ALL-STAR TEAM

League-high five Aeros to represent Houston at February 1 game

HOUSTON, Texas – Houston Aeros right wing and captain Kirby Law has been named a starter for the Canadian team at the 2006 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic, to be held January 31 and February 1 at MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Teammates Josh Harding and Curtis Murphy will also represent the Aeros on the Canadian team. The trio joins Erik Westrum and Patrick O’Sullivan, who will play for the PlanetUSA Team, as the Aeros have an AHL-high and franchise-record-tying five All-Stars. (Click here to buy tickets for tonight’s game against Iowa at 7:05 p.m.)

“It’s obviously a tribute to those five players, I think they are all very deserving,” Aeros head coach Rob Daum said. “It’s a tribute to the team as well. You’re not going to have success as an individual without having good teammates. I think they all will recognize the fact that they are in this position because of the guys they are playing with, and where the team is as well.”

Houston had five All-Star players in 1998-99, when the Aeros eventually won the International Hockey League's Turner Cup. Rob Valicevic, Cam Stewart, Brian Wiseman, Greg Hawgood and Manny Fernandez joined head coach Dave Tippett.

Law, 28 (3/11/77), makes his second All-Star appearance in three seasons. He is currently second in the AHL in scoring with 52 points (23-29=52), trailing only Westrum (16-37=53), and his 23 goals pace the entire circuit. The 6-foot-1, 191-pound native of McCreary, Man., has already eclipsed his 2004-05 total of 49 points (25-24=49). Law had a career year in 2003-04 with AHL Philadelphia, totaling 73 points (32-41=73) and scoring a goal for Canada at the All-Star Game. Law, who wasn’t drafted, is in the midst of a 10-game point streak, the second-longest streak by an Aero this season and four games from his career-high.

Harding, 21 (6/18/84), leads the AHL in wins (21-7-0), is fourth in save pct. (.924) and 13th in gaa (2.62). The 6-foot-1, 185-pound native of Regina, Sask., is coming off a franchise-record 56-save performance Tuesday in a 4-2 win over Toronto. Harding, who is 7-1-0 when facing 40 or more shots this season, is 27-7-1 in his last 35 regular-season starts dating back to the 2004-05 campaign. He was Minnesota’s second-round pick (No. 38 overall) in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft. Harding is 42-23-3 with a franchise-record 2.26 gaa in two seasons with the Aeros. He missed 17 games due to a concussion in his rookie 2004-05 season.

Murphy, 30 (12/3/75), makes his fourth AHL All-Star appearance, and his seventh All-Star appearance in seven seasons in North America, counting three International Hockey League All-Star Games. Murphy is tied for second in the AHL in defensemen scoring with 31 points (4-27=31). The 5-foot-8, 195-pound native of Kerrobert, Sask., is a three-time champion at the pro level (IHL Orlando in 2001, Houston in 2003 and Milwaukee in 2004). Murphy, who like Law went undrafted, is one of four players in AHL history to earn the Eddie Shore Award as AHL Defenseman of the Year two times.

The 2006 Rbk Hockey AHL All-Star Classic will take place at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, home of the AHL’s Manitoba Moose, and will feature the top young talent in the American Hockey League. The event gets underway on Tuesday, January 31, with the 2006 CCM AHL All-Star Skills Competition at 7:00 p.m. (CT). The annual All-Star Game follows at 7:00 p.m. (CT) on Wednesday, February 1, and will be televised live in North America.

2006 CANADIAN AHL ALL-STAR TEAM

Forwards
x-Eric Fehr, Hershey
Ryan Getzlaf, Portland
Mike Glumac, Peoria
Denis Hamel, Binghamton
Mark Hartigan, Syracuse
x-Kirby Law, Houston
Corey Locke, Hamilton
Michel Ouellet, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
Dustin Penner, Portland
x-Corey Perry, Portland
Jimmy Roy, Manitoba ("C")
Martin St. Pierre, Norfolk
Jeff Tambellini, Manchester

Defensemen
Braydon Coburn, Chicago
Andy Delmore, Syracuse
Bruno Gervais, Bridgeport
Mark Giordano, Omaha
Curtis Murphy, Houston
Lawrence Nycholat, Hershey
x-Nathan Paetsch, Rochester
x-John Slaney, Philadelphia

Goaltenders
x-Wade Flaherty, Manitoba
Josh Harding, Houston
Dany Sabourin, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton

Head Coach: John Stevens, Philadelphia Phantoms
Assistant Coach: Kjell Samuelsson, Philadelphia Phantoms
Assistant Coach: Craig Berube, Philadelphia Phantoms
Athletic Therapist: Sal Raffa, Philadelphia Phantoms
Equipment Manager: Derek Settlemyre, Philadelphia Phantoms

x-starters


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