10/30 Recap: Schiestel leading Dog race at quarter turn

Drew Schiestel (-1) had a power play assist for Niagara in their 3-1 win over Guelph. Having registered a point in all but three of his 16 games, the Hamilton native continues to lead the Dogs in scoring with two goals and 15 assists. John Cullen (Hamburg, NY) made 23 saves for Niagara in relief of Mark Visentin to get the W. With 25% of the regular season complete, the 5-7-1-4 IceDogs are tied with Barrie for 2nd place in the Central Division. In a beggar's night contest, RW Andrew Orpik had two shots on goal as #2 Boston College upended Merrimack, 4-1. Jimmy Hayes (TOR) potted a pair of goals to lead the Eagles. Starting to ramp his way back up, Dennis Persson (-1) logged 13:48 of play in Timra's 4-0 loss to MODO. Prize 2009 prospect Victor Hedman was +2 for MODO, while former NHLers Niklas Sundstrom and Per Svartvadet paced the victors with two points each. Finally, a bizarre incident in Moscow caused the contest between Kazan (Vjacheslav Buravchikov) and Dynamo to be suspended after one period of play. It appears that smoke filled the arena after a Dynamo goal celebration, and would not dissipate despite several measures to clear the air. Buravchikov will return to action on Sunday.

10/28 Recap: Persson extra; Slava update

Dennis Persson was the seventh defenseman for a third straight game, registering two shots on goal in 10:50 of action in Timra's 4-3 win over Skelleftea. Defenseman Eric Moe, 20, was Timra's best player in just his sixth game of the season, potting a goal and an assist while being paired with the Eagles top d-gun Mikko Lehtonen. Moe's production has been a pleasant surprise for Timra, and his rise up the depth chart continues to come at Persson's expense. In the KHL, Vjacheslav Buravchikov went pointless in Kazan's 8-3 win over Minsk. The 6'1 defender is averaging 16:10 of time on the bottom pair for the third-place club while contributing a goal, an assist, and a -2 rating in 19 games.

10/22 Recap: Ennis explodes

Tyler Ennis poured out a goal and three assists as Medicine Hat surged to their third straight win by defeating Prince George, 7-3. The game's first star, Ennis has been the target of the opposing defense all season, greatly limiting his offensive effectiveness for the Tigers. The Edmonton native now has four goals and eight assists in 12 games and will look to keep his stick hot on Saturday against Calgary. Also from the WHL, Tyler Myers posted zeros across the board in Kelowna's 5-0 win over Chilliwack. Rookie Adam Brown made 15 saves for the Rockets to earn the shutout. In Moncton, Jacob Lagacé was -1 with an assist as the Sagueneens lost to the Wildcats, 4-2. Lagacé will carry his .91 ppg pace into a Thursday night match-up with Saint John. Jordon Southorn picked up a minor penalty in PEI's 4-2 loss to Rouyn-Noranda. In the lone Monday game from Russia, Vjacheslav Buravchikov went pointless in Kazan's 3-2 win over Vityaz.

10/8-9 Recap: Ennis nets first multi-point night

My apologies for lacking a timely Wednesday update. I was eagerly awaiting the riveting NHL opening night performance by Def Leppard. Come on, Gary. In a humpday WHL contest, Tyler Ennis scored a goal and an assist as Medicine Hat defeated Edmonton, 5-4. The 5'9 forward scored his second goal of the season early on the power play, then later added an assist to fuel the Tigers third period comeback effort. Currently with five points over seven games, Ennis is going to bust out sooner or later to elevate his sub-1.00 point-per-game status. Wednesday evening also saw three QMJHL games relative to Sabres prospects. Defenseman Jordon Southorn (-1) had an assist as PEI was doubled-up on the road by Saint John, 6-3. The Rocket were out-shot (34-29) and out-hit (25-12) while going an abysmal 0/10 on the power play. The Rocket continues its road ways with visits to Baie-Comeau on Friday and Chicoutimi on Saturday. Paul Byron failed to register a point in Gatineau's 2-1 win over Val d'Or. Continuing to be a controlling presence at the dot, the 5'9 Byron won 12 of his 18 faceoffs. Les Olympiques will battle Rimouski on Sunday. Already in Rimouski, Luke Adam was -1 as Montreal got blanked by the 'Nics, 4-0. Long bus trips can often work against teams as they try to get their legs going, and such was the case with the Juniors on Wednesday. T.J. Brennan did not dress for Montreal. Tonight was relatively quiet, with just two games on the slate before a hectic weekend kicks off. Dennis Persson again piled up the minutes with a healthy 20:17 of time in Timra's 5-2 loss to SSK. The loss was the fourth in a row for the sliding Eagles. In the OHL, Drew Schiestel (-3) had an assist in Niagara's 5-3 loss to Kitchener. Schiestel drew the primary assist on Andrew Agozzino's goal with 1:29 to play to cut the Rangers lead to 4-3. Moments later while still on the power play, the Dogs surrendered a short-handed goal to land themselves a fourth straight loss. It was a shaky night for the Dogs blueline, and there's no end in sight with Alex Pietrangelo sticking with St. Louis for at least the nine game limit. Checking in with the KHL, Vjacheslav Buravchikov now has a goal, an assist, and 4 PIM in 13 games with Kazan. After jumping out to a +5, the 6'1 defenseman has gone -6 over his last four games.

Persson bags winner

Dennis Persson scored the game winner for Timra in their 5-4 win over Linkopings on Saturday. Persson's goal came with the man advantage with a little under seven minutes to play. A -1 on the night, the 6'1 rearguard logged a season-high 19:40 in ice time on the Eagle's right side. Rounding out Saturday's action, Tyler Ennis assisted on the game winning goal in Medicine Hat's 6-3 win over Lethbridge. (The rest of Saturday's results can be found below.) ---------------------- In the KHL, Ak Bars defenseman Vjacheslav Buravchikov is now nine games into his season. He's posted a goal, an assist, and an impressive +5 while averaging 17:59 in time as Kazan sits in 11th place in the 24-team league.

9/12 Recap: Lagacé points as Sags sag

RW Jacob Lagacé scored a breakaway goal and added an assist as Chicoutimi dropped their season opener to Drummondville, 6-3. The Sags were short on firepower in this one, playing without a few NHL camp participants including Nicolas Deschamps (ANA), Joel Champagne (TOR), and Charles-Antoine Messier (VAN). Regardless of the loss, it's encouraging to see the fifth-rounder produce in his teammates absence. The Montreal Junior debuted this evening, falling to the loaded Quebec Remparts by a 5-1 score. T.J. Brennan (4 SOG) assisted on the lone Junior goal, while a frustrated Luke Adam finished a team-low -3 despite registering the first shot on goal for the former Fog Devils franchise. Ex-Sabres property Benjamin Breault paced the Remparts with a pair of goals and an assist to earn the game's #1 star. Jordon Southorn (4 SOG, 2 PIM) was an unsavory -4 as visiting PEI got smoked by Moncton, 8-2. Chosen in the 4th round last June, the 18-year old rearguard will wear the "A" this season for the Rocket. All four players will now trek west for a week to partake in the rookie portion of Buffalo's training camp. Three games into the KHL season, Kazan blueliner Vjacheslav Buravchikov is +3 and has yet to notch a point. Under contract to his Russian club, the 2005 pick will not travel to North America for camp. In the same boat is eight-year afterthought Artem Kriukov, whose second season with SKA St. Petersburg just got underway.