Michigan UHL teams - News & Notes

Goaltending plays a major part in the success of any hockey club, and several United Hockey League goaltenders are filling that role in a big way during recent games.

Muskegon Fury netminder Clayton Pool continues his hot start to the season and leads all league goaltenders with a 1.83 goals against average (GAA), a .938 save percentage (SPCT), and has the most wins (15). He has yet to lose a road game this season (9-0-0).

Veterans Tom Askey (11-6-0) in Kalamazoo and Kevin St. Pierre (13-5-0) in Fort Wayne have filled the most time in the crease for their respective clubs, but both have been supported by promising young back-ups.

Kalamazoo’s Ryan Nie earned his first professional shutout when he stopped all 26 shots in the 4-0 win vs. Port Huron on Sunday. The rookie currently has a 4-2-0 record, a 2.00 GAA, and a .934 SPCT in seven appearances this season.

Fort Wayne’s Dan McWhinney has watched St. Pierre make nine straight starts, but has been solid when called upon to help the Komets. Both youngsters have stopped all four shooters in their first appearance in professional shootouts this season.

Rockford’s Frederic Cloutier has been one of the hottest goaltenders as of late. In his last nine games, he has posted a 1.78 GAA and .940 SPCT. His performance has also earned him two call-ups to the American Hockey League this season.

Chicago’s Marty Magers and Elmira’s Kris Tebbs have been the “workhorse” for their teams. They rank second and third, respectively, among UHL goaltenders in minutes played. Tebbs leads the league with 612 saves while Magers sits behind him with 578 saves.

Dustin Traylen of Port Huron has earned the confidence of his team, especially on home ice. Prior to Saturday night, he had allowed just one goal at home over his last three games and has won three of his past four starts in his home arena.

Quad City’s Jason Tapp has played a key part in the recent six-game unbeaten streak for the Mallards. In his last five starts, he has a 4-0-1 record, a 1.80 GAA, and a .946 SPCT.

TEAM EFFORT – Kalamazoo goaltender Tom Askey earned an assist in Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Flint. Every member of the team, including goaltenders, now has recorded a point this season. The Kalamazoo Wings are the only team in the UHL with this distinction.

Flint Generals - (2-2-0) – Left wing Jeff Zehr has a goal in back-to-back games including the game-winner on Sunday vs. Bloomington...Zehr’s power play goal in the first period on Sunday ended a 0 for 40 slump on the power play that lasted over 16 periods of play for the Generals…Defenseman Gerard Miller leads the team in scoring with 15 points (6g, 9a)… The Generals have won three of their last four on home ice…Defenseman Greg Snitowsky scored a goal in just his second game with the club after being signed late in the week.

Kalamazoo Wings - (2-1-0) – Kalamazoo has won four straight games on the road...Right wing Justin Cross leads all UHL rookies with 12 goals…Forward Glenn Detulleo played his 300th career professional game on Saturday… The K-Wings have a 5-1-0 record on Sundays this season…Left wing Nick Bootland is one game-winning goal shy of tying the K-Wings all-time record of 11…Kalamazoo has only given up 12 power goals this season to lead the UHL in penalty killing (93.3%)…Center Kory Karlander is three assists shy of 300 for his career.

Muskegon Fury - (3-0-0) – The Muskegon Fury have won seven straight on the road, one shy of tying the team record…The club is 9-0-0 vs. Western Conference opponents…Muskegon has outscored their opponents 44-16 in the second period this season…Right wing Rustyn Dolyny is riding an 11-game point streak. He has a league season high ten-game assist streak...Left wing Mike Watt is riding a six-game scoring streak…Dating back to last season, the Fury are unbeaten in regulation in their last 14 games (11-0-3) vs. Port Huron.

Port Huron Flags - (1-1-1) – After trailing 1-0 through two periods on Friday, the Flags scored four goals in the third period to defeat Rockford 4-1...After missing more than a month due to injury, left wing Colt King scored five points (3g, 2a) in his first two games back in the lineup…The Flags play four games in five nights during the upcoming week with three straight at home over the weekend…Port Huron currently leads the UHL with 234 minor penalties this season…Defenseman B.J. Adams has an even or better plus/minus rating in 17 of 22 games this season.

Taken from the official UHL website.