THIS WEEK
Wednesday, February 26, 7:05 p.m.
iWireless Center, Moline
Missouri Mavericks vs. Quad City Mallards
Friday, February 28, 7:05 p.m.
iWireless Center, Moline
Brampton Beast vs. Quad City Mallards
Saturday, March 1, 7:05 p.m.
iWireless Center, Moline
Brampton Beast vs. Quad City Mallards
LAST WEEK
Wednesday, February 19
Missouri 2 Quad City 1
Friday, February 21
Saturday, February 22
Sunday, February 23
Quad City
25-15-8, 58 points
6th place
Coach: Terry Ruskowski
Missouri
33-14-2, 68 points
1st place
Coach: Scott Hillman
Brampton
27-21-5, 59 points
5th place
Coach: Mark DeSantis
QUACK TRACKS
Recent Action
The Mallards dropped three of the four games they played in a five day span ending yesterday and have also now gone 1-4-0 in their last five games. The Mallards did recover from a pair of one-goal losses- last Wednesday at home against Missouri and last Friday in Tulsa- and three straight defeats overall by winning 4-1 in Wichita Saturday night before falling yesterday in Allen.
Tight
The Mallards bounced from fourth to seventh to fourth to fifth and finally into sixth place in the tightly packed CHL standings last week. They are currently only one point behind fifth place Brampton and just one point ahead of seventh place Tulsa. The Mallards are two points behind fourth place Allen. The Mallards, who have played fewer games (48) than any other CHL club, have two games in hand on Allen and five games in hand on Brampton and Tulsa.
Busy
The Mallards yesterday played their seventh game in ten days, a stretch during which they went 3-4-0. That run culminated in the Mallards playing four games in four cities in five nights. Yesterday's game was also the thirteenth in a stretch that sees the Mallards play 31 games over the final 59 days of the regular season.
Rough Road
The Mallards are in the midst of a stretch that sees them play 18 of their final 30 games against the top four teams in the CHL- Missouri, Rapid City, Denver and Allen.
Balance
While the Mallards rank in the top half of the league in goal scoring- fifth at 3.3 per game- Jeff Lee (18-24-42), who is tied for twentieth, is the only Mallard in the top 20 in the CHL in point scoring.
Between the Pipes
Thomas Heemskerk suffered the loss in goal yesterday after also enduring defeat last Friday in Tulsa. Those setbacks were his first consecutive regulation losses this season.
General Lee
Lee's nine-game point-scoring streak (5-9-14) ended yesterday. Lee has also recorded 21 points (seven goals and 14 assists) in his last 16 games. Lee, who last week was named an alternate captain, leads the Mallards in goals (18) and points (42).
Early Exit
Mallards coach and general manager Terry Ruskowski was assessed a game misconduct during the second period of yesterday's game after protesting the officiating of that contest.
Trifecta
Matt Boyd scored three times- once at even strength, once shorthanded and once on the power play- in the Mallards last two games. In the second period of Saturday's win in Wichita, Boyd broke a scoreless tie with a shorthanded goal and struck again at even strength. He then scored his first power play goal in two seasons with the Mallards in the second period of yesterday's loss in Allen. Yesterday's goal was Boyd's first on the man advantage since he delivered a power play goal for the host Laredo Bucks on March 3, 2012 against...the Allen Americans.
Done and Done
The Mallards last weekend finished their season series with Tulsa and Wichita. The Mallards went 2-2-0 against the Oilers and 1-1-1 against the Thunder.
Leaders
Heemskerk ranks fourth in goals against average (2.67), is tied for fourth in shutouts (2) and ranks sixth in save percentage (.912)...Ty Rimmer is also tied for fourth in shutouts (2), is tied for sixth in goals against average (2.81) and ranks eighth in save percentage (.908)... Among rookies, Thomas Frazee is tied for third in goals (13), ranks fifth in points (31) and ranks sixth in assists (18)...Among defensemen, Benjamin Dieude-Fauvel and Matt Duffy are tied for fifth in goals (9) while Dieude-Fauvel is also tied for seventh in points (30) and tied for eighth in assists (21)...Mike Monfredo is tied for tenth in points (24) and assists (20).
Special Teams
On the season the Mallards have converted 14.3 percent of their plays and rank ninth in the CHL on the man advantage but over their last nine games have scored on 25 percent (11-for-44) of their advantages. The Mallards rank fifth in penalty killing (83.0 percent) and, after Boyd scored during a Wichita power play Saturday, are tied for fourth in shorthanded goals (7).
Head to Head
The Mallards have gone 0-3-1 against Missouri this year. The Mavericks last Wednesday defeated the Mallards while making their first visit of the season to the iWireless Center. After playing just one of their first 36 games against Missouri, the Mallards, starting with a 3-1 loss in Independence on February 1, play nine of their final 30 tilts against the Mavericks. Since entering the CHL in 2010, the Mallards have gone 14-15-3 against the Mavericks and have posted a record of 5-7-2 at home. Lee (2-4-6) and Missouri's Mike Ramsay (1-5-6) are the top point producers in this year's season series...The Mallards have gone 7-1-3 against Brampton this season and are 2-1-2 against the expansion Beast on home ice. The two clubs conclude their season series this weekend. Gergo Nagy is the leading scorer (5-9-14) in the season series. The Mallards this season have played four games that have ended in overtime- all against the Beast. Brampton has won three of those four contests, including the last meeting between the two clubs on January 26 when Andrew Fournier scored in sudden death to give the host Beast a 4-3 victory.
Ins and Outs
Forward Frazee was placed on seven-day injured reserve retroactive to February 15 (upper body) and has missed the Mallards' last five games...Forward Hellyer was placed on 14-day injured reserve retroactive to February 16 (upper body) and has missed the last four games
UPCOMING HOME GAMES
Wednesday, February 26, 7:05 p.m.- Mallards vs. Missouri
Wednesday's game is a Winning Wednesday presented by T.G.I. Friday's. If the Mallards win Wednesday, each fan in attendance will receive a free ticket to the Mallards' next Wednesday home game courtesy of T.G.I. Friday's. Fans also have the opportunity to purchase $2 hot dogs and beer at iWireless Center concession stands during each Wednesday home tilt. After the game fans can join the Mallards at T.G.I. Friday's in Moline for a postgame party.
Friday, February 28, 7:05 p.m.- Mallards vs. Brampton
$1 Dog/$1 Beer Friday Presented by 97X
This Friday is this season's penultimate $1 Dog/$1 Beer Night presented by 97X. $1 hot dogs and $1 beers are available at iWireless Center concession stands during each of the Mallards' 11 Friday night home games this season.
Saturday, March 1, 7:05 p.m.- Mallards vs. Brampton
Duck Dynasty's Mountain Man Presented by Genesis Health Systems
The Mallards welcome Mountain Man from the popular A&E reality series Duck Dynasty to this Saturday night's game.
Blades for Grades Presented by Cobham Mission Systems
Also on Saturday night, area honor roll students will attend the game free of charge through the Mallards' Blades for Grades program courtesy of Cobham Mission Systems.
ON THE AIR
Fox Sports Radio 1230 is the radio home of Mallards Hockey Presented by Genesis Power Sports Performance. Mallards games broadcast on AM 1230 also stream live online at www.wfxn.net. A limited number of Mallards games- including this Wednesday's tilt- will not air on Fox Sports Radio 1230 due to conflicts with University of Illinois basketball and football and Green Bay Packer football. Free audio webcasts of games that do not air on AM 1230 are available at myqcmallards.com. CHL-TV pay-per-view video webcasts of all Mallards games are also available at myqcmallards.com. For a full Mallards broadcast/webcast schedule, go to http://myqcmallards.com/
TICKETS
Single Game Tickets
Single game tickets for all Mallards regular season contests are now available. Fans can contact the Mallards at (309) 277-1364 or info@myqcmallards.com for more information about tickets. Single game tickets are also available at the i wireless Center box office, at Ticketmaster outlets, through www.ticketmaster.com
Group Tickets
Groups of at least ten receive savings off the walk-up price and a host of group benefits. Mallards group tickets are a great fit for youth organizations, friends, co-workers, family groups, religious groups, school functions and business events. For more group ticket information, fans can contact the Mallards at (309) 277-1364 or info@myqcmallards.
