Panthers Prospect Report: 1.24.12
The Rampage run win streak to five, Cyclones win one, lose one and Jon Matsumoto makes immediate impact after trade.
Tuesday, 01.24.2012 / 12:09 PM
/ News
Florida Panthers
Intangibles
Position: C Shoots: Left
Height: 6-0 Weight: 183
Born: 10/13/86 in Ottawa, ON
How Acquired: Acquired along with Mattias Lindstrom from Carolina in exchange for Evgenii Dadonov and A.J. Jenks.
Height: 6-0 Weight: 183
Born: 10/13/86 in Ottawa, ON
How Acquired: Acquired along with Mattias Lindstrom from Carolina in exchange for Evgenii Dadonov and A.J. Jenks.
The Skinny
Center Jon Matsumoto takes home this week's honor of “Prospect On Fire”.
Taken in the third round (79th overall) in the 2006 NHL draft, Matsumoto has consistently put up big numbers at the AHL level.
His best statistical season came in 2008-09 when he scored 29 goals and had 63 points in 78 games for the Philadelphia Phantoms of the AHL. He followed that up with a 30 goal season for Adirondack (AHL). In 13 career NHL games, all with the Carolina Hurricanes, Matsumoto has two goals.
Acquired in a trade with the Hurricanes on January 18th, Matsumoto had been having a good year to date with the Charlotte Checkers in posting 34 points in 41 games. The trade seemed to give him an even bigger jump in his short time with the San Antonio Rampage as he registered five points (three counted goals) in three games.
The Ottawa, ON native picked up an assist, in his first game, setting up the overtime game-winner on Friday. Then he tied the game at one on Saturday and set up the Rampage's fifth goal of the night. His best game came on Sunday. Trailing 3-1 to Houston, Matsumoto scored twice in the second, eventually vaulting San Antonio and Houston to the shootout. He added a goal in the shootout in helping San Antonio to a 4-3 victory.
Taken in the third round (79th overall) in the 2006 NHL draft, Matsumoto has consistently put up big numbers at the AHL level.
His best statistical season came in 2008-09 when he scored 29 goals and had 63 points in 78 games for the Philadelphia Phantoms of the AHL. He followed that up with a 30 goal season for Adirondack (AHL). In 13 career NHL games, all with the Carolina Hurricanes, Matsumoto has two goals.
Acquired in a trade with the Hurricanes on January 18th, Matsumoto had been having a good year to date with the Charlotte Checkers in posting 34 points in 41 games. The trade seemed to give him an even bigger jump in his short time with the San Antonio Rampage as he registered five points (three counted goals) in three games.
The Ottawa, ON native picked up an assist, in his first game, setting up the overtime game-winner on Friday. Then he tied the game at one on Saturday and set up the Rampage's fifth goal of the night. His best game came on Sunday. Trailing 3-1 to Houston, Matsumoto scored twice in the second, eventually vaulting San Antonio and Houston to the shootout. He added a goal in the shootout in helping San Antonio to a 4-3 victory.
Stats
| Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | PP |
| Charlotte | 41 | 13 | 21 | 34 | 22 | 1 |
| San Antonio | 3 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS
Friday, January 27 vs Texas (7:00pm CT)
Saturday, January 28 vs Houston (7:00pm CT)
WEEKLY NOTES: It's been a successful month so far for the Rampage as they have gone 7-3 for the month of January. The latest week might have been their best as they swept their three games over the weekend. On Friday, forward Bracken Kearns scored two goals, including the overtime game-winner as San Antonio defeated the Houston Aeros. In Saturday's game, James Wright scored two goals while Tim Kennedy and Colby Robak had two assists each in a 5-1 Rampage win over Peoria. In Sunday’s game. newcomer Jon Matsumoto scored two goals in regulation and added a shootout goal that helped the Rampage win 4-3 in Houston.
THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS: San Antonio will play two games in two days against in-state rivals Texas and Houston before heading to the All-Star break. Houston’s nine regulation losses are the fewest in the AHL, while Texas sits at the bottom of the West Division. The Rampage have won just three of nine meetings against Houston this season (3-5-1) but have won the last two meetings. They have recorded points in five-of-six matchups with Texas (4-1-1).
ON A ROLL: After struggling to find consistency throughout the first half of the season, San Antonio has won five straight games, and climbed into a playoff spot at eighth place in the Western Conference. The Rampage has won seven of their last 10 games.
MASTERS OF THE SHOOTOUT: With the win over Houston in the shootout on Sunday, San Antonio improved to 4-0 in the shootout this season. Only Abbotsford (5-0) joins the Rampage as teams that have gone undefeated in the deciding contest.
TRADE WINDS: The Rampage welcomed two new faces this weekend, as two players blew in from the Hurricanes organization. Jon Matsumoto and Mattias Lindstrom were acquired in exchange for Evgenii Dadonov and A.J. Jenks. The trade paid immediate dividends, as Matsumoto recorded a pair of goals in San Antonio’s latest victory.
BY THE NUMBERS: Newly acquired Jon Matsumoto leads the Rampage in goals, assists and points (16-23-39), including five points in his first two Rampage games. Colby Robak and Bill Thomas lead the way in the plus/minus category for San Antonio with plus-11 ratings. Dov Grumet-Morris continues to lead San Antonio in all statistical categories, with 11 wins, a 1.99 goals against average, and a .931 save percentage.
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| CYCLONESHOCKEY.COM (16-13-5, 10th in ECHL Eastern Conference) |
| THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS Wednesday, January 25 at Chicago (8:00pm ET) Friday, January 27 at Kalamazoo (7:30pm ET) Saturday, January 28 at Chicago (8:30pm ET) Sunday, January 29 at Chicago (5:00pm ET) |
WEEKLY NOTES: The Cylcones split a pair of games against Chicago at home. The Express got the win Friday night as Pierre Luc-Faubert's third period goal broke a 3-3 tie. On Saturday, Cincinnati found revenge as the Cyclones jumped on the Express early with three goals in the opening period, propelling them to a 4-1 victory.
THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS: This week the Cyclones will look to continue their climb up the North Division ladder with four games in five days against the Chicago Express and Kalamazoo Wings. On Wednesday, the Clones and Express will reunite for the third straight game before making a quick trip to Wings Stadium on Friday night. Jarrod Skalde’s team will then return to the Sears Centre for Saturday and Sunday games against the Express
ANOTHER MEMBER OF THE 100 POINT CLUB: With a two-point game on Friday night, Cyclones forward Dan Eves earned his 100th professional point. The 25-year old has earned 36 goals and 64 assists in 176 career games (25 of those points have come with Cincinnati). In 2011-12, Eves has 11 assists in 16 games and is on pace for a career high in “helpers.”
TALES FROM THE NORTH: The Clones are in the midst of their longest inter-division stretch of the season. Already having played back-to-back games against the Chicago Express, Cincinnati will have faced North Division opponents for seven consecutive games from January 20-February 1. As of today, the Cyclones have four games in hand on Toledo and five on both Chicago and Kalamazoo.
STATISTICS
Information from the sarampage.com and cycloneshockey.com used to create this report.
