From: Patrick Armstrong, Director of Communications
713.361.7920 (Direct Line)
Scott Henninger, Communications Manager
713.361.7930 (Direct Line)
Monday, February 25, 2008

HOUSTON AEROS WEEKLY UPDATE: FEBRUARY 25

HOUSTON, Texas – The Houston Aeros won three road games in the North Division last weekend snapping a three-game skid. Three wins in three nights on the road marks the first time Houston has done so since October 18-20, 2002. The Aeros have one more game against the North this Wednesday in Cleveland as they take on the Lake Erie Monsters. Houston currently is in a three-way tie for fifth place in the West Division at 65 points and are only one point behind fourth-place Peoria. The Aeros’ long home-stand in March begins in one week so call 713.974.PUCK or visit AEROS.com to get your tickets today. Click here to see additional promotions and special dates for the month.

LAST WEEK
2/22 - HOU 5 at SYR 4 – SOW
2/23 - HOU 2 at HAM 1 – OTW
2/24 - HOU 4 at IOW 0 – W

Friday, February 22: The Houston Aeros overcame a three-goal deficit to defeat the Syracuse Crunch 5-4 in a shootout in front of 5,188 at War Memorial at Oncenter. The deficit was the largest the Aeros have overcome so far this season, snapping a three-game losing streak to the Crunch. LW Ryan Hamilton netted the shootout-winning goal in the first shootout attempt.

Saturday, February 23: The Houston Aeros won their second straight game when trailing after two periods Saturday night at the Copps Coliseum as they defeated the Hamilton Bulldogs 2-1 in overtime. Houston trailed 1-0 entering the final period, but a short-handed goal by Cal Clutterbuck and an overtime winner by Joel Ward gave the Aeros their second straight road victory after trailing after 40 minutes.

Sunday, February 24: Barry Brust stopped all 24 shots he faced as the Houston Aeros defeated the Rochester Americans 4-0 Sunday evening at The Blue Cross Arena in front of 5,696 fans. The win marked the third consecutive road victory for the Aeros (30-22-2-3) as they moved into a fifth place tie in the West Division, just one point below the Peoria Rivermen. Rochester (17-35-4-4) was shutout for the second consecutive time and they remain in seventh place in the North Division.

THIS WEEK
Wednesday - 6 p.m. at Lake Erie
The Aeros will visit the Lake Erie Monsters for the first time this season for a 6 p.m. contest Wednesday night. The Monsters lost a pair of games in Houston in early November 3-2 and 2-1 in a shootout. Lake Erie currently holds the sixth spot in the North Division 11 points behind fourth-place Syracuse. Houston will return to Cleveland on April 2 for the fourth and final meeting of the season.

Aeros Player of the Week: G Barry Brust

Day    Opponent       Shots   Saves   GA
Fri.     at Syracuse      36        32      4
Stopped all four shots in shootout for first shootout win.
Sat.    at Hamilton       28         27      1
10th game of the season allowing just one goal, OT win
Sun.   at Rochester     24          24      0
1st shutout of the season.
Totals                          88        83      5    
.943 save pct., 1.60 gaa in three games

It was a week of firsts for Aeros’ goaltender Barry Brust. He started all three games in three nights for the Aeros and improved each night. He gave up four goals on 36 shots in the game on Friday vs. Syracuse, but stopped all four attempts in the shootout for his first shootout win of the season. Saturday night, Brust beat Hamilton only allowing one goal in 62:26 for his first OT win of the season. On Sunday, he recorded his first shutout of the season stopping all 24 shots faced. For the week, the Swan River, Manitoba native stopped 83 of 88 shots for a .943 save pct., and he had a 1.60 GAA. Brust has won six of his last seven starts in net for the Aeros.

TEAM NOTES
• The Aeros continued their winning ways on the road this week winning three games in three nights. Houston won the first two games this week after they were trailing after two periods. They overcame a three-goal deficit against Syracuse on Friday night and a one-goal deficit on Saturday at Hamilton. Houston has won three straight on the road and 11 of their last 15 games on the road. They have 16 road wins this season, three more than all of last year.
• D Erik Reitz and C Serge Payer each recorded their 150th professional point this week. Reitz hit the mark on Friday night with an assist on the game-tying goal against Syracuse. He now has 151 points (35-116=151) in 365 pro games, and all of his pro points have been with the Aeros. Payer notched his 150th pro point on a goal in the game on Sunday against the Rochester Americans. He has 150 points (60-90=150) in 410 pro games, 13 of those points have been in the NHL.
• The Aeros second ranked penalty kill unit is one of the main reasons the team has been winning. Houston has not allowed a power play goal in five straight games going 30-30 in that time. Overall, the Aeros have killed 270 of 312 penalties this season for a .865 percentage. Only the Toronto Marlies have a better kill rate (.872).
• The Aeros are working on the best road record in the month February in team history. Currently, the team has 14 points in nine road games (7-2-0-0) which is already better than the 2001-02 season in which they had 11 points in nine games. The Aeros have one more road game on Wednesday against the Lake Erie Monsters to add to that record.
• The race in the West Division looks like it will come down to the wire. Houston, Milwaukee and Quad City are all tied for fifth in the West with 65 points each, although the Aeros have two games in hand on both Milwaukee and Quad City. All three teams are just one point behind the Peoria Rivermen for fourth place in the West. Only the Chicago Wolves have played fewer games (55) in the West than the Aeros’ 57 games played.

Affiliation News
The Minnesota Wild (34-23-5) is second in the Northwest Division with 73 points. Calgary defeated the Wild Sunday night to take the division lead by one point. Vancouver trails Minnesota by one point and is also within reach of the division-lead. Minnesota went 0-2-1 last week including an overtime loss to the Canucks. The Wild is now 11-9-3 against divisional opponents.

Marian Gaborik leads the club with 63 points and 33 goals. Pierre-Marc Bouchard leads Minnesota with 38 assists and is second with 50 points. Minnesota heads east to take on Washington, Tampa Bay and Florida on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday this week. The club returns to Minnesota to play Los Angeles and former Aero Patrick O’Sullivan on Sunday.

The ECHL’s Texas Wildcatters (40-6-3-6) have already clinched a playoff birth and went 1-1-0-1 last week in a three-game set against the Columbia Inferno. John McNabb leads the team with 61 points (23-38=61) and has recorded 60 PIM in 52 games. The Wildcatters hit the road on a four-game trip with three games in a row this weekend.

Don't forget to purchase your tickets today so you can get in on the many promotions coming up in March. Call 713.974.PUCK or visit AEROS.com. Many promotions and special packages are also in store for the home-heavy month so don't miss out!

---HOUSTON AEROS---