ST. JOHN’S, Newfoundland and Labrador – Fans of the St. John’s IceCaps will spend plenty of weekends watching their favorite AHL team this winter. The IceCaps, the top minor league affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets, will play close to 75 per cent of their home games on either Friday night, Saturday night or Sunday afternoon.
The weekend-heavy schedule is just what IceCaps management had in mind, since the excitement and buzz surrounding the team is usually much higher on a Friday and Saturday night than it is mid-week.
The IceCaps will begin the 2012-13 AHL season on the road with a game against the Springfield Falcons on Oct. 13. One night later St. John’s will travel to Hartford to take on the Connecticut Whale.
The club’s home opener goes Friday, Oct. 19 with the Adirondack Phantoms providing the competition.
Jaffray is returning to the St. John%27s IceCaps after suffering a major neck injury last season. Photo by Jeff Cull of Pro Hockey News
The majority of the IceCaps schedule will be played against their Eastern Conference opponents. However, St. John’s will play eight games apiece against the Toronto Marlies and Hamilton Bulldogs, two Western Conference foes who have a geographical rivalry with St. John’s since all three clubs are from Canada.
The Marlies and Bulldogs are the farm teams for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens, respectively, making them a much-anticipated matchup each time they visit St. John’s.
The captain returns
The IceCaps received some welcome news when the Winnipeg Jets recently announced they had signed Jason Jaffray to an AHL contract. Jaffray served as the IceCaps captain during the 2011-12 season and was one of the club’s most important forwards before suffering a season-ending neck injury in April. The injury prevented Jaffray from participating in the team’s march to the Eastern Conference final during the Calder Cup playoffs.
Jaffray, 31, suffered a herniated disc in his neck after taking a heavy check from Radko Gudas, a defenseman with the Norfolk Admirals. In order to heal the injury, Jaffray had the injured disc replaced with a piece of bone taken from his hip. A metal plate was also screwed in place to cover the injury while it heals.
Jaffray aims to be ready for the IceCaps season opener against the Phantoms on Oct. 13, but a more realistic date could be the curtain raiser at home on Oct. 19. He recently began skating again in preparation for the 2012-13 campaign and is already reporting progress in his conditioning.
In 47 games with St. John’s last season, Jaffray had 17 goals, 21 assists and 38 points. He also appeared in 13 games with the Jets, registering one assist.
Leading scorer remains unsigned
A key performer from the IceCaps successful 11-12 season remains unsigned, as the club has yet to come to terms with center Spencer Machacek.
The 23-year-old was the IceCaps leading scorer last year, registering 50 points in 61 regular season games. He also had a fine showing during a late-season call-up to Winnipeg, picking up nine points in 13 NHL games.
Machacek has been offered a qualifying contract from the Jets. However, it is rumored he is looking for a one-way, NHL contract instead of a two-way deal that includes an AHL component.
More muscle on the way
The IceCaps have spent much of the summer adding size and grit to their lineup, a practice that continued with the recent signing of Ray Kaunisto, a six-foot-four, 200-pound left winger.
Kaunisto spent the past two seasons with the Manchester Monarchs, the AHL affiliate of the Los Angeles Kings. During the 2011-12 campaign, he picked up seven goals, 15 assists and 22 points in 74 games.
Prior to turning pro, he spent four seasons playing NCAA Div. I hockey with Northern Michigan University. Kaunisto was one of his school’s top players during his senior year, wracking up 18 goals, 14 assists and 32 points in 40 games during the 2009-10 season.
Kaunisto has been described as a smooth skater who plays a rugged and physical game.
Contact Darcy.MacRae@prohockeynews.com
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