The Hamilton Bulldogs (American Hockey League affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens) will begin the first round of the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs against the Manitoba Moose (AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks) this week at Copps Coliseum. The 'Dogs will host the Moose for Game 1 on Thursday, April 15^th at Copps Coliseum at 7:30 p.m. before hosting a matinee match-up for Game 2 on Saturday, April 17^th at 2:00 p.m. at Copps Coliseum.

The following are the dates, along with locations, and times for the first-round playoff series between the Bulldogs and Moose (all times eastern):

            Game #1 - Thursday, April 15^th - 7:30 PM - Manitoba at Hamilton (Copps Coliseum)
            Game #2 - Saturday, April 17^th - 2:00 PM - Manitoba at Hamilton (Copps Coliseum)
            Game #3 - Monday, April 19^th - 8:30 PM - Hamilton at Manitoba (MTS Centre)
            Game #4 - Wednesday, April 21^st - 8:30 PM - Hamilton at Manitoba (MTS Centre)
            *Game #5 - Friday, April 23^rd - 8:30 PM - Hamilton at Manitoba (MTS Centre)
            *Game #6 - Sunday, April 25^th - 7:00 PM - Manitoba at Hamilton (Copps Coliseum)
            *Game #7 - Tuesday, April 27^th - 7:30 PM - Manitoba at Hamilton (Copps Coliseum)
* If necessary

Last week, the Bulldogs closed out the 2009-2010 regular season with a 1-1-0-1 record. Hamilton began the week with a 2-1 loss to the Moose on Tuesday, April 6^th at Copps Coliseum. The 'Dogs secured their lone win of the week with a 5-4 overtime victory over the Syracuse Crunch (AHL affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets) on Friday, April 9^th before losing 3-2 in a shootout to the Toronto Marlies (AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs) in their final regular season game on the 2009-2010 season.

GET YOUR PLAYOFF TICKETS!:

Hamilton Bulldogs tickets for Games 1 and 2 of the North Division Semi-Final between the 'Dogs and Moose are on sale now! Purchase your tickets at the Copps Coliseum Box Office, any Ticketmaster Outlet, online at ticketmaster.ca, or through charge-by-phone at 905-527-7666.

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Tuesday, April 6^th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 1 vs. MANITOBA MOOSE 2

Copps Coliseum - Hamilton, ON

Hamilton Goals: Maxime Lacroix

Manitoba Goals: Evan Oberg, Sergei Shirokov*

Goaltending: Hamilton: Cedrick Desjardins (L - 24 shots, 22 saves) / Manitoba: Cory Schneider (W - 35 shots, 34 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 0-8 / Manitoba 1-7

Attendance: 3,079

* - Scored Game Winning Goal

Friday, April 9^th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 5 @ SYRACUSE CRUNCH 4 (OT)

Onondaga County War Memorial at Oncenter - Syracuse, NY

Hamilton Goals: J.T. Wyman (2), Ryan Russell, Aaron Palushaj, Grant Stevenson*

Syracuse Goals: Tyler Murovich, Maksim Mayorov (3)

Goaltending: Hamilton: Cedrick Desjardins (W - 22 shots, 18 saves) / Syracuse: Dan Taylor (L - 41 shots, 36 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 0-4 / Syracuse 0-2

Attendance: 5,784

* - Scored Game Winning Goal

Saturday, April 10^th - HAMILTON BULLDOGS 2 @ TORONTO MARLIES 3 (SO)

Ricoh Coliseum - Toronto, ON

Hamilton Goals: Chad Anderson, Hunter Bishop

Toronto Goals: Richard Greenop, Alex Foster, Phillippe Paradis*

Goaltending: Hamilton: Robert Mayer (SOL - 29 shots, 27 saves) / Toronto: James Reimer (W - 18 shots, 16 saves)

Power Play: Hamilton 0-2 / Toronto 0-4

Attendance: 5,782

* - Scored Shootout Game Winning Goal; does not count toward statistics

FINAL NORTH DIVISION STANDINGS:

y - Clinched Division Title
x - Clinched Playoff Spot

BULLDOGS NOTES:

• The Bulldogs finished the regular season with their highest win total (52) and highest points earned (115) in a season in franchise history. The club also set a new AHL record (and franchise record) for most points earned on the road in a season as they recorded 60 points while away from Copps Coliseum.
• Hamilton clinched the Western Conference regular season championship and will now have home-ice advantage through the first three rounds of the playoffs.
• Guy Boucher was named as the winner of the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL's Outstanding Coach for the 2009-2010 season. Boucher led the 'Dogs to a record of 52-17-3-8 this season.
• Cedrick Desjardins and Curtis Sanford won the Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award which is presented to the goaltenders on the team which allows the fewest goals in the regular season.
• Bulldogs D P.K. Subban was named to the AHL All-Rookie Team and was named an AHL First-Team All-Star while G Cedrick Desjardins was named an AHL Second-Team All-Star.
• Desjardins earned his 29^th win of the season in Friday's 5-4 overtime win over the Syracuse Crunch to set a new franchise record for wins in a season surpassing Yann Danis who earned 28 in the 2004-2005 season.
• Bulldogs G Robert Mayer made his AHL debut on Saturday turning away 27 shots in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Toronto Marlies.
• The Bulldogs broke 31 franchise records this season.

UPCOMING GAMES:  

NORTH DIVISION SEMI-FINALS - HAMILTON BULLDOGS (1) VS. MANITOBA MOOSE (4)

• This will be the third Calder Cup playoff meeting between the 'Dogs and Moose but the first time the clubs have met in the first round. The Bulldogs defeated the Moose in the Eastern Conference Semi-Final in 2003 and in the North Division Final in 2007
• In their last regular season meeting on Tuesday, April 6^th, the Moose downed the Bulldogs 2-1 as Cory Schneider made 34 saves for Manitoba
• The 'Dogs had a 4-3-1-0 record against Manitoba this season, outscoring the Moose 29-19 in those games
• Manitoba finished in 4^th position in the North Division standings with a 40-33-5-2 record and 87 points
• The Bulldogs currently own a 45-24-1-5-1 all-time regular season record against Manitoba
• C Marco Rosa (22-33-55) finished atop the Moose's scoring charts this season with 22 goals and 33 assists for 55 points in 80 games played this season
• There are three Ontario natives currently listed on the Manitoba roster: C Marco Rosa (Scarborough), D Matt Clark (Campbellville), D Jordan Hill (Sarnia) and Hamilton native G Daren Machesney

ALUMNI WATCH:

There are more than 40 former Bulldogs on 2009-2010 National Hockey League rosters. Over 60 percent of all former 'Dogs have played in at least one NHL game. Here are a few highlights and accomplishments of ex-'Dogs from this past week:

• Toronto forward Mikhail Grabovski recorded an assist in a 4-3 overtime win over Montreal (Apr. 10)
• Anaheim forward Kyle Chipchura scored a goal and added an assist in a 7-2 win over Edmonton (Apr. 11)  
• Edmonton forward Shawn Horcoff recorded two assists in a 4-1 win over Minnesota (Apr. 5) before scoring a goal 5-4 overtime win over the Colorado Avalanche (Apr. 7)
• Washington forward Jason Chimera scored a goal in a 5-1 victory over Atlanta (Apr. 9)
• Montreal defenceman Marc-Andre Bergeron held a three-game point streak last week, earning an assist in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Islanders (Apr. 6), scored a goal in a 5-2 loss to Carolina (Apr. 8) and recorded his second goal in a 4-3 overtime loss to Toronto (Apr. 10)
• Dallas D Trevor Daley earned an assist in 3-2 shootout win over Anaheim (Apr. 8) before recording his second assist of the week in a 4-3 shootout win over Minnesota (Apr. 10)
• Boston forward Michael Ryder potted two goals in a 4-3 shootout win over Washington (Apr. 11)
• Dallas forward Steve Ott netted three goals last week, scoring one in a 5-2 loss to Chicago (Apr. 6) before netting two in a 4-3 shootout win over Minnesota

TUNE IN TO Every PLAYOFF Game on the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network AND:

Fans can listen to every 'Dogs playoff game during the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs on the flagship station of the Hamilton Bulldogs Hockey Network, 'TALK 820'. Fans can also listen or watch at www.hamiltonbulldogs.com by clicking on the 'AHL Live' or 'TALK 820' icon on the Bulldogs website. All post-season radio and online broadcasts will begin with a pre-game show 30 minutes prior to each scheduled game-time. Ellery Award-winning broadcaster Derek Wills calls the play-by-play of all playoff games, while Al Craig provides the colour commentary.

GET YOUR TICKETS!:

Hamilton Bulldogs playoff tickets, flex tickets, min pack tickets, group tickets and tickets are now on sale! Individual game tickets are available at the Copps Coliseum Box Office (in-person sales only), all Ticketmaster outlets and online at ticketmaster.ca or call 905-527-7666. For information on season tickets, flex tickets, mini pack tickets and group tickets visit www.hamiltonbulldogs.com, or call (905) 529-8500.

GET YOUR BULLDOGS MERCHANDISE AT THE "DAWG HOUSE":
Fans can purchase Bulldogs merchandise during all home games at the "Dawg House" store located behind section 114 on the concourse level at Copps Coliseum.

In the store, fans can find hats, t-shirts, jackets, replica jerseys, foam fingers, foam 'Bone Heads', and other select novelty items for sale.

MOLSON CUP - THREE STAR LEADERS:

(1^st Star - 5pts, 2^nd Star - 3pts, 3^rd Star - 1pt)

FLAMBORO DOWNS WORKHORSE OF THE GAME LEADERS:
(10 pts. - Hardest working Hamilton Bulldogs player)

HAMILTON BULLDOGS TEAM STATISTICS:

(Final Team Statistics)

Hamilton Bulldogs