Columbus Blue Jackets News: CLEVELAND MONSTERS DEFENSEMAN JAKE CHRISTIANSEN NAMED TO AHL SECOND ALL-STAR TEAM

April 28, 2022 2021-22 AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUEFIRST AND SECOND ALL-STAR TEAMS UNVEILED
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today the 2021-22 AHL First and Second All-Star Teams, as voted by AHL coaches, players and media in each of the league’s 31 member cities. 2021-22 AHL First All-Star Team Goaltender ― Dustin Wolf, Stockton Heat (46gp, 33-8-4, 2.33gaa, .924sv%)Defenseman ― Jordan Gross, Colorado Eagles (61gp, 10+55=65pts., +20, 3 PPG, 26 PPA)Defenseman ― Jordan Spence, Ontario Reign (46gp, 4+28=42pts., +18, 2 PPG, 24 PPA)Forward ― Stefan Noesen, Chicago Wolves (68gp, 45+36=81pts., +34, 12 PPG, 4 SHG, 12 GWG)Forward ― Andrew Poturalski, Chicago Wolves (69gp, 27+70=97pts., +23, 12 PPG, 1 SHG, 2 GWG)Forward ― T.J. Tynan, Ontario Reign (61gp, 14+84=98pts., +12, 3 PPG, 46 PPA, 3 GWG) 2021-22 AHL Second All-Star Team Goaltender ― Troy Grosenick, Providence Bruins (30gp, 16-6-4, 2.00gaa, .933sv%, 3so)Defenseman ― Jake Christiansen, Cleveland Monsters (61gp, 13+32=45pts., 4 PPG, 1 GWG)Defenseman ― Joseph Duszak, Toronto Marlies (60gp, 7+44=51pts., +3, 24 PPA, 1 SHG)Forward ― Martin Frk, Ontario Reign (58gp, 40+33=73pts., +16, 15 PPG, 7 GWG)Forward ― Seth Griffith, Bakersfield Condors (63gp, 29+50=79pts., +19, 11 PPG, 1 SHG, 5 GWG)Forward ― Kiefer Sherwood, Colorado Eagles (57gp, 36+39=75pts., +24, 13 PPG, 6 GWG) Each All-Star Team member will receive a custom-designed crystal award in recognition of his selection to the 2021-22 AHL First and Second All-Star Teams. Recent AHL All-Star Team selections include P.K. Subban (2010), Jonathan Bernier (2010), Kyle Palmieri (2012), Tyler Johnson (2013), Jonathan Marchessault (2013), Justin Schultz (2013), Gustav Nyquist (2013), Jake Allen (2014), Mike Hoffman (2014), Petr Mrazek (2014), Matt Murray (2015, 2016), Jacob Markstrom (2015), Colin Miller (2015), Brandon Montour (2016), Frank Vatrano (2016), Mikko Rantanen (2016), Travis Boyd (2017), Andreas Johnsson (2018), Mason Appleton (2018), Carter Verhaeghe (2019), Alex Nedeljkovic (2019), Kaapo Kahkonen (2020), Jake Bean (2020), Josh Norris (2020), Gerry Mayhew (2020), Drake Batherson (2020), Jeremy Swayman (2021), Connor McMichael (2021), Riley Damiani (2021), Logan Thompson (2021) and Josh Mahura (2021). The winner of the 2021-22 Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award (outstanding rookie) will be announced Friday. 2021-22 AHL First All-Star Team Dustin Wolf, Goaltender (Stockton Heat):Northern California native Dustin Wolf has had a remarkable rookie season in Stockton, posting a record of 33-8-4 with a 2.33 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage for the league-leading Heat. A seventh-round choice by Calgary in the 2019 NHL Draft, Wolf did not lose in regulation until Jan. 4 (going 15-0-2 in his first 17 starts of the season), and has allowed two goals or fewer in 32 of his 46 appearances overall. The 21-year-old Wolf, who was named to the AHL All-Rookie team earlier this week, currently leads the AHL in wins, ranks second in minutes played (2,752) and saves (1,308), and is third in save percentage. Jordan Gross, Defenseman (Colorado Eagles):Fourth-year pro Jordan Gross had a breakout campaign in 2021-22, leading all AHL defensemen with 55 assists and 65 points over 61 games played with Colorado. Gross, a native of Maple Grove, Minn., tallied 29 of those points on the power play – also a league best for defensemen – and also recorded a plus/minus rating of plus-20. The Notre Dame University product signed as a free agent with the Colorado Avalanche in the offseason after three years in the Arizona Coyotes organization. Jordan Spence, Defenseman (Ontario Reign):A fourth-round pick by Los Angeles in the 2019 NHL Draft, Jordan Spence is the top-scoring rookie defenseman in the AHL this season, collecting 42 points (four goals, 38 assists) in 46 games with Ontario. Twenty-six of those points have come on the Reign’s league-leading power play, and Spence also sports a plus-18 rating that is tied for the highest on the club. The 21-year-old Spence made his NHL debut with the Kings on Mar. 10, becoming the first Australian-born player to play in the NHL; he has totaled two goals and six assists in 22 games with Los Angeles. Stefan Noesen, Forward (Chicago Wolves):Stefan Noesen has helped fuel the Chicago Wolves’ high-powered with a league-best 45 goals this season, the most by any AHL skater since 2010. The native of Plano, Texas, ranks third in points with 81, has set a franchise record with 12 game-winning goals, and leads all AHL forwards in plus/minus with a plus-34 rating. Noesen, who had never scored more than 21 goals in a pro season before this year, was originally a first-round pick by Ottawa in the 2011 NHL Draft and has skated in two games with the Carolina Hurricanes this season as well. Andrew Poturalski, Forward (Chicago Wolves):Andrew Poturalski earns his third career postseason AHL All-Star nod as he enters the final weekend of the regular season with 27 goals and 70 assists for 97 points in 69 games for the Chicago Wolves. Poturalski, last year’s AHL scoring champion and the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs MVP, is currently one point off the league lead and has also added two assists in two NHL games with Carolina. The sixth-year pro from Williamsville, N.Y., returned to the Hurricanes organization as a free agent last summer. T.J. Tynan, Forward (Ontario Reign):With one game remaining on Ontario’s regular-season schedule, forward T.J. Tynan sits on top of the league leaderboard with 98 points in 61 games played – a 1.61 points-per-game average that is the highest over a full AHL season in 15 years – and his 84 assists are tied for the third-most in AHL history. Tynan, an eighth-year pro from Orland Park, Ill., and last year’s AHL MVP, has also skated in two NHL games with Los Angeles in 2021-22. 2021-22 AHL Second All-Star Team Troy Grosenick, Goaltender (Providence Bruins):Troy Grosenick earns his second career postseason All-Star selection as he leads all AHL goaltenders in goals-against average (2.00) and save percentage (.933) for Providence in 2021-22. Grosenick, 16-6-4 with three shutouts in 30 appearances with the Bruins, won the Baz Bastien Award as the AHL’s outstanding goaltender in 2016-17, and captured the league’s Yanick Dupre Award for his community relations efforts in 2019-20. The native of Brookfield, Wis., has won 149 games over nine AHL seasons. Jake Christiansen, Defenseman (Cleveland Monsters):Second-year pro Jake Christiansen has notched 45 points in 61 games for Cleveland this season, tying for the league lead among AHL defensemen with 13 goals. The 22-year-old native of West Vancouver, B.C., is the Monsters’ leading scorer while manning the blue line in all situations, scoring four power-play goals and assisting on three shorthanded markers. Christiansen signed with Columbus on Mar. 4, 2020, and made his NHL debut this season, notching one goal in eight games with the Blue Jackets. Joseph Duszak, Defenseman (Toronto Marlies):Joseph Duszak ranks second among AHL defensemen in scoring with 51 points (seven goals, 44 assists) in 60 games heading into the final weekend of the regular season for Toronto, all career highs for the third-year pro. The 24-year-old native of Franklin Square, N.Y., was the Atlantic Hockey conference player of the year at Mercyhurst University in 2018-19 before signing as a free agent with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Martin Frk, Forward (Ontario Reign):Ninth-year pro Martin Frk is putting up career numbers with Ontario in 2021-22, ranking second in the AHL with 40 goals and sitting sixth with 73 points in 58 games for the Reign. The 2017 Calder Cup champion and owner of the hardest shot in AHL All-Star Skills Competition history has scored 15 times on the power play as the Reign have converted on 27.8 percent of their chances, on pace for a league record. Frk, a native of Pelhrimov, Czech Republic, has also added two goals in six games with Los Angeles this season. Seth Griffith, Forward (Bakersfield Condors):Seth Griffith has established career highs with 29 goals and 79 points in 63 games for Bakersfield this season, leading the team in scoring and earning his second career postseason AHL All-Star Team berth. The ninth-year pro from Wallaceburg, Ont., also has a plus-19 rating to lead Condors forwards, and was the AHL Player of the Month for January after posting 18 points in nine games, including a five-assist effort on Jan. 19 vs. Tucson. Griffith has had two double-digit scoring streaks this season, including a 13-game run from Oct. 16 to Nov. 17. Kiefer Sherwood, Forward (Colorado Eagles):Kiefer Sherwood was Colorado’s leading scorer in 2021-22, registering 36 goals and 75 points in 57 games for the Eagles and wrapping up the regular season with a 14-game scoring streak. Sherwood also owned a plus-24 rating, fifth among all AHL forwards, and he also paced the club with 13 power-play goals and six game-winning tallies. A fourth-year pro from Columbus, Ohio, Sherwood also skated in 11 contests with the Colorado Avalanche and notched a goal and an assist.

COURTESY AHL COMMUNICATIONS, CLEVELAND MONSTERS & COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS

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