SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins goaltender Brad Thiessen has been named the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 13, 2011.
In a week that ended with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s top seven scorers all on NHL recall to Pittsburgh, Thiessen provided some much-needed stability by making five starts and allowing only three goals, stopping 99 of 102 shots (4-1-0, 0.60, .971).
After missing the previous six games due to injury, Thiessen returned to the lineup last Monday and made 21 saves in a 4-0 victory over Albany in Atlantic City, N.J. He stopped 18 of 19 shots in a 4-1 win over Manitoba on Tuesday, and earned his fifth shutout of the season with 22 stops in a 2-0 decision at Bridgeport on Friday. After being on the losing end of a 1-0 score vs. Adirondack on Saturday, Thiessen wrapped up the week with 21 saves in a 7-1 win vs. Hershey on Sunday.
In recognition of his achievement, Thiessen will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Penguins home game.
Thiessen, a second-year pro from Aldergrove, B.C., ranks among the AHL leaders in goals-against average (third, 1.87), save percentage (ninth, .925), wins (second, 22) and shutouts (tied for second, 5) while posting a 22-5-0 record in 29 appearances for the Penguins in 2010-11. The 24-year-old Thiessen was 14-14-1 (2.45, .914) with four shutouts in 30 AHL games as a rookie with Wilkes-Barre in 2009-10, and at Northeastern University he was one of three finalists for the Hobey Baker Award as the nation’s outstanding collegiate player in 2008-09.
Other nominees for Reebok/AHL Player of the Week include Abbotsford goaltender Leland Irving, Adirondack defenseman Erik Gustafsson, Binghamton right wing Roman Wick, Charlotte goaltender Mike Murphy, Chicago right wing Darren Haydar, Connecticut left wing Brodie Dupont, Houston center Patrick O’Sullivan, Lake Erie goaltender Jason Bacashihua, Manchester left wing Dwight King, Manitoba right wing Sergei Shirokov, Norfolk center Mattias Ritola, Peoria center T.J. Hensick, Portland defenseman T.J. Brennan, Rochester goaltender Tyler Plante, Rockford left wing Jeff Taffe, San Antonio right wing Viktor Tikhonov, Springfield center Kyle Wilson, Syracuse defenseman Nate Guenin and Worcester goaltender Daren Machesney.
Also see: Past winners, AHL Player of the Week
