Andrew Conboy, Hamilton Bulldogs - AHL Options

[Guest_1970 Habs_*]

Position: LW
Height: 6-3
Weight: 198
Shoots: Left
Birthdate: 1988-05-16 Age: 19
Birthplace: Rosemount, Minnesota, USA
Drafted in the 5th round (142th overall) in 2007
Contract Status: AHL contract with Hamilton in Feb 2008

One player I have not really kept track of this season is USHL (Tier 1) player Andrew (called "Drew") Conboy. His 25 goals, 25 assists and +17 last season in Omaha last season prompted Montreal to draft him in the 5th round last summer.

This season his production dropped as he finished the regular season with 17 goals, 18 assists and +17. However his team finished 1st overall in the West Division and also finished first overall clinching the Anderson Cup regular season USHL championship.

What is remarkable is what Drew has done in the playoffs this year.

Omaha entered the playoffs having been elimnated in the 1st round in each of the 3 previous seasons. Before the playoffs started Drew was determined stating "This is our real season starting now." And he delivered on those words big time in the 1st round of the playoffs.

First Round

After Omaha won the 1st game of the 5 game series 3-0 Sioux City (last year's USHL Champions) embarassed them 6-2 in the second game to tie the series at 1-1.

After being held pointless in the first 2 games Drew exploded with 2 goals and an assist in the pivotal game 3 to win the game in OT with his second goal of the game. Source: http://www.lancers.com/leagues/newsletter....p;clientID=1996

Determined not to lose in game 4 Drew scored the game winning goal, for the second game in a row, to propel Omaha into the the second round of the playoffs.

In the 2nd round of the playoffs, having a 2-0 series lead against Lincoln, Drew's team is one win away from the Clark Cup finals. Drew tallied one three power play goals as the team edged Lincoln 3-2 in a game two win last night. The third game is being played tonight.

In this year's playoffs Drew leads the team in goals (3) and game winning goals (2) and has 4 goals and an assist in six playoff games.

[Guest_swansee_*]

Great! Thanks for the update 1970!

[Guest_1970 Habs_*]

Omaha ran into a redhot Lincoln goaltender as they lost 6-3. They outshot Lincoln 45-22 in the game. Omaha now leads the best of five series 2 games to 1. Drew scored 2 of the 3 goals in the loss and was named the 3rd Star of the Game.

Source: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/score...p;seasonid=2568

[1970 Habs]

Omaha loses in Overtime 4-3 as Lincoln Forces a game 5

"Chris Forfar's goal near the crease at the 2:47 mark of overtime gave Lincoln a 4-3 win over the Lancers and forced game five in their Clark Cup semi-final series. The win on home ice by the Stars on Tuesday, April 29th evened the best-of-five series at two-games each."

Drew had another goal last night in the loss giving him 7 goals thus far in the playoffs. Game five is set for Wednesday evening, April 30th at the Mid America Centre in Omaha Iowa.

Source: http://www.lancers.com/leagues/newsletter....&page=26468
Gamesheet: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/boxsc...l?gameid=702200

Omaha Playoff Notes:

1) After allowing the least goals (139 in 60 games) in the regular season Omaha has allowed the most (24) in the playoffs.
2) Drew's 7 goals leads the team and the League in the playoffs.
3) Drew is also 3rd in League Playoff scoring with 8 points.

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: Apr 30 2008, 09:02 AM

[1970 Habs]

Omaha wins tough over Lincoln 5-4 in game 5 to win series

Drew Conboy and his Omaha Lancers won the 5th and deciding game to win the West Division and advance to the USHL Clark Cup finals. After scoring 4 goals in the last 3 games Lincoln kept Drew off the scoresheet. Omaha will play the East Division Champion Waterloo Blackhawks. Waterloo won both their series in 3 straight over the Cedar Rapids and Chicago Steel on Sunday with 24 GF and only 9 GA. Omaha is 6-3 in the post season with 32 GF and 28 GA. Omaha was 2-2 against Waterloo during the regular season.

Game Sheet: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/boxsc...l?gameid=702202

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: Apr 30 2008, 11:25 PM

[1970 Habs]

Final Round Showdown

The final of the 2008 Clark Cup Playoffs are set and it will be the Omaha Lancers and the Waterloo Black Hawks doing battle for the right to call themselves Tier I National Champions. Waterloo claimed the title in 2004, while Omaha is still looking for their first Tier I crown.

"Omaha has been near the top of the standings from the beginning of the season until the end. Waterloo, although they didn't win their division, made a strong push late in the season and it has carried over into the playoffs. It should make for an outstanding final series to the 2008 playoffs," said USHL president Gino Gasparini. "The schedule that we have for this round isn't optimal because of building issues, but the two teams settled on five dates they could both live with.

"On behalf of the rest of the league, I wish each of them luck as they battle each other for the right to be called national champions." A breakdown of the series is below.

Omaha Lancers vs. Waterloo Black Hawks

Coaches
Omaha: Mike Hastings ? 14th season with Omaha
All-time record: 529-210-56
All-time playoff record: 72-53

Waterloo: P.K. O'Handley ? 6th season with Waterloo
All-time record: 337-320-51
All-time playoff record: 41-31

All-Time Playoff Records
Omaha: 100-64 (.610)
Waterloo: 32-34 (.485)
Head-to-Head Playoff Record: Omaha leads 3-0
Previous Playoff Meetings: 2003 (Omaha 3-0)

Clark Cup Championships
Omaha: 6 (1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2001)
Waterloo: 1 (2004)

National Championships
Omaha: 1 (2001)
Waterloo: 1 (2004)

Regular season meetings (Season series tied 2-2-0)
November 3 at Waterloo: Waterloo 2-1
January 25 at Omaha: Omaha 3-1
February 9 at Waterloo: Omaha 6-5
March 14 at Omaha: Waterloo 5-2

Playoff Scoring Leaders
Omaha
Goals: Andrew Conboy (7)
Assists: Travis Novak (8)
Points: Travis Novak (11)
Power Play Goals: Andrew Conboy (4)
Shorthanded Goals: none scored
Game-Winning Goals: Andrew Conboy (2)
Defenseman: Patrick Wiercioch (1-7-8)
PIM: Chris Hepp (38)

Waterloo
Goals: Billy Maday, Siim Liivik, Nick Larson, Jan-Mikael Juutilainen (3)
Assists: Blake Kessel (6)
Points: Blake Kessel (7)
Power Play Goals: Nick Larson (3)
Shorthanded Goals: none scored
Game-Winning Goals: six players tied with 1
Defenseman: Blake Kessel (1-6-7)
PIM: Nick Larson (23)

Goaltenders
Omaha
Drew Palmisano: 9 GP, 6-3, 2.88 GAA, .907 SV%, 2 SO
Shane Madolora: 1 GP, 0-0, 6.60 GAA, .800 SV%, 0 SO

Waterloo
Matthew DiGirolamo: 6 GP, 6-0, 1.34 GAA, .938 SV%, 1 SO

Special Teams (percentage, league rank)
Omaha
Power Play: 23.21% (2)
Penalty Kill: 84.78% (4)

Waterloo
Power Play: 25.71% (1)
Penalty Kill: 91.18% (2)

Notes

Omaha (then known as River City) swept Waterloo in three games in their only previous playoff meeting in 2003. Game scores were 2-0, 4-3 and 3-1. The Lancers had home-ice advantage in the series
The Nick Larson currently playing for Waterloo is not the same Nick Larson that played with Omaha last season
The series matches up the two goaltenders who were All-USHL First Team (DiGirolamo) and All-USHL Second Team (Palmisano) in 2006-07
The series also matches up the two best power plays in the post-season
Waterloo has won 13 straight games dating back to the regular season. Their last loss came to Chicago on March 21
Omaha has won as many home playoff games in 2008 (4) as they did from 2003 (the first year they played at the Mid America Center) until 2007
Waterloo is 17-5 at home since P.K. O'Handley took over as head coach
Both teams are over .500 on the road in the post-season since 2003. Waterloo is 10-7 and Omaha is 10-9
Omaha's Travis Novak (3-8-11) is the top scorer still playing
Patrick Wiercioch (1-7-8) is the top scoring defenseman still active. Six of Wiercioch's eight points have come on the power play, but for the post-season he has a plus/minus rating of minus-4
Waterloo has scored nine of their 24 goals on the power play
Blake Kessel has set up four of those goals, the most power play assists in the post-season
Andrew Conboy leads the playoffs in shots on goal (35) and has scored on 20% of them

Source: http://www.ushl.com/news/story.cfm?id=1277

Here is the Schedule:

Omaha Lancers vs. Waterloo Black Hawks
Game 1: Sunday, May 4 at Omaha - 5:05 p.m.
Game 2: Monday, May 5 at Omaha - 7:05 p.m.
Game 3: Wednesday, May 7 at Waterloo - 7:05 p.m.
Game 4: Friday, May 9 at Waterloo - 7:05 p.m.*
Game 5: Saturday, May 10 at Omaha - 7:05 p.m.*

*indicates game will only be played if necessary

Source: http://www.ushl.com/news/story.cfm?id=1276

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 2 2008, 04:14 PM

[1970 Habs]

Omaha loses 4-3 to Waterloo in Overtime

Game 1 of the USHL Tier 1 National Championship went to Waterloo. It was a hard fought game that went to Overtime where Waterloo scored a power play goal at 11:02 of the extra period to seal the victory. Drew scored a goal (his 8th of the playoffs) in the loss.

Source: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/boxsc...l?gameid=713136

[1970 Habs]

Anyone interested in listening to the USHL Tier 1 National Championship Finals here is the scediule:

The radio schedule for the Finals of the 2008 Clark Cup Playoffs is as follows:

Sunday, May 4 – KCRO 660 AM (Waterloo won 4-3 in OT)
Monday, May 5 – KCRO 660 AM
Wednesday, May 7 – KOTK 1420 AM
Friday, May 9 – KCRO 660 AM*
Saturday, May 10 – KCRO 660 AM*

Here is the link for KRO 660 AM: http://www.kcro.com/ministryaudio/Washingt...y/showarchives/

Just go to the website link and click on "Listen Live"

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 5 2008, 09:55 PM

[1970 Habs]

Omaha defeats Waterloo 2-0 to even Series at 1-1

Omaha outshot Waterloo 15-9 in the first period scoring the two goals of the game. the 2nd and 3rd period held on to win game 2 in their their best of five series. Omaha killed were 0 for 4 on the power play but killed off the seven Waterloo powerplays. Drew did not tally any points. The series now goes back to Waterloo for the next 2 games.

Source: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/boxsc...l?gameid=713137

[1970 Habs]

Omaha loses 3-1 to Waterloo in Game 3

Last night Omaha handed Waterloo its first defeat after 14 games in this year's USHL playoffs. Tonight Waterloo remained undefeated at home during the playoffs winning 3-1 and taking a 2-1 lead in the best of 5 series. Omaha scored first on Drew Conboy's 9th goal of the playoffs. It was not until 4:49 of the third period that Waterloo tied the game. They then scored their second goal at 14:55 and added an insurance goal into an empty net at 18:43. It was a tightly fought contest in which Waterloo outshot Omaha 36 to 25; 16 of those shots coming in the third period.

Source: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/games...l?gameid=713138

Game 4 is scheduled for Friday in Waterloo.

[1970 Habs]

Omaha defeats Waterloo 2-0 to force Game 5

Omaha shutout Waterloo for the second time in the series handing Waterloo their second defeat in the playoffs and first at home to even the best of 5 series at 2-2. Waterloo outshot Omaha 35-20 and were 0 for 10 on the power play. Omaha's goalie Drew Palmisano set a USHL playoff record in recording his 4th shutout of the playoffs.

Omaha has stifled Waterloo's power play in the series. In this year's playoffs 40% of the goals scored by Waterloo have been power play goals. Andrew Conboy did not tally any points in the win. The final game in the Championship series will be played in Omaha tomorrow night at 7:15.

Source: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/games...l?gameid=713139

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 9 2008, 10:42 PM

[1970 Habs]

Omaha Lancers Back From The Brink

For the Omaha Lancers, Friday's game four of the Clark Cup Finals could be classified as a cliché game. Their backs were against the wall. It was do or die time. They had to play every shift as if it was their last. The Lancers entered the game in elimination mode - the only way they would be hoisting the Clark Cup this year would be to win game four on the road and force game five at the Mid America Center on Saturday.

Goals in the first and second period by Barry Almeida and another shutout performance from Drew Palmisano gave the Young Arena faithful nothing to cheer about, as the Lancers survived to play another day, beating Waterloo 2-0 on Friday. Almeida, who hadn't been heard from yet in the series, scored his first goal at 13:51 of the first period, taking a wrist shot from the right circle that beat Waterloo goaltender Matthew DiGirolamo on the stick side to make it 1-0. Almeida added his second goal of the game just 1:46 into the second period, knocking a puck out of mid-air that snuck by DiGirolamo to make it 2-0. From there, the Lancers' stifling defense and Palmisano's stellar goaltending shut the door.

Special teams played a huge role in the game, as Waterloo was held scoreless on 11 power play attempts, including an extended 5-on-3 advantage early in the game. The Black Hawks, who entered the series with the top power play in the playoffs, were completely shut down by Omaha's perfect penalty kill. The Lancers went 0-4 on the power play. Palmisano made 35 saves in picking up his second shutout of the series and fourth of the playoffs. The performance helped the Michigan State recruit set the USHL record for shutouts in a playoff year. At the other end, DiGirolamo made 18 saves for Waterloo.

The teams will now head west for game five tonight in Omaha. The puck will drop at the Mid America Center at 7:00 p.m. and can be viewed live on B2 Networks. Following the game will be the presentation of the Planet Hockey Clark Cup MVP Award as well as the Clark Cup.

Source: http://www.ushl.com/news/story.cfm?id=1315

[1970 Habs]

Omaha and Waterloo - Game 5

Well Game 5 is tied 3-3 after regulation with overtime coming up to decide the USHL Tier 1 National Champions. Omaha was leading the game 1-0 and 3-2 in the game. Penalties finally caught up with Omaha as Waterloo scored its second power play goal of the game to tie the game at 3 and send it into OT. I listen to the game any longer as it is getting late. I will provide an update tomorrow.

[1970 Habs]

Drew Conboy and Omaha Lancers are the USHL National Champions

The Omaha Lancers beat the Waterloo Black Hawks 4-3 in Overtime to win the Clark Cup and become the USHL Junior Tier 1 National Champions. Game 5 was a hard fought match from start to finish. Omaha led 1-0 after the 1st period on a goal by Jake Hauswirth. In the 2nd period Waterloo tied the game on a goal by Brett Olson at 6:47 to tie the game. They scored again at 16:24 to take a 2-1 on a goal by Jan-Mikael Juutilainen to lead after 2 periods. Omaha was outshot 13-7 in the second frame.

In the 3rd period Omaha tied the scored at 3:58 on a goal by Ben Arnt. Less than 7 minutes later Patrick Wiercioch scored on a delayed penalty to put Omaha up 3-2. But an Omaha penalty at 11:58 of the 3rd gave Waterloo a powerplay. Chad Billins tied the game a minute into the powerrplay to tie the game 3-3 and send it into the extra period. The game was won on a spectacular move by Barry Almeida who skated between two defenders before before lifting the puck into the Waterloo net for the win and National Championship.

Drew Conboy did not tally any points in the win and finished the playoffs with 9 goals (led the playoffs) 1 assist and was +1 in 14 playoff games.

Source: http://www.pointstreak.com/stats/pro/boxsc...l?gameid=713140

Waterloo entered the series unbeaten in the 14 playoff games and were heavily favoured to win despite Omaha having won the Anderson Cup for the most points in the USHL. Omaha lost the first game of the series at home but won game 2 before losing game 3 and falling behind 2-1 in the five game series. They faced the monumental task of beating Waterloo (who was unbeaten in the playoffs) at home in game 4 to force a game 5. After beating them they then had to hand Waterloo its third loss in the playoffs to win the Clark Cup in game 5.

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 10 2008, 11:44 PM

[Brisebois]

Any guess where he'll end up next season? In Hamilton or in Cincinnati?

[1970 Habs]

Any guess where he'll end up next season? In Hamilton or in Cincinnati?

I believe he is considering playing in the NCAA as he does not have to be signed until June 2012.


This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 11 2008, 10:51 AM

[1970 Habs]

I believe he is considering playing in the NCAA as he does not have to be signed until June 2012.

It will either probably be the University of Nebraska. I read on their Board that Drew signed a Letter of Intent to play there. However Michigan State University was also discussed.

Source: http://www.mavpuck.com/mpboard/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4834

The board discusses his grit, scoring and and fighting abiltiy as well.

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 11 2008, 11:11 AM

[1970 Habs]

Here are some of his fights. He wears jersey #28 for Omaha.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qXop9ZTznlA
http://youtube.com/watch?v=-kUeW6nshps
http://youtube.com/results?search_query=Dr...mp;search_type=

[1970 Habs]

NATIONAL CHAMPS!!!!

Barry Almeida's goal six minutes into overtime brought a Clark Cup title and Tier I Junior National hockey title to the Mid-America Center on Saturday, May 10th, as the Lancers defeated the Waterloo Black Hawks 4-3. The Lancers won their seventh Clark Cup championship, and their third title under coach Mike Hastings, to go with claiming this year's Anderson Cup championship as regular season winners.

Drew Palmisano was named the Most Valuable Player for the Clark Cup playoffs, posting a record setting four shutouts, including two in the final series against Waterloo, and backstopping the Lancers to the clinching victory in goal. Jake Hauswirth opened the scoring in the first period with his second goal of the playoffs, taking a feed from Joe Diamond and Patrick Wiercioch at 17:19 of the frame for a 1-0 lead at the first intermission.

Waterloo came out firing in the second period with 13 shots on goal, and two of them went in for a 2-1 lead at the second intermission, after goals by Brett Olson and Jan-Mikael Juutilainen. Waterloo continued the offensive pressure in the third period, but the Lancers came firing back with a goal from Ben Arnt, off an assist by Travis Novak. Arnt's tally came at 3:58 of the third period to tie the game at 2-2.

Later in the period, Wiercioch received a pass from Nico Sacchetti as the Black Hawks were about to be called for a penalty. Wiercioch blasted a shot from inside the blue line the Waterloo goaltender couldn't catch up to and Wiercioch had scored his second goal of the playoffs at 10:34 for a 3-2 Lancer advantage. The game turned again later in the period, when Chad Billins slid a loose puck near the Lancer crease into the net on the power play for a 3-3 score. From there, the two teams traded blows but couldn't score before the end of regulation.

The game-winning heroics from Barry Almeida came when he split between two defenders from the left wing and shot a back-handed past the Waterloo netminder for the championship clinching goal at 6:08 of the first overtime. Thurber and Wiercioch were credited with assists on the goal. On the power play, the Lancers were unable to score in four chances, while Waterloo scored twice in four opportunities.

The Black Hawks out shot the Lancers 34-25 for the contest, including 13 in the second period when they took the lead. Drew Palmisano won the battle of goaltenders with a 33-save performance, while Matt DiGirolamo was tagged with the loss after a 22-save effort. In addition to earning the league post-season title with the five-game triumph, the Lancers became the Tier I Junior national champions, the team's first national championship since earning the Junior A national crown in 2001.

Source: http://www.lancers.com/leagues/newsletter....&page=26676

[1970 Habs]

I believe he is considering playing in the NCAA as he does not have to be signed until June 2012.

It will either probably be the University of Nebraska. I read on their Board that Drew signed a Letter of Intent to play there. However Michigan State University was also discussed.

According to Timmins, Drew will be attending Michigan State next year. Here is what he has to say about him:

“He’s tough,” Timmins described the 6’4, 200-pounder who’s terrorizing the USHL. In 49 games with the Omaha Lancers he’s racked up 168 penalty minutes – a big increase over the 105 he earned last year in a full season.
And as his penalty minutes increase, Conboy's offensive numbers have decreased. After scoring 50 points, evenly split between goals and assists, last year, this year’s offensive totals have dropped to 14 goals and 20 assists. Headed to Michigan State next year, Conboy may figure out it’s that offensive ability that sets him apart.
“Andrew is potentially able to fill that tough guy role on a team,” Timmins explained. “But you have to have guys who can play the game in that role. He can play the game and play it tough.”

Source: http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/1023...cts_spring2008/

This post has been edited by 1970 Habs: May 11 2008, 09:25 PM