HE BEAT 'EM, NOW HE JOINS 'EM
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. The Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday recalled left wing Donald MacLean from the Grand Rapids Griffins. He will be available to make his Detroit debut tonight, when the Red Wings host the Edmonton Oilers at 7:30 (FSN Detroit).
MacLean, 29, was recently named a First Team AHL All-Star and is a leading candidate for the leagues most valuable player award (Les Cunningham Award) that will be bestowed this Friday, April 14. He ranks among the AHLs leaders and has set franchise records with 56 goals (1st), 21 power play goals (2nd), five hat tricks (1st), an eight-game goal streak (2nd), a 19-game point streak (1st) and 271 shots (6th).
His 89 points (4th) tied for third all time on the club plus-18 rating (T16th), nine game-winning goals (T1st) and two overtime goals (T1st) also place among the leagues best, while his averages of 0.74 goals per game this season and 0.60 goals per game for his Griffins career are the highest in the franchises 10 seasons of play.
After becoming the first AHL player in five seasons to hit the 50-goal plateau, MacLean set a Grand Rapids pro hockey record by scoring his 53rd goal on March 23 at Cleveland. His 56 goals tie for eighth in league history and are the most by an AHL player in 10 years, putting him in position to become the first Griffin to ever lead his league.
MacLean has played 29 NHL games with Los Angeles, Toronto and Columbus during his nine-year career, totaling nine points (6-39) and six penalty minutes. The Kings second choice (33rd overall) in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft, he last appeared in four games with the Blue Jackets in 2003-04. Ironically, his lone NHL goal that season came in a third-star performance against the Red Wings on March 31, 2004 (a 3-2 loss), and his last NHL game played was a 4-1 Columbus win at Joe Louis Arena on April 3, 2004.
MacLean, 29, was recently named a First Team AHL All-Star and is a leading candidate for the leagues most valuable player award (Les Cunningham Award) that will be bestowed this Friday, April 14. He ranks among the AHLs leaders and has set franchise records with 56 goals (1st), 21 power play goals (2nd), five hat tricks (1st), an eight-game goal streak (2nd), a 19-game point streak (1st) and 271 shots (6th).
His 89 points (4th) tied for third all time on the club plus-18 rating (T16th), nine game-winning goals (T1st) and two overtime goals (T1st) also place among the leagues best, while his averages of 0.74 goals per game this season and 0.60 goals per game for his Griffins career are the highest in the franchises 10 seasons of play.
After becoming the first AHL player in five seasons to hit the 50-goal plateau, MacLean set a Grand Rapids pro hockey record by scoring his 53rd goal on March 23 at Cleveland. His 56 goals tie for eighth in league history and are the most by an AHL player in 10 years, putting him in position to become the first Griffin to ever lead his league.
MacLean has played 29 NHL games with Los Angeles, Toronto and Columbus during his nine-year career, totaling nine points (6-39) and six penalty minutes. The Kings second choice (33rd overall) in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft, he last appeared in four games with the Blue Jackets in 2003-04. Ironically, his lone NHL goal that season came in a third-star performance against the Red Wings on March 31, 2004 (a 3-2 loss), and his last NHL game played was a 4-1 Columbus win at Joe Louis Arena on April 3, 2004.
