AHL Notebook: Texas home for the holidays

The Texas Stars will receive a bit of a break from the American Hockey League schedule after playing 10 of their past 13 games on the road.
At 11-8-1-1, the Stars have established themselves as a solid Western Conference team and begin a two-game home series against the Rockford IceHogs on Friday.

The Stars returned home this week and will not leave their home state until Jan. 11, a rare blessing for a Western Conference team with one of the toughest travel schedules in the AHL. Nine of their next 11 games are on home ice.
That long stretch at home will allow Stars coach Derek Laxdal some welcome practice time.
Laxdal's team brings an up-tempo, high-paced offensive approach that matches the parent Dallas Stars. Texas leads the AHL with 3.81 goals per game. That number may climb higher if their power play can improve further from 11th place (72.9 percent).
"Our identity is just like Dallas," said forward Jason Dickinson, who was recalled by Dallas on Tuesday. "We play fast. We play physically. We don't sit back. It's go, go, go, always attack."
Captain Travis Morin has led the way with 19 points (nine goals, 10 assists) in 21 games. Morin's nine goals tie him with prospect Matej Stransky for the team lead, but they have competition in that category. Veteran Brandon DeFazio is one goal behind. Texas has 11 players with 10 or more points through 21 games.
"Play fast, hard-working, never-say-die mentality," Laxdal said of his team's identity.
Defensively Texas remains a work in progress, Laxdal admits. Their 3.62 goals-against per game is last in the AHL, and they have allowed 32.7 shots per game, 26th in the league. Goaltender Maxime Lagace has faced 522 shots, second-most among AHL goaltenders.
"[Improving defensive play is] always going to be a focus for us," Dickinson said.
The penalty kill also remains an issue for Laxdal. It is last in the AHL at 72.9 percent. Texas rallied from trailing 3-1 last Sunday at the Manitoba Moose but allowed two power-play goals in a 5-4 loss.
But Laxdal has time to work on that in the next several weeks with a team that has played the third-most games among Western Conference teams.
"We've had a lot of injuries in Dallas, guys coming and going," Laxdal said. "We're still trying to find our rhythm as a team. It's tough to find, but that's the American Hockey League. You've got to find it."
THE STARS ALIGN
The AHL has announced the format for its 2017 AHL All-Star Classic. The Lehigh Valley Phantoms will host the event January 29-30 at PPL Center.
A team representing each of the AHL's four divisions will compete in a round-robin 3-on-3 tournament. The tournament will have six games of 10 minutes each. The top two teams will play a six-minute 3-on-3 championship game.
Each team will have 10 skaters and two goaltenders. The format debuted last season when the Syracuse Crunch hosted the event, with the Central Division winning it.
The two-day event will also include a skills competition between the Eastern and Western Conferences on Jan. 29.
WITH HONORS
Chicago Wolves defenseman Brad Hunt earned the CCM/AHL Player of the Week award for the period ending last Sunday. He had three goals and three assists in three games, moving him into a tie with Toronto Marlies forward Brendan Leipsic for the league scoring lead at 26 points.
STAT PACK
The Milwaukee Admirals have a league-best .775 point percentage. They are part of a four-team tie with the Atlantic Division's Hershey Bears, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Lehigh Valley for the league lead with 31 points. … Four players are tied for the league lead in goals at 11. … San Jose Barracuda center Daniel O'Regan has moved into the league lead in rookie scoring with 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists). … David Rittich of the Stockton Heat overtook Juuse Saros of the Milwaukee Admirals for the league lead in goals-against average (1.43) and save percentage (.949).
GAME TO WATCH
Albany Devils at Syracuse (Dec. 9) -- The Crunch have moved to the top of the North Division despite steady player movement to and from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Albany is trying to survive without veteran goaltender Scott Wedgewood, who is out for the rest of the regular season after shoulder surgery.
ON THE MOVE
Calgary Flames forward Hunter Shinkaruk is back with Stockton. He has seven points (four goals, three assists) in seven AHL games. … The Hartford Wolf Pack have lost their top two scorers with the recalls of forwards Marek Hrivik and Nicklas Jensen to the New York Rangers. … The Binghamton Senators are last in the AHL, and goaltender Andrew Hammond and leading scorer Phil Varone are on recall with the Ottawa Senators. … Toronto Marlies goaltender Antoine Bibeau has been recalled to the Toronto Maple Leafs and NHL veteran Jhonas Enroth has been sent to the Marlies. NHL veteran Karri Ramo is also with the Marlies on a professional tryout. … Lehigh Valley added forward Scott Laughton from the Philadelphia Flyers but lost forward Taylor Leier to recall. … Rochester Americans defenseman Erik Burgdoerfer made his NHL debut Monday with the Buffalo Sabres after playing 480 games in the AHL and ECHL. This season, 49 AHL players have made their NHL debuts, including Grand Rapids Griffins goaltender Jared Coreau, who has since returned to the AHL.
AROUND THE AHL
Binghamton has a seven-game losing streak (0-6-1-0). … Hershey has a nine-game point streak (7-0-2-0) and will have forward Paul Carey back from the Washington Capitals. The Bears have a two-game series at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton that begins Friday. … After beginning the season 2-8-0-0, the Utica Comets have gone 7-3-0-0. … A six-game losing streak (0-4-0-2) has pushed Rockford to the bottom of the Western Conference. … Bridgeport Sound Tigers defenseman Travis St. Denis had four goals last week in three games after not scoring in his first 13 games. He is with the Sound Tigers on an AHL contract after four NCAA seasons with Quinnipiac.