Hurricanes finally assign Irbe to EHCL Club "Johnstown Chiefs" - 19th of October 2003

After a very long news break while the NHL season has already started, Arturs Irbe has now found a new club for the 2003/2004 season: He will make enough money over this season and next to buy the Johnstown Chiefs, the Toledo Storm, and another ECHL club, and still have change left over. So what was Arturs Irbe, the Carolina Hurricanes reported $5.7 million goaltender, doing before last night’s game at the Sports Arena? Sewing an Irbe-made protective pad into the catching glove of one of his new net-minding partners with the Chiefs. Less than a year and a half after leading the Hurricanes into the Stanley Cup Finals against the eventual champion Detroit Red Wings, the 36-year-old was shockingly assigned to Johnstown on Thursday by Carolina. The move came after the Hurricanes opted to put a young prospect with its Lowell farm club in the American Hockey League. Carolina is splitting the two goaltending openings there with the Calgary Flames, leaving Irbe - who didn’t suit-up against the Storm - as the odd man out and willing equipment repair-man in Toledo. "I’m here unexpectedly," Irbe said. "People have different perceptions, but I’m the same guy I was on previous teams as I am here. Obviously, there’s an age difference between myself and most of the other players; a pretty big one. If I can help them with something, I’m more than willing to share my knowledge and my experience." A veteran of 12 NHL seasons, Irbe won 10 games during the 2002 Stanley Cup playoffs. After going 7-24-2 last year, he was placed on waivers and went unclaimed. He’s in the ECHL, hoping that another club will need a two-time NHL all-star who has played in 558 big league contests. "If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be talking to you and I’d probably be somewhere in a corner, hiding and just trying to get by," Irbe said. "But it’s not what I’m looking for. I’m looking forward to getting some games and helping the kids on and off the ice. "Anything’s possible and that’s what I’m looking for. I know right now that it’s not in my hands." "I’m not going to change and become a different guy than I was before. I’m still going to work really hard and try to help these guys that are around me and who are happy to have me. Who knows what the future holds?" ->http://www.johnstownchiefs.com

Irbe best player again - 6th of May 2003

Two goals by Alexander Kercs helped propel Latvia to a 4-2 win over Denmark, setting up a showdown between Switzerland and Sweden this evening. A Russian contingent sat helplessly watching at Turku's Elysee Arena, knowing their fate in terms of moving on to the next round was not in their control. A win by Denmark would haved assured Russia of moving through to the playoff round, but the Latvian win made this evening's game between Switzerland and Sweden all the more important for Russian Head Coach Vladimir Plyuschev and his team of hopefuls. As the final buzzer sounded, the Russian contingent looked at each other and shrugged. No words were needed. Latvia now has four points and will advance with a win or tie by Switzerland. Latvia had to come from back after being down 2-1 to score three unanswered goals to win it. Denmark, as per their trademark in this tournament, was competitive and stayed in the game until the Latvians broke it open. "I do not know why we played a bad game, but we did," said Curt Lindström. "Maybe it was nerves but we had a low level of intensity. However, now we have a chance to go to the quarter-finals." Latvia put three quality chances on goal in the first 1:30, suggesting that it might be a long afternoon for the Danes, but that was about as tough as it would be early on. Latvia poured on 13 shots in the period, but went into the locker room without having scored. Things opened up in the second when Alexander Kercs batted the puck past Peter Hirsch. Karlis Skrastins threw the puck in front where it was deflected in the air and as it was coming down, Kercs knocked it in. The goal was reviewed for a possible high stick, but upon further inspection the play stood and Kercs had his first of the tournament at the 4:03 mark. Denmark struck back when Mike Grey scored at 15:50. Dan Jensen took a shot from the point that Irbe saved at first. But he let up a big rebound to Lars Molgaard, whom he stopped as well before Grey put in a second rebound.  A little over a minute later, Lasse Degn was also able to score. Irbe couldn't handle a Jesper Duus shot that landed on Degn's stick, and the Dane put it in for a 2-1 lead. Latvia, sensing the game was getting away from them, played with a little more of an edge and finished their checks with a little something extra at times. At 13:45 Aleksejs Sirokovs tied it and that was a good sign heading into the third. "We talked about not playing as well as we could have," said Arturs Irbe. "The early goal in the third period gave us a lot of confidence." Denmark remained incredibly poised despite missing two of their best players, Kim Staal and Jens Nielsen, both of whom sat out due to injuries. "After two periods I felt we played according to plan but we let two easy goals in the third," said Mikael Lundström. "We were tired and were without two players so we finished with just three lines." Gregorijs Pantelejevs notched the game-winner at 10:50 of the third. He was off to Danish goalie Peter Hirsch's left when he let the shot go, and Hirsch never saw it as it blew past the defenseman and him. It was Pantelejevs' first of the tournament and he picked an absolutely crucial time in which to score. Alexander Kercs added another to put the game out of reach, and the Danes, who held on as best they could, were forced to go down in defeat.

The wall stands tall when Latvia beats Russia on their independence day - 5th of May 2003

Goaltender Arturs Irbe of the Carolina Hurricanes stopped 29 shots and then was mobbed by his teammates at the buzzer as Latvia beat Russia 2-1 Sunday in an emotional victory at the world hockey championship. The stunning victory comes just three years after Irbe stood on his head and Latvia upset a star-studded Russian team 3-2 before 18,000 shocked Russian fans in St. Petersburg. And for Irbe, Sunday's win was even sweeter after a season from hell in the NHL in which he was twice sent to the AHL and put on waivers. "It's an unbelievable feeling, it doesn't get any better than this," Irbe said Sunday after doing interviews in Latvian, Russian and English with a mob of reporters. "We've been dreaming about this win for a long time. This one win is worth a whole season to me, a season that went down the drain. This game just redeems all the shortcomings that happened in the season." The victory also came on the 13-year anniversary of Latvia gaining independence from the former Soviet Union. The two teams entered the third period tied 0-0 with Russia controlling most of the play but having difficulty getting to the net in a hard-hitting and at times vicious affair. When the Russians did break through, Irbe was up to the task, looking like a much different goalie than the one who gave up six goals to Canada last Sunday. "I know it doesn't revive the year but it definitely gives me the feeling of confidence and some accomplishment," Irbe said. "And if there is one game this year to play well, this is the one — by far." Irbe and defenceman Karlis Skrastins of the Nashville Predators are the only two NHLers on this year's team. The Latvian fans were smaller in number than the preliminary-round games, unable to afford the costs of hotels and tickets for two full weeks. Still, there were 500 or so Latvian fans dancing when Vadims Romanovskis, left alone in front of the Russian net, deked out goalie Egor Podomatski for the winning goal at 11:31 of the third period. Latvia's Leonids Tambijevs opened the scoring 15 seconds into the third period before Alexander Frolov of the Los Angeles Kings tied it for Russia just 33 seconds later. The Russians have only nine NHLers on their roster but had only three when they won the silver last year in Goteberg, Sweden. Russian League players are among the best in Europe. And the NHLers that are here are of quality, including sniper Ilya Kovalchuk of the Atlanta Thrashers, who plays on the first line with Detroit centre Pavel Datsyuk and Red Wings draft pick and world junior championship hero Igor Grigorenko. "We have to beat teams like Latvia," said a dejected Kovalchuk. "I've never lost to teams like Latvia or Belarus, it's just awful." "Our line played just awful tonight and we have to be better," added Kovalchuk. "Myself, I did nothing for the team. Arturs played pretty good, but I don't know..." Kovalchuk, like the rest of his teammates, had to stand on the blue-line at the end of the game and listen to the Latvian national anthem. "I'm so glad that this has happened," said Irbe. "This is our Independence Day. What a better gift for our people that have finally been independent and were given this win over the Russian team." It helped Irbe ease the painful memories of having to play hockey for the former Soviet Union while Latvia struggled for its independence. "You know, I had to play with the old Soviet team and stand with all the boys when the Soviet anthem played," Irbe said. "I wasn't excited about it, I'm not going to lie to you. I didn't even look at the flag. But I respected it. We were very happy that this time Russian people had to listen to the Latvian anthem." It also happened three years ago at the Ice Palace in St. Petersburg, an expensive arena built for the 2000 world tournament. The Russians expected to challenge for gold after putting together a lineup that included Pavel Bure, Alexei Yashin and Alexei Kovalev — but they finished an embarrassing 11th and it all started with the loss to Latvia. "Quite honestly, that was bigger," said Irbe. "I mean, this is big, don't fool yourself — it's as big as it gets. But the first is always the first, isn't it?"

Irbe doesn't look better in National Team - 2nd of May 2003

After winning the exhibition game against Switzerland 2-1, Arturs Irbe has played a horrible game against Canada in the International Hockey World Championship (IHWC). Irbe stopped 25 shots when Canada crushed Latvia 6-1. Sergejs Cubars scored the only goal for Latvia, which is the only goal Canada attempted in the in the First Round (3 Games). Irbe has a GAA of 6.00 and a 80,65 save percentage after one game. Latvia has won the decisive game on tuesday against Belarus 4-0 to stay in the A-Championship. Latvia will face Switzerland on Saturday, Russia on Sunday and Denmark on Tuesday in the Second round to qualify for the quarterfinals.

Latvia wins - 22th of April 2003

The Latvian National has won the exhibition game against Switzerland 2-1. Irbe was in goal and showed a very strong performance, he was the best player of the game for latvia. It was his first start for latvia since the olympics and his first win since the IHWF World Championship 2001. The last exhibition game before the World Championship in Finland in April/May will be tommorow against Canada, but it's not sure if Irbe will start again.

Irbe joins Latvian National Team - 18th of April 2003

Arturs Irbe joined the Latvian National Team in Riga a few days ago. Before the world championship starts, there are two exhibition games left against Swiss (22.04.03) and Canada (23.04.04). The National Team already played two games against Finland, Latvia won the first 5-2 and lost the second 1-2. Irbe practiced today together with Edgars Masalskis. Sergejs Naumovs, who played very solid in the first game against Finland, wasn't there so Irbe will probably play one of the games left.

Canes lose last game of the season - 7th of April 2003

One season after advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Canes end the season on an 11-game winless streak and season-high six-game losing streak. "Well, it wasn’t completely different from a number of games that we’ve played this year," said Hurricanes head coach Paul Maurice. "You like to think you’d get a little more for 45 shots." New York, which rested five regulars with their playoff spot clinched, got goals from Aaron Asham and Radek Martinez to break a two-game losing streak and win for the first time in six games. The Islanders finished the season with a record of 35-34-11-2, good for 83 points and eighth palce in the Eastern Conference. The Islanders, who officially clinched a postseason berth on Friday when the New York Rangers lost to New Jersey, sat out centers Alexei Yashin, Michael Peca and Dave Scatchard and defensemen Adrian Aucoin and Roman Hamrlik in preparation for their first-round playoff matchup with the Ottawa Senators. “Either way, it’s nice to win the hockey game," said Islanders head coach Peter Laviolette. "It gets us a game over .500 -- a winning regular season as opposed to not getting it done and a losing regular season -- so I think that’s important." Carolina had a 12-4 advantage in first-period shots, aided by the only power play of the period, but trailed after giving up an early goal. Asham got New York on the board just 91 seconds in, fighting off a Josef Vasicek check and backhanding the rebound of a Justin Papineau shot over Canes goalie Arturs Irbe for his 15th of the year. Seconds later, Justin Mapletoft missed making it 2-0 when his blast from the left wing rang the post Irbe's right. Oleg Kvasha, who also assisted on Asham's goal, hit another post late in the first. Snow, starting for the 10th time in 13 games, was sharp in the first, making a pad save off Craig Adams with five minutes left in the period and following it up with an arm save off Kevyn Adams moments later. Carolina dominated the second period territorially as well, taking the first 13 shots after taking the last 12 of the first. But Snow was sharp, taking a goal away from Josef Vasicek with a glove save and making a left pad save off Sean Hill. "I've never heard of that before," said Kevyn Adams of the run of 25 straight shots. "You can throw the stats out the window because we didn't get the two points. We wanted this game bad." But Martinek scored his second of the year with a wrist shot from the deep slot at 15:31 to make it 2-0. Ryan Bayda broke the shutout, preventing Carolina from setting a team record with their ninth time being held off the scoreboard, scoring his fourth of the year 4:44 into the third, as Carolina continued to pile up chances en route to outshooting the Islanders 45-14. The rookie left wing finished off a tic-tac-toe passing play that started with Jeff O'Neill hitting Ron Francis in front, and Francis redirecting the pass between his legs for Bayda to jam home. Carolina had the first 12 shots of the third period, before Kenny Jonsson tested Irbe from the left point with under eight minutes left in regulation. Irbe made 12 saves, and closed the season on a 10-game losing streak. Sunday's crowd gave the Hurricanes a new franchise record for attendance with 642,973. The previous record was 635,868, set last season. "There were a lot of people in the parking lot [tailgating] today," said Hurricanes captain Ron Francis. "It certainly brough back a lot of good memories. "Unfortunately, it's not going to happen for us this year. Hopefully, we used up all our bad luck this year."

Canes fall 4-1 on the road to Panthers - 5th of April 2003

On his 24th birthday, Roberto Luongo stopped 34 Carolina shots for the Panthers, to help extend the Hurricanes' winless streak to 10 games (0-8-2). "He played well," said Hurricanes head coach Paul Maurice of Luongo. "We've seen some fine goaltending from all the games we've played against the Panthers this year. That's something you can expect is good goaltending." Florida hadn't won at home since beating Carolina 3-2 in overtime on Jan. 25. The Panthers, who had scored one goal or fewer in their past seven games including a 3-0 shutout at the hands of the Washington Capitals on Tuesday, wasted little time ending that streak. Under a minute after Carolina killed off a David Tanabe holding the stick penalty midway through the period, Hagman opened the scoring, spinning and firing a wrist shot from the left wing that eluded Carolina goalie Arturs Irbe. The goal was the eighth of the year for the 23-year-old Finn, and was assisted by Jaroslav Bednar and Peter Worrell. Just 1:03 later, Hagman and Stephen Weiss assisted as Shvidki banged in a rebound from the slot to make it 2-0. Shvidki's fourth of the year came after Irbe made several saves, but a rebound was left in front for the open defenseman, skating in from his point position. Majeski made it 3-0 with his fourth at 17:01 with an assist from Viktor Kozlov. Carolina had two goals disallowed in the first period, first when Ryan Bayda made contact with the puck above the cross bar and then when the whistle blew just as Tomas Kurka was firing a rebound past Luongo. The Hurricanes finally did cut the lead to 3-1 just 25 seconds into the second with Sean Hill cruising into the slot and putting a wrist shot between Luongo's pads for his fourth of the season. Bret Hedican and Ron Francis assisted. But Carolina couldn't capitalize on five straight power plays through the second and early in the third and another later in the third, finishing the night 0-for-6 with the extra man. Irbe made 22 saves, including a big stop off Kozlov on a shorthanded two-on-one with about 10 minutes to go in regulation and the Canes down by two. Moments later, Luongo kept Carolina from cutting the lead to one, robbing Jeff O'Neill on the doorstep off a Francis feed. "There certainly wasn't a lot to be overjoyed about," said Maurice. "We had some pretty good opportunities that we decided not to shoot on, and we had some good chances that we didn't finish on."

Penguins rally past Hurricanes late - 3rd of April 2003

Eric Meloche scored his second goal of the night on a power play with 10.2 seconds left in regulation to give the Pittsburgh Penguins a 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday. Pittsburgh had gone 10 straight at home without a win before winning their home finale. The loss extended the Hurricanes winless streak to nine games (0-7-2) and guaranteed that they will finish the season with the lowest point total in the NHL. Michael Zigomanis and Craig MacDonald scored 1:52 apart midway through the game to give Carolina a 2-1 lead, after Meloche had scored the only goal of the first period. But Richard Litner scored on a rebound with 3:01 to go to tie the score, and Meloche scored his fifth of the season with Canes rookie Ryan Bayda off serving a double-minor for high sticking. Sebastian Caron stopped 25 shots to give the Penguins just their second win in their last 20 games (2-16-2). Arturs Irbe played well for Carolina, but couldn't hold off a 15-shot Pittsburgh assault in the third. He made 26 saves in his first start since March 22. Carolina had a late chance to tie the score when Caron took a delay of game penalty with four seconds left in regulation, but Mario Lemieux won the faceoff in Pittsburgh's zone forward to center.

Irbe has a broken hand - 31th of March 2003

The Carolina Hurricanes will finish the season with two goalies who have two healthy hands between them. Kevin Weekes has delayed surgery on his injured right hand until after the season, and Carolina coach Paul Maurice said this week that Arturs Irbe is playing with a broken bone in his right hand. When Irbe suffered the injury isn't certain, but he required a trainer's attention during Thursday's practice. "I probably shouldn't say anything, but this is just amazing," Maurice said. The Canes have lost 250 man-games to injury after nine players -- Kevyn Adams, Jesse Boulerice, Pavel Brendl, Rod Brind'Amour, Erik Cole, Patrick Des Rochers, Jeff Heerema, Jan Hlavac and Jaroslav Svoboda -- missed Saturday's game against Buffalo. Almost all of those man-games have been accumulated since the end of January. With four games to play, the franchise record of 368 isn't within reach but the figure already is the highest since the team moved to North Carolina. Maurice also confirmed defenseman David Tanabe will need surgery on his injured right shoulder after the season. He was minus-14 in the 20 games after deciding not to have surgery in midseason. He missed a total of 12 games with the shoulder injury.

Final Site Design Online Now - 31th of March 2003

This is the final design and it won't be reworked further. The new Design for the Latvian and German version will follow soon.

Irbe drops Comeback - 23th of March 2003

The Hurricanes needed just 14 seconds to take the lead on Kevyn Adams' goal, but the contest turned just under two minutes later as Bouillon scored while teammate was in the penalty box for hooking. Jason Ward snapped the tie with 7:38 left in the first period before defenseman Andrei Markov and Audette tallied in the second to make it 4-1. Josef Vasicek scored just 51 seconds after Audette's goal and Radim Vrbata's power-play tally made it a one-goal game with 7:09 left in the third. But Saku Koivu's empty-net goal with 58 seconds remaining sealed the win, Montreal's first at home since February 15. "I realize this has been a frustrating season," Koivu said. "It's about time we won a game. We couldn't find a way to win a game in this building over the last five weeks." The Canadiens appeared to take control in the second period. Markov snapped a 16-foooter through the pads of goaltender Arturs Irbe before Carolina captain Ron Francis accidentally kicked Audette's bad-angle shot into the net while lying on the ice. But Montreal had to survive Carolina's frantic bid to draw even in the final minutes. Jose Theodore made 34 saves for the Canadiens, who were outshot, 37-23. Over the final 40 minutes, the Hurricanes held a 25-11 edge in shots. "It's the first time in a while we lost a lead to the Canadiens in this city," said Carolina coach Paul Maurice, referring to his team's six-game win over Montreal in last year's Eastern Conference semifinals. Playing his first game since being recalled from the American Hockey League, Irbe stopped 19 shots as the Hurricanes' winless streak hit four games. "We are not struggling and we are not dominating," said Maurice, whose team remained tied with Buffalo and Pittsburgh for the NHL's lowest point total.

Irbe recalled again (nhl.com article) - 20th of March 2003

With Kevin Weekes scheduled to undergo season-ending hand surgery on Friday, the Carolina Hurricanes have recalled banished goaltender Arturs Irbe. Irbe spent the last month with Lowell of the American Hockey League after clearing waivers, posting a 3-3-1 record and a 2.95 goals-against average. After an improbable run to the Stanley Cup Finals last season with Irbe playing most of the games, the Hurricanes were officially eliminated from the playoffs following Tuesday's 6-5 loss to the Ottawa Senators. Weekes, who wrested the starting job away from Irbe this season, stopped just 18 of 24 shots in Tuesday's loss and will undergo surgery Friday. Backup goalie Patrick Desrochers is also hampered with an arm injury, forcing the club to recall Irbe, who was waived by the Hurricanes on February 8 and sent down to Lowell after going unclaimed. The 35-year-old Latvian goaltender is due to make $2.6 million next season, making him virtually impossible to trade. Irbe is 7-20-2 with a 3.17 goals-against average in 30 games with the Hurricanes this season - his fifth with the Hurricanes. Irbe requested a trade earlier in the season after coach Paul Maurice named Weekes as the starter and his unhappiness affected his play. The franchise's all-time leader in wins and shutouts, Irbe is 125-116-43 with a 2.49 GAA and 20 shutouts in 295 games with Carolina. In 554 career games with San Jose, Dallas, Vancouver and the Hurricanes, Irbe is 213-230-78 with a 2.83 GAA. He ranks second in NHL history among European-born goaltenders in wins behind Dominik Hasek (288).

Irbe earns third win with Monsters - 16th of March 2003

It was the Least of the East (Lowell) vs. the Worst of the West (Cleveland), and on this night the Lowell Lock Monsters turned beastly, pounding the Cleveland Barons, 6-3, before 5,458 delighted fans. The six goals were the most scored by Lowell since Opening Night, when the Monsters won 7-3 at Manchester on Oct. 11. Only five players remain on Lowell's roster from that game. "But boy, the puck moved around tonight and the guys played like crazy," said Lowell head coach Ron Smith. "It was fun to watch. The people in the stands were probably saying, 'Where have these guys been all year?'" Scoring last night for Lowell were Harold Druken, Don Smith, Rustyn Dolyny, Greg Kuznik, Dustin Whitecotton and Mike Watt. Whitecotton, who also had an assist, and Dolyny became Lock Monsters on Thursday in a trade that sent defenseman Jeremiah McCarthy to Grand Rapids. Lowell improved to 17-44-5-3 (42 points) while Cleveland fell to 22-38-4-4 (52 pts.) in the first of eight straight home games for the Lock Monsters, who are back at it this afternoon (4:00) against the Norfolk Admirals. The Lock Monsters' recent 1-5 road trip began with a 4-2 loss in Cleveland. The Barons arrived in Lowell off a 2-1 victory at Rochester on Wednesday and had won five of their previous seven games, but Cleveland showed no signs of that trend last night. Druken tipped in a Steve Halko wrist shot from the right point for a power-play goal at 8:11 of the first period and Smith scored a short-handed goal at 12:52 to put Lowell up 2-0. Smith's breakaway seemed to last forever. He muscled past a Baron along the boards near Lowell's blue line and determinedly stayed the course while Cleveland defenseman David Cloutier smacked him nearly the entire way. As Cloutier made a final desperate dive, Smith snapped a shot past Cleveland goalie Seamus Kotyk (28 saves). Cleveland's Chad Wiseman cut Lowell's lead 3-2 at 15:15 of the first period, sending a backhander through the legs of Arturs Irbe ( 22 saves) to finish a 3-on-2 break. Lowell increased its lead to 4-1 in the second period. Dolyny beat Kotyk five-hole during a casual 3-on-1 at 7:37. Kuznik then scored on the power play at 14:45, closing from the point and blasting another puck between Kotyk's pads. Whitecotton made it 5-1 on a breakaway at 8:05 of the third period off a feed from Jason Bonsignore, who had just stepped out of the penalty box. "I'll never figure this game out," said Smith, whose team was shut out for the eighth time this season on Friday, a 2-0 loss in Manchester. "We've been averaging about 17 shots the last three or four games and have scored very few goals. So naturally tonight we score six." The Lowell team that reappeared at Tsongas last night was markedly different from the group that hit the road two weeks before. Six players dressed last night who had arrived since Thursday, including defenseman Steve Cheredaryk, a former Lock Monster who signed again yesterday.

Monsters lose 0-2 - 15th of March 2003

Travis Scott stopped 16 shots to help the Manchester Monarchs blank the Lowell Lock Monsters, 2-0. Scott turned away 10 shots over the first two periods and all six in the third to earn his first shutout of the season and the 15th of his seven-year career. Pavel Rosa scored his 19th goal on a power play midway through the first period and Eric Healey buried his team-leading 34th into an empty net for Manchester, which snapped its four-game winless streak with just its second win in its last 14 games. Arturs Irbe turned away 39 shots in defeat for Lowell, which has been shut out eight times this season and twice in its last four games.

Irbe reassigned to Lowell - 14th of March 2003

Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the defending Eastern Conference champion Carolina Hurricanes, announced today that the team has recalled goaltender Patrick DesRochers from Lowell of the American Hockey League. The team reassigned goaltender Arturs Irbe to Lowell, the Hurricanes’ top minor-league affiliate. The Hurricanes acquired DesRochers from Phoenix on Dec. 31 in exchange for goaltender Jean-Marc Pelletier. DesRochers (6’ 4’’, 205 lbs.) has played in nine career NHL games for Phoenix and has a career record of 1-5-1 with a goals-against average of 3.73. He played four games with the Coyotes this season and recorded a 0-3-0 record with a goals-against average of 3.77. The Penetanguishene, Ont., native has played 17 games with Lowell since the trade, compiling a record of 4-12-1 with a goals-against average of 2.80. He is a combined 6-16-2 with a goals-against average of 2.75 and a save percentage of .914 with Springfield and Lowell of the AHL this season. Phoenix originally chose DesRochers in the first round, 14th overall, in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. Irbe (5’ 8’’, 190 lbs.) is 7-20-2 with a goals-against average of 3.17 and a save percentage of .880 in 30 games with Carolina this season. The franchise’s all-time leader in games played, wins and shutouts, Irbe is 125-116-43 with a goals-against average of 2.49 and 20 shutouts in 295 career games with Carolina. In 554 career games in the NHL with San Jose, Dallas, Vancouver and the Hurricanes, Irbe is 213-230-78 with a goals-against average of 2.83. He ranks second in NHL history among European-born goaltenders in wins behind Dominik Hasek (288). Irbe was recalled from Lowell on Feb. 24 after recording a 2-2-1 record and 3.32 goals-against average in five games following his first reassignment on Feb. 11.

Bruins down Canes 4-2 - 5th of March 2003

Rookie Tomas Kurka had the Canes best chance down the stretch, but his blast from between the circles hit Hackett high and bounced harmlessly away. The Canes had 17 third-period shots, but couldn't score after Francis's goal, as their winless streak stretched to nine games (0-6-3-0). Rob Zamuner added a power-play goal with 2:11 left for the final margin. Brian Rolston, who assisted on the goal, had a goal and two assists for the Bruins, who improved to 18-7-6 when scoring at least one power-play goal and took the season series from Carolina with their second win to go with a loss and a tie. The obstruction call on Craig MacDonald setting up the final Bruins power play came moments after the opposite official let play go on what seemed like a Boston penalty. "The play at the end of the game is a great argument for the one referee system," said Hurricanes head coach Paul Maurice. "They either both get called or none get called, but that’s what you get." The Bruins, coming in off a 6-4 loss to Vancouver at home on Monday, built the lead in a frenetic first period that saw the Hurricanes outshoot the Bruins 12-10. But Boston got on the board first on a controversial early goal. Bruins winger Martin Lapointe appeared to get away with hitting David Tanabe from behind, and Carolina's Bret Hedican earned an unsportsmanlike conduct minor sticking up for his defense partner. Glen Murray needed only 21 seconds to capitalize, taking a pass from Joe Thornton and beating Hurricanes goalie Arturs Irbe - subbing for the ill Kevin Weekes - to the stick side from the top of the right circle at 1:58. "We're not going to stop playing for one another and protecting each other, just because of the way our season is going," explained Hedican. The goal was the third in two nights and fourth in the season series with Carolina for Murray, who leads Boston with 35 goals. Thornton picked up his 50th assist of the year on the power-play goal. Seconds later, Canes center Kevyn Adams was robbed on a breakaway by Hackett, but Carolina would get on the board soon after. Rookie Ryan Bayda scored his second career goal and first at home at 6:38 of the first, finishing off a three-way passing play with Francis and Hedican. Bayda took a Francis pass from the left corner and beat Hackett to the short side from the left faceoff dot. Carolina goalie Arturs Irbe looks for a loose puck while Boston's Martin Lapointe looks on. With his two-point night, Bayda now has seven points in 10 NHL games playing on a line with Francis. "It's exciting to be a part of someone achieving some personal success," said Bayda. "It's definitely a blessing to play with Francis." The tie appeared to be short-lived when Boston's Sean Brown put a rebound past Irbe 15 seconds later, but Brown was whistled for boarding on the play, nullifying the goal and giving Carolina its first extra-man opportunity of the game. On the power play, Francis deflected a Tanabe shot off the goalpost to Hackett's left, but the Canes couldn't dent the net. Later in the first, the Canes had another chance to take the lead, but Bayda and O'Neill couldn't finish on a two-on-one break, with O'Neill choosing to pass. Irbe made two stellar saves among his eight in the period -- a left pad stop off Murray and a right pad save off Marty McInnis -- but allowed a Brian Rolston four-on-four backhander to deflect off his blocker and in with 44.5 seconds left in the period to send the Bruins to the dressing room with a 2-1 lead. McInnis was whistled for slashing with 1.4 seconds left in the first, giving Carolina a spillover power play in the second, but it was the Bruins who extended their lead in the second. With 8:37 left, Mike Knuble took a Murray pass at the Canes blue line, skated between the circles and beat Irbe through the legs from 25 feet for his 18th of the year. Josef Vasicek had the Canes best chance of the period, but his rebound attempt hit the post to Hackett's right from the left of the net six minutes into the second. "I'm tired of analyzing the breaks, the bounces and the refereeing," said Maurice, "because you're not going to get a favorable result." "I thought we played well," he added. "We played hard and competed hard and tried to create things. I haven't been disappointed with the fight. We beat the puck up here and there and do some strange things at times, but they've come to play."

Canes fall to Leafs - 28th of February 2003

Former Hurricanes goalie Trevor Kidd wasn't in much of a giving mood on Saturday night. Kidd, the former Hurricanes netminder starting in place of regular Ed Belfour made 20 saves as his new team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, downed the Hurricanes 4-1 at Air Canada Centre on former teammate Ron Francis's 40th birthday. Darcy Tucker and Shayne Corson, who had been a healthy scratch for Toronto's past seven games, scored third-period goals to blow open a tight, special teams battle, that saw each team wear a steady path to the penalty box all night long. Tucker, questionable to play in the game due to a thumb injury that required X-rays, took the rebound of an Alyn McCauley shot off the end boards and slipped a backhand into an open net for his ninth goal of the year at 3:53 of the third to give Toronto a 3-1 lead. Just under eight minutes later -- after Toronto killed back-to-back shorthanded situations -- Corson capped a three-on-two, taking a Tie Domi pass and beating Arturs Irbe for goal No. 5 on the season. Irbe, making his second consecutive start since being recalled from AHL Lowell on Monday, was the surprise starter for Carolina, with Kevin Weekes sitting out his second straight game with a sore right hand. Irbe finished with 26 saves. Bryan McCabe and Alexander Mogilny scored second-period goals to turn a 1-0 Hurricanes lead into a 2-1 deficit after two. McCabe made the Hurricanes pay for their early lack of dicipline on the spillover of Jeff O'Neill's second penalty of the first period. After Kevyn Adams stole the puck from McCabe and just about beat Kidd with a 30-foot slap shot, the Leafs controlled the second minute of the power play. Jyrki Lumme made a keep-in of a Sean Hill clear and fed McCabe, whose one-timer beat Irbe off the left goalpost for his third goal of the year at 1:17 of the second. Mogilny added a highlight-reel goal midway through the period to give Toronto its first lead, deking through the Carolina defense and beating Irbe to the backhand for his team-leading 26th of the year. Carolina took a 1-0 lead to the first intermission, despite being outshot and taking three trips to the penalty box. Josef Vasicek scored his ninth of the season at 11:16 of the first, depositing the deflection of a Hill point shot off Lumme's stick into the open Toronto net with the Leafs two men short. Hill's shot deflected off Ryan Bayda to Vasicek to Kidd's left, but Vasicek's attempt at the open net needed the help of Lumme's stick to find the back of the net. The Hurricanes finished the night 1-for-7 on the power play, while Toronto was 1-for-6. As well as two of the Canes three minor penalties in the first, O'Neill, a Richmond Hill, Ont., native, also had the two best Carolina scoring chances in the first that didn't get past Kidd. Kidd made a right arm save off an O'Neill right-wing blast capping off an early 3-on-1, and again robbed the Canes leading scorer with his paddle to deny O'Neill's shot along the ice after a three-way passing play set up by Francis and Bates Battaglia. Irbe made several top-notch saves in the first, stopping Mogilny on the Leafs first power play, and former Hurricane Gary Roberts on Toronto's third extra-man chance among his nine saves in the period. On Wednesday, Carolina fell to Phoenix 4-2 behind Sean Burke. Kidd and Burke shared the Hurricanes crease during most of the 1997-98 season.

Canes lose 4-2, Irbe in goal - 27th of February 2003

Healthy again, Sean Burke showed his ability to help the Phoenix Coyotes put together a charge for a playoff berth, or the highest bidder make a run at the Stanley Cup. Burke made 34 saves and Tony Amonte and Shane Doan had two assists apiece as the Coyotes recorded their fifth victory in seven games with a 4-2 triumph over the struggling Carolina Hurricanes. The subject of trade rumors, Burke returned on Sunday after missing 19 games with a knee injury, but allowed four goals to Jarome Iginla in a home loss to Calgary. However on Wednesday, the 36-year-old Burke stopped 15 shots in the third period and looked more like the 2001-02 Vezina Trophy finalist as the league's top netminder. "Sean was outstanding," Coyotes coach Bob Francis said. "You look at the first goal and the replay, and he's in perfect position. ... He was a big reason why we won the game. "There is two weeks to go until the trade deadline on March 11 and it has been rumored that Burke could be dealt to St. Louis. Coincidentally, the other goaltender also mentioned as a topic of trade talks involving St. Louis is Carolina's Arturs Irbe, who yielded four goals on just 19 shots on Wednesday. Ladislav Nagy, defenseman Paul Mara, Daniel Briere and Brad May scored for the Coyotes, who improved to 5-1-1 in their last seven games and moved within seven points of Edmonton for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. "This one was a big for us. We kept pace with Anaheim and closed the gap on Edmonton," said May, who also added an assist. "We struggled this year as a team, but we are winning now and we need to keep winning. ... The bottom line is that we still got a game against Anaheim and we're here and we're fighting." In their respective first career games, Tomas Kurka and Michael Zigomanis recorded their first NHL goals during the final 3:33 of the contest to spoil Burke's shutout bid. But the Hurricanes fell to 0-9-2-2 in their last 13 road games. That is just two away from matching the franchise record, set when the team was based in Hartford. The Whalers went 0-11-4 from November 11, 1979-January 9, 1980. Already beleaguered by injuries, the Hurricanes lost their leading scorer 12:02 into the contest when Jeff O'Neill was hit in the eye with a high stick from Phoenix defenseman Teppo Numminen. The Coyotes' captain was issued a double minor, but O'Neill did not return to the game. The game still was scoreless 13:14 into the second. The Coyotes were on the power play and Amonte fed Nagy near the right side of the net. The left wing's centering pass deflected off the stick of Hurricanes defenseman Bret Hedican and got past Irbe. Irbe was screened on two of the three goals he allowed in the third. Defenseman Paul Mara lobbed a backhand shot from the right faceoff circle and squeezed the puck inside the left post to make it 2-0 at 16:46 of the period. "At this point, the only important thing for us is trying to make it back to the playoffs," Briere said. "That's the only thing we can control in the locker room. It doesn't matter who scores or who gets the win, it's the two points that we need at the end of the night." After Briere redirected Doan's shot past Irbe just over four minutes later to increase the Coyotes' advantage, May's snap shot from the slot got past Irbe, who was screened on the play. ->discuss

Irbe recalled (tns.ca article) - 24th of February 2003

Carolina (18-30-9-6), which is are among the worst teams in the NHL after making the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in franchise history last season, recalled goaltender Arturs Irbe, center Mike Zigomani, left wing Tomas Kurka and defenseman Bruno St. Jacques from Lowell. Irbe is the only veteran in the group and was assigned to Lowell on February 13 after clearing waivers. He went 2-2-1 with a 3.32 goals-against average in the AHL after going 7-17-2 with a 3.06 GAA with the Hurricanes. The 36-year-old Irbe is 213-227-78 with a 2.83 GAA. He is 75 wins away from six-time Vezina Trophy winner Dominik Hasek's record for the most among European-born goalies. ->discuss