DALLAS CALLS FOR BACHMAN AND WATHIER

Nov 27, 2011

Cedar Park, TX - The Dallas Stars announced on Sunday that the NHL club has placed goaltender Kari Lehtonen on injured reserve and recalled goaltender Richard Bachman, as well as forward Francis Wathier from the Texas Stars, Dallas’ primary affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL).

Lehtonen, 28, suffered a lower-body injury on November 26 in the game against the Phoenix Coyotes. The 6-4, 217-pound goaltender leads the NHL with 13 wins and has compiled an overall record of 13-4-1 with a 2.35 goals against average (GAA) and a .926 save percentage (SV%) in his 19 appearances this season. The Helsinki, Finland native has registered a .920 SV%-or-higher in 12 of his 19 contests and was named the NHL’s, “Second Star of October,” where he posted an 8-1-0 record with a .947 SV% and a 1.75 GAA.

Bachman (pronounced BAWK-mahn) has a 7-5-1 record earning a 3.13 GAA and a .887 SV% in 15 contests for Texas this season. The Salt Lake City, Utah native appeared in a career-high 55 games for Texas in 2010-11, posting a 28-19-5 record with a .927 SV% and a 2.20 GAA. He played in his first and only NHL game last season, appearing in relief on Dec. 11, 2010 against the Phoenix Coyotes where he surrendered zero goals on four shots in 9:35 of play. The 5-10, 175-pound goaltender was Dallas’ fourth-round selection (120th overall) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Wathier (pronounced WATH-ee-ay) has skated in 19 games for the Texas Stars this season, posting five goals and seven assists totaling 12 points while earning a team leading plus/minus rating of +3. The 6-4, 218-pound forward has gone scoreless in his eight career games with the Dallas Stars, posting an even-or-plus rating in six of the contests. The St. Isidore, Ontario native was Dallas’ sixth-round selection (185th overall) in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

The Texas Stars will embark on a two-game road swing in Charlotte starting on Wednesday, November 30th at 6:00 p.m. and again on Saturday, December 3rd at 6:00 p.m. Texas returns home on Friday, December 9th to face Charlotte at 7:30 p.m. As part of Sing for Santa local schools will be caroling throughout the evening. Farmers Insurance will present a Texas Stars insulated lunch bag to the first 2,500 fans at the game. Friday is also 3-2-1 night featuring $3 domestic drafts, $2 sodas and $1 hot dogs.

Individual tickets for all games are on sale now. Tickets are available online at www.TexasStarsHockey.com or by calling 512.GO.STARS (467.8277).

2011-12 season seat packages are on sale now. For more information on Texas Stars season tickets call (512) GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit www.TexasStarsHockey.com. Anyone interested in purchasing season tickets, suites, group tickets or mini-plans may call the Texas Stars front office.