The Allen Americans held a meet-and-greet party on Friday at Dodie’s Place in Allen, TX, just adjacent to their future arena site. The Americans wanted to put together a watching party for Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, and also introduce fans and community to their latest acquisition – power forward Britt Dougherty.
Here is the press release from the Allen Americans:
ALLEN, TX – June 12, 2009 – The Allen Americans, the newest Central Hockey League (CHL) franchise, announced the addition of well-known power forward Britt Dougherty today.
“Britt brings a strong presence to our team. He is a well respected teammate, works hard every day and is a great competitor,” Americans General Manager and Head Coach Dwight Mullins said Friday.
The 25-year-old left winger stands tall at 6’3″ and weighs a solid 225 pounds. He racked up 100 penalty minutes in 42 games last season and 145 penalty minutes in 67 games in 2007-08. Both seasons he played for the Dayton Bombers in the ECHL, where Americans Associate Coach and Director of Player Personnel Bill McDonald acted as head coach.
This will be Dougherty’s second stint in the CHL. Before his two seasons with the Bombers, the Saskatchewan native played for the Corpus Christi Rayz and the Austin Ice Bats.
“He is sure to be a fan favorite,” Mullins commented.
When I spoke to Dougherty, he seemed very genuine and very down-to-earth. He is a man who knows his role, but also knows that it takes more than just “chucking knuckles” to play at the professional level in hockey today. He also said that it helps having familiar faces on the team. The three centers signed last week, Jarret Lukin, Justin Bowers and Chris Gaudet, also played on the Dayton Bombers last season. When asked how happy he was to be here, he simply said, “I’m ecstatic to be here.”
Mullins is also very excited about the new addition. Here is what he had to say about the new Americans forward:
“He’s a tough, tough kid. He plays very hard and he makes a lot of people better around him. In this day and age, you have to be able to skate, you have to be able to compete and you have to be able to play, especially with such a small roster in the Central Hockey League. You can’t afford to be a man down by leaving someone on the bench who can’t go out whenever you need him to. Britt brings us that.”
Mullins also talked about how optimistic he was feeling about Dougherty’s potential to surprise some people at this level.
“He’s had two major knee injuries that have hindered his training, and this is the first full year he’s able to train and prepare. He had a strong finish at the end of last season, and we’re looking forward to him continuing to grow as a player in other areas.”
I also asked how Mullins pictured his Allen Americans to look as a team when they hit the ice this fall, he said the Pittsburgh Penguins are a great example.
“They work very hard within a structure, they compete, they’re physical, they’re skilled. But then they’re tough when they have to be. We’re looking for that kind of entertaining blend. We don’t want a boring, slow group; we want to have a high-energy group. We’ve got a great building and we want to get that place rocking.”
I also had the opportunity to speak with Americans owner and former NHL forward Steve Duchesne. When asked the same question I asked Mullins, regarding the look of the club, he took the other team in Friday’s Game 7 showdown:
“Why not the Red Wings? We have to be fairly tough, good kids, quick, fast, you have to have someone who can skate pretty good. That’s what we want.”
He also said that, because of his past ties with the Detroit Red Wing organization, he’s worked out a deal to get 3 players to the Red Wings training camp, which will be later this summer. That kind of experience – a training camp at the NHL level – as an invaluable experience, and can really help a young hockey player along. Duchesne referred back to his own career, which started out with a training camp invitation after being undrafted. He went on to have a very successful NHL career. He is hoping that a similar experience will rub off on some of the young players coming to the Americans, and help prepare them for a more rewarding and successful professional career.
