CEDAR PARK, Texas – The Texas Stars, American Hockey League affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars, announced today forward Curtis McKenzie and goaltender Jussi Rynnas have been recalled to the NHL. To fill the roster vacancies, Texas has called up forward Taylor Peters and goaltender Henrik Kiviaho from their ECHL affiliate, the Idaho Steelheads.
McKenzie, 23, has appeared in nine games for Dallas in 2014-15, scoring his first-career NHL goal on Nov. 16, 2014 against the Chicago Blackhawks. He also played in his first-career NHL game on Oct. 18 against the Philadelphia Flyers. McKenzie has skated in seven games with Texas, registering six points (three goals, three assists) and one game-winning goal. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound native of Golden, British Columbia was selected by Dallas in the sixth round (159th overall) of the 2009 NHL Draft.
Rynnas (ROO-nuhs, YOO-see), 26, has posted a 5-1-4 record with a 2.58 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage in 10 appearances with Texas this season. The goaltender logged a 28-7-5 record in 40 regular-season contests with Karpat of the Finnish Elite League in 2013-14, posting a 1.51 GAA and a .939 SV%. Rynnas has appeared in three career NHL games, all with the Toronto Maple Leafs, posting an 0-1-0 record with a 3.85 GAA and an .848 SV%. The 6-foot-5, 210-pound native of Pori, Finland was signed by Dallas as a free agent on July 7, 2014.
Peters, 22, has already dressed in 11 games this season for Texas. Last year, the 6-foot-2, 215-pound center tallied 16 points (seven gaols, nine assists) in 70 AHL games in Texas.
Kiviaho (kih-vee-AH-hoh, HEHN-rihk), 20, is being called up for the first time in his career. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound goaltender attended the NHL Prospects Tournament for Dallas in Traverse City, Michigan prior to competing in AHL training camp with the Texas Stars. This season with Idaho, Kiviaho has appeared in seven games with a 2.91 GAA and a .892 SV%., logging a 3-2-1 record.
Texas will host the Utica Comets tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Cedar Park Center.
The Texas Stars entered the 2014-15 season as the AHL’s defending Calder Cup Champions. Single-game tickets and season ticket packages for the 2014-15 campaign are on sale now. For more information, call (512) GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit TexasStarsHockey.com.