Levasseur was in net for both of the Bucks' wins in Arizona, setting aside 54 of 59 total shots between Friday's 3-2 shootout victory and Saturday's 4-3 win. It's also worth noting that he stopped all five Sundogs shooters in that shootout.
Levasseur has yet to suffer a regulation loss with the Bucks, and the only blemish on his record is the 5-4 overtime defeat at the hands of the Allen Americans for which he was quick to apologize when it happened.
Coach Ruskowski really likes the way Levasseur has been playing lately and confirmed today that he will start him tomorrow and continue to play him for as long as he is feeling well, playing well and looking confident.
As far as the league honor, Ruskowski said he was "ecstatic" to see one of his players "awarded for a job well done." I didn't get to talk to Levasseur about it, but I'm sure he's pretty thrilled, as well.
In today's news, the Bucks have cut two more players in forward Peter-James Corsi and defenseman Tomas Sample.
Corsi obviously started the season on the injured reserve and did a bit of offensive damage in his first few games with the team, but Ruskowski was concerned by his ineffectiveness on defense, which became very visible when he was on the ice for six goals during the Bucks' 9-0 loss to the Sundogs last week.
All told, Corsi was a minus-8 and had a negative plus/minus in each game other than his first one back. He also only registered points in that first game and the one that followed, totaling one goal and two assists in five contests.
Sample was the only rookie from training camp still on the team's roster, and with Cody Hamilton coming off the IR today, Ruskowski decided to stick with the more experienced defenseman who he believes is a stronger skater and can fit into his plans for the season better than Sample did.
Sample did not have a point in his nine games with the Bucks, but Ruskowski has made it clear that points are not something he is pushing for from his d-men (with the assumed exception of his power-play point men). The minus-7 Sample was toting is probably the most telling number a stat sheet can give you about him getting cut.
Ruskowski said he made the decision about these cuts yesterday and tried to see if he could trade these players to give them a chance to play elsewhere, but when nothing came through, he had to waive them.
He also noted that the decision was very tough for him, as he likes both of the players as people and didn't want to put them in this position.
The active roster is now back at 18 players, but keep in mind the fact that Igor Agarunov should be coming off the IR himself before Sunday's game.
Ruskowski is hoping that getting Hamilton and Darryl Smith back in the lineup for tomorrow night will be enough of a jolt to get the team going against the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, against whom they fell flat in a 6-5 shootout loss last time around.
Since I tend to look at plus/minus a lot and mention it as a weakness for players who get cut, it is worth noting that defenseman/assistant captain Mike Looby now has the worst plus/minus on the team at minus-8, while scrappy forward Justin Styffe is a minus-7
Meanwhile, defenseman Jeremy Swanson has already accumulated a minus-6 in five games with the team, while forward Mike Sgroi is a minus-4 in just three.
Obviously, playing in a blowout like that 9-0 game last week is going to hurt any player's plus/minus, and accordingly, Smith leads the team with a plus-2 and Hamilton has a plus-1.
Despite that loss, though, I think it's fair to be concerned that only four players on the team are on the positive side in that area, as only player/assistant coach Jeff Bes and captain Adam Rivet would jump out of the negatives with that game taken away from their stats.
Since I tend to look at plus/minus a lot and mention it as a weakness for players who get cut, it is worth noting that defenseman/assistant captain Mike Looby now has the worst plus/minus on the team at minus-8, while scrappy forward Justin Styffe is a minus-7
Meanwhile, defenseman Jeremy Swanson has already accumulated a minus-6 in five games with the team, while forward Mike Sgroi is a minus-4 in just three.
Obviously, playing in a blowout like that 9-0 game last week is going to hurt any player's plus/minus, and accordingly, Smith leads the team with a plus-2 and Hamilton has a plus-1.
Despite that loss, though, I think it's fair to be concerned that only four players on the team are on the positive side in that area, as only player/assistant coach Jeff Bes and captain Adam Rivet would jump out of the negatives with that game taken away from their stats.
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