Dallas Stars Assign Matt Climie to Steelheads

The National Hockey League?s Dallas Stars announced today that the club has assigned goaltender Matt Climie to the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL. Climie is on an NHL contract with Dallas and Dallas is Idaho?s NHL affiliate. Idaho will face the Victoria Salmon Kings in the first round of the ECHL Playoffs, which begin Saturday night at Qwest Arena.Climie, 26, made his NHL debut Apr. 4 vs. St. Louis, stopping 22 of 26 shots for his first NHL win. He became just the fifth Dallas Stars goaltender to win in his NHL debut with the team (also Mike Torchia, Roman Turek, former Steelhead Dan Ellis and Mike Smith). In three consecutive starts with Dallas, Climie went 2-1-0 with a 2.92 goals-against average and an .894 save percentage, playing 185 minutes and stopping 76 of 85 shots faced. Climie has an ECHL record of 27-12-1 this season with a 2.30 goals-against average, a .915 save percentage and four shutouts. The native of Leduc, Alta., was named the RBK ECHL Goaltender of the Week for March 23-29, and received the CCM ECHL Rookie of the Month for December, after going 5-1-0 with a 2.31 GAA and a .920 save percentage for the month. The 6-3, 205-pound goaltender was 2-0-0 at the 2008 NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City, Mich., helping the Stars win the championship. He finished his four-year career at Bemidji State ranked first in school history in shutouts (12) and second in save percentage (.908). He earned First-Team All-CHA honors as a junior, and was selected to the Second Team All-CHA squad as a senior. Climie was signed by Dallas as a free agent on Mar. 20, 2008. The Steelheads will host Games 1 and 2 of the best-of-seven series on Saturday, Apr. 11 at 7:10 pm MT and Sunday, Apr. 12 at 5:10 pm MT at Qwest Arena. Games 3, 4 and 5 (if nec.) will be played in Victoria with 8:05 MT puck drops on Wednesday, Apr. 15, Friday, Apr. 17 and Saturday, Apr. 18. If necessary, Games 6 and 7 will be back on Qwest Arena ice on Tuesday, Apr. 21 and Wednesday, Apr. 22, both at 7:10 pm.Ticket prices range from $7 junior/senior | $10 adult to $32.50 for adult premiere seating, plus convenience fees. Special $10 tickets, plus convenience fees, are available for the Easter Sunday game. Tickets can be purchased by calling 331-TIXS, by visiting www.idahosteelheads.com (using the print-at-home feature), or by stopping by the Qwest Arena box office. For groups or to guarantee the best seats with a playoff package, please call 383-0080.- www.idahosteelheads.com -