Falcons owner Charlie Pompea announces rare press conference

Feb. 6, 2013

SPRINGFIELD – The Springfield Falcons, AHL affiliate of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets, announced that team owner Charlie Pompea will hold a press conference.

Originally scheduled to take place on Feb. 8 prior to the team's game against the Albany Devils, due to the chance of a major snowstorm, it was rescheduled for 2 p.m. on Feb. 10 prior to the Falcons' contest against the Portland Pirates. It will take place in Meeting Room 1 of the MassMutual Center's convention wing.

Fans and media are invited to attend the press conference.

The Feb. 8 game has been rescheduled for April 2 at 7 p.m. at the MassMutual Center. Tickets for Friday's contest will be valid on that date.

Eastern Conference-leading Springfield will play at home on Feb. 10 at 3 p.m. when they host the Portland Pirates as scheduled. The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive a free Falcons baseball hat, courtesy of the University of New Haven.

The Falcons also announced recently that left wing Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and center Ryan Johansen were assigned to the club by the Blue Jackets.

Audy-Marchessault was recalled by Columbus last Wednesday and made his NHL debut with the Blue Jackets on Thursday in a 4-1 loss to St. Louis. The second-year pro also played for Columbus in a 4-2 victory over Detroit on Saturday and was scoreless while averaging 10:56 of time on ice during his two contests with the Blue Jackets.

Audy-Marchessault leads the Falcons with 45 points and 29 assists, placing him third and in a tie for second in the league in those categories, respectively.

The 22-year-old from Quebec City was named the CCM/AHL Player of the Month for January, pacing all players with 17 points (eight goals, nine assists) and posting his first-career hat trick in a 7-5 win over the Manchester Monarchs on Jan. 15.

Audy-Marchessault was a starter for the Eastern Conference in the 2013 AHL All-Star Game in Providence, R.I. He is in the first season of a three-year NHL entry-level contract.

Johansen was recalled by the Blue Jackets at the start of the NHL's 2012-2013 season last month and has recorded two assists and a minus-5 rating in 10 games with Columbus. In 34 contests to begin the campaign with the Falcons, Johansen compiled 14 goals and 13 assists for 27 points and was plus-11.

A native of Vancouver, British Columbia, Johansen collected 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 67 appearances with the Blue Jackets during his rookie season of 2011-2012.

Johansen was selected in the first round (4th overall) by Columbus in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. He is in the second season of his three-year NHL entry-level contract with the Blue Jackets.

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