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    Jason Newland
    Jason Newland
    Feb 4, 2024, 12:00

    Farm"Land": David Jiricek Shines Offensively In A 9-0 Cleveland Monsters Win

    Farm"Land": David Jiricek Shines Offensively In A 9-0 Cleveland Monsters Win

    John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports - Farm"Land": David Jiricek Shines Offensively In A 9-0 Cleveland Monsters Win

    David Jircek scored his first three goals of the season on Saturday against the Chicago Wolves and chipped in a power play assist in a 9-0 Monsters blowout at home. 

    Jiricek's stat line was 3-1-4, +3, and had 6 shots on goal. He scored once in every period of the game, two of them were from in tight on the goalie and one was a blast from the point to beat Wolves goalie Keith Kinkaid, yes THAT Keith Kinkaid.

    On Friday night, Jiricek's Monsters were shut out 5-0 by the Wolves, and he was a -3 on the night. 

    Jiricek going down to the AHL started a firestorm in the last week. He was called up to Columbus just before they left for a Western Canada trip, and was a healthy scratch for the first game against Edmonton, but then was sent back to Cleveland a couple days later. The reports were that he was upset and there was even a rumor that the Jackets were worried that he wouldn't report to Cleveland. In the end, he reported and has played in three games since his recent move back to Cleveland. He has 4 points, all recorded on Saturday since going down, and in six games for the Monsters, he has 7 points. In a weird twist, his 7 points have all been scored in two games. 

    There are varying opinions on whether or not David Jiricek needs to stay and play lots of important minutes on a Calder Cup contender, or play "worthless minutes" on a last-place NHL team. After the game, he was named the game's first star and gave a short interview with the in-arena host. He looked happy and gave a short answer when asked how it was to play in front of a rowdy crowd of 12,157 in Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, he said: "I love it here."

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