Chatterbox, Vol. 192 will go down as the Chatterbox that never was. For those unaware of why the short and sweet of it is that my main hub for work, laptop, suffered a catastrophic failure and cleaned out all files. I’m in the process of seeing if there is a way to recover the guts I need of that hard drive but I am also in the process of writing to you now on a brand new laptop. You’re never shy some serious speed bumps in the AHL and that extends to the individuals around the rink as well as the players.
As far as the game on Sunday went. I’ve had a load of time to process it and the more I sit and think of it the better I feel of the Milwaukee Admirals effort against the Grand Rapids Griffins. Yes, the lost 3-2. But, what they were able to accomplish against a team as good as the Griffins without the likes of a Jimmy Oligny or Justin Kirkland and really digging down deep as the game progressed was extremely nice to see.
That game was a playoff caliber game. Both sides were very fatigued. The Griffins were in on another three-in-three weekend. The Admirals may as well have been on the last of a four-in-four weekend considering the travel from Manitoba to Milwaukee on Saturday. Yet, the fatigue factor really only sapped the Admirals in that first period and they looked better as the game developed. The result may have eluded them but having a playoff atmosphere contest now ahead of the actual playoffs, and losing, does shed light on a bigger picture and the lessons needed to be learned from – today. It will be fascinating to see tomorrow, in Grand Rapids when fatigue won’t be an issue for either side, how both the Admirals and Griffins handle business.
At today’s practice these were the line combinations. It was certainly a hodgepodge on that fourth line as far as who is where. It looks like Stephen Perfetto could play his natural position at center at the expense of Derek Army tomorrow night – but time will tell. Rick Pinkston did rushes as a winger on that line as well as doing some defensive work but was likely just keeping active.
Speaking of Perfetto and Pinkston, the two lined up alongside Kirkland for a series of rush drills as sort of a fifth line for the Admirals today. It seems likely that Kirkland is still in the comeback trail and is a touch out of the picture for tomorrow night with Kelleher moving into his line with Vladislav Kamenev and Adam Payerl while Perfetto and Army are looking to center the fourth line.
The biggest news of the day would be the return to full-practice and potentially game action for Adam Pardy. The veteran defenseman has missed the last twenty-nine games after suffering a compound fracture to his left arm in a collision into the boards back on 1/18/17 on the road against the Charlotte Checkers. He should hopefully be rejoining the team in action tomorrow night and do so alongside his ol’ defensive partner Alex Carrier. Those two worked tremendously well together at the start of the season. It would be a great boost having that tandem back.
Oligny was a noticeable absentee from today’s practice. He suffered an injury late in the third period in the Admirals game on Friday night on the road against the Manitoba Moose. There isn’t a time table as of yet but the return of Pardy could help see that he get fully fit without the Admirals getting as hurt as they would have been in the process. Pinkston did alright on Sunday night in his place but you’d certainly prefer an Oligny or Pardy in action.
After today’s practice concluded I caught up with Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason as well as the wingers of the “ET LE BUT” line Frédérick Gaudreau and Anthony Richard. These were today’s comments before the team geared up for a bus ride to Grand Rapids.
Comments on the comments? How do you feel that the Milwaukee Admirals are stacking up ahead of the playoffs? How big will the return of Adam Pardy be for this Admirals defense?
The Milwaukee Admirals lost 3-2 against the Grand Rapids Griffins at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena on Sunday afternoon.
The Admirals three-game winning streak ends where it started a week ago at home against the Griffins. The win today for the Griffins makes them the first team in the Central Division to clinch a spot on the 2017 AHL Calder Cup Playoffs. The Admirals will have a chance to return the favor Wednesday on the road in Grand Rapids.
With the second shot of the game the Griffins broke open the scoring in the first period. Ben Street labeled a wrist shot from the left wing that flew across the grain of Marek Mazanec and beat him stick-side for Street’s twenty-fifth goal of the season.
In the second period the Admirals were able to equalize from their white hot power-play. Evgeny Svechnikov slashed the stick out of the hands of Alex Carrier. That allowed for Pontus Åberg to work his magic from the left wing circle where he faked a slot shot, measured a wrister, and sniped clean past the glove of Jared Coreau to record his twenty-seventh goal of the season.
As the second period was coming to a close Andrew O’Brien was given a minor for slashing. The Griffins scored with 20.2 seconds remaining in the frame on the power-play when Mitch Callahan gathered up a loose puck in front of the net and whipped in a wrister from the doorstep for his fifteenth goal of the season.
Midway through the third period and the Admirals pace earned them an equalizer. Anthony Richard nearly had a wrap-around work out but the puck flew off his stick. The same couldn’t be said when Åberg went for the same move except the puck got caught up in the pads of Coreau and trickled through to make it a 2-2 game. Åberg had his second goal of the game and twenty-eighth of the season.
The Griffins were motoring in attack shortly after and an attempt to skate up out of the zone by Richard saw him out-skate the puck. Dylan McIlrath took it from him and then passed off to Svechnikov low right wing where the Griffins’ Russian managed to smack a puck past Mazanec for his eighteenth goal of the season.
Brian Lashoff was called for a hooking minor with 2:11 remaining in regulation to give the Admirals a late power-play and chance to equalize. Mazanec made his way to the bench with 1:04 remaining to give them a two-man advantage. Yet, things changed with 34.9 seconds remaining when McIlrath and Mike Ribeiro had a coming together along the Griffins bench. That resulted in a the Admirals power-play being scrubbed off.
With 26.8 seconds remaining in regulation the Admirals earned an in-zone face-off and decided to use their timeout. The game would finish with a tripping call against Åberg as he was negating a push up ice for an empty net bid by the Griffins. And the Admirals would drop a 3-2 game on home ice.
These two teams will lock horns once again on Wednesday night at 6:00 PM CDT at the Van Andel Arena. Neither play until that tilt and it will be the Admirals last trip to Grand Rapids in the regular season. After that the Admirals complete their March schedule and only have eight games remaining. They open up a four-game homestand on April Fool’s Day for the first of two against the Texas Stars.
Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals played in Manitoba on Friday night there have been no roster moves made in the organization. Today’s line combinations were: Richard-Ribeiro-Gaudreau, White-Smith-Åberg, Perfetto-Kamenev-Payerl, Florek-Army-Liambas, Pinkston-Carrier, O’Brien-Granberg, Murphy-Dougherty. Today’s scratches were: Kelleher (healthy), Kirkland (undisclosed injury), Oligny (undisclosed injury), and Pardy (broken left arm). Today’s attendance was: 6,587.
What were your thoughts on today’s game? Despite a rough first period -shots wise- this appeared to be a very close game: where did the Milwaukee Admirals lose out?
I always greatly enjoy seeing my expectations so spectacularly blowing up in my face when it comes to what I sense will be a Milwaukee Admirals loss. Last Sunday, the Admirals were on the end of a three-in-three facing the Grand Rapids Griffins at the end of one of their own. I thought the Admirals would get hit hard or take a grinding but low scoring loss. Instead, the Admirals came out in the second period and blew the doors off the Griffins which was a decisive frame in what ended as a 6-3 win.
To think that could happen all over again today based on the circumstances is a little too dream-heavy. Yes, the Griffins are in on Sunday again and -Yes- the Griffins are on the end of yet another three-in-three weekend. But they are still the Griffins and, with last Sunday in mind, they will probably be looking for some redemption.
The Griffins have a record of 42-18-1-4 (89 points, 0.685 points percentage). Since the loss to the Admirals last Sunday the Griffins played on Friday and Saturday against the Rockford IceHogs. Friday’s game in Grand Rapids ended with a 5-3 win. Saturday’s game in Rockford ended with a 4-0 shutout victory.
Jared Coreau played the first leg of the three-in-three but it was Eddie Pasquale last night earning the impressive 37-save shutout for the Griffins. It’s always nice to have the options as to who is going to start the third game of an AHL three-in-three and that is the good problem the Griffins now have. Coreau or Pasquale?
Offensively, the Griffins already have a potent machine with several players contributing. Following last night’s game in Rockford they now have their sixth player on the season to reach the 40 points plateau. Eric Tangradi, who scored twice against the Admirals last Sunday, now has 40 points (15 goals, 25 assists) in 51 games.
Speaking of that plateau, the Griffins could add a seventh member to the 40 points club today should Kyle Criscuolo have a multi-point night. The 24-year old has produced 38 points (17 goals, 21 assists) from 65 games in his first full-season as a pro.
Continuation of some of the chippiness from last weekend could be in the cards. The Griffins are known for doing plenty of talking but not a lot of fighting. They attempted to pick on the little guy but Anthony Richard ended up slugging out Matt Lorito in the process. The night pretty much ended with Trevor Murphy giving Martin Frk the business, as well. I’d expect some more scrapping to be done.
What are you anticipating for this afternoon’s game? Are we in for more of what happened last Sunday or will this Grand Rapids Griffins team be out for serious revenge? What will be the key to the Milwaukee Admirals earning the victory today?
A-Maz-ing effort tonight from Marek Mazanec who stopped 32/33 shots on goal as he became the Milwaukee Admirals all-time AHL leader in minutes played by a goaltender. (Photo Credit: Manitoba Moose // flickr)
The Milwaukee Admirals 3-1 on the road against the Manitoba Moose at the MTS Centre on Friday night.
This was a historic occasion for the Admirals as Marek Mazanec became the team’s all-time AHL minutes leader for a goaltender and head coach Dean Evason earned his two-hundredth career victory behind the Admirals bench. The team is now on a three-game winning streak.
At the end of the first period J.C. Lipon was called for tripping and an unsportsmanlike conduct. The Admirals top power-play unit would deliver the game’s opening goal forty-seconds into the second period. Alex Carrier threw off from the top of the blueline to Mike Ribeiro in the right wing who delivered a picture perfect pass to Trevor Smith who floated out to the back door on Jamie Phillips to score his thirteenth goal of the season and first scored in twenty-four games.
The second half of Lipon’s penalty was still active following the power-play goal from Smith. That said, you weren’t to know it based on how well the Moose were attacking while shorthanded. Both Patrice Cormier and Chase De Leo had shorthanded breakaways in a matter of moments during the same kill and both times Marek Mazanec got the crucial stops to keep the Moose off the board.
Mazanec would go on from the moment to surpass Brian Finley’s Admirals all-time AHL record for minutes logged in net. The previous mark by Finley was 9122:21.
Over the halfway point of the second period the Admirals added to their lead when Justin Florek scored his tenth goal of the season. Florek had guided a pass behind the net for Derek Army who dinked it back in line for the swooping forward to pick it up and wrap a shot around on Phillips through the wickets and in to make it a 2-0 Admirals lead.
At the end of the second period former pest of the Admirals Rob Flick showed up to do more pest like things such as take a boarding minor on Jimmy Oligny. This caught the attention of Oligny’s defensive partner Alex Carrier who raced over and got into his first pro fight. Flick got the better of Carrier in the fight and the boarding penalty to Flick was erased by the instigator penalty by Carrier.
Tensions seemed to remain high between the two teams towards the start of the third period. Ryan Olsen attempted to scrap with Trevor Murphy and wound up sitting in the penalty box for roughing. This allowed for another power-play goal to be scored as a hammer shot by Pontus Åberg flew off the end boards where Smith passed right back into the slot opposite side of the net where Frédérick Gaudreau smacked in his twenty-third goal of the season.
Another fight would start up in the third period. Francis Beauvillier delivered a big hit to Andrew O’Brien and the two quickly decided to scrap. O’Brien uncorked some bombs and won decisively. I’d score that 10-8 in my fight card.
A holding call against Mike Liambas put the Moose on a late power-play. It appeared that De Leo rammed through Oligny and left him injured during the following special teams play. Oligny soldiered on as best he could, no whistle came, and the Moose ended up denying Mazanec’s shutout bit with a power-play goal. Patrice Cormier was alone on the doorstep to push across a rebound from Kyle Connor’s shot to earn his twelfth goal of the season.
In more Flick-like theatrics he took a high shot towards the head of Liambas as the Moose were on an empty net and extra attacker bid. Liambas finally had enough of Flick and proceeded to maul him with punches as Flick turtled on the ice. Liambas was given the lone penalties on the play: fighting major and a game misconduct.
For all the nastiness that went on the game would finish there. These two teams won’t play each other for the rest of the season so all the toxicity ends here with a 3-1 Admirals win. They may have been outshot 33-15 but the Admirals received a great night in net from Mazanec with timely offense.
Next on tap will be a travel back home to Milwaukee. The Admirals will face-off against the Grand Rapids Griffins on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 PM CDT. They will then swing over to see the Griffins at the Van Andel Arena on Wednesday at 6:00 PM CDT.
Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals played last night there were no roster moves made in the organization. Tonight’s line combinations were the same as they were last night: Richard-Ribeiro-Gaudreau, White-Smith-Åberg, Perfetto-Kamenev-Payerl, Florek-Army-Liambas, Oligny-Carrier, O’Brien-Granberg, Murphy-Dougherty. That meant tonight’s scratches remained the same as they were as well: Kelleher (healthy), Kirkland (undisclosed injury), Pardy (broken left arm), and Pinkston (healthy). After being hit from behind by Chase De Leo on a Moose power-play Jimmy Oligny left the game late in the third period due to injury and needed assistance to leave the ice and head down to the Admirals locker room.
What are your thoughts on tonight’s game? The Manitoba Moose might be lowly in the standings but how good was the two-game effort from the Milwaukee Admirals on the road? How does this set the stage for another showdown against the Grand Rapids Griffins on home ice on Sunday?
The Milwaukee Admirals won 6-2 on the road against the Manitoba Moose at the MTS Centre on Thursday night.
This appeared to be a continuation of the great work that the Admirals had in full display this Sunday. They powered out five goals with three power-play goals in the game’s opening twenty-five minutes. That surge saw the end of the night in net for Eric Comrie and effectively the Moose’s chances of taking a point.
Dan DeSalvo was called for tripping fourteen minutes into the first period to give the Admirals the game’s opening power-play opportunity. Frédérick Gaudreau made an outstanding play to keep the puck in the attacking zone and was then able to finish off a play that he generated. Trevor Smith’s pass knuckled down into the slot but Gaudreau followed in for a quick swat that beat Eric Comrie for his twenty-second goal of the season.
The Admirals would extend their lead fifty-eight seconds later to make it a 2-0 lead. Adam Payerl delivered a shot from the right wing that Comrie kicked out into the high left wing. Andrew O’Brien followed up with another firm shot on net but, this time, Comrie got most of the shot and the puck stayed near the crease. Stephen Perfetto was the quickest to react to the rebound and swiftly deposited the puck on net for his second goal with the Admirals.
For as grinding as the first period was feeling the game went from scoreless to 2-1 in the space of 1:51 of play. Only fifty-three seconds after Perfetto scored the Moose had a response through Kyle Connor. The twenty-year old forward was on a quick give-and-go as he burst out of the left wing across the slot. He wrangled up a puck in his skates and then flipped a backhander against the grain to beat Marek Mazanec high-glove for his twenty-second goal of the season.
For the second period the Admirals came out guns blazing and chased Comrie out of the Moose net inside of five minutes.
Alex Carrier dished off to Pontus Åberg in his sweet spot on the Admirals power-play. The hammer shot from the left wing circle blazed through Comrie for the Swede’s twenty-sixth goal of the season. That was then followed by another power-play goal with the same scenario playing out opposite wing when Trevor Smith moved over from slot to ring wing where Mike Ribeiro picked his spot high-glove on Comrie for his fourth goal of the season.
Following the Ribeiro power-play goal the Admirals scored at even strength just twenty-seconds later to end Comrie’s suffering. Perfetto had an extra step down the right wing with Brenden Kichton defending him. He appeared to use Kichton as a slight decoy to wire a shot to the near post high-glove on Comrie for his second goal of the night and third of the season.
Comrie’s night ended after 24:47 of ice time where he stopped 11/16 shots on goal. The Admirals power-play was a perfect three of three with him in net. Jamie Phillips took his place from then on out.
Naturally, looking for a spark, a fight broke out with the Moose needing some energy. Darren Kramer challenged Mike Liambas and he probably should have picked a different hombre. That was a clear win in the fight department for Liambas.
At the start of the third period the Admirals got a break from a quick whistle. Mazanec looked to have gloved down a shot on a Moose power-play but he never had it. J.C. Lipon was quick to pounce on the puck and push it across the goal line but he almost didn’t even need to do that for it to go in. Yet, the play had already been whistled dead. And the Moose were denied a power-play goal.
That didn’t mean the 5-1 scoreline was holding out for long. Shortly after that quick whistle the Moose had the Admirals in a slow change and found Kramer lurking down the left wing alone in space. He stepped in and beat Mazanec with a wrister glove-side to record his second goal of the season.
With over five minutes remaining the Moose went for the miraculous and decided to bring Phillips to the bench and introduce the extra attacker. That desperate ploy for a comeback was dealt with fast as Ribeiro popped home the empty netter to record his second tally of the game and give himself a four point night. The scoreline read 6-2 Admirals and would mercifully end there.
It is a matter of “same time, same place” between these two teams tomorrow night. The Admirals will return home on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 PM CDT when they will see the Grand Rapids Griffins once again. That sets the stage for the first of two games between those two. The Admirals will travel to Grand Rapids on Wednesday next week following their pit stop at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.
Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals last played on Sunday the team made no roster moves. Adam Pardy did make a return to team practice on Tuesday and could potentially make a return to game action in over a week’s time. Justin Kirkland remained inactive after missing the weekend three-in-three. Tonight’s line combinations were: Richard-Ribeiro-Gaudreau, White-Smith-Åberg, Perfetto-Kamenev-Payerl, Florek-Army-Liambas, Oligny-Carrier, O’Brien-Granberg, Murphy-Dougherty. Tonight’s scratches were: Kelleher (healthy), Kirkland (undisclosed injury), Pardy (broken left arm), and Pinkston (healthy).
What is your reaction to tonight’s game? Are the Milwaukee Admirals beginning to get on a run on the back of that Grand Rapids Griffins effort on Sunday?
The fan in the Aaron Rodgers jersey is still perturbed as to what Ted Thompson is doing at this given moment. (Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
After a breather from last weekend’s three-in-three the Milwaukee Admirals are back to work. It might not be as hectic as Milwaukee to Iowa to Milwaukee in such a short space of time but the team is getting their travel going. The Admirals traveled to Manitoba on Wednesday morning and will be back for another scrap against the Grand Rapids Griffins on Sunday at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.
The focus begins with the Manitoba Moose tonight and tomorrow night at the MTS Centre. They have a record of 24-32-4-5 (57 points, 0.438 points percentage) which puts them narrowly above the Rockford IceHogs (0.431) in the basement of the Central Division.
In their last ten-games at home the Moose have gone 3-5-0-2 and also have the second worst home record (0.453) in the AHL. The only team worse on home ice are the Hartford Wolf Pack (0.344).
As bad as that can all sound it was a very tight contest between the Admirals and Moose the last time they played. The Admirals won 3-2 in overtime and the man with the game-winning goal, Mike Ribeiro, was highly complementary of the Moose after the game saying, “I feel like that team, Manitoba, was probably the best structured team that I played.”
He wasn’t wrong at all with that assessment, either. That was a very grinding game for the Admirals and it took some doing for them to earn the result. As the Moose are finishing up what has been an eight-game homestand where they have gone 1-4-0-1 with that first win finally coming Saturday night in a 5-3 game over the IceHogs – I’d anticipate more of a grinding style game again.
The Moose have four players at or above 30 points this season. Their top two leading scorers are all first-year pros with the man set in third place in his first full-season of AHL work.
Jack Roslovic leads the Moose this season with 40 points (12 goals, 28 assists) from 56 games. He is followed by Kyle Connor who has 38 points (21 goals, 17 assists) in only 44 games played. Connor was named the CCM/AHL Player of the Week earlier this month. Dan DeSalvo has 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) in 55 games and is the leading scorer for the Moose in this head-to-head match up with 4 points (1 goal, 3 assists) in 2 games against the Admirals. Meanwhile, Chase De Leo has produced 30 points (13 goals, 17 assists) in 58 games. He did score his first professional hat trick against the Admirals in Manitoba last season on 12/19/15.
In net there can be only one option and I would be shocked if anyone other than Eric Comrie plays (no disrespect Jamie Phillips). Comrie has played in 44 games this season for the Moose which is the third most appearances by a goaltender in the AHL. Only Linus Ullmark (50) and Jack Campbell (45) have made more appearances at this point in the 2016-17 season.
The 21-year old Comrie has a 15-23-4-2 record from those 44 appearances to go along with a 2.96 goals against average, 0.906 save percentage, and 2 shutouts. In his career against the Admirals Comrie has a 3-3-0-1 record from 7 starts with a 3.26 goals against average and 0.897 save percentage.
What are you anticipating out of these two road games for the Milwaukee Admirals? How key is it for the Admirals to sustain what was generating against the Grand Rapids Griffins on Sunday against a lower standing team such as the Manitoba Moose?
The Milwaukee Admirals took to the MSOE Kern Center ice this morning for their final practice before setting off for a two-game road trip against the Manitoba Moose. Those games will be coming on Thursday and Friday night. The Admirals will be hoping to sustain what was generated on Sunday night when they defeated the Grand Rapids Griffins 6-3.
Today’s lines saw a subtle flip in the defensive pairings which started during Sunday’s game as Trevor Murphy and Andrew O’Brien rotated. There was then the very pleasant sight of seeing Adam Pardy return to practice. He ran drills alongside Rick Pinkston and there is a hope that Pardy could return in a week’s time -but- there is no clear ETA. It will really come down to progression of how he is practicing and how the arm is holding up with medical expertise factoring in the best path for a good return to game action.
A notable absentee for today’s practice was Justin Kirkland. The 20-year old forward had missed this weekend’s three-in-three due to injury and was set to be re-evaluated ahead of this Manitoba trip. It would appear that he won’t be involved and the Admirals will be using more of a mix and match of Stephen Perfetto and Tyler Kelleher.
Once practice wrapped up I had the opportunity to hear from Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason as well as several players -selected by fan request on Twitter- ahead of this Manitoba road trip. Here were all of today’s interviews.
Comments on the comments? Are the Milwaukee Admirals trending in the right direction or do you feel this coming week should speak to that?
Mark Visentin has one of the best Milwaukee Admirals goaltending masks in recent years. He has only had the chance to use it once in-game with the Admirals in the AHL this season. (Photo Credit: Steve Comer)
It’s been far too long since we have checked in on our pals the Cincinnati Cyclones. The Milwaukee Admirals ECHL affiliate has had a rather turbulent season as far as the ups-and-downs go. What is promising right now is that they appear to have really come together as a team at the right time of the season. The Cyclones are currently storming through the ECHL as the regular season is coming closer and closer to its end.
The Cyclones are currently at the end of a five-game road trip which started in Idaho, climbed up to the splendiferous charms of Alaska, and are now en route to play in Indiana before returning to home ice next week Wednesday. They played three consecutive games against the Alaskan Aces and, mercifully, don’t have a game again until Saturday night.
As rough as I’m sure those Alaska games were to follow along to for Cincinnati fans there might be a part of them that wanted that to continue. The Cyclones swept the Aces for three wins in four days at the Sullivan Arena to push their current run of form up to 9-2-0-0 in their last 11 games.
To get an even better sense for how the Cyclones are doing as their season screams towards the ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs we reached out to Dakota Johnson of Sin Bin Cyclones to get the scoop on the Admirals ECHL affiliate. Here is our recent chat.
~Q&A with Dakota Johnson of Sin Bin Cyclones~
Admirals Roundtable. It has been a very up and down sort of season for the Cincinnati Cyclones. Lately, things look like they are finally starting to click. How’s this season been going and what’s worked so well lately?
Dakota Johnson. To say the start to the season was rough would be an understatement. Consistency was their downfall out of the gate. They would win one, lose one; win two, lose two; win five, lose five. There was just no level of consistency at all. For the first few months, well into January, they struggled to find ways to win to the point they couldn’t buy a win.
In early February, they were down and out. They trailed South Carolina by like 10 points for that final playoff spot in the South Division and playoffs began to look like a pipe dream. On February 1st, after getting just flat out beat by a pretty bad Rapid City team, things just clicked almost overnight. Guys started buying into Matt MacDonald’s systems and began playing for each other again. They knew what task was at hand and since then, they’ve gone 17-5-0 and now sit just one point back of Greenville for second place. The job is far from over to secure a playoff spot. It’s as cliche as ever, but they’ve just got to keep doing what they’re doing.
AR. As grinding as our three-in-three games can be would you care to talk me through the joys of playing games in Alaska like the Cyclones just did? It was shades of the midnight hour 2014 Kelly Cup Finals all over again!
DJ. When the ECHL released the schedule last April, these Alaska games were what I was looking forward to most for that very reason. The morning of the first game when I woke up, it felt like I had gone back in time to 2014 again. Except this time, I knew what I was getting myself into with the 11:15pm starts on the East Coast and made sure to stock up on Mountain Dew so I could stay up past 2am.
It definitely hurt a bit seeing that 2014 Championship banner hanging up in the Aces building. It was a little on the personal side for me because the Aces won the cup in Cincinnati on June 9th, 2014. June 9th also just happens to be my birthday. The Cyclones went in there on Alaska’s big Olympic sized sheet of ice and swept by winning all three games. As you’ve probably heard by now, the Aces are ceasing operations at the end of the season. That was definitely some poetic justice going into Alaska’s building for the first time since that 2014 series and sweeping the mini-series.
AR. It may not be the deepest that the Admirals roster has ever been in recent years. Their lone names down there include: Jonathan Diaby, Jaynen Rissling, and Mark Visentin. We’ve also had the opportunity to see the grinder Shawn O’Donnell. How have those guys been for Cincinnati?
DJ. Shawn O’Donnell has pretty much carried this team for the last several weeks since the departures of Peter LeBlanc and Andrew Yogan, who were our top two point scorers at the time. He’s the only skater on the roster that has seen a significant amount of time in the AHL. O’Donnell has 37 points in 40 games with us and has been a big part of the Cyclones turnaround. He’s the type of player you build teams around, I’d imagine re-signing O’Donnell will be one of Matt MacDonald’s priorities over the off-season.
Mark Visentin has had a bit of a rocky year. He’s battled injuries and has been off and on injured reserve most of the season. It’s been a mixed bag with Visentin, he’s had nights where the puck has stuck to him like velcro and some nights where the puck somehow finds a way past him. He did win Goaltender of the Week honors back in January, and despite all the injuries, he’s had a good head on his shoulders and has been a team-first guy. There’s a lot of good he can bring, just keeping him healthy has been the hurdle.
This has certainly been the most confident Jonathan Diaby I’ve seen in awhile. This is the biggest offensive output he’s put up in his professional career with 11 points in 26 ECHL contests. He’s still got some issues with his defensive game that he needs to tighten up on. There’s been one or two times he’s gotten caught puck watching and lost track of his defenseman that’s sneaking back door who ends up scoring but fortunately, it’s a much rarer occurrence than it has been in years past.
It’s been a career year for Jaynen Rissling in pretty much every category. As you guys in Milwaukee know, the first couple years for him were rough because like Visentin, he struggled to stay healthy. Last year, he only played 10 games then missed the rest of the season injured. This year has been different. He’s played in 59 of the 65 games the Cyclones have played. He’s put up a career high 27 points and is the type of player who can do it all. You need him to play forward, he’ll play forward. You need him to play defense, he’ll play defense. Need him to quarterback a power play or kill a penalty, he’ll do that. You need him to rough it up and drop the gloves, he’ll do that too.
AR. For players such as Visentin and Rissling they become free agents at the end of this season. Where do you see their future going from the Cyclones after 2016-17 ends?
DJ. It’s a tough call with Visentin. There is certainly talent there but he has to have one good healthy season. I don’t think he’ll have trouble finding work but I don’t see him getting an AHL contract next season. I see him being an ECHL contracted goalie next season so he can reinvent his career a bit and prove he can stay healthy to earn his way back to being a full-time AHL goaltender. Maybe it’s with Cincinnati, maybe it’s with somebody else but I think he’ll be in the ECHL next season.
As for Rissling, I firmly believe he will be in Cincinnati next season on an ECHL contract. Our coaching staff really like him. He’s a leader in our locker room and is somebody the guys look up to. He serves as an alternate captain. Is he still AHL talent destined for the NHL? No. But he’s a perfect fit at the ECHL level. I will legitimately be shocked if he doesn’t go the route of Zach Budish and signs with Cincinnati after not renewing with Milwaukee/Nashville.
AR. Has Diaby done enough in extended playing time in Cincinnati this season to make a case for playing full-time in the AHL next season?
DJ. That’s a tough question. I will say Diaby is in a much better place now than he was last season when he was here. I’ve seen some significant improvement in his game and I’m sure starting the season in Milwaukee and being up there for the better part of the season in the AHL had a lot to do with it. However, inconsistency still bites him. One night, he’s one of the Cyclones best defensemen out there and the next night not so much.
I don’t think he’s full-time AHL ready. Yet. I think he needs a little bit more seasoning in Cincinnati. I think next year the Admirals need to start him in Cincinnati, have him stay there for the first two months or so of the season, then bring him back up to Milwaukee and go from there.
AR. For the life of me – can you explain the contract situation for Andrew Yogan? He could be such a huge part of the Cyclones right now but is back where his season started in Italy with HC Bolzano.
DJ. There was some language in his initial contract with HC Bolzano that stated he needed to finish the season in Bolzano or else the rights to his International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) card would belong to Bolzano for the next five seasons. What that means is he would not be able to play for any IIHF credited team in Europe except for Bolzano and would not be able to take part in any IIHF sanctioned events during that time period.
This would’ve affected him here as well. Because he started the season in Bolzano, he could not accept any AHL call-ups. He was not allowed to sign any AHL PTO’s. If an AHL team wanted him, they would have to sign him to an SPC straight up. So, had he finished the season here and continued to play here, he wouldn’t be able to accept an AHL call-ups for that five-year period.
He didn’t particularly like it in Bolzano, which is why he came back to Cincinnati in the first place. But for the betterment of his career, he made the conscious decision to return to Bolzano and finish out the contract. When he left, Bolzano only had four games left in their season but he couldn’t come back to the Cyclones because Bolzano’s season went past the ECHL’s deadline for players to return from Europe. So, Yogan’s season is over and his summer is already underway.
Will he come back to Cincinnati next season? I like to think he will because he was a big part of our organization and a big part of our locker room that has been hugely missed these last couple months.
AR. There are of course several names that Admirals fans might be unaware of related to the Cyclones. A player such as Jordan Sims comes to mind as someone who has put together a really nice season. Who have been some of the nice surprises on this year’s group?
DJ. Sims has without a doubt been this team’s unsung hero. This has been a breakout year for him. He has kind of taken the long road around and started his career in the SPHL, then got his shot in the ECHL, and even got a look in the AHL last year. He really stepped up and led the way at a time where the Clones were just decimated by injuries. He’s got 47 points in 57 games and he is one of the least talked about players by Cyclones fans when he should absolutely be one of the most.
Another pleasant surprise would be Saverio “Sam” Posa. He is one of our more stable defensemen. He doesn’t put up a ton of points, he’s only put up eight points this year but he’s a stay-at-home defensemen that does his job.
A third name that comes to mind would be one of our SPHL call-ups when the injuries stacked up in Dylan Nowakowski. He was in training camp with the Cyclones but unfortunately had to be let go due to numbers from Milwaukee. Our coaching staff loved him and brought him back. He is one of the hardest working players on this team. He’s a smaller guy but has the speed and offensive skill to compensate. I firmly believe he’ll be in Cincinnati on a full time ECHL deal next year.
AR. It’s shocking to think that this season is nearly entering playoff mode. It felt like it wasn’t that long ago when I was watching the Cyclones invitees to Admirals Training Camp work at the MSOE Kern Center! That said, the Cyclones have worked themselves into a nice enough spot. Can this group contend for a Kelly Cup this season or will the Allen Americans win for the third consecutive time?
DJ. I almost don’t want to answer that question simply because superstition. But if you want to get technical, the Cyclones playoffs began in February and they’ve done a hell of a job so far. If they’re able to get into the playoffs, once they’re in, anything is possible. They’ve proved time and time again during this stretch recently that they are not a team you can take lightly as they’ve beaten Idaho, Toledo, and Fort Wayne who are some of the best teams in this league. I’m confident they can hang with any team in this league.
As for Allen, I’m going to be honest, I’m really sick of them winning. But now that I’ve said that, they probably will win a third straight Kelly Cup.
Cheers to Dakota Johnson of Sin Bin Cyclones for taking the time to fill us in on the latest out of the Milwaukee Admirals’ ECHL affiliate. Hopefully both the Admirals and Cyclones are getting hot at the right time! You can follow along with Dakota’s work on The Sin Bin where he is an associate editor of the ECHL. For great in-game updates on the Cincinnati Cyclones I highly recommend giving him a follow @SinBinCyclones on Twitter.
After an energy sapping three-in-three the Milwaukee Admirals have earned a day-off of work. They should be returning to practice tomorrow as they prepare for a Thursday and Friday road set up North against the Manitoba Moose. This break in the action allows for a nice time for you readers to chime in and ask away questions that you have across the board. Let’s get a proper Admirals Roundtable Mailbag started, shall we?
For your mail bag, I’d like to turn the 15 with…on you. Who was your first big hockey player you’ve met, besides the Admirals and Predators? What is your favorite hockey moment, and non-hockey moment? What made you get into hockey? Who influenced you? Most painful memory? It will be like interviewing yourself with your questions so we can get to know Daniel. ~Gail
I actually didn’t meet a big name hockey player until I started up as an intern with the Milwaukee Admirals. So, you’d be going down the list of the players from the 2012-13 season plus many of the names included on the 35th Anniversary campaign that cropped up. Pekka Rinne comes to mind there. What I often enjoy though is that you really can’t get star struck with hockey players. They’re just too down to Earth to get that feeling. I would counter by saying I met Al Unser Jr. when I was four-years old at Road America and he brought me under the roped off section of the Galles Racing garage to show me his car and sign me shirt. I seriously still remember that one.
My favorite hockey moment would probably be watching the Colorado Avalanche and Detroit Red Wings rivalry growing up. That’s probably what really had me locked into hockey from that point forward. Even looking back now that rivalry holds up because it crammed so much: intensity, high level talent, best teams in the Western Conference at the time, and usually Stanley Cup implications off of it. The brawls were a blast watching it when I was younger. The talented players around it are what make it hold up for me.
My favorite non-hockey moment would have to be school related. As a freshman in high school I was so caught up in the “what will I be doing for a career and when I get to college” dynamic so much that I was never really in the present. I ended up getting a 1.5 GPA and was basically on the verge of getting kicked out of school at 14-years old. I would say the two memories that come to mind the most are when I first made Honor Roll two-years after that happened or either my high school or college graduation. At the time of making Honor Roll I needed to go around and have professors sign off a check list every now and then to get repeated updates on the work I was doing – probably to keep me fully aware on grades. The last class I had to check off the professor pulled me aside after class to tell me I made Honor Roll and it meant the world knowing I had worked back out of re-doing all of my freshman year classes in tandem with sophomore classes at Walden III. I’d say that’s where the work ethic started and every accomplishment since probably starts from that moment.
What made me get into hockey was the sports field in general. I always loved the sport but, at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, all I really covered was Women’s Soccer and Women’s Basketball. I had applied several places to try and break into the job field and ended up -probably- becoming the oldest intern that the Milwaukee Admirals ever brought in. I’ve been caught on working in hockey ever since.
My biggest influence would be my parents. They’ve taught me everything as far as selflessness, work, and having good humor goes!
My most painful memory – going the two route as I often catch players with that. Injury-wise, I’ve been fairly fortunate to not have had any broken bones but I did tear my right ACL a few years back and not long after that I had a left high-ankle sprain. I would say I still feel the right knee being weird at times but the most painful was the ankle. When your knee goes it is more of a jolt, you hear it pop in your ear, and not much more than adrenaline after. The ankle hurt but, with college starting the week after, I bucked the brace – taped it myself zombie apocalypse style – and walked through the pain. Non-Injury, the most painful memory for me feels like it is on the horizon in the near future as it relates to work. Behind the scenes this season it hasn’t been great but, as with the players in the AHL, I’m going through the developmental process in my own way. I’ll always be a believer in good things happen to good people. No matter what lies ahead I’m sticking to that.
What is happening with Cody Bass? Will he back on the admirals roster next season? ~Diane
Cody Bass is done for the season after suffering a knee injury on 12/28/16 in a game against the Iowa Wild. He required surgery and is in the rehab process as we speak. The last I checked he no longer needed crutches and is slowly getting back in the swing of things which I’m sure is a well needed mental boost. As rough as this season is, especially given his rise back to NHL caliber play since joining the Nashville Predators organization, he is still under contract next season and will likely be a top candidate as Admirals team captain for the 2017-18 season. He’s a real well respected locker room presence and none of that goes away after a season ending injury.
Do you think that Dante Fabbro could get an amateur tryout soon? Seems like he killed it for BU. ~Seth
Well, in order to help facilitate that Dante Fabbro would need to sign his entry level contract with the Nashville Predators. That hasn’t happened yet. The players on the Milwaukee Admirals radar at the end of this season are: Frédéric Allard, Samuel Girard, and Yakov Trenin. Though, we aren’t short of a surprise here and there as several college and junior seasons are coming to an end which sees the likes of -say- a Tyler Kelleher turning up out of nowhere.
A friend and I keep debating about Roscoe. What kind of animal is he suppose to be exactly? Other than the mascot obviously. ~Chris
Why, Roscoe is an orange sea dog with a puck for a nose! I actually had this question brought up when both myself and Roscoe were in Nashville. I thought a fan on Twitter had a newspaper clipping that had a bit of backstory to Roscoe but I can’t seem to find it.
How many players that get a PTO contract actually sticks around? ~Dennis
I’m not sure there is any exact league-wide number to that but I can say every PTO Contract serves as an audition for many players in the ECHL to make a claim to be full-time in the AHL. People may already forget that Adam Payerl started last season signed to the Cyclones in the ECHL, was a roster invitee to training camp, and started last season on a PTO before earning an AHL deal with the Admirals and then an NHL deal with the Predators. Matt White was a PTO signing last year from outside of the organization with the Manchester Monarchs (ECHL) who signed a two-year AHL Contract with the Admirals. Derek Army this season is on his second PTO deal with the Admirals and it wouldn’t surprise me to see that lead to something more next season.
Was sorting thru prospect stuff & noticed Tyler Moy should be graduating from Harvard this year. should we expect to seem him in some Ads games when their season ends or a possible ELC with Nashville? ~Eric
I would expect him to go to Toronto or Boston, then Buffalo, and then to the New York Rangers (I kid, I kid). Tyler Moy still hasn’t been signed to any sort of contract by the Nashville Predators so he really can’t do that yet. I would greatly hope that he does sign and begins his pro career next season as a member of the Admirals, though. He has had a fantastic 2016-17 season with Harvard and I would be gutted if he made like his ol’ teammate Jimmy Vesey and darted. I don’t know if you would see the Predators draft a Harvard talent ever again.
Who handles the scouting of the lower levels (major junior, NCAA, ECHL) and who decides to sign those players to AHL deals? ~Josh
That mostly extends across the full organization but you can give plenty of credit to how the Admirals setup shop to Nashville Predators Assistant General Manager and Milwaukee Admirals General Manager Paul Fenton and his scouting staff. As a small example, if you go back to hear the post-game audio when Stephen Perfetto signed Dean Evason was quick to praise them specifically for finding him for the work he was doing for the Alaska Aces in the ECHL. More often than not the praise can go out to Fenton for what Admirals fans get to see as far as non-drafted talent goes.
Will we ever get to see the AHL East coast teams? And will the California teams ever be pushed to the 76 game schedule or, ahem, God forbid, the rest of the league be dragged down to play fewer games? ~MGB
I would certainly love to see more variety back on the schedule. There were quite a few Eastern Conference teams that were always a lot of fun to see appear on the calendar. The Toronto Marlies and Rochester Americans come to mind as teams that were fun going back and forth with. Even the brief time against the Utica Comets and seeing games played inside the Utica Memorial Auditorium where scenes from Slap Shot were filmed was awesome. I don’t know if that would ever happen if there were to be a return to a full 76-game schedule for all AHL teams. It still is asinine for the AHL to allow for a lesser schedule for Californian teams. If cutting excess travel out of the equation is the goal the Admirals traveling from Milwaukee to Iowa to Milwaukee in three days doesn’t paint a fair image nor does travel expense from teams purchased by NHL parent clubs to be closer to home. If there are any teams that should cover the cost of excessive travel – it’s them.
Do you have any additional questions? Feel free to ask away in the comment section below and I will add them to the Mailbag up top with my answer. Tomorrow we will have a story on the Cincinnati Cyclones with Sin Bin Cyclones own Dakota Johnson. Keep tuned as we await the Manitoba road trip!
The last time that the Milwaukee Admirals and Grand Rapids Griffins played I called my shot and said that the Griffins would win 6-2. I wasn’t going to go that far this time around but I had a gut feeling for awhile, looking at the schedule, that the Admirals were set up for disaster with the Griffins at the end of a three-in-three weekend. Never before has my gut instinct been so immensely wrong. And I couldn’t be more thrilled.
While the scoreline itself is great what stands out the most to me in the Admirals 6-3 win over the Griffins was their all-around performance. The opening minutes to that contest were very Griffins heavy with attacking pressure and an early goal but it didn’t take the Admirals too long to find a foothold and start driving right back.
It may have been a weird goal to watch happen but when Pontus Åberg flipped a puck up from his zone to catch Matt White as he skated across the attacking blueline – that’s when the Admirals started to really clamp down. White scores off the breakaway and makes it a 1-1 game. And that set the stage for a second period that was, for the lack of a better term, bonkers.
Martin Frk did score a really weird goal just over a minute into the second period. His shot just managed to find a gap in Marek Mazanec‘s left arm as he was holding to the near post and it trickled in. That was then followed by the gaffe of all gaffes by Mazanec’s counterpart last night Eddie Pasquale. He skated behind the net, appeared to suddenly not know where he wanted to play the puck, realized he had no more time to make a decision on which side to play it, backhanded it, and he banked it off the boards right to Vladislav Kamenev for what would be effectively an empty netter for the Russian.
It’s around this point, only at a 2-2 game, when you start seeing a team as high quality as the Griffins being the one who looked out of their depth and lost in their own head. That mistake by Pasquale was a microcosm of the Griffins in a lot of ways. He didn’t have the time and space he thought he did when he got there, lost it, and paid the consequence.
(Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
What followed next was something that legitimately had me in shock as I sat back and watched the game unfold. Were the Admirals capable of winning last night’s game? Sure, everyone always has a chance. The Griffins are a beatable team and the Admirals have beaten them in the past. Yet, what the Admirals did to a team as good as the Griffins in that second period was memorizing to watch. Yes, Frk scored 1:10 into the second period but that was just a single shot and one of only four shots on goal that the Griffins would have in the period. The Admirals outshot the Griffins 16-4 in the second period. The Admirals scored four goals in the second period against a goaltender in Pasquale who had recorded consecutive shutouts against them entering the start. It was as authoritative and dominant as the Admirals have played all season – structured, balanced, smart, aggressive, and also without the need for a single penalty kill.
I would have said that the Admirals went through two periods of hockey without taking a penalty -but- they did. But damn was it worth it when they did.
Watching from afar I can safely say that the Griffins are a team that love to talk. There are several players on that team that embrace the agitator game and just aren’t willing to back it up with a fight. The Admirals are now sixth in the AHL with 34 fighting majors. The Griffins are dead last in the AHL with 13 fighting majors. The Griffins talk the talk but are never willing to walk the walk.
I have to imagine that when Matt Lorito challenged Anthony Richard he did so mostly because he is the little guy, the kid, and the youngest player on the ice. I can’t imagine he ever in his wildest dreams saw Richard doing what he did next with those three viscous right hands that landed flush to drop him. I certainly didn’t! The reaction from the Admirals bench was incredible – it erupted. If the Admirals needed the extra energy for the rest of the night that fight, followed by the late second period power-play goal from Åberg, did just that.
(Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
What comes next is the important thing for the Admirals: sustaining an effort such as that. It’s been awhile since the Admirals have been on a proper run of form. This season for the longest time has felt like it has been on a “win one, lose one, repeat” cycle. The importance of the growing pains lately for the Admirals was to mature into a “defense-first” style and to make home ice at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena a place of dominance and to make visiting teams feel uneasy having to walk into the building. There have been some hiccups over the past two months in getting that all smoothed out but last night, and Friday night against the Iowa Wild for the matter, are among the finest examples of that working successfully. If it becomes the norm it is coming at the perfect time of the season for the Admirals to find an identity and get hot. It’s playoff season. And playoff style hockey is starting to come out in the way the Admirals play.
After last night’s game I had the chance to speak with Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason. I then caught up with Mr. Gordie Howe Hat Trick himself, Richard, as well as Jack Dougherty and Adam Payerl. These were last night’s post-game comments.
Comments on the comments? Was a performance such as last night a sign of things to come from the Milwaukee Admirals or a flash in the pan? Will they be able to sustain that sort of effort on the road on Thursday and Friday against the Manitoba Moose? How does that game set the stage for the rematch against the Grand Rapids Griffins on Sunday?
Admirals Roundtable 