Author: Daniel Lavender

Game Recaps April 15, 2016April 15, 2016

Ads Drop Regular Season Finale at the Bradley Center, 5-2

The Milwaukee Admirals lost 5-2 against the Bakersfield Condors Friday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

In the final regular season game for the Admirals at the Bradley Center the team saw their franchise record tying thirteen-game point streak come to an end. The loss also snaps a winning streak that lasted seven-games. The Admirals 2015-16 regular season finale is tomorrow night on the road against the Rockford IceHogs.

“It’s a shame that we didn’t play better because they were excited,” commented Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason after the game in response to the fans at tonight’s game. “It was early. It was loud. It’s what our fans are. Unfortunately we didn’t deliver on it.”

A first period power-play goal provided the Admirals with an early lead. Zach Boychuk was called for a high-sticking minor which provided a platform for Pontus Åberg to deliver the goods once again. On the second face-off to the power-play Frédérick Gaudreau broke his stick, raced to the bench to get a new twig, and the Admirals were able to maintain zone control with the puck cycling down the right wing to Gaudreau. The play resulted in an eventual pass from Vladislav Kamenev in the right wing over to Åberg on the left wing where he took the pass first-time to beat Laurent Brossoit for his team leading twenty-fifth goal of the season.

The Condors would level the scoreline in the first period. Juuse Saros was attempting to push aside a puck that trickled in on him and his flicking of the puck went out to Dillon Simpson. After cradling the puck up Simpson maintained a shooting position while edging to the left wing before snapping a low wrister that beat Saros to the glove-side for his fourth goal of the season.

It wouldn’t take long into the second period for the Condors to rally back and earn their first lead of the game. Inside of three-minute of the frame the Condors caught the Admirals in a sloppy change that saw three different wingers from three different lines out defending a counter attack. Saros was able to fend off an initial chance but no one was on hand to prevent Philip McRae from scoring an easy tap-in for his ninth goal of the season that made it a 2-1 Condors lead.

Before you knew it the Condors raced down on an odd-man rush to tag Saros once again. The Condors had a three-on-two break that stayed along the right wing and slot with McRae dropping a puck off for Josh Currie who smacked a hard shot that surprised Saros to the glove-side to make it a 3-1 Condors advantage. The goal for Currie was his ninth of the season.

“Crazy game there,” said Juuse Saros. “Of course not a nice game for me neither but [expletive] happens.”

In the final minute of the second period the Admirals managed to unleash Max Reinhart on a breakaway to get the game back within a one-goal deficit. Reinhart had a breakaway earlier in the period as he came out of the penalty box. He was hauled down on the play before he could get a shot away and no call was made on that shorthanded breakaway opportunity. He did on the second crack which was all set up superbly by Jamie Devane at the Admirals blueline to send Reinhart free from a pack of players around the Admirals center ice logo. From there, Reinhart held and whipped a backhanded shot that beat Brossoit near-post glove-side for his twenty-third goal of the season.

Another odd-man rush for the Condors came in the middle stages of the third period and, once more, Saros was beaten low glove. Currie’s second goal of the night came while maintaining good puck control whilst dealing with the pressure of Patrick Mullen. As Mullen yielded some space Currie slid off to the left wing, bettered his shooting angle, and ripped in his tenth goal of the season to make it a 4-2 Condors lead.

After a delay of game penalty against Mullen the Condors tacked on a power-play goal to take a 5-2 advantage. A slap shot by Brad Hunt was deflected in front of Saros by Matthew Ford that banked into the roof of the net for Ford’s team leading twenty-seventh goal of the season.

“We were very complacent tonight,” said Evason. “It’s the first time in a long time that we expected to do well as opposed to going out and working for our result. We’ll address it, clearly. We did and we will again in the morning. We certainly can’t have that complacency at this point. You just hope that it’s the one game and we go forward.”

The loss in net for Saros was his first in over a month’s time. He had entered the game having won his last eight straight starts. Tonight he stopped 28/33 shots on goal in the loss.

Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals last played on Tuesday night there have been no roster moves made throughout the organization. Tonight’s line combinations were: Reinhart-Gaudreau-Åberg, Fiala-Kamenev-Payerl, White-Girard-Görtz, AJ-Pendenza-Devane, Oligny-Potter, Näkyvä-Elliott, Murphy-Mullen. Tonight’s scratches were: Jack Dougherty (healthy), Cody Hodgson (upper-body), Taylor Aronson (personal reasons), Anthony Richard (lower-body), Aaron Irving (healthy), and Johan Alm (lower-body). The attendance of tonight’s game was 11,827. The Rockford IceHogs defeated the Grand Rapids Griffins 4-0 tonight in Rockford to take sole possession of third place of the Central Division. The two teams entered the night tied for third place with the Griffins holding the tiebreaker over the IceHogs.

What are your reactions to tonight’s game? Was this loss just a long time coming? Can you tip your cap to the Condors or were those defensive lapses of the Admirals in the second period a real back breaker?

Be sure to keep updated with Admirals Roundtable through social media platform of your choice: follow along Twitter, like us on Facebook, get photo updates on Instagram, and listen along on SoundCloud.

Scouting April 15, 2016April 15, 2016

Condors: Scouting the Enemy

Tonight is a slight ending of an era. The Milwaukee Admirals are playing their final regular season game at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. There will still be playoff hockey and, hopefully, many more home games to come. Yet, this is the regular season finale of the Admirals home for the last 28 seasons of hockey. If there were ever a night where you can really let those feelings bleed out it should be tonight. The playoffs are emotional enough as it is without the reminder that the building that the Pettits placed downtown with pro hockey in mind isn’t going to be around much longer.

~Bradley Center By The Numbers~

So, what of the Admirals and the Bradley Center itself? There are many facts, figures, and notes that are worth having as you enter the building for the last regular season game.

The Admirals record at the Bradley Center is 634-357-17-32-73 from 1,112 games. Their playoff record is 48-49 from 97 playoff games. As of the Admirals last home game the total attendance at the Bradley Center is 7,784,884. The first ever Admirals game took place on October 2, 1988 with the Admirals losing a 5-4 exhibition contest against Team Canada. The first official regular season game happened on Friday, October 7, 1988 against the Salt Lake Golden Eagles which ended with a 6-5 Admirals win under the watch of head coach Rick Ley.

Who were the Admirals individual leaders at the Bradley Center? Games Played: Mike McNeill, 442 (1992-98)… Points: Tony Hrkac, 320 (1994-97, 2003-05)… Goals: Gino Cavallini, 139 (1993-96)… Penalty Minutes: Ken Sabourin, 1233 (1993-98).

~Playoff House Keeping~

Before getting further into tonight’s game specifically let’s address the developments of last night in the AHL. The Lake Erie Monsters beat the Charlotte Checkers by a final score of 3-1. By doing that the Monsters elevated themselves in such a way that they cannot possibly fall to fourth place to become the Admirals opening round playoff opponent. This means it all comes down to the Grand Rapids Griffins and Rockford IceHogs who are currently tied for third place in the Central Division and actually play against each other tonight.

As a result, the Admirals were able to announce dates for the first two games of their opening round:

Lake Erie’s win tonight means the Ads first round playoff opponent has been narrowed to Grand Rapids or Rockford where there will be a 2-2-1 playoff format. The Admirals will host the first two games and the possible fifth game with the opening two games taking place next Friday and Saturday at 7pm.

~The Last Dance Partner~

As far as being titled the final regular season opponent for the Admirals at the Bradley Center goes there is something odd about it being someone such as the Bakersfield Condors. They aren’t a storied rival. They aren’t even a potential playoff opponent. Instead, they’re really just an irritated passenger kicking your backseat crying out for, “are we there yet, while waiting for their regular season’s curtain to drop.

The Condors enter tonight’s game with a record of 29-28-7-2 (67 points). Their 0.508 points percentage has them in fifth place of the Pacific Division and tenth place of the Western Conference standings. They have been eliminated from playoff contention as the last two remaining teams competing for the eighth and final playoff spot from the Western Conference comes down to the San Jose Barracuda (0.538) and Charlotte Checkers (0.533) in that flex spot of fourth in the Pacific Division.

As the Condors swoop into Milwaukee they do so on a slight high note having beaten the Stockton Heat on home ice by an electric 6-3 final scoreline. That being said, the Condors have been crawling to the finish line of the 2015-16 season in agony. They have 6 wins from their last 21 games. All that’s left in their regular season are a pair of road games against the Admirals and Griffins. So, it doesn’t get much better for them.

~Who What Now?~

The Condors leading scorer is Matthew Ford who has collected 49 points (26 goals, 23 assists) from 62 games.

Right behind Ford on the team’s scoring list for this season is actually someone no longer with their team, Andrew Miller. If you remember the Condors and Checkers actually got involved in something of an AHL trade that saw Miller get loaned for the rest of the season to the Checkers with noted fan of Admirals Roundtable Zach Boychuk loaned from the Checkers to the Condors for the rest of the season. This move has been a bit of a bust for both as neither has found the same level of form with their new clubs. Boychuk has accumulated 4 points (2 goals, 2 assists) in 14 games with the Condors and Miller has 5 points (3 goals, 2 assists) in 10 games.

In net the Condors have been given a boost thanks to the Oilers season being over. Laurent Brossoit was reassigned to the AHL after the completion of the NHL season. The 23-year old has done supremely well for himself this season and saw that rewarded with a two-year contract extension in late-February.

Brossoit’s season to date includes 29 games at the AHL level with the Condors where he has posted a 16-9-3-2 record with a 2.70 goals against average, 0.919 save percentage, and 3 shutouts. At the NHL level this season for the Oilers he hasn’t tasted that same level of success: 5 games played, 0-4-1 record, 3.60 goals against average, and a 0.873 save percentage.

~The Reinhart Family Reunion~

One thing that should be plenty of fun to watch tonight is how often there will be a brother against brother match-up on the ice. Max Reinhart will be going up against his younger brother Griffin Reinhart who plays as a defensemen in the Edmonton Oilers system. Griffin was a fourth overall draft selection of the New York Islanders at the 2012 NHL Draft but was traded to the Oilers for draft picks. He has split his debut season to the Oilers organization between the NHL and AHL in 2015-16: Oilers (NHL), 29 games, 1 point (0 goals, 1 assist), 20 penalty minutes, and a plus/minus rating of -6. Condors (AHL), 28 games, 10 points (2 goals, 8 assists), 16 penalty minutes, and a plus/minus rating of +2.

This will be the first time the two brothers have played against each other as professional hockey players. They did play junior hockey against one another eight times with Max and Griffin both playing in the WHL. Their first head-to-head in juniors came back on 10/19/10. Max that first season produced a 5 point night (3 goals, 2 assists) against Griffin on 1/12/11. They then both scored in the same game against one-another on 1/18/11. Then the two played against each other in the opening round of the 2012 WHL Playoffs where Griffin’s Edmonton Oil Kings swept Max’s Kootenay Ice. On 3/28/12 of that playoff series Sam Reinhart suited up for the Ice alongside Max playing against Griffin. Quite the hockey family, eh Paul Reinhart?

~About Yesterday~

I did get the chance to attend practice yesterday morning to get a further look at the Admirals ahead of this weekend’s games – I will be attending both tonight’s home game and the season finale on the road in Rockford. As far as how the line combinations looked it wasn’t anything new as far as the Admirals last game was concerned:

Reinhart-Gaudreau-Åberg
Fiala-Kamenev-Payerl
White-Girard-Görtz
(Richard) AJ-Pendenza-Devane

Oligny-Potter
Näkyvä-Elliott
Murphy-Mullen
(Irving-Dougherty)

Saros
Mazanec

It’s worth noting that those (located here) were not your go-to options during line drills. That meant A.J. White was favored to the likes of Anthony Richard who is currently nursing a lower-body injury at the moment. The two young guns on defense, Jack Dougherty and Aaron Irving, both paired together with Irving operating on the left-side and Dougherty to his stronger right-side. I get the impression both wouldn’t be tabbed to play seeing the main defensive nucleus is there just as it was when the Admirals defeated the Chicago Wolves 3-1 on Tuesday.

Other bits and bobs to discuss: Taylor Aronson has yet to rejoin the Admirals since the team cited personal reasons for his absence. Cody Hodgson, who has been out for the Admirals last 19-games, is also not with the team at the moment as he is seeing treatment for back spasms which have plagued him this season. Johan Alm, who has missed the Admirals last 22 games since injuring his right knee, is with the team but purely on-hand in a supporting role as he slowly rehabs his way back to full-fitness.

Expectations for tonight’s game? Do you feel like the Admirals should shake up the defense to allow for the newbies to log some ice time or would you prefer the Admirals main core of players keep motoring on en route to the playoffs?

News April 14, 2016

Vladislav Kamenev Suspended Two-Games by IIHF

(Photo Credit: Andre Ringuette // HHOF-IIHF Images)

I’m not sure why this process took as long as it did but the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has suspended Vladislav Kamenev for two-games in relation to his unsportsmanlike conduct major in the Gold Medal Game of the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championships. The suspension for the current center of the Milwaukee Admirals will be served during the 2017 IIHF World Championships.

Press Release via IIHF:

ZURICH – Russian forward Vladislav Kamenev has been suspended for two games due to unsportsmanlike conduct during the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship.

During the gold medal game between Russia and Finland after Finland had scored a 3-2 goal with 3:09 left in regulation time, team captain Kamenev was sent to the game officials in order to dispute a non-call. The referee instructed him to go back to the bench and when the referee skated away, the player followed him to continue his complaints and was given a 10-minute misconduct penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

When the referee ordered him to enter the penalty box, Kamenev hesitated to do so, again arguing with the referee. Then while entering the penalty box he crashed his stick so forcefully against the door jamb of the penalty box that the stick broke. After he had entered the penalty box he also slammed the broken stick downwards, injuring an off-ice official standing beside him who was trying to close the door of the penalty box. He then kicked the rest of his stick out of the penalty box onto the ice.

The referee assessed a 20-minute game misconduct penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct according to IIHF Rule 168.

The off-ice official suffered an open cut leaving a scar on his left hand and a hematoma that lasted about three weeks.

At the formal session conducted in Zurich, Kamenev, who currently plays for the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, was represented by the counsel of the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia, who argued that it was appropriate and customary for a team captain to discuss the non-call with the referee and the only way to talk to him was to follow him, therefore the 10-minute penalty was not warranted and provoked the regrettable behaviour.

However, according to IIHF Rule 28 vi, the player, even being the captain of the team, was not allowed to come off the players’ bench and discuss with the referee about how he was conducting the game unless requested to do so by an on-ice official. According to the rule the player shall get a warning and with a second incident a 10-minute misconduct penalty no matter whether profane language or gestures were used as the referee reported and the player denied. The penalty is justified in any case by IIHF Rule 116 iii.4.

Also the second penalty after the incident at the penalty box was correct and justified by IIHF Rule 116 iii.5. A second misconduct penalty becomes an automatic 20-minute game misconduct penalty according to IIHF Rule 107 ii.

The Deciding Panel of the IIHF Disciplinary Board is of the opinion that the game misconduct penalty is not adequate enough to sanction the agitated behaviour of the player as the aggressive behaviour he unmistakably expressed made his actions a more serious case that showed a flagrant disregard of the rules.

As captain of the team he should have acted in an exemplary manner. Neither his youth nor the alleged lack of experience nor the importance of the game can count as mitigating factors. The IIHF World Junior Championship is one of the most important international competitions. Therefore players taking part must meet the demands of such a competition and it can be expected that the players are adequately educated and able to deal with such situations.

The Panel rejects the player’s counsel’s contention that the actions were provoked by the referee’s unjustifiable actions. In the contrary, the incident was caused by the refusal of the player to listen to the referee’s decisions and the lack of respect toward the referee.

Smashing the broken stick furiously downward, injuring an off-ice official due to significantly negligently action and then kicking the broken stick out of the box onto the ice must be judged as a highly inconsiderate, uncontrolled and reckless action showing a degree of lack of sportsmanship and self-control that cannot be tolerated.

Therefore Kamenev has been suspended for his actions for two games. The suspension will be served during the 2017 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship as outlined in the IIHF Disciplinary Code 10.5.2.

The decision may be appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport within 21 days.

That press release paints about as rough of a picture of the incident as it can against Kamenev. To plunge more into the “how did it escalate up to that point” of the matter you have to run back to when the infraction took place on 1/5/16. My summary of that game, and the incident, read like this:

What becomes so sad about Kamenev’s time in the 2016 World Juniors is how it ended, literally. After being able to thwart Team USA in the semi-finals the Russians squared off against the host country Finland in the goal medal game. Kamenev scored a howitzer of a one-timed slap shot on the power-play to put Russia out in front 1-0 in the first period. From there, Finland was all-over Russia and poured on pressure upon pressure with the Finns looking certain to crack Russia’s defense. It wasn’t a matter of it it only felt like a matter of when. The game was tied 2-2 until a power-play goal from Mikko Rantanen with 2:09 remaining in regulation appeared to give Finland a certain win. That’s when things went ugly.

After the power-play goal for Finland was scored to give them a 3-2 lead with 2:09 remaining in the game it was apparent that Kamenev was very unhappy with the referees in regards to something. Was it the amount of power-plays going the way to Finland? Was it something that occurred to him that wasn’t called as he was penalty killing? We might not know unless someone speaks out about it but whatever was said between Kamenev and the officials led to him being slapped with a misconduct penalty. Enraged by getting a misconduct, Kamenev skated over to the penalty box and broke his stick at the door in disgust. As he entered the box he was attempting to throw what was left of his stick at the ground. When he was winding up to spike it a penalty box judge was stepping up from behind him and Kamenev’s stick smacked his clipboard out of his hands. It looked bad. It was bad. But the real damage was already done the moment Kamenev shattered his stick at the penalty box door. His misconduct penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct was accompanied by a game misconduct and he was ejected from the game.

It clearly was a wrongful act. No defending that. But I still relate to the human element of the matter in which a 19-year old, under a massive microscope, let the emotions of the moment overwhelm himself. It cost himself a chance to finish what could be the biggest game of his career to this point off and did end up having Team Russia lose the Gold Medal to the host nation Finland in overtime. There are many human elements to this one mistake of judgement made by Kamenev. The press release from the IIHF makes him out to be a savage hot head who left the bench to throw a temper tantrum. Kamenev was on the ice working the penalty kill when Finland scored to take a late lead after which he was clearly upset about a call made on the ice. He then was slapped with a misconduct for disputing the call. That sent an already bitter moment into a rage. It doesn’t make it right but it also doesn’t make the IIHF’s portrayal of him accurate, either.

Chatterbox April 13, 2016April 13, 2016

Chatterbox, Vol. 124

The Milwaukee Admirals 3-1 win over the Chicago Wolves last night was another performance in a train of resilient efforts. Once again, it wasn’t the prettiest of games played by the Admirals to start the contest but they managed to refine and adapt to what the game is giving them before taking control.

So much of this now franchise record tying thirteen-game point streak can be said, game by game, with that last sentence in mind. It’s with that where I say individually the games haven’t impressed me too much but the ability to do it again, and again, and again – is nothing short of phenomenal. Nothing seems to really throw this Admirals team off at the moment. And what a time to be creating that characteristic.

There are only two-games remaining in the Admirals regular season. They have the Bakersfield Condors at home on Friday night and then get to play their currently prospective first round opponent in the playoffs, the Rockford IceHogs, on the road Saturday night. The Admirals right now have a record of 48-21-3-2 (101 points) for a 0.682 points percentage. It’s the first time since the 2010-11 season that the Admirals have eclipsed 100 points in a regular season campaign. That same season was also the last time the Admirals had earned a divisional title. With one more victory the Admirals will match their AHL franchise record for wins in a season with 49 wins which took place during the 2005-06 and 2008-09 seasons. Both of those seasons were played in an 80 game schedule as opposed to today’s 76 game schedule. What you’re watching this Admirals team do right now is cement itself as the best Admirals team, on points percentage, in the AHL history of the franchise.

~Hunting the Reign’s Reign~

I’ve spoken before about what’s left for the Admirals to play for. Quite honestly there isn’t anything there but the desperate hope that the Ontario Reign slip up in their final two games of the season where they’ll play the San Diego Gulls on the road in both contests. Thanks to points percentage, and the eight-games lesser schedule for the Reign, any loss or failed point can make a dent on their points percentage.

If the Reign lose both of their last two games in regulation they drop to a 0.669 points percentage. An overtime or shootout loss and a regulation loss moves them to 0.676 points percentage. A win and a loss, or consecutive overtime or shootout defeats, would see them move to a 0.684 points percentage. A win and any form of a loss past regulation moves them to 0.691 points percentage. Two wins vaults them to a 0.699 points percentage.

The best the Admirals can achieve, by winning out their regular season and becoming the first Admirals team in their AHL history to secure 50 wins in a regular season, is a 0.691 points percentage. Should the Admirals and Reign tie on points percentage the tiebreaker rules are as follows:

Between two teams:
a) percentage of games won (excluding shootout wins)
b) points in season series between teams
c) goal differential
d) goals scored in season series between teams
e) intra-conference points percentage

Consider that very first tiebreaker a death blow because the Reign’s 43 wins this season have all come in regulation while the Admirals now currently stand at 41 games. For both two have been tied at 0.691 points percentage would mean the Admirals sitting at 43 ROW from a higher games played total. Even if the Reign won that one game needed to get to that equal playing field 0.691 mark in overtime or a shootout their 43 ROW from their eight-games lesser schedule makes that percentage of games won excluding shootout wins a dagger.

That means what you should be pulling for is 0.684, 0.676, or 0.669 points percentage. In short, start rooting for the Gulls if you want to see this year’s Admirals team taking home the best record in the Western Conference. The Reign are great but the Gulls aren’t slouches either. The Gulls’ 0.621 points percentage is better than that of the Grand Rapids Griffins right now. All they need to do is thwart the team with the best road record in the Western Conference is all.

For all that I just said. For all the numbers crunching and repeated use of the term points percentage. Here’s the catch that I feel it is worth stating. The Admirals don’t gain anything by beating out the Reign as the team with the best record in the Western Conference at the end of the regular season. They aren’t battling against the Reign to get the right to play against the lowly eighth seed of the Western Conference come season’s end. No matter what happens the Admirals will still be playing their first round of the playoffs against the fourth seed of the Central Division. It would simply be a nice bonus or something to put on a banner when the Admirals move over into the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

As you’ll hear head coach Dean Evason state it’s really not about looking too far ahead as much as it is simply tomorrow for the Admirals. Simply put: if having the best record in the Western Conference at season’s end happens it happens. If it doesn’t, the team’s focus hasn’t changed because they’re all set firmly on the next day and opponent in front of them. To me, I’d much prefer to have the Admirals sights set on the here and now rather than pretentious scoreboard watching while playing games of “what if?” Instead this team is doing what the Nashville Predators are wanting them to do which is being groomed for playoff caliber hockey at the professional level. Focus on the here and now. That’s what’s important. If that gets taken care of other little treats, such as divisional titles, fall into place. The main goal is the 2016 Calder Cup. That isn’t where the eyes are now though. The Admirals have today off and are looking to the Condors for Friday night’s game. One item at a time. One day at a time. The results are speaking for themselves with this philosophy.

~Chatterbox~

After last night’s game I not only had the chance to catch up with Mr. Evason but I also chatted with Max Reinhart, Frédérick Gaudreau, and Max Görtz. It’s worth noting that two cameos were made during Gaudreau’s interview. Pontus Åberg gave a walk by so I name dropped him as a result and then Vladislav Kamenev made his Chatterbox debut by silently dropping an interview bomb. Poor Gaudreau.

In the media group for this session was Dave Boehler of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Jimmy Carlton of OnMilwaukee.com.

Comments from the comments? What are your impressions of this point streak by the Admirals? Any concerns from you that the Admirals might be peaking before the playoffs or are they getting hot at the right time?

Game Recaps April 12, 2016April 12, 2016

Ads Match Franchise Record Point Streak; Win 3-1

The Milwaukee Admirals won 3-1 against the Chicago Wolves Tuesday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

The Admirals point streak has now reached thirteen games which ties a franchise record that was set during the 1992-93 season. During this run the Admirals have a record of 11-0-0-2 and have won their last seven games straight. This closes out the Amtrak Rivalry this season in which the Admirals claimed the Amtrak Trophy by holding a 9-3-0-0 record over the Wolves.

“We’ve been resilient,” commented Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason in regards to the team’s current run. “Some nights we haven’t had our best and we’ve played a lot of tough games to play where teams are playing really loose and really hard. And we’ve been challenged. That’s good. We’ve been able to find ways, different ways, to win hockey games and clearly that’s a good sign.”

It wouldn’t be until the second period for this game to see the opening goal. Pontus Åberg picked up a puck in neutral ice and proceeded to carve from center to the right wing on zone entry where he hit Max Reinhart clean with a beauty of a saucer pass to give his closest competitor for the team lead in goals another tally. Reinhart’s goal was his twenty-second of the season which sets a career high for him in the AHL. His previous career best came as a member of the Abbotsford Heat in the 2013-14 season when he scored twenty-one goals.

“It’s good to get career highs,” said Max Reinhart. “It’s obviously a good season for me goal scoring-wise but that’s not something I’m looking forward to. One of my goals in the season is to help teams win and that’s what we’re doing right now.”

Following two quick penalties the Admirals were forced to endure a five-on-three penalty kill of 1:51 in length. After a quick cycle in front of Juuse Saros the Wolves were able to go from Ivan Barbashyov in the low right wing to a tap in from Danny Kristo in the slot that slid underneath the Admirals netminder. The goal for Kristo was his twenty-third scored this season.

With 4:32 remaining in regulation Jordan Schmaltz was called for tripping to give the Admirals their fifth chance on the power-play where they had yet to make a dent. All that went down was Kevin Fiala feeding Trevor Murphy at the top of the blueline where the Ads defenseman unleashed a howitzer of a slap shot that beat Jordan Binnington glove-side for his eleventh goal of the season.

“Obviously [Trevor Murphy] shoots the puck as well as anybody,” said Evason. “You score goals from the top like that on a goalie in pro hockey the puck is moving. That puck was moving.”

The Wolves went empty net and extra attacker with 1:54 remaining in regulation and burned their timeout with 47.6 seconds remaining. As time was expiring Patrick Mullen was able to launch a shot from the Admirals own blueline to score into the empty net for his third goal of the season.

Saros was once again up to his now usual tricks. He stopped 28/29 shots on goal to record his twenty-ninth win of the season. He has won his last eight starts consecutively.

Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals last played a massive amount of roster activity took place. The Nashville Predators assigned Marek Mazanec, Corey Potter, and Anthony Richard to the Admirals. The Admirals then reassigned Brandon Whitney to the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) and signed defenseman Aaron Irving to an amateur try-out contract. Also in the news is the notable absence of defenseman Taylor Aronson who has left the team for the time being due to personal reasons. Tonight’s line combinations were: Reinhart-Gaudreau-Åberg, Fiala-Kamenev-Payerl, White-Girard-Görtz. AJ-Pendenza-Devane, Oligny-Potter, Näkyvä-Elliott, Murphy-Mullen. Tonight’s scratches were: Jack Dougherty (healthy), Cody Hodgson (upper-body), Anthony Richard (lower-body), Aaron Irving (healthy), and Johan Alm (lower-body).

Thoughts on tonight’s game? How impressive were the Admirals in finishing this game tonight?

Scouting April 12, 2016April 12, 2016

Wolves: Scouting the Enemy

When thinking about tonight’s game, and really the remaining games, it might well feel like there isn’t much to play for anymore. The Milwaukee Admirals clinched the Central Division on Sunday and have three games left in the regular season. There are a lot of new names being kicked into the system and playing time is there to be afforded to allow for the newbies to get a run out. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t something to play for.

When looking at the new names that the Admirals have seen introduced recently you’re seeing players that as seeking to seize an opportunity and test themselves. A.J. White, Jack Dougherty, Anthony Richard, and Aaron Irving all have the chance to make solid early impressions as newly christened professional hockey players. While the Admirals may have been fighting, as a team, for their placement in the standings the individual aspect of moving to the next level spills into exactly what these youngsters will be providing in the coming games.

Tonight’s game against the Chicago Wolves marks the last Amtrak Rivalry contest of the season. It’s also the final meeting between these two teams at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Regardless of how different these two teams’ 2015-16 seasons there is still much to play for. For the Admirals they’ll be looking to keep this incredible momentum storming forward as they return to the playoffs after a season removed for playoff hockey. For the Wolves there will be plenty of individuals looking to treat each game like a job interview. One of those aspects is eyes looking forward. Another of those aspects is on the here and now. This game shouldn’t be taken lightly.

~Amtrak Rivals~

The Wolves enter tonight’s game with a record of 31-34-5-3 (70 points). Their 0.479 points percentage has them in sixth place of the Central Division and thirteenth place in the Western Conference standings. The lone two teams separating the Wolves from the bottom of both categories are the Manitoba Moose (0.399) and Iowa Wild (0.397).

It’s been incredible following the Wolves this season but incredible for all the wrong reasons. Their 2015-16 season reminds me of the 2014-15 season of the Admirals. All the right pieces are there. They just can’t get the consistent results. The Wolves have gone from a team that had a goal differential of +12 a season ago to that of -35 this season with three-games remaining. It’s almost beyond belief that they’ve fallen backwards so hard.

This season the Wolves will not be featuring in the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-13 season. At that time they were the AHL affiliate to the Vancouver Canucks but it’s worth noting their then iteration the Peoria Rivermen, as these Wolves are affiliates to the St. Louis Blues, also missed the playoffs. That Rivermen team of 2012-13 lost 35 games in regulation from 76 games. If the Wolves lose tonight in regulation they match that.

~Who What Now?~

The Wolves leading scorer this season is team captain Pat Cannone who has managed to enjoy a career season despite all the woes for the team. In 71 games he has produced 50 points (20 goals, 30 assists) and is one of the few players having logged more than half the Wolves game played this season to have a positive plus/minus rating.

It might be unfair to point fingers at anyone specific individual but, if there was any one player I feel sums up the Wolves struggles this season, it would be Ty Rattie. This is Rattie’s third season of AHL hockey. In that time he hasn’t improved he has actually regressed. Take a look:

Rattie, 2013-14: 48 points (31 goals, 17 assists) in 72 games while averaging 2.9 shots on goal per game… Rattie, 2014-15: 42 points (21 goals, 21 assists) in 59 games while averaging 3.3 shots on goal per game… Rattie, 2015-16: 43 points (15 goals, 28 assists) in 59 games while averaging 2.5 shots on goal per game…

For awhile it always felt like Rattie was the igniter to the Wolves offense. Now he takes less shots with less finishes to his shots on goal. Despite his drop in performance, and his lack of explosiveness, he is still third on the Wolves in scoring. A struggling and faltering sniper is still third on the Wolves in scoring. That just about sums up their offensive struggles to me.

In net the Wolves feature Pheonix Copley and Jordan Binnington. The man with the most appearances for the Wolves was the man who had the Admirals number all last season, Binnington.

The follow-up to a great first full season to the AHL for Binnington hasn’t been matched to say the least. In 2014-15 Binnington had 25 wins from 45 appearances with a 2.35 goals against average, 0.916 save percentage, and 3 shutouts. This season he has more losses than wins (16-17-5-3 record) in 39 appearances with a 2.89 goals against average, 0.905 save percentage, and a single shutout.

Copley’s play alongside Binnington on the Wolves has also seen a drastic drop off from last season to this season. As a member of the Hershey Bears in the Washington Capitals organization Copley posted a 17-4-3-1 record from 26 appearances in 2014-15 with a 2.17 goals against average, 0.925 save percentage, and 3 shutouts. He also had a strong playoff run for the Bears by winning 3 games from 5 appearances with a 1.83 goals against average and 0.946 save percentage. As part of the Wolves this season Copley’s numbers have fallen off largely: 14-16-3-0 record from 36 appearances, 2.82 goals against average, 0.907 save percentage, and 3 shutouts.

~Head To Head~

The Admirals secured the Amtrak Trophy earlier this season and lead the season series with a record of 8-3-0-0. This season the Amtrak Rivalry has only had two-games spill past regulation. In those games the Admirals won both times, once in overtime and another in a shootout. The Admirals have won the last four-games straight in the season series.

As far as the head-to-head scoring goes the top scorer in this year’s Amtrak Rivalry is none other than Mr. Rattie of the Wolves who has scored 11 points (5 goals, 6 assists) in 9 games. That’s quite impressive to consider he has scored one-third of his goals this season against the Admirals.

The other side of that coin sees two Admirals tied for the top slot on scoring against the Wolves. Max Reinhart has 9 points (7 goals, 2 assists) from 11 games. Kevin Fiala has 9 points (5 goals, 4 assists) from 10 games.

In net, Juuse Saros has won 6 games from 8 appearances against the Wolves but it has been Marek Mazanec with the better numbers in the Amtrak Rivalry this season. Mazanec has appeared in 3 games against the Wolves this season and has a 1.34 goals against average with a 0.951 save percentage.

~Pre-Game Interviews~

This morning I raced in, braved all the nasty road construction around the ol’ barn, and got some pre-game interviews from morning skate. Hear from head coach Dean Evason as well as the two newbies on defense Jack Dougherty and Aaron Irving.

Some notes from morning skate: Taylor Aronson is not with the team as he is out due to personal reasons at the moment. Both Dougherty and Irving, as well as forward Anthony Richard, are not going to play in tonight’s game. Richard is nursing a leg injury right now and the hope is to see him get a game at some point. A.J. White will return to the Admirals lineup after having sat out as a healthy scratch the last three-games. He will be placed on the wing of former linemate at UMass-Lowell Joe Pendenza tonight.

Expectations for tonight’s game? Can the Admirals twelve-game point streak continue? There are a lot of names potentially making their debut to the Milwaukee ice. Who excites you the most?

News April 11, 2016

Admirals Sign Aaron Irving to ATO Contract

The roster news today keeps on rolling in as the Milwaukee Admirals have announced that they have signed defenseman Aaron Irving to an ATO contract. Irving was selected by the Nashville Predators in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Draft. Irving is now the fourth member of that draft class on the Admirals roster alongside Kevin Fiala, Vladislav Kamenev, and Jack Dougherty. He joins Anthony Richard, Marek Mazanec, and Corey Potter as part of the team’s roster moves today.

Press Release via Milwaukee Admirals:

Milwaukee— Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has assigned defenseman Corey Potter, goaltender Marek Mazanec and forward Anthony Richard to Milwaukee. In addition, the Admirals have signed defenseman Aaron Irving to an Amateur Try-Out Contract (ATO) and reassigned goalie Brandon Whitney to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL.

Potter played in his first game with the Predators in their 3-2 loss to Dallas last Saturday night. He has three assists in 16 games for the Admirals since joining the Nashville organization at the Trade Deadline, helping them to a 12-2-2 record in that span. In 77 total AHL contests this season with Milwaukee and Springfield, the 6-foot-3, 205-pound native of Lansing, Michigan has 20 points (5g-15a). Potter also has 130 NHL games to his credit with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh, Edmonton, Boston and Calgary since 2008-09, posting 32 points (8g-24a). A fourth-round selection (122nd overall) of the Edmonton Oilers in the 2003 Entry Draft, Potter spent four seasons at Michigan State University from 2002-06. He won gold medals with Team USA at the 2002 Under-18 World Championship and the 2004 World Junior Championship.

Mazanec, who backed up Carter Hutton in the Preds season finale last Saturday, has posted a 19-14-5 record with four shutouts (tied for sixth in the AHL), a 2.33 goals-against average (eighth) and a .916 save percentage in his third season in North America in 2015-16. The 6-foot-4, 202-pound native of Pisek, Czech Republic has appeared in 27 career NHL games since 2013-14, and was named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for November 2013 after going 5-4-1 with two shutouts, a 2.00 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage. Mazanec was Nashville’s ninth choice, 179th overall (sixth round), in the 2012 Entry Draft, and catches with his right hand; only five of 91 goalies to appear in the NHL this season do so.

Richard recently completed his fourth QMJHL season with Val-d’Or, tying for 11th in league points (25g-36a-61pts), ranking 12th in assists and tying for 14th in goals despite missing the final three weeks of the regular season due to injury. The Trois-Rivieres, Quebec native also tied for the league lead in shorthanded points (5g-3a-8pts), ranked second in game-winning goals (8) and third in shorthanded goals. A season ago, Nashville’s third choice, 100th overall (fourth round), in the 2015 Entry Draft ranked eighth in the QMJHL in goals (43) and tied for eighth in league points, then tied for third in the 2015 QMJHL Playoffs in goals (12) and ranked ninth in postseason points (22) as the Foreurs advanced to the league semifinals. In his first full season with Val-d’Or in 2013-14, he helped the club win the 2014 President’s Cup and advance to the Memorial Cup, ranking fourth on the team and tying for seventh among all skaters in postseason goals (10).

Irving recently completed his season with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL where he finished second among team defenseman and fourth overall with 40 points (9g-31a). The Predators sixth round pick in the 2014 NHL Draft has spent the parts of the past four seasons with the Oil Kings, accumulating 83 points on 24 goals and 59 assists to go along with 240 penalty minutes in 205 games. The Edmonton, Alberta, native put up 30 points (9g-21a) in 63 games for the Oil Kings in 2013-14 and helped them win their first Memorial Cup in franchise history.

The Admirals begin the final week of the regular season when they host the Chicago Wolves on Tuesday night at 7 pm in Amtrak Rivalry Action at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Tickets for any Ads game can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Groups of ten or more can receive great discounts over single game prices. Those interested in booking a group can call the Admirals office at (414) 227-0550.
Remember to follow the Admirals on Twitter (@mkeadmirals) and like us on Facebook.

It’s worth noting that, unlike Richard, Irving has yet to sign his entry-level contract with the Predators. This signing is an amateur try-out contract. It’s not to say the Predators won’t be penning the 20-year old defenseman to that ELC deal in the near future but just worth pointing out.

Irving just finished up his third full-season with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL where he enjoyed his best season of junior hockey. In 72 games he produced 40 points (9 goals, 31 assists). During his WHL career he has logged 205 games, all with the Oil Kings, and scored 83 points (24 goals, 59 assists).

News April 11, 2016

Mazanec and Potter Returning to the Admirals

After a quick cup of coffee both Marek Mazanec and Corey Potter have been reassigned by the Nashville Predators to the Milwaukee Admirals.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (April 11, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Monday that the club has reassigned defenseman Corey Potter and goaltender Marek Mazanec to Milwaukee.

The Nashville Predators open the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs on the road on Friday, April 15 against the Anaheim Ducks for Game One of the seven-game series (9:30 p.m. CT). The series shifts to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville for Game Three on Tuesday, April 19 at 8:30 p.m. CT and Game Four on Thursday, April 21, at 7 p.m. CT. Limited tickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting NashvillePredators.com.

Potter managed to suit up and make his Predators debut in their regular season finale on Saturday night. The Predators lost 3-2 on the road to the Dallas Stars but Potter registered 19 shifts which amounted for 14:44 of ice-time. The Predators became Potter’s sixth career NHL team that he played for. As for Mazanec, the Czech goaltender spent his second game with the Predators this season sitting on the bench.

News April 11, 2016

Anthony Richard Assigned to Milwaukee

Val-d'Or Foreurs Anthony Richard celebrates his game winning goal on Edmonton Oil Kings goalie Tristan Jarry during second overtime period Memorial Cup hockey action in London, Ont., Tuesday, May 20, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Dave Chidley — (Photo Credit: Dave Chidley)

The Milwaukee Admirals have yet another teenage prospect joining the ranks. The Nashville Predators have assigned Anthony Richard to the Admirals ahead of tomorrow night’s home game against the Chicago Wolves.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (April 11, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Monday that the club has assigned forward Anthony Richard to Milwaukee (AHL).

Richard, 19 (12/20/96), recently completed his fourth QMJHL season with Val-d’Or, tying for 11th in league points (25g-36a-61pts), ranking 12th in assists and tying for 14th in goals despite missing the final three weeks of the regular season due to injury. The Trois-Rivieres, Quebec native also tied for the league lead in shorthanded points (5g-3a-8pts), ranked second in game-winning goals (8) and third in shorthanded goals. A season ago, Nashville’s third choice, 100th overall (fourth round), in the 2015 Entry Draft ranked eighth in the QMJHL in goals (43) and tied for eighth in league points, then tied for third in the 2015 QMJHL Playoffs in goals (12) and ranked ninth in postseason points (22) as the Foreurs advanced to the league semifinals. In his first full season with Val-d’Or in 2013-14, he helped the club win the 2014 President’s Cup and advance to the Memorial Cup, ranking fourth on the team and tying for seventh among all skaters in postseason goals (10).

The Nashville Predators open the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs on the road on Friday, April 15 against the Anaheim Ducks for Game One of the seven-game series (9:30 p.m. CT). The series shifts to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville for Game Three on Tuesday, April 19 at 8:30 p.m. CT and Game Four on Thursday, April 21, at 7 p.m. CT. Limited tickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting NashvillePredators.com.

Richard was drafted by the Predators in the fourth round of the 2015 NHL Draft. He is the first member of the Predators 2015 Draft Class to play pro hockey and is coming off of a junior playing season with the Val-d’Or Foreurs (QMJHL) in which he scored 87 points (37 goals, 50 assists) in 58 games with a plus/minus rating of +28 and 37 penalty minutes. In his four-seasons playing in the QMJHL he amassed 238 points (111 goals, 127 assists) in 232 games.

News April 10, 2016

Admirals Clinch 2015-16 Central Division Title

After winning 4-2 this afternoon all the Milwaukee Admirals needed was a little bit of help tonight from the Rochester Americans. The Lake Erie Monsters were the last remaining team capable of matching the Admirals for the Central Division title but needed to win out for the rest of the season to do so with the Admirals not securing a single point from their next three games. The Americans shutout the Monsters 2-0. The Admirals have just been crowned the Central Division Champions for the 2015-16 season.

This is the first divisional title for the Milwaukee Admirals since they claimed the West Division in the 2010-11 season. That was back when the AHL held an 80 games regular season and the Admirals finished with a record of 44-22-6-8 (102 points). It wasn’t a thing needed to determine the who and what of the standings at the time but that season the Admirals had a 0.638 point percentage. The Admirals 2015-16 season features a 76 game regular season and, through 73 games played, they have a record of 47-21-3-2 (99 points) with a 0.678 points percentage.

To put it simply, this year’s Admirals team has been so special in the way that they have been consistent in earning results no matter who was featured in the lineup. It is a rare trait to have in the AHL but one required of a team to have this high level of success. The Admirals might not have certain individuals high up in the league scoring ranks but instead have a solid team with multiple players capable of contributing at any given attack.

The current run that the Admirals find themselves on sort of speaks to the strength of how good the team has been this season. They are currently on a twelve game point streak and a six game winning streak. That hasn’t come with necessarily any single player carrying the team but the team being able to cement their dominance over a full course of sixty-minutes night after night.

As far as what is left to play for the Admirals do still have a chance to knock off the Ontario Reign for the best record in the entire Western Conference. The Admirals 0.678 points percentage is lesser than that of the Reign’s 0.689. It will take some help with more Admirals success. The Reign have two more games remaining in their regular season while the Admirals have three. The Admirals also have a chance to win 50 games in a season for the first time in their history of playing in the AHL. They simply would need to win out and push this point streak and winning streak all the way until the playoffs.

The Admirals return home on Tuesday night to play against the Chicago Wolves and then get the Bakersfield Condors on Friday night in the last regular season Admirals game at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. They finish the regular season on the road against their prospective opening round playoff opponent the Rockford IceHogs on Saturday.

News & Discussion Site For Your Milwaukee Admirals