This season started with a bang for the Milwaukee Admirals. They sat atop the Midwest Division ahead of the Rockford IceHogs before plummeting as far as fourth during their rough patch in December. Well, happy Saturday morning everybody, the Admirals are back in first place with the tie-break putting the team ahead of the IceHogs.

Tonight, tomorrow, and even Wednesday night are all key games for the Admirals as a way to not only break that tie with the IceHogs but start building a gap in the standings. Rockford will be stationary after tonight’s clash in their own barn and won’t play again until visiting Milwaukee next Friday. The time is now to strike and head-to-head results such as last night are huge. Build now. Take the pressure off when the playoff crunch really takes hold.

~About Last Night~

Before going into the audio portion let’s take a look into last night’s game to set the stage for tonight.

Michael Leighton allowed three goals to the Admirals last night. It was the most goals that he had allowed since Dec. 16th against the Iowa Wild when he allowed four goals. Ever since was clicking at a pace of two goals allowed or less.

While the Admirals power-play may have only gone one-of-six from the game… they still generated six power-plays in the first place. Rockford took plenty of poor penalties that, even though their penalty kill bailed them out, really stunted their ability to get their game rolling.

As the frustration started to boil over the IceHogs began engaging post-whistle scrums late in the game – including after the final horn. Whether or not that means haymakers will be thrown early tonight is beyond me. Last night was the second successive game played between the Admirals and IceHogs to not have any fighting majors. Perhaps this feud has turned a new leaf? … That was written with sarcastic intent, believe me.

Speaking of chippy things that went on last night. My gut tells me that the AHL will probably be reviewing Garret Ross for his boarding incident. You always know that a hit is bad when the player that delivered it even displays instant grief that he did it. What Ross did was dangerous and could have easily been more than a two-minute minor for boarding. He clubbed Viktor Stålberg from behind and the Swede’s jaw nearly pelted off of the dasher boards in front of the Admirals bench. Should Ross survive with only the minor penalty he should consider himself lucky that Stalberg missed that dasher and therefore wasn’t injured on the play. If he did, he probably would have been tossed right then and there and be joining Brandon Mashinter on the IceHogs suspension list.

The Zach Budish effect continued last night. Sure, the Admirals lost the previous game he was involved in but it was a shootout loss. He still have earned a point in every game he has factored into this season and last night might have been his best all-around game that I’ve watched him play. He was moving really quick, took charge offensively, scored a goal, almost scored a shorthanded goal off of an Austin Watson lead saucer pass, and was among three other players who registered a game-high four shots on goal. #BelieveInBudish

After the game I had the pleasure to speak with an upbeat Admirals locker room. Inside the Chatterbox this time: Dean Evason, Kevin Fiala, Marek Mazanec, and Joe Piskula. Here is what they had to say following the win at home against the IceHogs.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 64” →

I don’t know about you guys, but last night’s 3-2 shootout loss for the Admirals was a really messy game to watch from start to finish. There’s been a few clunkers this season here and there but there was something really odd about watching them score twice in a period they were being outplayed in and then come out flat in the third period.

The start to the game was really good. Despite the first period ending scoreless I feel the Admirals did what they’ve been doing for the last month. They were tight and well structured defensively and allowed their defense to translate to offensive chances the other way. The result may not have impacted the scoreboard but they outshot the Lake Erie Monsters 13-10 and definitely outchanced them on high quality looks.

Where the game goes wrong is really from the second period to the conclusion. Sure, they scored twice in the second period but before they earned that first power-play they were lifeless and being outshot 8-1 in the period. You would think that generating those goals against the run of play would power through to the next period as far as momentum is concerned but the Monsters instantly snapped that by scoring a shorthanded goal – the second allowed by the Admirals all season. Then came a power-play tally to tie things up. And overtime ended with a penalty kill before a shootout decided things.

Not one of the best all around efforts of the season for the Admirals. Truth be told, I think it is actually a really good thing for the team. They still earned a point from a game and had enough positives to remain upbeat. There were negatives that need to be corrected and that will become a point of emphasis heading into the weekend three-in-three that starts with two blockbusters against the Midwest Division leading Rockford IceHogs. Motivation should be high. Kinks will be fixed. And the focus should be sharp for Friday night.

As for that “no goal” call that was made in overtime. I was able to sneak peek into the penalty box from my vantage point on press row to see what the referees were looking at. They were only focusing in on the over the top bird’s eye view camera. I saw finger pointing and some rewinds. From that look I don’t think you could even see the puck – which is black – as is our team’s shorts and partially our socks. In other words it was obscured from sight and I feel as if the no goal call was made because they had no legitimate sight of it. That is, unless they watched the replay shown on the jumbotron moments after the no goal call was made on the ice. That puck was so far across the goal line you could fit three of Rob Madore‘s rubber duckies between it and that goal line. Slight justice in the end then for the Monsters taking the shootout. As for them having that power-play late in overtime in the first place – that’s a whole different story that I’ll let our head coach talk about.

After the game I had the chance to speak with Dean Evason, Magnus Hellberg, Triston Grant, and Viktor Arvidsson. Here is what they all had to say following Tuesday night’s game.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 63” →

The Milwaukee Admirals franchise record nine-game winning streak came to a crashing halt last night at the hands of the Grand Rapids Griffins. It was a 3-0 shutout and a performance that lacked the level of quality that the Admirals were producing during their run. Was it all bad? No, not really. Still there were too many moments from the game that could have been avoided.

On the first goal that the Griffins scored Teemu Pulkkinen was in the penalty box waiting to be unleashed. He was. And the Admirals were far to passive with their puck control at the end of the power-play. Rather than keep the offensive cycle going the puck got jarred loose, sent up ice, and sent the Griffins off on a two-on-one. Pulkkinen threaded his pass by Taylor Aronson to Mitch Callahan, goal.

While the second tally might be off a rebound. It’s still something that could have been avoided. Colton Sissons, Viktor Stålberg, and Aronson were both playing to the puck along the left wing wall too tight and exposed Landon Ferraro between the hashmarks. Nathan Paetsch‘s point shot may have kicked out to Ferraro but, with no one to close him down, he had no pressure on him to whack in the rebound chance that he had. He was all alone.

The third goal was an all-around mess highlighted by a good individual effort by Tomas Nosek. Joe Piskula‘s pass out of the defensive zone was batted down by Mark Zengerle and trickled to Nosek who made a hard skate in off the right wing across the mouth of goal before pushing a shot on net to the blocker side of Magnus Hellberg. The puck found a way underneath him and was screaming to be put out of its misery – to which Zengerle obliged. A breakout play. A clearing attempt. Whatever you could call it. Piskula wasn’t able to direct the puck up ice in a way that took pressure off. Instead, he invited it right back in.

That was all the bad. I feel lost in the result there were some good things done it’s just that they didn’t impact the scoreboard. Brendan Leipsic, Viktor Arvidsson, Sissons, and even Hellberg in net all had really good performances. There were lots of scoring chances that were wired together but they never had the quality finish to beat a white hot Jared Coreau in net.

Consider it a bit of a lull on the Admirals part if you want to contributed by the All Star break. If even half the chances created by the Ads get converted in last night’s game it probably turns things into a dead heat to the finish. Hopefully the quick change over helps the team get right back in the win column with a result in Grand Rapids later tonight. It would be slightly fitting considering the last Admirals loss prior to last night was at the start of this month in Grand Rapids, after all.

After the game I spoke with Dean Evason as well as Sissons, Leipsic, Hellberg, and Mr. BobbleFists himself Mike Liambas. Here is what they all had to say following the Admirals shutout loss to the Griffins.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 62” →

From November 29th to January 2nd the Admirals managed to win only three out of fifteen games. They haven’t lost since. It is now officially a franchise record nine game winning streak for the Admirals. The previous high was an eight game winning streak in 1989 during the IHL era of the franchise.

For those who were not in attendance last night, which would be ashamed, you missed just another classic night in the life of Rich Clune. He dropped the gloves with the Wild’s captain Stephane Veilleux and got the 11,562 in attendance absolutely bazonkers. If that wasn’t enough he showed he can be savvy with his Hockey IQ just as well as toss bombs with his fists. He skated to a soft spot in the Wild defense and Austin Watson tagged him perfectly with a pass for a goal after creating the turnover. Plus, his presence on the right wing allowed Watson to tee up the game-winning goal on a two-on-one.

After the game former-Roundtable maestro Ryan Miller had the chance to do the post-game on ice interview with him. Clune belted out the chorus of Brett Eldredge’s “Beat of the Music” before signing off shouting, “Milwaukee, turn down for what!”

I’m not sure I’ve seen a character anything like Clune since he joined the Admirals. Yet his addition, on and off the ice, has been a massive boost to this team. He plays the game ferociously but doesn’t get himself burned while doing it. And his nature off the ice keeps things light. He could have had a bitter attitude about being sent to the Admirals after his time in the NHL but he just hasn’t been. If anything, he seems to have found his role on the team and embraced it.

Some other thoughts and musings from me: Take a look at Pontus Åberg‘s goal from opening night – and take a look at Viktor Arvidsson‘s scored last night. Who did it better? Because it is like looking at the same play. Also, watch/listen to the hit that Jimmy Oligny and Mike Liambas dished out to Brett Bulmer.

With it being a concert night I wanted to do the post-game interview with head coach Dean Evason, grab one player, and get out of the locker room area before the noise levels got rocking. I just so happened to do that because, thankfully, Austin Watson was about to head out for the concert. Here is what the two had to say after the 4-3 win against the Wild last night.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 61” →

With last night’s 3-2 shootout victory over the Utica Comets the Milwaukee Admirals matched a franchise record by winning eight straight games. The only other time they managed to achieve an eight game winning streak was in the IHL days in March, 1989.

Kevin Fiala might have been the big watch coming into the game but the man who stole the show for me was Marek Mazanec. After Magnus Hellberg allowed two goals from five shots the Admirals needed to make the change. Hellberg looked to be scrambling a bit and, while he could have possibly fought through the kinks, needed to get pulled when he did. Mazanec came in and slammed the door. He stopped all twenty-one shots he faced in regulation and overtime. He also stopped three of five in the shootout.

Mazanec was only just reassigned to the Admirals yesterday. As you’ll hear him say down below, his off-ice day was busy enough without even getting involved in last night’s game. He woke up at 4am in Montreal, got a 7am flight, waited for a delay, made it to Milwaukee, took a quick nap, got to the rink, and it’s game time. I’m sure the team prepared him as much as they could in that short window but my guess is he just allowed his instincts to carry him through the game against the Comets. He made some spectacular saves and his entry into the game allowed the Admirals the foundation they needed to get back to their game en route to the comeback win,

After the game I spoke with Dean Evason, Marek Mazanec, Kevin Fiala, Magnus Hellberg, and Brendan Leipsic. Here is what they all had to say after the Ads eighth successive win.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 60” →

This morning I attended practice at the MSOE Kern Center. It was the first chance to take a look at Kevin Fiala with the Milwaukee Admirals and get a sneak peek at just what the lines might be with him and Viktor Stålberg in the mix now.

Today’s practice was extended a bit longer than normal. The Admirals had an off-day yesterday after finishing up their three game road trip on the weekend. Goaltending coach David Rook was the first man on the ice and worked with Magnus Hellberg and Rob Madore before the skaters got going. Once practice picked up the lines looked as follows:

Fiala-Sissons-Aberg
Leipsic-Watson-Stålberg
Salomaki-Van Guilder-Arvidsson
(Liambas) Clune-Girard-Grant
Pendenza-Gaudreau-Budish

Diaby-Piskula
Bitetto-White
(Noonan) Oligny-Aronson

Colton Sissons assists totals look like they’re destined to finally go up. Fiala will be playing as Sissons left wing when he debuts tomorrow night against the Utica Comets. In addition, Austin Watson‘s move to center last game looks like it will be something we should get used to. Stålberg will be working on his line since his most recent reassignment from the Nashville Predators. Both Mike Liambas and Garrett Noonan rotated in and out of line pairings throughout the practice.

Fiala was plenty of fun to watch today. His hand speed alone was quite impressive and his wrist shot beat Hellberg a few times. The lone thing I found off to his game was that he wasn’t keeping his stick on the ice when working defensively. Small critique, but the rest of what I saw had me excited for what he’s going to do in his debut.

After practice I spoke with Dean Evason, Kevin Fiala, Viktor Stålberg, and the latest Admiral to debut in the NHL – Anthony Bitetto. Here is what they had to say ahead of tomorrow night’s game.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 59” →

Remember that awful month of December? The Milwaukee Admirals sure don’t. The team is now in second place of the Midwest Division and are four points behind the Rockford IceHogs with two games in hand.

Have you folks noticed the latest buzz words for the Admirals in the last few editions of the Chatterbox? “Do the right things,” and, “Play the right way,” have come up a lot lately from head coach Dean Evason. To me, I equate that to him stating the obvious to the players: keep it simple. The Admirals have massive amounts of forward skill this season and they’ve been caught doing too much individual plays at times. It has lead to the sit down of Pontus Åberg and, for the last two games, Brendan Leipsic.

Playing the right way has meant playing smart, putting pucks on net, crashing for rebounds, and being sharp on defense. The result in the last four games has been four wins with the Admirals outscoring their opponents 14-3.

If playing the right way means being smart with the puck it sure has been paying massive dividends defensively as well. The Admirals posted back-to-back shutouts for the first time since Magnus Hellberg did it to end the 2012-13 season. That, like when he and Marek Mazanec did it these last two games, also happened at the end of a three-in-three. The Ads now haven’t allowed a goal in 129:59 of ice time and counting.

After the game I spoke with as many players as I could before the Chatterbox goes dark with the Admirals upcoming three game road trip. This meant tonight’s post game interviews had: Dean Evason, Viktor Arvidsson, Colton Sissons, Miikka Salomäki, Magnus Hellberg, and Anthony Bitetto. Here is what everyone had to say after the game:

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 58” →

The Admirals 4-1 win against the Hamilton Bulldogs was a nice result. The team was showing signs of turning a corner and they did that night. Yet, it is a result like the Admirals 4-2 comeback victory over the Midwest Division leading Rockford IceHogs that is exactly what everyone involved in the team is looking for.

Rockford gained their 2-0 lead through some rather fortunate bounces. Rather than kick themselves and say, “here we go again,” whilst pouting the Admirals stuck to their guns and really out-worked a top class team. The shots on goal ended 37-21 in the Admirals favor. When you look at the second period, which broke the IceHogs down, they out shot them 17-7 and outscored them 3-0.

Another highly promising sign from this game was the finish. Which is just that. They finished it. It was a complete end-to-end sixty minute game from the Admirals. The IceHogs could have come out guns blazing in the third period and scored a quick goal and edged things close but they didn’t have the time or puck to accomplish any of what they wanted to do. The Admirals came back from 2-0 down, scored four unanswered goals, and finished that game at 4-2.

After the game I spoke with Dean Evason, Marek Mazanec, Triston Grant, and Zach Budish. Here is what they all had to say after the win:

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 57” →

If you ask me, “how good was last night’s Admirals game?” I would respond by saying it was their best effort since November. They managed to puzzle together a complete game for the first time in a long time and really throttled the Hamilton Bulldogs in their 4-1 victory.

How did they managed to pull that game off? I feel that the team looked to minimize what they were doing offensively by playing a very North/South game and just looking to put pucks to the net. No nonsense. Nothing individualistic. Nothing flashy. Nothing but bare bones out-work the opposition. That’s what the Admirals identity typically is. And that’s what happened in the first, second, and third period last night. The result was a 31-16 advantage in shots on goal for the Admirals and a scoreboard that reflected their effort.

The real question now becomes whether or not they can bottle up this performance and carry it over into the oncoming three-in-three that starts up on Thursday night against the Midwest Division leading Rockford IceHogs. The Admirals will play the IceHogs both Thursday and Friday before finishing off on Saturday against the Charlotte Checkers. It should be a big test. Can they take bigger steps forward from last night? Time will tell.

After the game I spoke with Dean Evason, Zach Budish, and Triston Grant. Here is what they had to say after the Admirals broke out of their four game winless streak.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 56” →

On my drive back home I had some serious reflecting in regards to the Admirals 5-4 (OT) loss to the Lake Erie Monsters and the post-game interviews that followed. There was optimism. Things felt very upbeat. It felt very much like the Admirals managed to win something tonight or, better yet, found their long lost identity as a team.

Without a doubt, the first period of the game was the kicker in this game. The Admirals came out flat, took poor penalties, gave up power-play goals, and dug themselves a big hole that they somehow managed to climb out of.

And that is just the thing. They did comeback. Twice. 3-0 deficit. 3-3 tie. 4-3 deficit with just over two minutes left in the game. Empty net. Extra attacker on. 4-4 tie to force overtime with forty-eight seconds remaining.

Yes. It is a results based business, and the win would go to the Monsters in overtime, but there was something gained out of this game that hasn’t been all that prevalent in the past month: a spark.

From the second period forward the Admirals looked and played as they did at the start of the season. They took only two penalties, killed them both off, earned four power-plays, outshot their opponent 21-15, and outscored the Monsters 4-2.

The first period was the backbreaker. The game-winning goal was wacky. The effort by the Admirals to fight back and earn anything from that game might just be the kick up the backside everyone needed heading to the 2015 side of the calendar.

After the game I spoke with Dean Evason, Pontus Åberg, and Mark Van Guilder. Here is what they had to say [uncensored] following the Admirals overtime defeat to the Monsters.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 55” →