Patrick Cehlin has scored twelve points in his last ten games. He picked up his sixth goal of the season in the Admirals 4-3 win against the Lake Erie Monsters Friday night. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
Last night the Admirals took down the Lake Erie Monsters by a final score of 4-3. It was a game of bad bounces but, most importantly, a game that the Admirals capitalized on with those bad bounces. Take Austin Watson’s goal for example. It was the goal that gave the Admirals momentum to tie things up and they propelled from that moment all the way until the final horn.
If the Admirals didn’t seem hot enough these last few weeks. They’re now looking solid without the likes of Colton Sissons or Calle Jarnkrok on the team. It looks as if the defense is solidifying and the forward groups are playing their best hockey of the season – no matter what the line combinations seem to be.
I mentioned at the tail end of the Admirals five-game winless streak, feels like awhile ago, that it is all about getting hot at the right time. In that stretch the IceHogs were shot out of a cannon and above the Admirals in the standings. Look at the standings right now. It has been a fantastic month of March for the Admirals.
After the game I spoke with Dean Evason, Austin Watson, Patrick Cehlin, and Taylor Beck. Here is what they had to say following last night’s victory.
This morning I went to practice at the MSOE Kern Center to catch the Admirals before the set sail for the four-game road trip. There were plenty of things to talk about, hence this being a Blender issue, so let’s jump in!
~Admirals sign Michael Young to an ATO~
If phones could work in the Kern – I’d have known exactly who the newbie was thanks to you readers commenting about him ASAP. Instead, I got the “watch the movie without watching the trailer” experience. All I saw was a rather tall lefty-shot wearing a black “defenseman” practice jersey and a helmet with Teddy Ruth’s ol’ #5 on it.
Michael Young is a 25-year old defenseman who recently finished up his playing time at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. During his time there he played in 148 games, scored 68 points (13 goals, 55 assists), and recorded 109 penalty minutes.
As far as his play, he looked incredibly crafty on his feet. Pretty impressed with his skating ability. He worked typical drills out there but, interestingly, was paired the entire time alongside Scott Ford. I can only assume that’s a way of pairing the new recruit with the captain – who can talk him through systems.
He was also out there today running drills on the penalty kill and seemed to handle himself rather well. It was only practice, but it was a decent study on how he handled the run of play in front of him.
Last bit of information from watching him today. The team runs a shootout drill where every skater on the team steps up. You miss your shootout attempt – you’re out. You make it – and you remain in the mini-competition. The final duel today came down to… Francis Wathier and, the newbie, Michael Young. Wathier did beat him. Still, all d-men were eliminated after the first round except for Young.
~Joonas Jarvinen and Taylor Beck Injury Update~
When I arrived at the rink I turned up just in time to spot a red practice jersey being worn by Joonas Jarvinen. The big Finn hasn’t played in a game since 2/28/14 vs. Iowa. In that contest he recorded his first multi-goal game but picked up what has only been described to me as an upper body injury.
As you’ll hear later on from Dean Evason in the Chatterbox section – Jarvinen will not travel with the team on the upcoming road trip.
Taylor Beck was also someone that skated prior to practice and didn’t participate in the main practice. Beck blocked a shot with his hand in Friday’s shootout victory over the Rockford IceHogs. After that game, I talked with him and he gave me a thumbs up… of course his thumb was bandaged up, lost a nail off of it, and his other fingers had a pretty neat-o outline of where the puck stung him. He played the rest of that game and scored in the shootout. He also played in the follow-up game Saturday against the San Antonio Rampage.
Beck is going to travel with the team on the road trip but is considered questionable in terms of Friday’s game in Rochester.
~The Mitch Korn Experience~
The Nashville Predators played last night in Edmonton and have the Vancouver Canucks tonight. Meanwhile, their brilliant goaltending coach Mitch Korn is with the Milwaukee Admirals.
Mitch Korn provides instruction to Scott Darling and friends. (Photo Credit: Daniel “that’s me” Lavender)
He worked with the entire group (Marek Mazanec, Magnus Hellberg, and Scott Darling) very extensively. He was especially working hard with Hellberg at the tail-end of practice. That work comes with the additional news that follows.
~Magnus Hellberg Cleared For Game Action~
He has been skating and practicing hard for weeks and has felt better with each session. Today he received the news that he has been cleared for game action after missing two-months with a high ankle sprain.
Mitch Korn and Magnus Hellberg working one-on-one at the end of practice. (Photo Credit: Daniel “I use my iPhone for these” Lavender)
Having watched him practice these last few weeks – I can say Hellberg looked really sharp today. I caught coach Korn running a skating drill for him and that was something he seemed to grasp well. The big bug for him with this injury was the stinging effects associated with the ankle sprain. To see him moving around that well during that drill tells me he’s more than capable should he get called upon during the road trip.
I haven’t heard an official account of this or not, but I do wonder what this means in terms of Hellberg, Darling, and who ends up going to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL. I’ve expected Hellberg, having missed so much time, to get some games under his belt in the ECHL before making his return at the AHL level. Still, things have never been so cut and dry in regards to that possibility whenever I talked to Evason.
Once I have an update related to that matter – expect a new story or an update to this one.
~The Chatterbox~
Following practice I spoke with head coach Dean Evason, Mark Van Guilder, Austin Watson, and Scott Ford. Here is what everyone had to say before hitting the road.
Anthony Bitetto’s fight last night was pretty fantastic. Mike Liambas’ face during the fight was even better! (Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
Last night the Admirals won 4-2 over the San Antonio Rampage and continued their stellar run of performances dating back to two weeks ago.
Ever since the Admirals hosted the Pekka Rinne show they have gone 6-1-0-0 and have scored 35 goals from 7 games. In that span they also added some new blood in the form of Calle Jarnkrok and Francis Wathier. Jarnkrok has 7 points (5 goals, 2 assists) in 5 games – he has yet to not score as a member of the Admirals. Wathier has also factored in from the checking line with 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist) in 3 games since joining on loan from the Texas Stars.
Things just appear to be coming together at the right time. To think, not really that long ago, we were chatting about a 5-game winless streak.
After last night’s game I talked with Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason. I also talked to Scott Darling and Anthony Bitetto – all while Cassadee Pope blasted in the background. I then partook in a “Formula 1 is back” party – hence why this wasn’t up sooner than it typically is.
Let’s jump straight into last night’s post-game audio, shall we?
Mathieu Brisebois, meet Mike Liambas. (Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
The Admirals were able to win a thrilling game against the diabolical Rockford IceHogs Friday night. They won 6-5 in a shootout and improved their record to 28-20-6-6 (68 points) overall. The Ads are still in fourth place in the Midwest Division – and are also still on the eighth place in the Western Conference. Every single point counts for them right now. That’s why this shootout victory, even for the extra point, was all the more sweet.
As always, I spoke with Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason after the game. I also decided to get as many players as I could following this game – as there was much to talk about. Who did I get? In order of appearance: Marek Mazanec, Patrick Cehlin, Calle Jarnkrok, Mathieu Tousignant, and Francis Wathier.
Here is what the gang all had to say following the shootout win.
Yeah. It felt a lot like that. (Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
The Admirals winning streak came to an end with a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Iowa Wild. It was never going to be anywhere near the blowout we saw before, 9-1. Sadly, it was a much more water tight hockey game from both sides after the first period – not the sort of game a neutral fan would enjoy watching: lots of trap from the Wild, no space to create, and hardly any quality scoring chances as a result of that defensive posture from the Wild.
It was clearly the game that the Wild wanted after getting hammered the previous trip into Milwaukee – but what was sad to see was the Admirals not adjusting to what was thrown at them by the Wild until it was far too late to gather a point from the game. Had the Admirals played the way they did in the last ten minutes of third period for the entire second period – it could be a completely different result. Instead, they come up short of taking a minimum of one-point from the bottom dwellers of the Midwest Division after sustaining a two-skater advantage for the final 1:57 in the game.
After the game I had the opportunity to interview Admirals head coach Dean Evason in front of, guessing, ten billion aspiring student journalists from UW-Whitewater (give or take a couple billion). I also talked with Taylor Beck in the locker room to hear his thoughts on the game. Here is what both had to say.
Mathieu Tousignant was jacked up during the weekend series with Rockford. He’s also pretty fired up to have a former Texas Stars teammate, Francis Wathier, joining him in Milwaukee. (Photo Credit: Jeff Hanisch)
This morning I trekked on in for the Admirals morning skate at the Kern Center and then had the chance to chat with the group. Before going straight into the audio – let’s go over some of the morning skate.
Patrick Cehlin was in the forward mix of today’s morning skate. (Photo Credit: Daniel “Hashtag No Filter” Lavender)
I was very happy to see that Patrick Cehlin was on the ice with the team during practice today. He was wearing the red, assuming football logic here, no-contact jersey – but did participate a lot. He was working with Mark Van Guilder and the newbie Francis Wathier on most drills. As you will here in the audio from head coach Dean Evason later on – he is not expected to play Wednesday.
In addition, all three goalies were in action at practice. Magnus Hellberg actually worked a bit of overtime in morning skate with goaltending coach Ben Vanderklok (who I spoke with today – and hope to provide a feature story on in the coming days). It appears Hellberg is making huge strides these last few days and could well be back in the mix soon.
Even from my eagle’s nest at the Kern Center – Francis Wathier was one big hombre! (Photo Credit: Daniel “I’m the Doctor” Lavender)
What drove me in for today’s morning skate was seeing our new addition, Wathier, in action. In practice he swapped wings, looked comfortable on either side of Van Guilder, and is physically imposing to see skating around: 6’4″ and 210 pounds. I was a big fan of the recent checking line combo that saw Van Guilder and Watson match up with the likes of a Jeremy Morin type – and shut him down. I feel Wathier is going to be a great addition to this group in that sense and for his leadership on and off the ice.
Whenever I wait to do interviews I tend to see this bloke, Joonas Rask, tirelessly working on his sticks. (Photo Credit: Daniel “Photo Ninja” Lavender)
Righto! I talked with Dean Evason, Francis Wathier, and Mathieu Tousignant today. Here is what they said following the morning skate.
“How To Make A Debut,” by Calle Jarnkrok. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
The Admirals won 8-3 over the Rockford IceHogs last night. The Ads offense has now scored 19 goals in their last 3 games. Not too shabby, eh?
In Calle Jarnkrok‘s Milwaukee Admiral debut he managed to score 2 goals in two-different special teams scenarios: penalty kill and power-play. If you were to ask me how I assessed his game – I would say he played the game safe last night.
Jarnkrok had only practiced with the team in the morning, participated in the pre-game skate, and took to the ice in the first line change for the Ads in last night’s game. He could have been overwhelmed and played poorly – and I don’t think anyone would blame him considering the circumstances. But, he didn’t look overwhelmed. Instead he played to his strengths and slowly eased himself into the game – best showcased by his aggressive pounce on Jeremy Morin, while operating on the penalty kill, leading to his shorthanded goal.
There is a lot to like from Jarnkrok. I could have said as much prior to this game. He only makes this team stronger and I really like the dynamic of him and Filip Forsberg moving forward. There might not have been a lot of link-up play between them last night but I anticipate that being a combo that really works well. I think that will also be something Nashville takes stock of, too.
I felt the best player on the ice in the Admirals 8-3 win was Colton Sissons. These last few games, particularly last night, he appears to have found an extra gear. I wonder how much of last night’s introduction of Jarnkrok helped push Sissons game to another level. There is always to the chance to get jarred by another player of similar qualities, or the same position in that regard, possibly taking their place on the totem pole. This is where you get the fight or flight response from a player. You either step up your game or fly on out of town. Internal competition always leads to good things in my book. With guys like Sissons and Jarnkrok around – I think the two will benefit highly from one another as this season continues.
Now, let’s get to the ugly fat elephant in the room from last night’s game: the hits and subsequent injuries to Patrick Cehlin and Simon Moser.
The hit on Cehlin was not released to YouTube or anything like that. If the highlight was cut, like it was for the jumbotron’s replay, I expect the AHL office to be reviewing that before tonight’s rematch. For those that missed the game, missed the hit, and missed the replay – this is what I saw.
Cehlin was on the puck skating up from the right wing faceoff circle towards the blueline. He was attempting to pass the puck off but fumbled it while pulling the trigger. He did get the pass out before impact – but only just. The whole way through the play – from being on the puck, to fumbling it, to passing it – Brad Mills targeted him. He had him lined up, saw Cehlin’s head was down, and still decided to go in for the hit. Even worse – where he aimed his hit. If Mills followed through with his check to the body we would be here discussing how much worse it could have been. If it were a check through the body – it may have been well and truly been a clean hit on the part of Mills and, perhaps, Cehlin only gets the wind knocked out of him. To boot, perhaps Mills only fights Mike Liambas once – if at all. Instead, Mills decided to measure in and deliver his check square to the side of Cehlin’s head with an elbow and laid him out.
Just as equally disturbing as the hit was the lack of a penalty on the hit by the officials. Whenever you see line brawl situations such as last night there is typically a good reason why the two teams want to engage in the first place – but there is also the opportunity for the officials to temper things before they reach that level. That entire third period was a wash as far as officiating goes. They either lost control of the game or didn’t even attempt to control it. And it led to the following.
Moser’s hit is available to see on YouTube thanks to it triggering last night’s line brawl between the Admirals and IceHogs. While the hit itself may not have had the viscous intent as Mills’ against Cehlin – it is still a blindside hit that targets a player in a vulnerable position. Think of it this way: you don’t get players like Charles-Olivier Roussel and Austin Watson to toss their gloves and come after you unless you did something profoundly wrong.
After the game I saw Moser in the locker room in a sling. Take that knowledge. Combine it with the video highlight. I’m guessing that’s a collarbone injury (guess – not fact – guess). If that guess is accurate – we’re talking about a two month injury.
Did Bobby Shea intend to injure Moser with that hit? I don’t think so. But what I do know is that he clearly was setting his sights on an open ice hit in the neutral zone. I think he got so caught up in attempting to make a big play, something that the IceHogs desperately lacked last night, that he didn’t take into account how or where the hit was going to land. He hit him blindside. He hit him high. That’ll add enough fuel on the fire to get an entire Admirals team to jump you… even Mark Van Guilder, of all people, went after him.
While I feel both Mills and Shea should have been ejected for their own good last night – credit where credit is due – they answered the bell when the Admirals came looking for their own sense of justice. Mills fought with Liambas twice. Shea was pulverized by Scott Valentine.
In truth, that’s all that needed to be done from the IceHogs – and it should have happened way before the third period where players from their team can safely take a game misconduct penalty and call it a day. The IceHogs probably should have just tried getting some energy with a fight after it was 4-0 with half the game remaining. Instead, they waited until late in the third period to try and engage the Admirals and, when they did, they did so in viscous and reckless fashion fashion. To me, that isn’t hockey. It’s gutless. And unfortunately for the IceHogs with their track record under head coach Ted Dent – they get into these sort of situations far too often: 4/12/12 @ Milwaukee Admirals… 1/19/13 vs. Grand Rapids Griffins… 2/7/14 @ Milwaukee Admirals.
I don’t have even the remote idea what we should expect from tonight’s sequel in Rockford. I only know that Cehlin and Moser will not take part and there is a chance that Mills and Shea will. That angers me. While there is no telling if or when the AHL will take action against this game – I certainly feel things should be tighter tonight than they were yesterday. This game is a giant powder keg waiting to go off if on-ice officials treat it to the same degree as last night. Here is hoping things simmer over night and the game takes precedent to stupidity.
~The Chatterbox~
Most of the time, when asked who I want to speak to post-game, I have an idea of who I want and what I’d like to talk about. When asked who do I want to speak to last night I responded with, “everyone.”
That meant speaking to the likes of Dean Evason, Mathieu Tousignant, Calle Jarnkrok, Marek Mazanec, and Taylor Beck. Here is what they had to say following last night’s 8-3 victory over the Rockford IceHogs.
“Get out of my way, so called Rochester – so called Americans, the Swedes are coming,” shouted Filip Forsberg… I assume. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
I attended the Admirals morning skate today at the Kern Center in the hopes of my first look at a Mr. Calle Jarnkrok. He wasn’t there for practice today. As it turns out – he actually made it to the Ads locker room while I was running interviews. He left before I had the chance to speak with him but, considering how busy that guy will be getting used to new places and faces, that’s no biggie for me.
I spoke with head coach Dean Evason about yesterday’s trade deadline and what we should expect moving forward. I also had the chance to talk with Mathieu Tousignant and Filip Forsberg to hear their impressions of Jarnkrok. Here is what was said this afternoon.
Dear Nashville. Pekka Watch is over. Watch Pekka begins. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
The Admirals did something they’ve only done four times from ten chances today: win in overtime. You can thank two goals from Charles-Oliver Roussel and Pekka Rinne’s glove-side post for denying Luke Adam’s shot in OT.
After the game I had the opportunity to speak with Dean Evason, Pekka Rinne, Charles-Oliver Roussel, and Scott Ford. Here is what they had to say following their 2-1 OT victory over the Rochester Americans.
Dear Corbin Baldwin: If you’re going to talk smack and play dirty the whole night – we have our own Sheriff. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
The Admirals game last night may have been the most fun I had around a hockey rink – period. They won soundly by the tune of 9-1 over the Iowa Wild. Pekka Rinne made his highly anticipated return to game action – and the city of Milwaukee (for that matter). And the fans last night only added to what was a brilliant game, start to finish, by the Ads as they broke out of their five-game winless skid emphatically.
Having spent my whole day around the Bradley Center yesterday – the most I could tell you about that team going into the game was they looked looser than I’ve seen in a long time. During the pre-game skate, I noticed so many players smiling, laughing, and joking around. The last few games during this run it has looked all business, serious, and stressed out. But, yesterday, they were back to having fun again – and I feel it translated directly into the game.
For Pekka Rinne, he may not have had the most action packed of nights but that isn’t the worst thing either. Had he been in Hannu Toivonen‘s place we might be talking about the game that re-broke Nashville’s starting goaltender… I believe that would have made this the “Oops Edition” of the Chatterbox had that happened. I think the fact that he took a little run into by the Wild on their first shot of the game really helped to get him over any sort of return to the game jitters. He wasn’t forced to do much. But looked good when he had to make a stop. I doubt we get a game as run and gun for the Admirals as this one was on Sunday. It should be a much bigger test for Rinne.
After the game, I had the chance to interview Dean Evason, Pekka Rinne, Joonas Jarvinen, Mike Liambas, and Joe Piskula. Here is what they all had to say following their massive 9-1 victory against Iowa. And you know what – we’re going with full interviews for this one!
Admirals Roundtable 