In the Mid-Season Review I had said that the Milwaukee Admirals of 2017-18 are really hard to gauge. I’m not sure you can sum up the season better right now that how January is playing out before our very eyes. The Admirals went on their longest winning streak of the season, lasting four-games, and after a two-game tilt of up and down they are now on a three-game losing streak with all defeats coming inside of regulation. Last night’s 5-0 shutout loss to the Cleveland Monsters went beyond being “just one of those games” and was deflating to watch. It’s one thing to have bad bounces. It’s another thing to mentally switch off.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 245” →

The Milwaukee Admirals have been on a rather good run of form lately. They even managed to go into the Van Andel Arena on Wednesday night and rally back to beat the Grand Rapids Griffins 4-3. An issue for the Admirals this season has been sustaining positive momentum swings such as that result. We all saw immediately last night that things weren’t going to carry over. The Griffins won 5-2 in front of a record crowd for the Admirals at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. The damage was done in the final five minutes of the first period.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 244” →

Did the Milwaukee Admirals go out and thrash the team with the lowest record in the AHL last night? No. Was it the best performance of the season? No, not really. What the Admirals did in their 1-0 shutout victory of the Cleveland Monsters wasn’t anything special. It was just good hard work from everybody involved. It often feels like the more simplified the Admirals can play the better the results are. Last night showed some rewards for good structured defensive play. And, hey, the Admirals are now on a winning streak beyond two games for the first time since the opening four games of the season. Things are beginning to slowly click.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 243” →

Is it just the Grand Rapids Griffins? Is it just the running theme of the 2017-18 season? The Milwaukee Admirals 4-2 loss last night is the sort that just leaves a sour taste in your mouth. It’s not that the Admirals were necessarily bad for any great length of time but -when they were- it was game altering. Up. Down. Repeat. That might be the only true consistency of the Admirals season to date.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 242” →

At the start of this season my biggest concern for the Milwaukee Admirals was their goaltending. Jump ahead a few months and Anders Lindbäck should be a folk hero in Milwaukee. It is without question that he has been the best player for the Admirals all season and last night’s effort from him was spectacular. What are the Admirals to start the 2017-18 season without Lindbäck in net? That’s a frightening question. Because, in moments like last night, I’m not sure the Admirals even get to a shootout.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 241” →

Numb. That’s the feeling for me after last night’s 3-2 overtime loss for the Milwaukee Admirals to the Chicago Wolves. I’m not even sure if the previous run of up-down since November has anything to do with that, either. Last night was actually a really good game for both sides. It just so happened that the Admirals came out on the wrong side of an overtime game for the third time in December. It was still good. It wasn’t bad. And there are still pieces in motion that keep seeing this team evolving as this season approaches 2018.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 240” →

After a week’s rest, some key roster additions or returns from injury, and two solid days of practice I had raised my expectations for what the Milwaukee Admirals were going to look like on home ice against the Iowa Wild. They were getting sharper. They looked faster. And the opening ten-minutes played last night backed up those expectations. It was a fast, crisp, and energetic start. Then the Wild scored a controversial goal and the rest went as flat as it has been the last month or more.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 239” →

The Milwaukee Admirals were at it once again at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena this morning. Today is the last proper practice ahead of the team’s first three-in-three weekend of the season that starts with their final home game ahead of the Christmas break.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 238” →

The Milwaukee Admirals returned to practice today at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena after splitting their weekend road trip against the Manitoba Moose. The Admirals are setting up for their first three-in-three weekend of the season which starts Friday night on home ice against the Iowa Wild. What follows is the first of a four-game road trip with the Grand Rapids Griffins on Saturday night, Chicago Wolves on Sunday afternoon, and then resuming the following weekend at the Quicken Loans Arena against the Cleveland Monsters.

Continue reading “Chatterbox, Vol. 237” →