When you look back at recent draft classes by the Nashville Predators it is hard to look past that group in 2014 and not just stare at all the names. It was a sensation draft that helped the Nashville Predators and feed into the Milwaukee Admirals. You had Kevin Fiala, Vladislav Kamenev, Jack Dougherty, Justin Kirkland, Viktor Arvidsson, Joonas Lyytinen, and Aaron Irving. That last name on there was really the only one that didn’t stick but Irving still made his pro debut with the Admirals and continues to play at an incredible level for the Kalamazoo Wings in the ECHL.

Yet, when Lyytinen first arrived to Milwaukee it was much like Irving: at the end of the 2015-16 season. He actually showed up with a fellow Finn and Nashville Predators draft pick named Janne Juvonen. Neither played. They sat back and had the chance to see the North American game up close through an AHL lens.

It felt like neither would be coming over after a 2016-17 season flew right on by with neither leaving the pro scene in their native Finland. That changed this season. Lyytinen is here and looking to make strides in one of the most competitive defensive cores in all of hockey: the Nashville Predators organization.

Continue reading “Fifteen with Joonas Lyytinen” →

When looking back on the Nashville Predators 2016 NHL Draft it was clear that they were looking to reinvest into their defensive nucleus and broaden the depth at defense. Dante Fabbro was selected by the Predators with the seventeenth pick in the first round. Samuel Girard would be taken in the second round. And, from the third round to the end, the Predators would draft a further three defensemen.

In that mix would be defenseman Fred Allard who was the second of two draft picks for the Predators in the third round of the 2016 NHL Draft. He had just finished his third season with the Chicoutimi Saguenéens in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) which was a then career best: 59 points (14 goals, 45 assists) in 64 games. That would be bestest the very next season including a playoff run with Chicoutimi that was so good that he missed the opportunity to make his pro debut as a member of the Milwaukee Admirals at season’s end that would have saw him potentially link up with fellow Québécois defenseman Girard. He found his way to Milwaukee to start his professional career with the 2017-18 season. And he’s starting to make bigger splashes as a 20-year old AHL rookie.

Continue reading “Fifteen with Fred Allard” →

The Opening Ceremonies for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang take place tomorrow night. There will be a few former Admirals making that walk. Stefan Elliott with Canada. Martin Erat with the Czech Republic. Jani Lajunen for Finland as well as an 18-year old Eeli Tolvanen who could be a future Admiral in time. Peter Ölvecký with Slovakia. Both Magnus Hellberg and Viktor Stålberg will make the walk with Sweden. The Admirals last Olympian, Simon Moser, will once again represent Switzerland. And Bobby Butler, Jonathon Blum, and Ryan Zapolski will walk out for USA.

“When you say it it sounds pretty cool,” is what Butler told CBS 58 this past week when hearing his name an the term ‘US Olympian’ attached to it. At 30-years of age the eight-year pro has seen and experienced a lot to reach this big of a stage. His final scheduled game before leaving for South Korea was Tuesday night and he managed to record a goal for his 200th career AHL point. He helped contribute to the Admirals snapping a six-game losing streak and earning a 3-2 shootout win over one of the best teams in the league this season, the Manitoba Moose, and did it all hours before he took flight. His focus is on the here and now. And now it is time for a dream to be realized.

Continue reading “Fifteen with Bobby Butler” →

In the most recent off-season the Milwaukee Admirals announced the signing of 23-year old goaltender Jake Paterson. It felt like one of those goaltending projects that could have a nice pay-off. Paterson was stuck in the Detroit Red Wings system and never really was afforded the chance to show what he could do on the AHL stage. It has been a rotation heavy time for both Admirals goaltenders behind Anders Lindbäck but lost in that is this has been the longest time spent operating in the AHL in Paterson’s career. It has been an opportunity to learn and to grow.

Continue reading “Fifteen with Jake Paterson” →

Tyler Moy has barely scratched the surface of his professional career. Yet, it hasn’t taken that long for all of us from the outside to see what a Renaissance Man he is. He arrived out of his collegiate career at Harvard University still grinding away with online classes while making his pro debut with the Milwaukee Admirals in order to graduate on time. And he did with a degree in Human Evolutionary Biology.

Continue reading “Fifteen with Tyler Moy” →

Tonight is the start of the 2018 AHL All-Star Classic festivities from Utica, New York. The event begins with the AHL All-Star Skills Competition at 7:00 PM CST tonight and is followed by the AHL All-Star Challenge tomorrow night at 6:00 PM CST. The Milwaukee Admirals will have two representatives for the event: Anders Lindbäck and Emil Pettersson.

We’ve already had the chance to get to know Pettersson a bit better earlier this season. Now it is time to chat with the Big Swede himself whose journey from being drafted to being an AHL All-Star has been an incredible one to follow.

Continue reading “Fifteen with Anders Lindbäck” →