Category: News
Obviously, they requested to be sent down so they could be present for Country Music Night, Friday at the Bradley Center with Rodney Atkins.
Ok, probably not.
But they are coming back to Milwaukee, at least for the weekend. With the NHL on their all-star break, this may be just so that they get some meaningful ice-time. Tough to say whether they’ll be called back AFTER the all-star break, but it wouldn’t be surprising. Both players have made good impressions with the folks in Nashville, and both have contributed on both sides of the ice.
But let’s live in the now. It’ll be great to have them back in the lineup this weekend. You’d rather see Halischuk and Mueller in the lineup than say….Dan Gendur, right?
Through 45 games the Admirals sit in a surprising 24th place in the AHL in penalty killing success. Milwaukee is effective 79.9% of the time short handed, allowing 37 goals on 183 attempts, while scoring six goals of their own while skating at least a man short.
“Some nights our penalty kill is good, other nights its bad,” Milwaukee defenseman Scott Ford said. “I think it’s a just a matter of everybody being on the same page and getting better as a group . . . I think we are doing a better job as of late, and it hasn’t been costing us games like it did early in the season. We just have to keep working on it.”
Here are my three solutions for fixing the penalty kill.
1) Have a healthy Steve Begin. This is probably the biggest reason for Milwaukee’s struggles as Steve Begin seems almost a perfect prototype for a penalty killer in the AHL with his checking tenacity and his aggressiveness. Without Begin, there hasn’t a go-to killer for the Admirals to turn to.
2) Clear Rebounds. Though most hockey fans associate power play goals with pretty plays, oftentimes it’s a rebound or redirection play that scores on a man advantage. Milwaukee has strong goaltenders who can make the first save, but clearing pucks away is even more essential short handed because the killing team is always out-maned down low.
3) Block shooting/passing lanes. Active sticks and quick feet up high makes for good penalty killing forwards. With how well Milwaukee’s forwards play two-way hockey while skating five-on-five, they need to show the same commitment while short handed. This means aggressively skating to take away shooting and passing lanes.
So Roundtable, what are your penalty killing solutions? Is there personnel you wish to see Milwaukee try out short handed, or a four-man style you would like to Lane Lambert employ?
Ok, here’s the last installment of the Darren Pang interview. You may think I’ve been drawing the whole thing out, and you’d probably be right. With all the off-days, it’s either this, or my review of the State Of Union address.
Let’s stick with hockey.
Here, Panger talks about why he thinks the Predators are so successful, why he likes being between the glass, why Sidney Crosby is a crybaby (Ok, I’m paraphrasing there), and why we’re lucky to have Aaron Sims as our play-by-play guy.
RM: The Predators are fourth in their confernece….going into the season, did you have any idea that they’d be as successful as they have been?
DP: Nope. I have all the admiration in the world for Barry Trotz…Peter Horachek is a good friend of mine….he was my former captain in Saginaw. I really think that they really epitomize how to coach in this league. How do they do it every year? How do they lose so many quality players, yet are able to go to the stable here in Milwaukee, and bring them up and have them compete at the NHL level? I can only think of one thing. They’ve got a low budget, I get that. But the coach has a message, and the players respond to that message. They play a hard game. They don’t give you a whole lot of room to make a play…they’re tenacious.
Every year, we fill out our ballot, and I think for four years, I’ve got Barry Trotz in one, two or three. I don’t care if he makes the playoffs. If he gets that team to 9th or 10th I still vote for him because I think that’s amazing. Last year I voted for him again…not as the winner. I thought that Dave Tippett should win it and he did. But I had Barry Trotz there, and I’m totally amazed at what he does every year.
RM: When broadcasting games, do you have a preference between being in the booth or between the benches?
DP: I’d rather be between the benches. In 1998, I did the olympics for CBS in Nagano, and CBS paid only so much money, that only one broadcaster was allowed between the benches, and it was no glass on either side. So I was able to be there for the Olympics. So that was phenomenal. John Davidson was up in the booth and I was down below. I could see things, hear things, and that was my first experience being down low. Since that time, NBC has designed “Inside The Glass”, but I often tell Pierre Maguire, “you weren’t the first. We did that in 1998”. So, to answer your question, it’s more thrilling being down there. You feel the game, you smell the game, you can hear and see the game a whole lot better down there.
RM: And there’s probably a lot more that you can report on than a sideline reporter in, say, football.
DP: Oh yeah, first of all you’re interviewing the coach at the under ten minute mark of the first period, and under ten minute mark of the second period, you do both coaches. So now you’re on the bench. You have a feel for what the coach is seeing, the frustration of the players, the animosity between the two teams. There’s a lot more to deliver in hockey between the two benches.
RM: Did you get a chance to see the HBO special leading up to the Winter Classic, and if so, what did you think of it?
DP: I watched it all — I loved it. We always said when I was at ESPN… we had a producer Bruce Collins, he said “if only we could do some of these games on HBO.” The entire game. You know, say what’s on your mind. If you’ve got a beef about a player and a little language slides out from a player, it’s okay — that’s HBO. But I think HBO produced it brilliantly. I thought they took the storyline of the struggling Washington Capitals, and the dark room and the curtains going down and the sad state…..and then they brought the happy Pittsburgh Penguins and you could really feel the flow of the two franchises. I give both teams a lot of credit for opening themselves up, because too many times the general manager or coach or the owner will say “absolutely not”. I think the fans saw great personalities.
RM: Do you think Dave Steckel’s hit on Sidney Crosby was a dirty hit?
DP: I don’t. I’ve talked to a lot of people, and it’s funny…half of them say it was a vicious dirty hit, and when I saw it at full speed, I swear he didn’t see where Sidney was, and Sidney didn’t see where he was. And it’s two players making a turn, and one player is 6’6, and the elbow pads are so darn hard….I know Sidney doesn’t believe that. But I don’t think Steckel is athletic enough — no disrespect to him — but I don’t think he’s nimble or athletic enough to avoid that confrontation. He was like a 747 making a turn, and his wing got in the way.
RM: You just had the chance to broadcast some of this game with Aaron Sims. How does he rank up there with the Jim Hughson’s and Gary Thorne’s, and Joe Benanati’s of the world?
DP: He’s good, he’s got a great call. Great voice, and he’s got great inflection. He knows when there’s a crescendo happening. Often what we talk about with play-by-play guys….when I’m with Doc Emrick on NBC, and it seems like there’s a lot of voices rambling, our producer will say, “It’s Doc time now.” Aaron has that ability to just take it and build it. And I think that’s what fans want to hear. They want to know, are people up on their seats? Is there a gasp? Is there anticipation? And I think Aaron’s call is great. Other than me getting in the way of him, I think he was great. I stepped on him! (laughs) He’s a terrific person and I think he does a great job.
Many thanks one more time to Mr. Pang for his time, opinions, and enthusiasm for the sport of hockey.
Here’s part two of my interview with Darren Pang…talking about his callup to the NHL, what he thought of that whippersnapper Eddie Belfour, and his relationship with Ads coach Lane Lambert.
RM: Do you remember your NHL debut like it was just yesterday, or are the details kind of a blur?
DP: Cliff Koroll, when he was recalled to Chicago, he said to me on his way out, “You keep playing hard, you’ll get a chance.” It was the first time someone had really said that to me. It was probably a week later…I believe it was February because of my birthday…I had just turned 21. It was shortly after that, then Jimmy Pappin, who took over for Cliff Koroll, pulled me aside and said, “Get your stuff ready. You’re going up.” And I was like, “What happened Pappy”, and he goes, “Murray Bannerman hurt a groin, and you’re going to back up Warren Skorodenski tomorrow night in Chicago.” But during the game, Skorodenski got hurt, but he stayed in the game. And every five minutes he kept going down and staying down. The trainer would go on the ice, and Bob Pulford told me “Get yourself ready, you could be going in.” I remember being pretty nervous, like I wanted to throw up. Anyway, the next night, or two nights later, I’m not sure which one it was…I started in Minnesota, and gave up a goal on my first shot. But hung in there, lost the game 4-1, and had a pretty good experience. Steve Payne scored two goals on me. And he was a former Ottawa 67. I grew up watching Steve Payne, and here I am playing against those guys.
RM: Eddie Belfour was just coming up while you were there with Chicago. Was it obvious right away that Eddie was a special player?
DP: Nope. In fact I told a lot of people, and I told Eddie this…I didn’t think he could play ten games in the NHL. We were both in rookie camp in 1987, and Wayne Thomas was just hired as the goalie coach. I played against Wayne in the IHL, he was coaching Salt Lake, so I knew his drills. He coached Mike Vernon, and I thought I played a little bit like Mike Vernon. So we went to a rookie camp, and we did all these drills. X-drill, Y-drill, Z-drill, U-drill, V-drill, typical goalie drills. And Eddie Belfour, he just was terrible. He couldn’t move from his post to the crease. He couldn’t cover the short side. It was really weird watching him. I was a third year pro going on my fourth year, and I remember looking at Wayne Thomas going, “This guy can’t play.” And I meant that sincerely — I mean, he tried hard. That year he went down to the IHL, and I think he was rookie of the year with John Cullen in Saginaw, and I was on the All-rookie team at the NHL. So I was the one that made the team and played 50 games. He got called up the next year, because Mike Keenan came on board. And he got called up, and he was okay. He’d have a brilliant period, and then he’d have a bad one. The next year, I got injured, tore my ACL. And they traded for a bunch of guys…and Eddie Belfour got a chance. He played really well in the playoffs. But it took him three years to take off. And Eddie, he’s a hall of fame goaltender, but I tell people that he willed himself into a hall of fame goaltender. He wasn’t a natural goalie….he was stubborn, he was determined, motivated, and he willed himself to be the great goaltender that he was. And I greatly admire him for what he ended up being.
RM: I understand that your history with Admirals coach Lane Lambert goes a long way back, much earlier than tonight.
DP: He and Steve Yzerman grew up with the Red Wings together. And when I was sent down to Saginaw my second year, I would drive to Detroit a lot to be with Steve, and spend the night with them. And they roomed together. I hung out with these guys for a couple of years and got to know Lane pretty well. I don’t see him very often, so it was nice going to the office and talking to him. He hadn’t talked to Steve in a little bit…so we exchanged numbers, I made sure he had Steve’s number. And I’ll call Steve after this and let him know that I saw Lane. I know Steve really liked Lane.
Friday night was Darren Pang bobblehead night at the Admirals game, and the guest of honor was on-hand for the festivities.
He really could not have been more accomodating.
Autographs, ceremonial first puck-drop, 1st intermission interview, color commentary with Aaron Sims for the 2nd period…
And then a quick interview with me…that turned into about 14 minutes.
The man loves talking hockey, and will talk about it with anyone that will listen. He is an amazing ambassador for the sport, for hockey fans old and new. Simply thanking him for his time didn’t feel like it was enough to show my appreciation.
We talked about a plethora of topics, including his time in the NHL, Ed Belfour, the 2010-11 Nashville Predators, the Winter Classic, the Steckel-Crosby hit, and our friend Aaron Sims….and we’ll get to those topics in subsequent posts this week.
But to start, here is Darren Pang, on his time in Milwaukee.
——————————
DP: I could probably write a book about the experience and it’s all positive. Number one, it was my first year pro. I had just gone from the Ottawa 67’s, where we won a Memorial Cup, signed with the Blackhawks, and we were told this was the #1 affiliate. I came here with a couple of buddies… John Ollson and Phil Patterson were both teammates of mine in junior hockey, so I had some familiarity. I knew Jim Ralph, he was my roommate on the road. And Randy Boyd, we were all graduates of the Ottawa 67’s so we had the same coach and we knew each other.
But the one thing that really I guess, as I remember that year, our very first game…. Cliff Koroll was coach originally, and he was replaced by Jimmy Pappin, because Cliff Koroll was recalled to the Blackhawks. But the first game was really neat because a lot of the Blackhawk alumni showed up to support Cliff. Dennis Hull, Keith Magnuson, were amongst many guys that ended up coming here, sitting behind the bench and they had signs for Cliff.
On a non-hockey note…Phil Wittliff co-signed by first car loan. I went to the bank, I believe it was called Marine Bank. I went down there, they wouldn’t give me a loan because I had no credit in the states. So I went upstairs and Phil Wittliff came down with me and he co-signed the loan.
RM: That sounds like something Phil would do.
DP: Those to me are great memories.
The Booster club — there’s a number of people that I saw tonight signing my bobblehead that were part of the booster club that did up the scrapbook at the end of the year. I told one of the ladies ‘I still have that scrapbook’. It meant a lot to us as players because as years go on and you retire, and you look back on it… I show my kids it. Yeah, that was me in the minors, I was 20 years old, I was making $22,500, I was playing in Milwaukee, and sharing an apartment with Kevin Robinson.
I really enjoyed my time here, and I thought that I was going to play here for a long time.
Through 42 games the Milwaukee Admirals sit in the second spot in the Western Conference, having accumulated 24 wins and 54 points. Therefore all is well in Milwaukee, right? When the Admirals skate five aside life is good, but the special teams remain a glaring issue as Milwaukee currently owns a seven goal deficit during special teams play.
“Five-on-five were pretty good, (but) its an ongoing process to try to get our special teams better,” Admirals coach Lane Lambert said. “We have to look at both the power play and the penalty kill.”
Lets start with the power play, which sits in 19th place in the AHL. Milwaukee is effective 15.8% of the time, scoring 27 goals on 171 chances while allowing six shorthanded goals against.
What can the Admirals do to improve the power play?
“I think we just need to keep working on it,” Milwaukee defenseman Scott Ford said. “We don’t a lot of guys other than Linus Klasen and Chris Mueller, who is up with Nashville, that put up big offensive numbers so we have to score by committee on the power play. If we do the right things, the puck will start finding the back of the net.”
Here are my three solutions to improve the power play:
1) More movement out of everyone on the power play. Whenever a power play goes south scoring-wise, this is usually the number one culprit. All players on Milwaukee need to move their feet more to create more shooting and passing lanes. More open lanes means more shots on goal and more scoring opportunities.
2) Stop watching Linus Klasen. With a player like Linus Klasen out on the power play, it is easy to get caught watching him and not moving to get open for him. Klasen is an amazing special teams weapon, but he needs help. Klasen can draw opposing defenses to him creating openings for other options.
3) Blast more point shots. The Admirals best weapon is the talent of their defensemen, and Roman Josi, Aaron Johnson, Jonathon Blum and Teemu Laakso are all potential scoring weapons. By moving more on the power play, shooting lanes for the points open up, creating opportunities for Milwaukee’s garbage goal hunters to find rebounds and tips around the net. Another way to create offense from the point is to have a good cycle down low that pulls the opposing defense lower in the zone, opening up plays and shots from up high.
Next week…I will tackle the Penalty Kill. Stay tuned.
So Roundtable, What are your Power Play Solutions?
El Presidente, Jon Greenberg, participated in what some may call a….cyber chat, on Wednesday afternoon.
Normally, I’d link to the transcript…but since I’m not really interested in sending webtraffic over there to those clowns, I’m just going to cut and paste the text here, for your reading pleasure. Maybe when they start giving our friend Dave Boehler some more space to write, and start having their editors not botch headlines, we’ll be more inclined to play the game.
Anyway… Enjoy!
- Q: Tim Shattuck, Grafton – Hello Jon, Will the Admirals be giving away tickets to the Packer-Bears game on Sunday? I want another shot at going! -Tim Shattuck
- A: Jon Greenberg – Hey everyone! Thanks for having me back again. Let’s get started with a time-sensitive question. Yes, Tim we’re going to have a pair of tickets for a lucky winner on Friday night when we host San Antonio at the Bradley Center. We hope that you can join us and be lucky enough to win. It’s certainly going to be a big game…the Admirals game that is.
- Q: Brian, Milwaukee – What happened to Jamie Lundmark? He is no longer listed on the roster and according to theahl.com transaction page has not been moved up to nashville.
- A: Jon Greenberg – Brian, thanks for the question. Jamie decided to terminate his relationship with the Predators and thus the Admirals. He signed a contract with a team in Sweden and left immediately.
- Q: dr hockey, milwaukee – jon:has there been any thought to playing a hockey game at miller park thank you
- A: Jon Greenberg – Hello Dr. The answer to your question is yes. However it has only gone as far as think about it. We would be very interested in playing a game there…maybe as a doubleheader with the University of Wisconsin but there are a ton of logistics involved that make it a challenge. It would be very cool to do it though.
- Q: Stacy Schmidt, Burlington – Jon, Do you think that the Predators will bring Nolan Yonkman back? Would the Admirals ever considering signing him if Nashville didn’t? Thanks for talking my question.
- A: Jon Greenberg – Stacy, thanks for the question. We are all big fans of Nolan Yonkman here. We hoped he’d come back last year but he saw a greener pasture with the Phoenix Coyotes organization and his decision has paid off as he had considerable time in the NHL this year that he never really got to have with Nashville. He has to do what is best for his career and we respect that. We look forward to seeing him on Friday night when San Antonio comes to visit. And in terms of would the Admirals consider signing him, we give full authority to sign players to Nashville. Considering the success our teams have had over the past decade I think that is the prudent thing to do.
- Q: Taylor, P-Dub – Do you support fighting in hockey?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Taylor, interesting question. Do I support fighting? Not necessarily but I understand that it is a part of the game, albeit a much smaller part than it was even a decade ago. The game has changed significantly with the most recent labor agreement that begs for more skilled players. The game is very intense, very physical and very emotional. Sometimes tempers flare. Sometimes momentum needs to be changed and a fight can lead to that.
- Q: Joe Geoffrion, Wauwatosa – Are there any more concerts that will be announced for this season? (and no, I’m not related to Blake. You could definitly tell if you saw me on skates)
- A: Jon Greenberg – Joe, thanks for the clarification. I would have wondered. In terms of concerts, our lineup consists of country star Rodney Atkins on Friday, January 28, the UW Badger Band on February 4, the Dropkick Murphys on February 25, Huey Lewis and the News on March 19 and Pat McCurdy on April 1. It’s a great lineup. On-ice passes for Rodney Atkins are on sale now and allow ticket holders to purchase, for an additional $20, a spot right in front of the stage for the concert. It’s a unique place to watch a show. We will be putting on-ice passes for the Dropkick Murphys on sale on Monday, Jan. 24.
- Q: Seth, Nashville – Will the Admirals ever play a game down in Nashville again?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Seth, thanks for the question. We talked about potentially doing that this season but it never came together. I know there is an interest in doing that on Nashville’s part so hopefully we can make that happen at some point. There are a few AHL teams that are doing it this season. It gives fans in the parent club’s market a chance to see their prospects in action.
- Q: Martin O’Brien, Franklin – If the Bears line up in a two tight end formation on Sunday should the Packers drop Clay Mathews into coverage or do you think it would be best to have him blitz Jay Cutler?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Well Martin, since you asked, I would drop into coverage but send Charles Woodson on a corner blitz. I actually can tell you that while I like to watch football I couldn’t tell you what I was watching most of the time. I do hope that the Packers come out on top as it would be great for the State of Wisconsin to have another Super Bowl appearance.
- Q: James, Whitewater, WI – Jon, I’m an avid hockey fan of the AHL and NHL. I also enjoy going to Brewers games at Miller Park. While it is fun and exciting to go to a Cubs v Brewers game I am always amazed at the number of Chicago fans in the stadium. My thought or question is, have the Admirals ever thought about having the Chicago Blackhawks play the Nashvillle Predators in a pre-season (or even regular season) game at the BC? I know you would draw a lot of Admirals fans as well as Chicago fans to the building! Thank you for your time – Go Admirals!
- A: Jon Greenberg – James, thanks for your support. We have talked with Nashville about potentially having a pre-season game at the Bradley Center. They have, in the past, had a circle of teams that they would play during the pre-season – Atlanta, Carolina, Columbus but they really don’t face the Detroit’s and Chicago’s. There would likely have to be NHL type ticket prices as well to guarantee to the two teams which might make it prohibitive to draw a big crowd for a pre-season game. It is however, something that we have discussed.
- Q: sludgemonkey, Appleton WI/Asheville NC – I got hit in the head with a puck at a recent game. It was hard. Can you make them softer?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Well sludgemonkey I hope that you are ok. I am pretty sure that hockey pucks have had the same density for about 75 years so changing the formula at this point might be kind of tough. If you ever wanted to see how they make hockey pucks there is a cool video on youtube that is pretty interesting.
- Q: Deanne – Are there any plans for Admirals players to be out and about the community meeting fans…like at team sponsors or anything?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Deanne, our players have been out at a myriad of school visits, youth hockey practices and corporate sponsor stops over the past few months. As a matter of fact, they are currently at the Bradley Corporation, a great Admirals sponsor, shooting some commercials and visiting employees. We still have a big visit to Children’s Hospital to hang out with the kids ahead as well. Charlie Larson, our VP of Communications, does a phenomenal job of getting the guys out to do things with our fan base. We also have the Admirals Crew Celebrity Serve scheduled for Monday, March 7 which is always a lot of fun.
- Q: Tim V., Michigan – Do you see the the Predators trading young players for playoff help, thus destroying our chances at a Calder Cup trophy?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Tim, interestingly worded question. The Predators are known for their excellent player development. It has been because of that successful program that we both have had success. We are here to develop players so that when they graduate to the NHL they are there to stay. The Predators often say that the road to Nashville goes through Milwaukee. Last year there were 16 players on Nashville’s playoff roster who spent time in Milwaukee at some point in their careers. I think that they will do what is best to try and go deep into the Stanley Cup playoffs but always keep an eye on the future of the organization as a whole.
- Q: mrlundt – What do most players do during the off season? How many stay around here?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Mrlundt, great question. The bulk of our players head to their homes in the off-season which we hope won’t start until the middle of June. They take a little bit of time off and then many are headed to prospect camp in Nashville in July. We did have a couple of guys spend significant time in Milwaukee during the summer including Scott Ford and Cal O’Reilly. I had the chance to play golf with Scott a couple of times last summer. He’s unreal. I think he could qualify for a PGA tour card if he ever wanted to make that a career.
- Q: Keith Justus, Las Vegas, NV – Hi Jon, I’m a Pittsburgh guy out West, now, looking to keep track of some of our local boys. I see Grant Lewis has only played in 18 games this season. Is that because he’s injured (he’s battled injury issues throughout his pro career), or because he’s simply fallen down the depth chart and can’t crack the lineup? Any info helps. Thanks much. KJ
- A: Jon Greenberg – Keith, thanks for the question. Grant has been in and out of the lineup for a variety of reasons, mostly depth issues. He has had some bright moments though and I think he will have a positive impact on our team moving forward. He’s a good guy….and has some unreal hair.
- Q: Nathan H, Milwaukee – Mr. Greenberg, Will you be shaving your head again for money?
- A: Jon Greenberg – I guess we can keep the hair theme going here Nathan. I just asked this question last week about whether our players were going to want to do this again. In each of the past two seasons, several of us have had our heads shaved to help raise money for the American Cancer Society as we started the playoffs. I was happy to participate and if the opportunity presents itself again, I will be happy to do it.
- Q: Nate H, Milwaukee – Jon, I heard you are giving away Packer tickets on Friday. First, how can I enter to win? Second, if I win, do you want to come with me?
- A: Jon Greenberg – We’ll do two questions in a row by someone named Nate. Same person??? Regarding the Packers tickets, you’ll need to go to one of four kiosks located throughout the 200-level of the Bradley Center on Friday night and fill out an entry form. 12 lucky contestants will be randomly chosen to participate in on-ice activities during the second intermission with the winner getting a pair of tickets to the game on Sunday. Regarding your second question, I think I may be choosing a nice warm comfortable place to watch the game closer to home but thanks for the invite and good luck.
- Q: Mark, Combined Locks, WI – Is TuTu still on the Admirals? That guy was incredible!!
- A: Jon Greenberg – Mark, Jordin Tootoo is with Nashville. He is currently, however, in the NHL’s substance abuse rehabilitation program. We wish Jordin the very best and hope that he makes a full recovery and returns to the ice soon. I would agree that he was amazing to watch over the course of his time here. A real fan favorite!
- Q: Jason, Bayview – Could the Admirals have stopped Jamie Lundmark from going overseas?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Jason, the answer to your question is possibly but there was no desire to do so. Once he made up his mind that he didn’t want to be here anymore it was a big red flag for us obviously. You want to have guys that are committed to your organization as well as to your coaches and players and once they make a decision otherwise that pretty much isn’t going to happen. We wish Jamie well in his future endeavors.
- Q: Pat, Oconomowoc – Jon, are the Admirals’ practices open to the public? if so, when are they scheduled so fans can watch?
- A: Jon Greenberg – Pat, our practices at the Kern Center are open to the public. They are generally in the mornings from 10:30-12:00. We do practice at the Bradley Center when ice is available to us however. The best course of action is to call our offices to double check where and when practices will be held.
- Q: Chuck, WI – Jon, First off, I think you and the Admirals organization run one the best and most affordable sports entertainment functions around. This season I’ve had the pleasure of sharing a 1/2 season ticket package. I’ve been spreading the Admirals experience to everyone that will listen. My question is regarding merchandise. I know you can get apparel at the BC during games, at your offices and online. Are there any plans in getting Admirals apparel in other locations like local malls for the more casual fan? By the way, my son and I are 5-0 this year for games we’ve attended. Keep up the great work and GO Ads!!
- A: Jon Greenberg – Chuck, you get the last question. This hour has flown by. Thanks everyone!! Thank you for your support and keep spreading that message! Regarding merchandise, we have been talking with a couple of retail locations about getting our stuff out there later this year. I feel confident that Kim Salli, our merchandise guru, will be able to get that done. In the meantime though, the options you mentioned are the best available. Since you are 5-0, I expect to see you Thursday and Friday at the BC! 7 pm for both. Thanks again everyone!
The American Hockey League, which is celebrating its 75th season, is justifiably proud of it role it plays in grooming players for the NHL. But the league isn’t the only place where top-level caliber talent goes to develop the skills necessary to play on hockey’s biggest stage.
As of last count the ECHL has churned out 459 alumni who have played in the NHL. Some of the names who have that have made that jump are pretty impressive, including Tim Thomas, Jaroslav Halak, Jonathan Quick, Tomas Vokoun, Ruslan Fedotenko, Joe Corvo, Rich Pevelry, and two Admirals from 2010-2011, Chris Mueller and Mark Dekanich.
Of the five most recent former-ECHLers who got their NHL shot, three spent time with the Cincinnati Cyclones. Recently I asked Cyclones coach Jarrod Skalde who are the next players from Cincinnati who could make the move up to the NHL:
Skalde: Right off the top, I would have to say our goaltending. If you look at Chet Pickard, you see a talented, talented kid. He’s had some struggles up in Milwaukee, and that’s part of the reason why he is here now. But he works extremely hard. He understands where he’s at and what he has to do to get out of here and back up to Milwaukee and hopefully in the future with the Nashville Predators. Chet’s a pleasure to have down here in Cincinnati.
Another guy is Marc Cheverie with the Florida Panthers organization that is in the same boat. He is a top prospect that is in the ECHL right now trying to figure out his game. They are two guys that complement each other very well and share the same vision and same focus of wanting to get up to the National Hockey League.
There you have it, Pickard and Cheverie. With the Florida Panthers looking to unload Vokoun at some point, Cheverie looks like he might have the easier road of moving up.
(For more on Cincinnati’s role in the Nashville Predators/Milwaukee Admirals organization, check out my feature story here)
So Roundtable, Is there a player on Cincinnati who could eventually play in the NHL? Is there an alumnus of the ECHL on Milwaukee who could make the jump?
Possibly overheard in the Predators locker room after their 5-2 win over the Phoenix Coyotes…
“Where have you guys been my whole life?”
— JP Dumont, who has scored 5 goals in the last two games, playing on a line with Chris Mueller and Matt Halischuk.
Both Mueller and Halischuk had a pair of assists in the win. Want to see what happened? Here’s some video! See goals 1 and 4 for the Preds.
Admirals Roundtable 