First came the Admiral of the Month distinction. Now comes one from the league itself. Juuse Saros has just been named the CCM/AHL Goaltender of the Month for his performance in the month of March.

Press Release via AHL:

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins right wing Carter Rowney, Providence Bruins center Frank Vatrano and Milwaukee Admirals goaltender Juuse Saros have been selected as the league’s award winners for March.

Rowney, the CCM/AHL Player of the Month, tallied seven goals and 10 assists for a league-high 17 points along with a plus-8 rating in 12 games for the Penguins, who closed in on a berth in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Rowney notched all 17 points during a nine-game scoring streak that ran from Mar. 5-25. He recorded his first career hat trick on Mar. 6, scoring once at even strength, once on the power play and once shorthanded to lead Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to a 5-4 win over Hershey. On the morning of Mar. 9, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced they had signed Rowney to his first NHL contract; he celebrated that night with two goals and an assist – including the overtime winner, in Wilkes-Barre’s 6-5 defeat of Lehigh Valley. Rowney later registered two assists on Mar. 12 vs. Bridgeport for his third consecutive multiple-point effort, picked up three helpers in a 6-5 OT win at Hershey on Mar. 20, and scored the game-winning goal in a 5-0 shutout of Binghamton on Mar. 23.

A third-year pro from Sexsmith, Alta., Rowney has set career highs in goals (21), assists (31) and points (52) for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this season, and his plus-26 rating ranks second among all AHL forwards. Rowney, who played four seasons at the University of North Dakota, has skated in 158 career regular-season games in the AHL, totaling 34 goals and 54 assists for 88 points, and has added two goals and four assists in 15 Calder Cup Playoff contests.

In recognition of his achievement, Rowney will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Penguins home game.

Also see: Past winners, AHL Player of the Month

Vatrano, the CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month, found the scoresheet in all eight AHL games he played last month, totaling eight goals and five assists for 13 points while maintaining his remarkable scoring pace for the season.

Vatrano’s month was highlighted by his performance vs. Portland on Mar. 6, when he became just the third player in AHL history to score three unassisted goals in a single game; he completed the hat trick – his third in the AHL and fourth overall this season – with the winning goal in a 4-3 overtime decision. On Mar. 11 vs. Hartford, Vatrano scored the tying goal in the final minute of regulation, and he picked up a goal and two assists on Mar. 13 vs. Utica. He scored again on Mar. 19 at Toronto and Mar. 20 at Rochester before earning another recall to the parent Boston Bruins on Mar. 22.

Vatrano leads the American Hockey League with 33 goals despite appearing in just 33 games for Providence this season, and his 49 points are tied for sixth among AHL rookies. The 22-year-old native of East Longmeadow, Mass., is also pacing all AHL rookies in power-play goals (12) and shots on goal (172), and owns a team-best plus-17 rating as well. Vatrano signed as a free agent with Boston on Mar. 13, 2015, and has seven goals and three assists in 34 NHL games this season.

In recognition of his achievement, Vatrano will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Bruins home game.

Also see: Past winners, AHL Rookie of the Month

In eight appearances last month, Saros, the CCM/AHL Goaltender of the Month, went 7-1-0 with a 1.61 goals-against average, a .936 save percentage and two shutouts, lifting the Admirals into first place in the tight Central Division.

Saros began the month by stopping 25 shots and both shootout attempts in Milwaukee’s 4-3 win at Lake Erie on Mar. 3, then made 22 saves as the Admirals shut out Chicago, 1-0, in overtime on Mar. 5. Saros earned his sixth consecutive winning decision on Mar. 11, turning aside 23 of 25 shots in a 4-2 win over Iowa, and earned his fourth shutout of the season on Mar. 23 with 28 saves in the Admirals’ 2-0 victory at Texas.

A 20-year-old rookie from Forssa, Finland, Saros has appeared in 32 games with Milwaukee this season (24-7-0) and ranks fourth in the AHL with a 2.22 goals-against average to go with a .920 save percentage and four shutouts. Saros was a fourth-round pick by Nashville in the 2013 Entry Draft, and made his NHL debut with the Predators on Nov. 28, 2015, vs. Buffalo.

In recognition of his achievement, Saros will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Admirals home game.

Also see: Past winners, AHL Goaltender of the Month

I spoke in great length about Saros’ month of March during the Admiral of the Month award talk yesterday but the short and sweet of it is this. In March the Admirals logged fourteen games to match a season high for games played in a month. During that time Saros took eight of the Admirals fourteen games in net and responded with a 7-1-0-0 record, 1.61 goals against average, 0.936 save percentage, and 2 shutouts. He was lights out and played his most calm and composed hockey to date in his first full-season of professional hockey in North America.

Of note, I attended practice this afternoon and just so happened to be conducting interviews as this news was about to be announced. I had the chance to speak with Saros and this is what he had to say:

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For those looking around the rest of the AHL you’ve probably noticed that the term ATO has been getting thrown around a lot lately. An ATO is an amateur try-out and that’s coming in bunches lately with both the college and junior hockey playing season coming to an end. This morning the Milwaukee Admirals have made their first ATO signing by bringing aboard forward A.J. White from UMass-Lowell.

Press Release via Milwaukee Admirals:

Milwaukee, WI—The Admirals announced today that the team has signed forward AJ White to an Amateur Try-Out Contract (ATO).

White joins the Admirals after finishing an impressive four-year career at UMass-Lowell where it totaled 79 points (28g-51a) in 153 career games. During his senior season he was tied for third on the team with 11 goals and fourth with 25 points and served as an alternate captain. The Dearborn, MI native was teammates with current Admirals forward Joe Pendenza for two seasons with the River Hawks.

White, who will wear number 29, will look to make his Admirals debut when the team hosts the San Antonio Rampage on Saturday night at 7 pm at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

As noted above, White was a teammate at UMass-Lowell with current member of the Admirals roster Joe Pendenza. The two were teammates from 2012-14 during which time UMass-Lowell won the NCAA (Hockey East) Championship and had the best regular season record in 2012-13.

White is a 23-year old native of Dearborn, Michigan. A home to former Admiral John Vigilante and Wisconsin Badgers defenseman Brian Rafalski. During White’s four-year career with UMass-Lowell he played 153 games, produced 79 points (28 goals, 51 assists), had a plus/minus rating of +42, and 28 penalty minutes. He is coming off of a 2015-16 season in which he produced career highs for goals and assists: 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) from 40 games. When he joins the team he will wear Mark Van Guilder‘s old #29.

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The AHL has just announced every team’s choice for the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year. This year’s choice from the Milwaukee Admirals is defenseman Jimmy Oligny who now can be considered a nominee for the 2015-16 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award.

Press Release via AHL:

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today the individual team winners of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year awards, selected by their respective clubs for their outstanding contributions to the local community and charitable organizations during the 2015-16 season.

From this list of finalists, representatives from IOA/American Specialty and the AHL will choose the winner of the 2015-16 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award. The AHL’s annual Man of the Year award is named after the late Yanick Dupre, who died in 1997 at the age of 24 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. Dupre, an AHL All-Star in 1995, played four seasons with the Hershey Bears and also skated in 35 National Hockey League games with the Philadelphia Flyers.

This year’s winners of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year awards are:

Dan Kelly, Albany Devils (3rd-time winner)
Matthew Ford, Bakersfield Condors (2nd)
Zack Stortini, Binghamton Senators (2nd)
Matt Carkner, Bridgeport Sound Tigers (6th)
Kyle Hagel, Charlotte Checkers (6th)
Pat Cannone, Chicago Wolves (1st)
Tom McCollum, Grand Rapids Griffins (3rd)
Chris Summers, Hartford Wolf Pack (1st)
Nathan Walker, Hershey Bears (1st)
Kurtis Gabriel, Iowa Wild (1st)
Ryan Craig, Lake Erie Monsters (2nd)
Davis Drewiske, Lehigh Valley Phantoms (3rd)
Josh Morrissey, Manitoba Moose (1st)
Jimmy Oligny, Milwaukee Admirals (1st)
Sean Backman, Ontario Reign (1st)
Shane Harper, Portland Pirates (2nd)
Brandon DeFazio, Providence Bruins (4th)
Patrick Kaleta, Rochester Americans (2nd)
Michael Leighton, Rockford IceHogs (1st)
Zach Fucale, St. John’s IceCaps (1st)
Ben Street, San Antonio Rampage (1st)
Joe Piskula, San Diego Gulls (1st)
Ryan Carpenter, San Jose Barracuda (1st)
Domenic Monardo, Springfield Falcons (1st)
Bryce Van Brabant, Stockton Heat (1st)
Mike Angelidis, Syracuse Crunch (1st)
Derek Hulak, Texas Stars (2nd)
Andrew Campbell, Toronto Marlies (4th)
Carter Bancks, Utica Comets (2nd)
Will O’Neill, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (2nd)

The winner of the 2015-16 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award will be announced at a later date.

Chances are, if you’ve been to an Admirals event within the community, Oligny was there. He’s one of the more active members of the team in giving back to the local community and Admirals fans. He takes part in the Milwaukee Admirals reading program and always just seems to be around whenever the team is conducting an event. When the organization made the announcement that they would be moving to the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena he was one of the few active players to make a point to be on-hand as part of the present and future iterations. He’s always seemingly in a great mood and, to me, is the heart and soul of the Admirals now famed French Fries group alongside Frédérick Gaudreau and Félix Girard. And, as noted in Fifteen, Oligny is a tremendous family man.

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During last night’s Nashville Predators game Ryan Ellis was injured and did not return. With one right handed shot down topside it opens the door for the now influx of right handed shooting defensemen that the Milwaukee Admirals to help out at the NHL level. The man that the Predators have pegged for this assignment will be Stefan Elliott who tonight has been recalled under emergency conditions.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (March 30, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Wednesday that the club has recalled defenseman Stefan Elliott from Milwaukee (AHL) under emergency conditions. He will wear No. 7 for the club.

Elliott, 25 (1/30/91), has 24 points (8g-16a) in 82 career NHL contests with Colorado and Arizona since the 2011-12 season. Prior to being acquired by the Predators on Jan. 15, the 6-foot-1, 190-pound blueliner notched six points (2g-4a) in 19 games with the Coyotes, and since the trade, he has 17 points (6g-11a) in 29 AHL games with the Admirals. Colorado’s third selection, 49th overall (second round), in the 2009 Entry Draft was a 2015 AHL All-Star, the 2011 recipient of the Bill Hunter Trophy as the WHL’s top defenseman and the 2009 CHL Scholastic Player of the Year while with the Saskatoon Blades.

The Nashville Predators can clinch a spot in the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Thursday night when they face off against the Pittsburgh Penguins at CONSOL Energy Center (6 p.m. on FOX Sports Tennessee; 102.5 The Game). Thursday’s broadcast will highlight the emerging partnership between the Nashville Predators and the YWCA in the quest to end domestic violence through the MEND initiative. The broadcast will shed light on some alarming statistics concerning domestic violence and introduce the platform of MEND, which is to make Nashville the safest city in the United States for women and girls.

Elliott was acquired by the Predators in what effectively became a three-team trade. Elliott was playing with the Arizona Coyotes at the time. The Coyotes received Victor Bartley who was then shipped along with John Scott, of 2016 NHL All-Star Game fame, to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Jarred Tinordi and Stefan Fournier.

Since joining the Predators organization Elliott’s existence has been in the AHL with the Admirals. Prior to the trade he had spent the entirety of his 2015-16 season playing with the Coyotes in the NHL where he played in 19 games and produced 6 points (2 goals, 4 assists). In his career he has logged 82 games of NHL experience having also played a part as a member of the Colorado Avalanche from 2011-15. In his NHL career he has 24 points (8 goals, 16 assists) and a plus/minus rating of -5 with 16 penalty minutes.

As a member of the Admirals, Elliott’s reintroduction to life in the AHL was actually a rather amusing one given the first two teams that he played against. Elliott’s first game as an Admiral came in San Antonio where he faced his old teammates that he played alongside the years prior when the Avalanche’s AHL affiliate was the Lake Erie Monsters before moving shop to the San Antonio Rampage organization. After that series the Admirals then played against the Monsters in Elliott’s old stomping grounds of Cleveland.

Elliott’s entry to the team, along with Patrick Mullen who was acquired a day prior to Elliott from the Ottawa Senators organization in exchange for Conor Allen, was a signal of a a restructuring of the defense to have three lefties and three righties. This balance is something the Admirals really haven’t experienced under the reign of Dean Evason as a head coach as Taylor Aronson has been one of the lone righties in the system from last season up until these two trades took place. Since, the team actually added another right handed defenseman in Corey Potter to make the right-handed defensemen split overwhelm the left-handed side. This has seen the likes of Elliott and Mullen actually sharing a defensive partnership in recent games with Elliott operating as the left-side defenseman.

Elliott has played in 29 games for the Admirals since his arrival in mid-January. He has 17 points (6 goals, 11 assists) which includes scoring 5 power-play goals. His first goal that wasn’t scored on the power-play came last night when the Admirals beat the Grand Rapids Griffins 4-1. He has a plus/minus rating of +12 with the Admirals which is currently the best among all defensemen on the roster. He also has totaled 14 penalty minutes.

Be sure to keep updated with Admirals Roundtable through social media platform of your choice: follow along Twitter, like us on Facebook, get photo updates on Instagram, and listen along on SoundCloud.

There are plenty of questions still out there in regards to the Milwaukee Admirals move to the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. One of the more interesting questions is actually a simple one. Is my sweet spot, in terms of a seat at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, going to be just as good across the street?

That question can be answered on site this coming Monday because the Admirals and the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena will have an Open House Night from 4pm to 8pm. This will allow season ticket holders and interested spectators to see the future arena layout in hockey configuration.

Press Release via Milwaukee Admirals:

Milwaukee, WI—The Milwaukee Admirals will hold their first open house at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panther Arena this Monday, March 28 from 4:00 to 8:00 pm.
The event is free and open to the public and is the first opportunity for fans to take a look the layout and configuration of the rink and to pick potential seat locations for season tickets for the 2016-17 Season. Fans who are interested in a particular seat can put $50 down and that will secure their spot on a seniority-based list for seat selection.

The UWM-Panther Arena will have both concession and merchandise stands open for the event, and while there won’t be ice down there will be goals in place and the red and blue lines will be taped down to give fans some perspective on where the seats are located. In addition, there will be public Wi-Fi available for fans to use.

There is free parking available for the event in the surface lot that is just south of the UWMPA. Fans should enter the lot from Wells St. and then take a ticket from the attendant. Fans should then bring that ticket into the event where a member of the Admirals staff will validate it.

Fans with further questions about the event are encouraged to call the Admirals office at (414) 227-0550.

Personally, I’ve not been in the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena since I was probably below the age of 10-years old when a supercross or monster trucks event took place at what was then called the US Cellular Arena. Times have changed and so has the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. I feel I’m not alone in not having visited across the street in a long time so this event should provide a great re-introduction for people such as myself – and quite possibly an introduction, period, for others. This should be a fun way to get to know the surroundings and start getting the building to slowly but surely be the home of the Milwaukee Admirals.

Be sure to keep updated with Admirals Roundtable through social media platform of your choice: follow along Twitter, like us on Facebook, get photo updates on Instagram, and listen along on SoundCloud.

After participating in two games in two days both Gabriel Bourque and Eric Nystrom have been recalled by the Nashville Predators early from their long-term injury loans.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (March 20, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has recalled forwards Gabriel Bourque and Eric Nystrom from Long-Term Injury loans with Milwaukee (AHL). They each played a pair of games vs. Charlotte on Friday (2-1 shootout loss) and Saturday (6-2 win).

Bourque, 25 (9/23/90), went scoreless in this weekend’s games, and has appeared in four games for the Admirals in two Long-Term Injury Loans over the past four weeks. He has missed the Predators last 50 games after leaving the team’s Nov. 27 game at Philadelphia with an upper-body injury. In 22 NHL games in 2015-16, the Rimouski, Quebec native has four points (1g-3a).

Nystrom, 33 (2/14/83), scored a goal in Saturday’s win, his first action since sustaining a broken foot on Jan. 26 at Vancouver. He has missed Nashville’s last 23 games, and has seven goals/points in 40 games with the Predators this season.

The Nashville Predators commence a four-game home stand Monday night when they face off against the Los Angeles Kings at 7 p.m. (TV: FOX Sports Tennessee; Radio: 102.5 The Game). The game will feature several special promotions and events, with Mike Fisher’s 1,000th game celebration and tribute taking place prior to face off. The team will also be hosting 90’s night, and will be selling hot dogs for just $1 during the evening. A limited number of tickets remain, fans can purchase tickets by visiting NashvillePredators.com, or by calling 615-770-7800.

The two were eligible to play in this afternoon’s game with the Milwaukee Admirals but Nystrom had suggested this weekend that fatigue might dictate not playing throughout the three-in-three. The veteran forward also said that “he was leaving Sunday” so that, combined with a fatigue factor, probably speaks to the early call up.

I feel both Bourque and Nystrom looked great considering both had such long lay offs since their last piece of game action. There was no lag effect for either and Bourque, in particular, played with a hot motor throughout the Admirals two-games against the Charlotte Checkers. He was running over just about everyone on the ice and reminded me a lot of Miikka Salomäki‘s style of play. As for Nystrom, he played a smooth first game and appeared to play with an extra level of confidence last night. In the process he just so happened to get rewarded by going to the net and getting a redirect goal for his first AHL goal since 2/17/08 when he scored twice as a member of the Quad City Flames. Both Predators players were on a line with Cody Bass for those games and Admirals head coach Dean Evason was quick to acknowledge how well that group played after last night’s game.

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Did you really think that today’s news cycle for the Milwaukee Admirals would be complete without some sort of roster activity? Of course not. The Nashville Predators have just assigned forwards Gabriel Bourque and Eric Nystrom to the Admirals under long-term injury loan conditions which specify that their loan duration  cannot exceed up to either six-days time or three-games. All you need to do is look at the Admirals schedule to know that this weekend is a three-in-three which should fulfill that loan process.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (March 16, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Wednesday that the club has assigned forwards Gabriel Bourque and Eric Nystrom to Milwaukee (AHL) on Long-Term Injury Loans. Both are expected to suit up for the Admirals this weekend when they host Charlotte (Friday and Saturday) and travel to Chicago (Sunday).

Bourque, 25 (9/23/90), has missed the Predators last 48 games after leaving the team’s Nov. 27 game at Philadelphia with an upper-body injury. In 22 NHL games in 2015-16, the Rimouski, Quebec, native has four points (1g-3a). Nashville’s ninth choice, 132nd overall (fifth round), in the 2009 Entry Draft, Bourque appeared in two games for the Admirals during a conditioning assignment last month, and has 64 points (27g-37a) in 120 career AHL games.

Nystrom, 33 (2/14/83), has missed Nashville’s last 21 games with a broken foot sustained on Jan. 26 at Vancouver. In 40 games for the Predators this season, the 6-1, 200-pound winger has seven goals/points. The Syosset, New York, native last appeared in the AHL with Houston in 2011-12, and has 42 points (21g-21a) in 109 career AHL contests.

The Nashville Predators return home from a five-game road trip tomorrow night, Thursday, March 17, when they face-off against the New York Islanders (7 p.m. on FOX Sports Tennessee; 102.5 The Game). The game will coincide with St. Patrick’s Day, where players will be wearing specialized jerseys during warmups which will be auctioned off that night. During the game, fans will also have the opportunity to purchase a commemorative St. Patrick’s Day Mystery Puck. For a $20 donation to the Nashville Predators Foundation, fans will be able to select a wrapped, themed puck autographed by a Predators player. Four lucky fans will win a special, additional prize. For tickets to the game, fans can visit NashvillePredators.com or call 615-770-7800.

This will be the second time this season in which Bourque will be handling one of these long-term injury loans in Milwaukee. He played only two out of three games of his loan condition before being recalled by the Predators in mid-February. Those both were unfortunately regulation losses for Admirals and Bourque didn’t register a point of offense – although he was far more lively in the second game of his loan.

If you thought Cody Bass was happy when Corey Potter joined the team to take the mantle as the oldest player on the roster then imagine how happy Potter can feel for just this weekend when Nystrom shows up. The 33-year old last played in the AHL during the 2011-12 season as a member of the Houston Aeros. That season he only played in a single game. You need to crawl back to 2007-08 when he logged more games in the AHL, with the Quad City Flames, and back to 2005-06 with the Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights when he played a full season in the AHL.

No doubt that this beefs up the Admirals roster for the weekend when they’ll be taking on the Charlotte Checkers at home on Friday and Saturday before hitting I-94 and playing on the road against the Chicago Wolves on Sunday. Should Cody Hodgson return to fitness I believe the Admirals forward group should be more than capable of matching up with a Checkers team than really pushed the Rockford IceHogs their last three-games.

Be sure to keep updated with Admirals Roundtable through social media platform of your choice: follow along Twitter, like us on Facebook, get photo updates on Instagram, and listen along on SoundCloud.

The Milwaukee Admirals will be officially moving to the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena for the start of the 2016-17 season after being approved by the Wisconsin Center District for a 10-year lease. The lease also includes a mutual option for a further 5-years.

Report by Rich Kirchen of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The Milwaukee Admirals will contribute $2 million and the Wisconsin Center District $4.3 million to upgrade the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, which will add the hockey team as a tenant starting with the 2016-2017 season.

The capital projects will be completed over the next two to three years and include a new kitchen, a new Admirals locker room and general updates to the 66-year-old arena.

“The arena needs to be brought back to a level that we know it’s capable of being,” Admirals owner Harris Turer said in an interview with the Milwaukee Business Journal. “It’s just gotten a little old and tired. We really want our fans to be able to come to games and just see a really beautiful place.”

The 10-year lease with a five-year mutual option extension was approved Wednesday morning by the Wisconsin Center District board. The public Wisconsin Center District owns the arena at 400 W. Kilbourn Ave. in downtown Milwaukee.

The lease will produce a positive financial result for the Wisconsin Center District and taxpayers, said board chairman Scott Neitzel. Adding 38 Admirals home games per year greatly increases the viability of the Panther Arena.

“From the community standpoint, I think it’s wonderful,” Neitzel said in an interview. “It keeps the Admirals downtown in Milwaukee and therefore it meets what I think is the mission of the Wisconsin Center District — to continue to bring as many people to downtown Milwaukee as possible.”

The Wisconsin Center District also owns the Milwaukee Theatre and the Wisconsin Center convention hall.

The Admirals, who play in the American Hockey League, had no other viable options for a home rink after the BMO Harris Bradley Center closes in 2018. The Admirals need a new home rink because they were not in the plans for the new Milwaukee Bucks arena that will replace the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Turer said he is excited about the new home rink and what he considers successful negotiations with the Wisconsin Center District leadership. The Admirals have played at the Bradley Center, which was a gift to the community from former owners Jane Bradley Pettit and Lloyd Pettit, since the venue opened in 1988.

“I had no desire to sell the team and that would have been a terrible thing for our community,” Turer said. “I’m just grateful that we have a home.”

Turer said he is not sure yet what he will spend the $2 million on other than a general facelift and modernizing of the Panther Arena. He would like to improve the concourse areas, main lobby and concession stands.

Turer, who bought the Admirals 11 years ago, said the team has been losing money at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. He said the Wisconsin Center District lease will result in profits because the team for the first time will receive a split share of merchandise revenue and a share of concessions revenue.

“This allows the Admirals to be a financially viable entity and that means a lot to me,” said Turer, who is the grandson of Master Lock founder Harry Soref.

The Wisconsin Center District will fund its portion of the arena improvements with part of a $5.25 million bond issue the board also approved Wednesday.

The district did make a couple of significant improvements after UWM agreed to a 10-year naming rights deal in June 2014. The district spent $1.1 million on a new scoreboard and video board at the Panther Arena and is replacing all the permanent seats in UWM black and gold colors over a three-year period.

UWM has 10-year naming rights agreement for the arena. The Admirals would like to add some signage at the arena but need to negotiate that with UWM officials, Neitzel and Turer said.

UWM and the Milwaukee Wave indoor soccer team also agreed to some flexibility in scheduling games to accommodate the Admirals, Neitzel said.

The Admirals lease at the BMO Harris Bradley Center runs through 2016-2017 but the team and Bradley Center officials have discussed an early exit from that agreement.

The ol’ MECCA will be seeing plenty of upgrades because of this move by the Admirals. A new locker room will be needed to match that of what the team has at the BMO Harris Bradley Center and the upgrades won’t be performed purely from a player experience, either. The fan experience is going to a focus as well. Upgrades to the concourse, lobbies and concession stands will be a point of focus during the course of this lease. As reported by Kirchen of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel there are $6.3 million in upgrades in works with the Admirals set to contribute $2 million and the Wisconsin Center District set to contribute $4.3 million.

There will be a press conference this afternoon at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. I will be on-hand to take that all in and, hopefully, provide a Chatterbox later this afternoon with different parties associated with this move being able to shed some insight on this huge news for the Admirals.

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The long wait and see news story of what will become of the Milwaukee Admirals under the umbrella of all the Milwaukee Bucks new arena discussions may finally reach a breakthrough tomorrow morning. The Wisconsin Center District board is set to discuss a lease for the Admirals to move into the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena for the 2016-17 season.

Report by Tom Daykin of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

The Milwaukee Admirals’ likely move to a different venue could become official Wednesday.

The Wisconsin Center District board is scheduled to discuss a potential new Admirals lease at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

That discussion and possible vote to approve the lease are to occur at the board’s Wednesday meeting, according to an agenda issued Monday. The district operates the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, Wisconsin Center convention facility, Milwaukee Theatre and will own the future Milwaukee Bucks arena.

The Admirals now play at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, but plans for a new Bucks arena haven’t included the minor-league hockey team.

The Bucks will demolish the Bradley Center after the new arena is completed. That facility is to open by the start of the 2018-’19 National Basketball Association season.

Under the proposed lease, the Admirals would move to the Panther Arena starting in the 2016-’17 season. That season runs from October through April and includes 38 home dates — not counting possible postseason games.

This comes after a district official said in October that the Panther Arena could include a renovated locker room for the Admirals. That comment came during a discussion of the Wisconsin Center District’s 2016 budget.

Admirals Chief Executive Officer Harris Turer said in June that he did not believe the team would be part of the future Bucks arena.

Turer said then that he had started preliminary discussions with district officials about a possible lease at the Panther Arena, where the Admirals would share the facility with the UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball team and the Milwaukee Wave.

The Panther Arena, where the Admirals played for several years before the Bradley Center opened, does have ice-making machinery and is Milwaukee’s only “true alternative” for the team, Turer said.

As it stands, there truly hasn’t been much of any positive “breakthrough” level discussions as it pertains to the Admirals being part of the new Bucks arena. That has pretty much been the narrative all along. When you scratch that option off, and of course the BMO Harris Bradley Center off because it would be demolished once the new arena is introduced, there are only so many options for the Admirals to turn.

The UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena was the Admirals home until the introduction of the Bradley Center in 1988. It’s gone through different names over time: MECCA Arena, Wisconsin Center Arena, US Cellular Arena, and now goes by the title of the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. It currently hosts, as the name suggests, events associated with UW-Milwaukee as well as hosts the Milwaukee Wave, Brewcity Bruisers, and several other entertainment acts. Should the Admirals be approved the immediately become the highest profiled professional sports tenant of the building and that would be a partnership that should greatly benefit all parties involved at the arena.

Discussions I’ve had with various parties close to this situation have all come back by saying this phrase, “It has to be done the right way.” That encapsulates the full-scale of this massive project for the Admirals that goes above and beyond simply switching venues for next season. The organization would be installing renovated locker room facilities that would be on par with the current norm that the team experience at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Admirals President Jon Greenberg went to experience and talk with the Charlotte Checkers organization at the start of the season to get a sense for their recent move from the Time Warner Cable Arena to the Bojangles’ Coliseum which mirrors what would take place should the team switch back to the old barn. There is far more than a simple changing of home address at work for the Admirals when it comes to this move and the focus of the operation is being handled with surgical-like precision in the background to this 2015-16 season. As they’ve all said. If this move is to be done it has to be done the right way.

What are your reactions to a potential move across the street to the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena? What do you feel is needed, upgrade-wise or fan experience-wise, that must be addressed by the Milwaukee Admirals should they officially make the move to the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena?

Be sure to keep updated with Admirals Roundtable through social media platform of your choice: follow along Twitter, like us on Facebook, get photo updates on Instagram, and listen along on SoundCloud.

The numbers game appears to be working against defenseman Garrett Noonan once again. As first reported by Dakota Johnson of Sin Bin Cyclones Noonan will be returning to the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) from the Milwaukee Admirals (AHL).

This news comes after the Admirals loss last night which saw Noonan sit out as a healthy scratch for the fourth consecutive game. Patrick Mullen, who has missed the Admirals last eight-games due to a skate cut to his right hand that required thirteen stitches to repair, has been back practicing with the Admirals since Saturday and is possible to return this weekend. The Admirals already added defensive depth at the NHL Trade Deadline when the Nashville Predators acquired Corey Potter from the Arizona Coyotes organization. From the moment of his arrival it pushed Noonan out as a healthy scratch. Now he’s due back to the ECHL.

It is slightly unfortunate for Noonan that he hasn’t had a decent enough spell in the AHL to see if he could catch the same level of fire he’s bringing to the ECHL this season. With the Cyclones Noonan has produced 31 points (7 goals, 24 assists) in 40 games. He is the Cyclones best offensive defenseman this season. Sadly, his career numbers with the Admirals don’t match up with that: 10 points (4 goals, 6 assists) in 57 AHL games.

I would love to see Noonan’s hot run in the ECHL continue on with the Cyclones and, hopefully, see him brought back as a restricted free agent this off-season with a spot in the AHL there for him. I could see Taylor Aronson‘s 2013-14 season being a great model of how Noonan could progress into the Admirals lineup. Still, there might be a fear that what the Predators thought they drafted in Noonan back in 2011 they received this past off-season with Trevor Murphy. It’s hard to tell where Noonan’s story is going to really go.

Be sure to keep updated with Admirals Roundtable through social media platform of your choice: follow along Twitter, like us on Facebook, get photo updates on Instagram, and listen along on SoundCloud.