Today the Nashville Predators made it official. Marek Mazanec has been recalled from the Milwaukee Admirals as Pekka Rinne is expected to miss three to five weeks with a knee strain.

Last night’s Admirals game was going to be a telling sign of who was getting recalled once Rob Madore was brought up into the AHL ranks. Magnus Hellberg got the start. Madore served on the bench. And Mazanec was en route to Nashville – where he practiced at the Ford Ice Center this afternoon with the Predators.

Sad news for Rinne as his injury not only puts a temporary stop to his amazing season but will also mean him missing out on his first career NHL All Star Game. His replacement has already been announced as the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Marc-Andre Fleury following today’s news of Rinne’s injury and projected time out of the lineup.

Did the Nashville Predators make the correct choice? Do you think Magnus Hellberg could get called up after the AHL All Star Game?

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It appears as though tonight’s Milwaukee Admirals game might have signaled a roster move coming up for the Nashville Predators. Magnus Hellberg started in net. Rob Madore, recently called up today from the Cincinnati Cyclones, was the man sitting on the bench. And Marek Mazanec wasn’t in attendance.

It isn’t official as of yet but it is safe to assume that Mazanec has been recalled to the NHL as the Predators need a solution for the time being as Pekka Rinne deals with his lower-body injury sustained last night

Mazanec has a record of 11-8-3-1 in net this season for the Admirals with a 2.49 goals against average, 0.907 save percentage, and 3 shutouts in 23 games. Last season he played in 25 games for the Predators, had an 8-10-4 record, a 2.80 goals against average, 0.902 save percentage, and 2 shutouts. He also picked up NHL Rookie of the Month honors for November 2013.

This news might be a slight bummer for Hellberg who has shined for the Admirals this season. He has played in 7 less games than his Czech battery-mate but his numbers are great: 9-4-2-2 record, 1.72 goals against average, 0.934 save percentage, and 2 shutouts. While the Swede only had a brief NHL cameo last season, this situation presents him the opportunity to become the Admirals main netminder with his goaltending buddy from last year’s ECHL Kelly Cup Finals Madore as his back-up.

Thoughts on the call up? Did the Nashville Predators make the right choice in calling up Marek Mazanec over Magnus Hellberg? How will the Nashville Predators do without Pekka Rinne in net?

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The Milwaukee Admirals have recalled goaltender Rob Madore from the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL this afternoon. This move comes after Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne left last night’s game with a lower-body injury that is being considered day-to-day.

GIF: Rinne left the game after this, although it took him several minutes to make up his mind http://t.co/0yce6cO3hK

— Steph (@myregularface) January 14, 2015

Carter Hutton relieved Rinne in third period and preserved a 5-1 victory, improving the Predators to the NHL’s best record of 29-9-4 (62 points). Certainly, there are some concerns about the extent of the injury, but here are few more details of the collision which saw Rinne get injured courtesy of Thomas Willis:

At 2:55 of the third period, Chris Higgins drove toward the Preds net as Nashville D-man Anton Volchenkov looked to cut the forward’s angle off to the crease. Upended, Higgins’ momentum carried the trio of players into the end wall behind the Predators goal.

Rinne hit the boards and stayed down briefly before standing up and gingerly testing how he felt. After a brief conference with Head Athletic Trainer Andy Hosler, Rinne decided to exit the contest and did not return with a lower-body injury. Rinne was listed as day-to-day after the game, with an update expected on Thursday after the goaltender is re-evaluated.

“Of course you never want to see a goalie like Rinne go down, especially as important as he has been to us, but hopefully it’s not too bad,” Nashville defenseman Roman Josi said.

At least as a precaution, Madore was recalled today by the Milwaukee Admirals. To date Madore is 8-8-3 with a 2.71 goals against average and .900 save percentage in 20 ECHL games. Last season Madore carried the Cyclones to the Kelly Cup Finals, and was named playoff MVP after posting a 14-7-3 postseason mark.

Rinne as stated above is still being evaluated, but my guess is either Marek Mazanec or Magnus Hellberg are likely on their way up to Nashville soon, likely at the latest after tonight’s game in Hamilton. That possible NHL recall may be on a emergency basis or longer depending on newly minted NHL All-Star’s status. Currently, Rinne’s considered day-to-day, and the Predators aren’t scheduled to practice until Thursday.

The Tennessean’s Eric Stromgren reported that Rinne is upbeat about his recovery.

Pekka Rinne’s agent, @jay_grossman, talked with Rinne today. Says Rinne is “upbeat about his recovery” #Preds #NHL http://t.co/9wGv4omXgP

— Eric Stromgren (@estromgren) January 14, 2015

The Predators are off of game action until Friday when they host former coach Barry Trotz and the Washington Capitals.

So Roundtable . . . How concerned are you about Pekka Rinne’s injury? Is Rob Madore ready for some AHL action if needed? If you were Nashville, who would you recall, Hellberg or Mazanec?

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The NHL has just unveiled the players who will be featured in the upcoming 2015 NHL All Star Game. There will be four former-Admirals taking part in the festivities in two weeks time. Those players are Pekka Rinne, Shea Weber, Ryan Suter, and Filip Forsberg.

Rinne is having a Hart Trophy type of season for the Nashville Predators. He has been nothing short of spectacular: 28 wins, 1.98 goals against average, 0.930 save percentage, and 3 shutouts. It is his first ever selection to the All Star Game and he is the first Predators netminder since Tomas Vokoun in 2004 to be selected.

Weber continues to be an all-around beast. He has 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 41 games this season as well as a plus/minus rating of +15. It is Weber’s fourth straight appearance in the All Star Game. As for Suter, he has 22 points (1 goal, 21 assists) in 38 games for the Minnesota Wild. It’s the Wisconsin native’s second ever selection and first since joining the Wild.

Forsberg will sadly not be participating in the actual All Star Game itself but has been named to the YoungStars squad alongside Johnny Gaudreau, Aaron Ekblad, Mike Hoffman, Tanner Pearson, and Jonathan Drouin. They will all compete in the Honda NHL All-Star Skills Competition.

Do you feel that Forsberg was snubbed of his place to the All Star Game? Who were some of the other players that you wish were represented?

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I ended my last story on Miikka Salomäki‘s great NHL debut by stating there is no telling how long of a stay he will have up in Nashville. Today the Nashville Predators have an answer to that. They’ve activated Taylor Beck and Matt Cullen from injured reserve and reassigned Salomäki back to the Milwaukee Admirals.

As mentioned previously, Salomäki had a total of 10:49 of ice time, recorded a goal from four shots, and had a game best seven hits. He actually had double the amount of hits of anyone else in the game last night. The 3-2 (OT) win for the Predators over the Dallas Stars meant that they moved into first place overall in the NHL last night with their 27-9-1 record.

How do you feel Miikka Salomäki will perform after having made his NHL debut? Do you feel he has made a statement as the go-to call up from Milwaukee?

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Prior to the Admirals game yesterday, Miikka Salomäki was recalled by the Nashville Predators after both James Neal and Eric Nystrom were placed on injured reserve. He made his official NHL debut in Nashville last night as the Predators beat the Stars in overtime 3-2. Not only that, but Salomäki was able to mark the occasion with his first career NHL goal.

On the night Salomäki had a total of 10:49 of ice time, recorded a goal from four shots, and had a game best seven hits. He had the following to say after the game:

“I have no words,” said Miikka Salomäki. “It was just an awesome feeling. I think you can imagine it. It has been a dream for me to play in the NHL and to have my first game and first goal is so fun.”

There’s no telling just how long of a stay Salomäki will have up in the NHL. What’s certain is that he made the absolute most out of his NHL debut. Having watched his relentless play as an Admiral. I wouldn’t have expected anything less.

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It looks as if the roster is getting rather busy these days for the Milwaukee Admirals. Zach Budish and Garrett Noonan were brought back last weekend. Miikka Salomäki was sent down after his cup of coffee with the Nashville Predators. And now Patrick Cehlin has been recalled from the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL.

Cehlin has scored 4 points (3 goals, 1 assist) in 9 games for the Cyclones. He also has a plus/minus rating of -4 with 6 penalty minutes. For the Admirals he has yet to produce a point of offense in 4 games. This move would seem to be done as a way to have an extra body on-board as Mike Liambas serves the final games of his suspension.

Do you think the Admirals should play Patrick Cehlin or stick with Zach Budish, Joe Pendenza, and Frederick Gaudreau? As things shake out who do you feel returns to the ECHL?

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The 2015 AHL All Star Classic rosters have just been revealed. The Milwaukee Admirals will have goaltender Magnus Hellberg representing the team in Utica later this month. It is the Swede’s first ever selection to the All Star team.

Full AHL All Star Classic Roster via AHL:

~2015 Eastern Conference AHL All-Stars~

G Anton Forsberg, Springfield Falcons
G Connor Hellebuyck, St. John’s IceCaps
G Jeff Zatkoff, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

D Austin Madaisky, Springfield Falcons
D Brandon Manning, Lehigh Valley Phantoms
D Colin Miller, Manchester Monarchs
D Nikita Nesterov, Syracuse Crunch
D Derrick Pouliot, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
D Ryan Pulock, Bridgeport Sound Tigers
D Matt Taormina, Worcester Sharks
D Chris Wideman, Binghamton Senators

F Alexandre Bolduc, Portland Pirates
F Chris Bourque, Hartford Wolf Pack
F Tim Kennedy, Hershey Bears
F Alexander Khokhlachev, Providence Bruins
F Tom Kostopoulos (“C”), Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
F Vladislav Namestnikov, Syracuse Crunch
F Brian O’Neill, Manchester Monarchs
F David Pastrnak, Providence Bruins
F Nick Shore, Manchester Monarchs
F Chris Wagner, Norfolk Admirals
F Jordan Weal, Manchester Monarchs
F Joe Whitney, Albany Devils

Coach: Mike Stothers, Manchester Monarchs
Coach: Roy Sommer, Worcester Sharks

~2015 Western Conference AHL All-Stars~

G Magnus Hellberg, Milwaukee Admirals
G Jacob Markstrom, Utica Comets
G Joni Ortio, Adirondack Flames

D T.J. Brennan, Rockford IceHogs
D Matt Dumba, Iowa Wild
D Stefan Elliott, Lake Erie Monsters
D Maxime Fortunus (“C”), Texas Stars
D Brad Hunt, Oklahoma City Barons
D Ryan Murphy, Charlotte Checkers
D Xavier Ouellet, Grand Rapids Griffins
D Bobby Sanguinetti, Utica Comets

F Connor Brown, Toronto Marlies
F Bobby Butler, San Antonio Rampage
F Charles Hudon, Hamilton Bulldogs
F Anton Lander, Oklahoma City Barons
F Travis Morin, Texas Stars
F Joakim Nordstrom, Rockford IceHogs
F Cal O’Reilly, Utica Comets
F Emile Poirier, Adirondack Flames
F Teemu Pulkkinen, Grand Rapids Griffins
F Ty Rattie, Chicago Wolves
F Drew Shore, San Antonio Rampage
F Phil Varone, Rochester Americans

Hellberg’s selection comes on the back of what has been a fantastic rebound season for him. He has a record of 7-4-2-2 in net this season with a 1.89 goals against average, 0.928 save percentage, and a shutout. His goals against average is second in the AHL to Eastern Conference All Star representative Jeff Zatkoff‘s 1.69 GAA.

There were always going to be some All Star snubs. It seems as if one All Star candidate from the Admirals who you can cast as a snub would be Brendan Leipsic who is fourth among rookie scorers in the AHL this season with 25 points (4 goals, 21 assists) in 33 games.

What are your thoughts on this year’s AHL All Star selections? Who were the biggest snubs? How happy are you to see Magnus Hellberg represent the Milwaukee Admirals for the event?

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The AHL has announced that Mike Liambas has been suspended 3 games for an illegal check to the head. The Admirals forward was given a match penalty for his hit to Louis-Marc Aubrey in the second period of Milwaukee’s 4-2 in Grand Rapids.

Press Release via AHL:

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League today announced that Milwaukee Admirals left wing Michael Liambas has been suspended for three (3) games as a consequence of a match penalty for an illegal check to the head of an opponent, assessed in a game at Grand Rapids on Jan. 2.

Liambas has already served one game of the suspension. He will also miss Milwaukee’s games Thursday (Jan. 8) vs. Rockford and Friday (Jan. 9) at Rockford.

Liambas sat out the Admirals last game to serve an automatic suspension that is imposed when a player receives a match penalty. As Dean Evason stated after the game, he could have played but the league would have tacked on the automatic one-game to his suspension. He served it. And now really only needs to sit for two games.

Aubrey, who was on the receiving end of the hit, missed the rest of the game following Liambas’ check. The Griffins don’t play until tomorrow. Keep an eye out for whether or not he remains out of their lineup.

You can watch the hit that Liambas dished out and the follow up fight in the early going of Friday night’s game highlights:

So Roundtable . . . What do you think of the Liambas suspension? Was three games warrented or was this a bit excessive? Do you think Milwaukee will miss their tough guy against always physical Rockford?

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After a quick cup of coffee at the NHL level Miikka Salomäki has been reassigned by the Nashville Predators and will rejoin the Milwaukee Admirals ahead of their three-in-three later this week.

Salomäki was with the Predators for two games this past weekend as Nashville played out of the West Coast. He was a healthy scratch for both contests. That meant spectating for the bonkers crazy 7-6 (OT) win against the Los Angeles Kings and the 4-3 (SO) loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

Apart from the boost to his bank account for his quick look up, it feels like this should be a well deserved look up top at life at the NHL level for Salomäki who enjoyed a great rookie season last year and is doing good work this season. It’s always great to get a look from the AHL to the NHL to take a peak at just what it is you are working for. Have to imagine, even without playing a game, that this was an enjoyable experience for the young Finn.

Thoughts on this roster move? Do you feel as if the Nashville Predators were right in calling up Miikka Salomäki only to not play him?

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