The Milwaukee Admirals lost 4-1 against the Iowa Wild Saturday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
The Admirals have now lost four straight games and five of their last six-games. Meanwhile, this win for the Wild was their fourth win from five games.
The Wild were able to get out in front six minutes into the first period through Zack Mitchell’s eleventh goal of the season. The Admirals defense was caught over-committing numbers to a puck battle on the left wing and, when the puck freed up, Mitchell had the slot all to himself to get a pass and wire in a shot through the wickets of Juuse Saros to give the Wild a 1-0 lead.
In the second period a great individual effort by Max Reinhart put the Admirals level at 1-1. Reinhart was swooping down the left wing when he snapped a low wrister off the pads of former-Admirals goaltender Jeremy Smith. The puck bounced ever so slightly off the pads and Reinhart took a second crack at the free puck and managed to get it through for his team leading eleventh goal of the season.
It only took 2:19 of ice time before the Wild regained their lead. A pass behind the Admirals net hit hard off of Jimmy Oligny’s stick and spilled into the offensive zone for the Wild. Kurtis Gabriel launched in, corralled the loose puck, and roofed a backhander past Saros for his fourth goal of the season.
After an extended shift in attack Mitchell added his second of the game to give the Wild a 3-1 second period lead. The Wild’s cycle game had the Admirals in a scramble and, eventually, a puck kicked back towards Mitchell at the top of the left wing circle where he would move in and rip a wrister high glove-side of Saros to bury his twelfth goal of the season.
There weren’t many highlights for the Admirals to speak of in this game but they did receive one during a third period penalty kill. As Zach Palmquist was racing into the zone down the right wing wall Cody Bass hammered him up and into the curved glass at the Admirals bench – cracking it clean in half. There was a slight delay to repair the ice and it appeared a fan was hurt when the glass panel exploded out of place.
The Wild bashed in another goal after a sequence of passes and rebounds that set up Michael Keränen at the side of the cage for a tap in and his sixth goal of the season. The troubling factor was once again the Wild winning a five-on-five battle but the initial shot by Joe Finley as he lept up into the play forced a rebound off to Saros glove side where Keränen was alone for the garbage tally.
With 2:26 remaining, trailing 4-1, the Admirals called for Saros to come to the bench and go for the desperate empty net and extra attacker scenario. That all went for naught in both respects and the game would end with that final scoreline.
Ramblings: Since last night’s game there were no roster moves made by the Milwaukee Admirals. Relating to last night’s game, Grand Rapids Griffins forward Alden Hirschfeld suffered a seizure during the contest and left the Van Andel Arena in stable condition. He visited his teammates this morning and was cited to be in good spirits and set to travel back to Toledo to rest at home with his family. Tonight’s line combinations for the Admirals featured some pretty drastic changes: White-Sissons-Åberg, Fiala-Gaudreau-Görtz, Payerl-Reinhart-Bass, Devane-Girard-Pendenza, Näkyvä-Alm, Allen-Oligny, Noonan-Murphy. Tonight’s scratches were: Vladislav Kamenev (jet lag), Zac Larraza (healthy), Jonathan Diaby (healthy), Victor Bartley (undisclosed), and Taylor Aronson (lower-body).
What are your reactions to this game? What is it about the Milwaukee Admirals that always seem to get the best of the Iowa Wild?
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(Photo Credit: Reese Strickland // USA TODAY Sports)
The Grand Rapids Griffins have the Milwaukee Admirals number. That’s troubling. No doubt about it. But ignore them for now because they won’t be a problem again until the last game of this month.
What concerns me a little bit is this current run the Admirals have been on. They have lost four out of their last five games. They are no longer in first place of the Western Conference. They are no longer in first place of the Central Division.
In these last five games the Admirals have been shutout twice. They have scored seven goals and it wasn’t until last night when they scored at even strength – they did that twice. Around that they’ve scored twice on the power-play, once at four-on-four, on a penalty shot, and with an empty netter. What’s concerning should be that the Admirals can’t handle the Griffins defensive pressure and tightness as much as it is everyone right now. The Admirals are losing losing the five-on-five battles which is simply uncharacteristic to say the least. That absolutely needs to change.
~The Iowa Mild~
Perhaps some relief from recent games can be found in the form of the Iowa Wild. This will be their first journey to Milwaukee of four games for the Wild this season. The Admirals have already trekked down to Iowa and have taken at least a point from all games played: 10/20/15, Admirals win 3-2 (OT)… 10/31/15, Admirals lose 3-2 (OT)… 11/5/15, Admirals win 3-0.
The Wild enter tonight’s game with the worst record in the entire league: 8-23-2-3 (21 points) for a 0.292 points percentage. It feels like I always say something along the lines of “worst” or “last place” with Iowa but they generally always match up well against the Admirals and play tight games. I don’t understand why that is. And the Wild have gone, for their standards, an extremely outstanding 3-1-0-0 in their last four games. Perhaps I should use the term “relief” lightly.
~Who What Now~
The first place I feel worth looking at for the Wild is in goal. You might think former Admirals goaltender Jeremy Smith has been their go-to workhorse this season but he’s actually been outplayed by Leland Irving.
Irving has played more games in net this season than Smith with 5-12-3-2 record from 21 appearances, 2.69 goals against average, 0.915 save percentage, and a shutout. Smith has appeared in 17 games and has a rough record of 3-11-2-1 to go along with a 3.10 goals against average and 0.909 save percentage. Though, it is worth noting that Smith did take home CCM/AHL Player of the Week honors to cap off December.
As far as team scoring goes, the Wild are the second lowest goal scoring team in the AHL with only 73 goals scored all season. The team with the lowest amount scored are the Manitoba Moose with 65 goals scored. So, you would imagine the individual statistics from a team like the Wild differ from a team like the Admirals – and you’d be right! The Admirals have thirteen players with double-digit points totals with two into the 20+ points figure. The Wild have seven players with double digit points and the closest man to the 20 point plateau for them is Switzerland native Christoph Bertschy who has a team best 19 points (4 goals, 15 assists).
Can the Milwaukee Admirals get out of their current three-game skid tonight? What would a loss to the Iowa Wild mean to you? How important would it be for the Admirals to get back Vladislav Kamenev?
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The Milwaukee Admirals lost 4-2 on the road against the Grand Rapids Griffins Friday night at the Van Andel Arena.
This game was going the typical way for the Admirals against the Griffins this season. None of that really mattered though when a scary medical situation unfolded at the Grand Rapids Griffins bench where 27-year old forward Alden Hirschfeld collapsed. Medical assistance was required and received immediately. The game would resume but the result, outside of Cody Bass’ first career goal as a member of the Admirals, didn’t change. The Admirals have now lost four of their last five games.
“Obviously that was a very scary moment,” commented Milwaukee Admirals assistant coach Stan Drulia after the game while talking to radio play-by-play broadcaster Aaron Sims on 105.7 FM The Fan. “That’s the first time that I’ve experienced that. I know I looked over, we were screaming for a too many men on the ice call, I looked over at their bench and their players were catching [Hirschfeld] as he was falling to the ground. The medical response got their in phenomenal time. The guys got the medical people over. [Doug Agnew] jumped off the bench and got there right away. Obviously it’s a very scary moment. We’re able to go into the locker room but we didn’t get a whole lot of information from them at all. He seemed to be doing ok. That’s all we could pass on to the guys. Certainly was a different mood the last twenty-six minutes of the game for sure.”
It wouldn’t take the home team long before getting on the board in the first period. After a poor turnover by Max Görtz at his defensive zone blue line – Jeff Hoggan snapped up the puck and passed over to Tomas Nosek who would wire a wrister from the slot past the blocker side of Marek Mazanec to score his third goal of the season.
There was then a “fight” between Adam Payerl and Richard Nedomlel. The two locked horns back in the Griffins defensive zone behind the action and didn’t really get much of a fight to earn their fight majors. Payerl’s bucket came off. Nedomlel landed one body shot. And then Payerl lost his balance and the two tumbled down on top of each other. Not much of a scrap but you almost have to give the edge in your fight cards to Nedomlel based on the one punch landed.
Following an interference penalty against Jamie Devane the Griffins tagged the Admirals on the power-play to give themselves a 2-0 lead with 7:12 remaining in the first period. Martin Frk delivered an absolute howitzer of a slap shot from just above the slot that whistled past the glove of Mazanec for his eleventh goal of the season.
With time expiring in the first period Görtz was able to redeem his early mistake by setting up fellow Swede Pontus Åberg for a goal with thirty-three seconds remaining in the frame. Görtz won a puck battle along the right wing wall and used his body to shield for a pass to the on-rushing Åberg. The stickhandling Åberg displayed to dip around two Griffins and release a shot out of a toe-drag was world class. Jared Coreau was literally left to look at the replay as Åberg celebrated his ninth goal of the season.
In the second period Cody Bass received a rude awakening to his return to the ice after missing sixteen games worth of Admirals hockey. Nedomlel, who already had a previous fighting major, started throwing punches clean to the head of Bass before any sort of a fight was initiated. Bass’ hand was effectively forced to start trading back and the two went at it for a bit before Nedomlel polished Bass off. It was Nedomlel’s second fighting major of the game so his night ended right there.
Not too far removed from the fight between Bass and Nedomlel – Griffins defenseman Nathan Paetsch scored twice to push the Griffins lead out to 4-1.
Paetsch was given credit on the Griffins third goal of the game that came after an outstanding start by the Admirals in the second period. A pass from Zach Nastasiuk behind the net trickled into the slot where Paetsch was stationed. He took a swat, the puck knuckled off traffic, popped up into the air, and fell over the left shoulder of Mazanec for a really bad break of a goal that shunted momentum that the Admirals were building to re-establish the Griffins two-goal advantage.
The second goal for Paetsch wasn’t without some controversy. While the defenseman’s wrister from the high right faceoff circle went in clean it was the amount of players on the ice that got Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason hot. There wasn’t a too many men on the ice call made. And Paetsch had his third and fourth goals of the season scored in the space of 2:07 of ice time to give the Griffins a 4-1 lead.
Following a penalty against the Griffins for a too many men on the ice penalty with 6:19 remaining in the second period a terrifying situation unfolded on the Grand Rapids bench. Alden Hrischfeld collapsed on the bench which instantly prompted the medical attention from the Griffins bench, Admirals head trainer Doug Agnew rushed over to assist, and the paramedics on hand at the Van Andel Arena raced across the ice to get to the bench.
As this occurred, Griffins and Admirals players cleared their benches and gathered together in neutral ice. The crowd was silent as Hirschfeld was attended to by various medical attention. The players, coaches, and officials would soon go back to their respective locker rooms with Admirals assistant coach Stan Drulia directing Griffins players to head down the Admirals tunnel to reach the Griffins locker room without disturbing the scene at the site of their bench and locker room tunnel.
Hirschfeld would eventually sit upright to the applause and relief of the 7,514 in attendance tonight. He would eventually be laid down on a stretcher and taken off the ice. The early report given by the Griffins over Twitter was that Hirschfeld was in a stable condition and being transported to the hospital.
The game would continue with the second intermission being enacted from the moment Hirschfeld left the rink. The 6:19 remaining in the second period would be played after the second intermission and, after a minute break, the third period would start.
From the moment the game resumed, even with an Admirals power-play to start things off, things felt like a blur. The game’s pace was slow. The action wasn’t anywhere near as physical or intense. The rest of the second period flew past and it looked as if the third period was heading the same way. That is until Bass marked his return, not just with a fight, but with his first goal as a member of the Admirals. Garrett Noonan delivered an incredible no-look backhanded pass as he was skating around the net. This caught Coreau sliding back to his near post and Bass’ shot went against the slide far post to pick up his first goal of the season, first as a member of the Milwaukee Admirals, and thirty-eighth of his AHL career.
Mazanec would go to the bench to bring on the extra attacker with 1:23 remaining in regulation but the Admirals couldn’t get anything established offensively in the attacking zone to mount a late comeback bid. The game ended with a 4-2 Griffins win and the Admirals have now lost four of their last five games.
“We have to keep learning,” cited Drulia. “They’re a really good hockey team. Obviously they’ve got our number and we’re not scoring enough goals against them. We tried to do a couple different things as the game went along. So we have some different video to look at. I thought this was the most chances we’ve had over the course of a sixty-minute game against them in the games that we’ve played. We were just pretty unfortunate. We turned a puck over on the first one. We didn’t win a battle on the second goal against. We get a tough bounce on the third goal. And the fourth goal was too many men on the ice. We didn’t play bad. We did some pretty good things. We just haven’t been able to get some puck luck right now that you get when you’re on a roll and we have to find a way to turn that around.”
UPDATE: Alden Hirschfeld had a seizure at tonight’s game, but is doing well and is resting with his family.
Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals played on Tuesday the team released Vinny Saponari from his PTO contract. Saponari has since rejoined Greenville (ECHL). The Nashville Predators acquired Ryan Johansen from the Columbus Blue Jackets for Seth Jones on Wednesday. Tonight’s line combinations for the Admirals were: Fiala-Sissons-Gaudreau, Åberg-Reinhart-Görtz, White-Girard-Payerl, Devane-Pendenza-Bass, Allen-Oligny, Murphy-Alm, Noonan-Näkyvä. Tonight’s scratches included: Zac Larraza (healthy), Vladislav Kamenev (yet to rejoin the team from World Juniors), Jonathan Diaby (healthy), Victor Bartley (undisclosed), and Taylor Aronson (lower-body). This game marked the return of Cody Bass after having missed all of December due to an upper-body injury. In total, Bass missed sixteen games due to that injury. This game also marked the return of defenseman Trevor Murphy for his first piece of game action since receiving an illegal check to the head by Rockford IceHogs All-Star forward Ryan Hartman. Murphy had missed the Admirals last seven games due to an “upper-body” injury.
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If you look close enough, just behind the head of goal scorer and ol’ pal of his Anthony Bitetto, you will find Milwaukee Admirals assistant coach Scott Ford. It’s almost a half season in but it still feels bizarre seeing him behind the bench like that to me. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
It probably says a lot about the person when a fan based feature such as this gets tasked with interviewing active players yet it’s the former one that so many still want to hear from. I’m not surprised by it. Not at all. After all, Scott Ford is the Sheriff of Milwaukee.
I would like to preface this by saying, if you liked the transcription of these Fifteen interviews as the previous ones had, I’m sorry. The fact is that Ford-o and myself could probably talk for a solid ten hours straight if not for my audio recorder’s batteries almost dying as this interview took place. It’s that long. We spoke for just over twelve minutes and it would have been longer if not for me checking the battery every now and then. As such, twelve minutes worth of talking is a massive amount of dialogue that I would simply rather have you all listen to rather than read. Next time I’ll get back to a transcription (unless you readers actually prefer just having the audio).
Of note. This interview was done while the Milwaukee Admirals had an autograph session to conduct. All players were tasked with signing various items that you great fans can either earn or win along the way this season. That meant random players approaching every now and then. And boy did one Victor Bartley ever provide a primary assist in this interview! You will hear both Bartley and Admirals VP of Communications Charlie Larson chiming in during this one. Buckle up. Because interviews with the Sheriff are always good.
Thanks to Scott Ford for taking the time to do this interview. Always love talking with that guy. Also, cheers to Victor Bartley for chirping in the background and then taking part in this one. Perhaps he should be the next player featured? You decide! Please please comment down below with who you would like to hear from next on Fifteen!
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Jared Coreau earned officially earned “Admiral Killer” status last time out. What do the Milwaukee Admirals need to do in order to beat this guy? (Photo Credit: Mark Newman)
If there is any opponent that has made me slightly cringe up heading into an Admirals game this season it would be the Grand Rapids Griffins. They are, and have been for numerous years, a well balanced and polished product of an AHL hockey team. The Detroit Red Wings and Nashville Predators organizations both scout, draft, and develop well. That’s kind of why these head-to-head battles over the years have always been so tight and playoff-like. That same mentality remains to be the case in 2015-16.
~The Grand Griffins~
It feels like ages ago but the Griffins start to the season might be one of the greatest oddities that has happened in the AHL to this point. In their opening eleven games of the season the Griffins only had two wins. Read that again: In their opening eleven games of the season the Griffins only had two wins. They started the season off losing four-straight games and losing four of six games at home.
But then, for whatever reason, reality must has set back in and in a massive way. When the Griffins finally clicked back into place they exploded for a franchise record fifteen-game winning streak. That streak was the third longest in the AHL since 1992.
“What has happened since that streak was snapped by the Lake Erie Monsters,” you asked. Good question! The Griffins have played a total of four-games and have split the deck with two wins and two regulation losses.
Their last game is something I’d refer to as a head-turner. The Moose took down the Griffins in Manitoba by a score of 2-1. I don’t know whether you simply tip the cap to Eric Comrie in net but the Griffins outshot the Moose 38-26 in that game. Just two days prior the Griffins blew the Moose away with a 4-1 win, Comrie in the net for Manitoba, and outshooting them by a very similar 37-26 total. So, for how that last game ended, I imagine a long trip back to Grand Rapids was to be had. They needed one goal to at least take a point from the lowly Moose. They had two power-plays chances late in the third period that could have sent them through to overtime, get that point, and possibly take one more with the win. That didn’t happen. And the Griffins are a modest 0.500 since their lengthy winning streak snapped.
Entering tonight’s game the Griffins hold a record of 19-11-0-1 (39 points). Their 0.629 points percentage sees them currently sitting in third place of the Central Division and fourth place within the Western Conference standings.
Of note, it’s fun to see how an AHL schedule breaks down differently for every team. The Admirals will be playing Game #37 tonight. The Griffins will be playing Game #32. Considering neither get the fancy California treatment from the league where they can laugh at others for playing eight extra games – this means the Griffins schedule is backloaded unlike the Admirals. Ignoring the bookmarker months of October and April you get this: the Admirals maximum for games played in a month this season was 14 games in December – which they get to do again in March. Their a low is what we see this month as the Admirals will only be playing 10 games in January. The Griffins max comes this month when they play 14 games in January. They played a season low of 10 games in November. The Griffins schedule is more routine, and more balanced in terms of numbers displacement, but now is the time for the Admirals to tack on some hurt to them. This is about to be as taxing of a stretch as the Griffins will face all season. The Admirals would be smart to make them feel it early.
~The Snubs~
It’s not often when I see something such as an All-Star roster and think, “Well, he shouldn’t be here. This guy should,” without thinking purely on my team or fandom’s perspective. When I saw that both Andy Miele and Eric Tangradi weren’t All-Stars yesterday but players such as Ryan Hartman and Griffins captain Jeff Hoggan were – I was stumped. It made no sense to me. And will continue to make no sense to me.
Miele has been an outstanding AHL level player ever since he arrived to the league. While I can’t speak much for his time with the Portland Pirates I’ve watched him up close as a member of the Griffins and I feel as if every game he is one of the best players on the ice. This season he is currently second on the team in scoring with 24 points (6 goals, 18 assists) and has featured in all 31 games played for the Griffins. Hoggan? He is the Griffins captain. I heard great things about him from Triston Grant last season. But, All-Star based on good guy status? It doesn’t make sense unless you’re the host team needing a fan spark. It’s not in Grand Rapids. It’s in Syracuse. And Hoggan has 4 points (4 goals, 0 assists) in 31 games with a -2 plus/minus. Miele has a +16 plus/minus rating. It doesn’t add up.
Which brings me to that one and only player with more points of offense on the Griffins this season, Tangradi. He has amassed 26 points (15 goals, 11 assists) in 27 games this season. He has been outstanding as a member of the Griffins in his first season under their banner. His numbers in the AHL have always been good but this year he has almost bettered his previous efforts at the halfway point of the season. Hartman of the IceHogs has more minor penalties taken this season, 24, than points of offense: 18 points (10 goals, 8 assists) in 29 games. If I’m not mistaken that has to be the most minor penalties taken in the AHL this season and could be an All-Star game first this side of John Scott for a guy going to a prestigious event like that with more harm than flash.
~Admiral Killer~
In my time covering Milwaukee Admirals hockey up close, since 2012-13, there have been a few goalies that have achieved what I like to refer to as “Admiral Killer” status. Jake Allen, Petr Mrázek, and Jordan Binnington come to mind right off the bat. The last time the Admirals and Griffins met it was officially time to add Jared Coreau to that list. Because he has owned the Admirals – pure and simple.
In his career against the Admirals Coreau has made eight appearances, seven starts, gone 6-1-0-0 stopping 172/179 shots for a 0.961 save percentage and 0.87 goals against average. In the last meeting he recorded his third career shutout of the Admirals – from seven career starts. The time before that when the Admirals went into Grand Rapids he should have picked up another shutout but made a bonehead play leaving his net trying to win a puck against Félix Girard‘s shorthanded rush for a loose puck.
What you get here is a combination of a Griffins defense that plays expertly well, forces a team like the Admirals to take long range shots from the perimeter that get blocked down, and a goaltender who answers the bell whenever he is required to step up. The Admirals absolutely have to find more ways to get pucks on Coreau and to test him. What’s happened in the past hasn’t been good enough and this game presents a hurdle the Admirals need to clear by season’s end.
Expectations for tonight’s game? What do the Milwaukee Admirals need to do in order to crack the Grand Rapids Griffins defense? Are the Griffins the top threat to the Admirals out of their own division this season?
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Atlantic Division All-Stars: Chris Bourque (Hershey Bears), Nick Cousins (Lehigh Valley Phantoms), Seth Griffith (Providence Bruins), Dustin Jeffrey (Springfield Falcons), Rob Schremp (Portland Pirates), Dominik Simon (Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins), Joe Whitney (Bridgeport Sound Tigers), Connor Carrick (Hershey Bears), Ryan Graves (Hartford Wolf Pack), Derrick Pouliot (Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins), Ryan Pulock (Bridgeport Sound Tigers), Matt Murray (Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins), Anthony Stolarz (Lehigh Valley Phantoms)
~ Head Coach Jay Leach (Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins)
North Division All-Stars: Mike Angelidis (Syracuse Crunch), Josh Leivo (Toronto Marlies), Michael McCarron (St. John’s IceCaps), William Nylander (Toronto Marlies), Cal O’Reilly (Rochester Americans), Hunter Shinkaruk (Utica Comets), Mike Sislo (Albany Devils), Mark Barberio (St. John’s IceCaps), T.J. Brennan (Toronto Marlies), Michael Kostka (Binghamton Senators), Matt Taormina (Syracuse Crunch), Yann Danis (Albany Devils), Kristers Gudlevskis (Syracuse Crunch)
~ Head Coach Sheldon Keefe (Toronto Marlies)
Central Division All-Stars: Pat Cannone (Chicago Wolves), Frédérick Gaudreau (Milwaukee Admirals), Ryan Hartman (Rockford IceHogs), Jeff Hoggan (Grand Rapids Griffins), Vladislav Kamenev (Milwaukee Admirals), Derek Ryan (Charlotte Checkers), Kerby Rychel (Lake Erie Monsters), Andre Benoit (Chicago Wolves), Trevor Carrick (Charlotte Checkers), Gustav Olofsson (Iowa Wild), Xavier Oullet (Grand Rapids Griffins), Connor Hellebuyck (Manitoba Moose), Michael Leighton (Rockford IceHogs)
~ Head Coach Dean Evason
Pacific Division All-Stars: Barclay Goodrow (San Jose Barracuda), Derek Grant (Stockton Heat), Michael Mersch (Ontario Reign), Travis Morin (Texas Stars), Brendan Ranford (Texas Stars), Mikko Rantanen (San Antonio Rampage), Nick Ritchie (San Diego Gulls), Brad Hunt (Bakersfield Condors), Esa Lindell (Texas Stars), Vincent LoVerde (Ontario Reign), Brandon Montour (San Diego Gulls), Laurent Brossoit (Bakersfield Condors), Peter Budaj (Ontario Reign)
~ Head Coach Mike Stothers (Ontario Reign)
Gaudreau currently leads the Admirals in scoring with 24 points (9 goals, 15 assists) in 35 games. His work and success this season paved the way to the Nashville Predators signing him to a two-year entry level contract last week. If I had to cast an early vote for Admirals MVP to this point I would have Gaudreau pegged for the amount of on-ice work that he has provided working in all game situations and handling all three zones of the ice expertly well.
The whirlwind 2015-16 season for Kamenev keeps rolling on. This has been his debut professional playing season in North America and has seen him produce at a high level at the center spot for the Admirals at only 19-years of age. He has scored 14 points (6 goals, 8 assists) in 24 games in the AHL this season. He recently captained his country Russia in the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championships where he took home a silver medal and produced 6 points (5 goals, 1 assist) in 7 games. His Russian team was unbeaten until losing to the host country Finland in the final.
Gaudreau and Kamenev will be join their head coach Evason for the 2016 AHL All-Star Classic. The coaches were selected the moment the calendar flipped into 2016 by taking the league leading teams from each division. At the time, the Admirals were on top of the Central Division to tab Evason to coach the Central Division All-Stars in Syracuse. Currently, the Admirals aren’t just on top of their division but the entire Western Conference. While an All-Star break/vaction for Evason might have been pretty rewarding in its own right the league honor is well deserved. This Admirals team has had so many roster tweaks and changes and maintained a strong success rate throughout the process.
Reactions to the All-Star selections? Are you surprised by the selection of Kamenev? Were players such as Juuse Saros, Max Görtz, or even someone such as a Viktor Arvidsson snubbed?
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Max Görtz’s celly isn’t as crazy as the former Swede, Viktor Arvidsson, who also happened to have a rocket of a shot on the Milwaukee Admirals power-play. But we love it all the same because göalz. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
I suppose this name being tossed at me on the heels of winning the CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month for December shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Max Görtz has been outstanding lately and it’s evident that his comfort level on the ice and with his new surroundings has improved and allowed for his game to really shoot upwards.
This season is Görtz’s first playing professionally in North America after having played 161 games in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) with Färjestad BK and Frölunda HC. The 22-year old from Höör, Sweden had a slow beginning for the Milwaukee Admirals but has since seen his game explode. He produced 15 points (5 goals, 10 assists) in 13 games in the month of December en route to taking claim to his aforementioned league honor. He is currently second on the team in points trailing team leader Frédérick Gaudreau by a single point of offense.
Without further adieu. Let’s all get to know the man I enjoy calling Maximus of the House Görtimus, Max Görtz.
~Fifteen~
Admirals Roundtable: What were your inspirations to play hockey?
Max Görtz: My dad. He played hockey and he brought me to the rink. Him and my granddad.
AR: When did you realize you were going to be doing this for a career?
Görtz: I don’t know. Maybe when I got my first chance in the Swedish Elite League [SHL] and I felt like I could play here.
AR: Who was the first famous player that you met?
Görtz: Nicklas Bäckström I think. That was the first famous one I met in person.
AR: What is your greatest hockey moment so far?
Görtz: I think it was my first goal in the Swedish Elite League [SHL]. That was the greatest one.
AR: Which probably goes right into this question. What was the most memorable goal that you’ve scored?
Görtz: Oh yeah! That would be that one. I think so.
AR: What is the strangest game that you’ve played in?
Görtz: Strangest game. I have to think. [pause] I don’t really know. (AR: Playing at 10:30 AM?) Yeah, that’s pretty rare to do at elite league but, yeah, I would say that though. (AR: Were you involved with both of those? Because it was like in the space of a week two.) Yeah, I was. It was horrible. (AR: Was that the first time that you played in an AM hockey game since you were like a kid?) Yeah, since I was maybe 10-years old. I played 9 [AM] one time. That was hard. But, in this league, 10:30 [AM] that was hard. (AR: That’s around the time maybe you get a practice in or something like that but that’s full-tilt go for it.) Yeah, you have to be up early – eat your breakfast – and be ready.
AR: What’s the most embarrassing moment in your hockey career?
Görtz: I don’t know. I’ve done a lot of embarrassing things outside of hockey but, on the ice, I don’t remember. (AR: It isn’t happening right now is it?) No! No. The most embarrassing would be my two lates [missing practice] when I come late, now. So that would have been embarrassing for myself. On the ice-hockey I don’t know. I can’t remember. When I was little I pointed my, I don’t know how you call it, I point my finger at the referee one time. (AR: You flipped him off?) Yeah, I was a little bit angry but I I was little too. I was like just 12-years old, so. (AR: So you Kevin Fiala‘d him.) Yeah, exactly. [laughs] (AR: We can all laugh about that now, right?) Yeah, it’s funny now.
AR: What’s the most painful moment you’ve experience so far?
Görtz: When I broke my wrist. I was 15 or 16-years old. I was playing really good then. I was practicing with the A team in Malmö. I played there when I was just 15 – 16-years old and I was like, “oh, this is my chance,” and I was playing really good. You play first league. We were ten teams in. There is a North and South league and then the best five in every league play a top ten league after Christmas. And we played that and I played really well and then I broke my wrist. Season went off. That was the most painful thing.
AR: What are your favorite uniforms in hockey?
Görtz: My hometown club, Frosta HC, we’ll say. That’s a polar bear one. I think that’s cool. (AR – failing miserably and thinking he said Frölunda for some reason: That’s the one with the big chief, right?) No, it’s a polar bear with like – he’s opened his mouth and his teeth are out. I like that one. [Editor’s Note: closer picture of the jersey – not Görtz pictured]
AR: Who is the funniest player that you’ve encountered?
Görtz: I would say John Klingberg. He’s so funny. So, yeah, I would say him. (AR: Was he a teammate of your’s in Sweden?) I played with him for half a year when I left from Färjestad to Frölunda. He was so funny.
AR: What is your favorite aspect of Milwaukee so far?
Görtz: They have Cheesecake Factory. I like that. That’s my favorite thing. (AR: [laughs]) No! The ocean. I went down – no, not the ocean (AR: Lake Michigan.) Yeah. It was nice to go there and look at that. It’s really nice there. The [BMO Harris Bradley Center] is nice to watch basketball. So, it’s some things. (AR: It’s unfortunate we have the basketball team that we do have -BUT- at least you get to experience it.) Yeah.
AR: What is your favorite food?
Görtz: I will say pasta, NO, tacos.. tacos.
AR: What is your favorite non-hockey hobby?
Görtz: Is it a sport or? (AR: …non-hockey. So it could be really anything.) Just hang out with my friends, play Playstation, watching TV shows, playing golf in the summer. That’s my favorite things I think. (AR: What TV shows?) Now I’m looking at Arrow. Probably I’ve looked at every TV show. I’ve seen Entourage, One Tree Hill, Gossip Girl… a little bit girl movies there but I like them. (AR: That was just your most embarrassing hockey moment by the way.) Yeah maybe! (AR: …for future reference.)
AR: What are your plans after hockey?
Görtz: Just take it easy. Do maybe some school work and see what’s coming after that. I have to work at things, have some work maybe, agent or something. I don’t know. Something about hockey I think but I don’t know right now because maybe if I play ten more years or longer I will probably be sick of hockey. Maybe some years without it wuld be nice. We will see.
AR: [Editor’s Note: Because Görtz drew a blank on “what is your favorite non-hockey memory?” I decided to let him pass and end with some high level improvisational skill using the Juuse Saros and Kristian Näkyvä in the background as my props] Add another question. You’re Swedish. These two guys are Finnish. What do you think of these two Finns over here?
Görtz: They’re nice. Some weird clothes but they’re nice. No, they are nice but I don’t like them now because they beat the Swedish team and they’re World Champions now. (AR: I see that they’ve been puffing out their chests. They’re all gloating over World Juniors.) Yeah. They’re fixing their hair a little bit more now and it feels like they’re the best in the world now but we have to take them down again. (AR: Hopefully you can keep them in check when [Vladislav Kamenev] comes back because they beat his team in the final.] Oh. Oh yeah. He had a moment there in the finals. So, we’ll probably be going hard on him. [laughs]
Thanks to Max Görtz for taking the time yesterday to do this interview. Tomorrow I’ll have Scott Ford in Fifteen. For those new to the program – Ford and I can talk for hours on end. That almost legitimately happened yesterday. The interview was phenomenal and received an amazingly unexpected pair of cameos that were brilliant. Stay tuned and, as always, please comment down below with who you would like to hear from next on Fifteen!
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The Nashville Predators finally dipped into their high-end defensive depth to acquire Ryan Johansen from the Columbus Blue Jackets. What does that mean for the Milwaukee Admirals in the immediate and near future? (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
Yesterday was a massive day in the Nashville Predators organization. They pulled the trigger on a trade and finally have a legit first choice center that they have been chasing after forever. The man: Ryan Johansen. The cost: Seth Jones.
Nashville, Tenn. (January 6, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Tuesday that the team has acquired center Ryan Johansen from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for defenseman Seth Jones.
“Ryan is a big, young center that can score, set up goals, win faceoffs,” Poile said. “He’s a No. 1 center who is still growing his game and has the size and skill that we have been looking for to match up with the best in the League.”
Johansen, 23 (7/31/92), played in all 82 of Columbus’ games in 2013-14 and 2014-15, first setting a career high in goals (33), then posting personal bests in assists (45) and points (71) while appearing in the 2015 All-Star Game. The 6-foot-3, 218-pound native of Vancouver has 26 points (6g-20a) in 38 games this season. For his career, Johansen has 193 points (79g-114a) in 309 games and a 51.8 percent success rate in the face-off circle, including a 52 percent success rate this season, putting him in the Top 10 among those taking at least 400 draws.
The fourth overall selection in the 2010 Entry Draft, Johansen also has six points (2g-4a) in six career Stanley Cup Playoff games – all in 2014 with the Blue Jackets. He earned a silver medal and a spot on the tournament all-star team at the 2011 World Junior Championship after posting nine points (3g-6a) in seven games, and was a 2011 WHL First Team All-Star after recording 92 points (40g-52a) in 63 regular-season WHL games, and a league-best 28 points (13g-15a) in 21 postseason contests in his second and final campaign with the Portland Winterhawks.
There you have it. The Predators finally did it. After all this time. We finally have a concrete answer for why Petter Granberg was acquired off waivers!
Alright, I could help but use that joke. Kidding aside, what an incredible moment for Predators hockey. There was so much talk among what players in the Predators defense were or weren’t available and, if they were, what value did they hold and what player(s) should they be used to fetch. Out of all the names the one that seemed like it would be hard to pry away would be Jones. He was selected fourth overall in the 2013 NHL Draft. Was an NHL level player from Day #1. And, at the age of 21-years old, can only keep getting better and better.
Here is the catch to all of this and it is something I feel very strongly about: balance is the key to championship level success.
The Predators for a very long time now have had the best three-lines of defense in the NHL. Shea Weber and Roman Josi are self explanatory at this point for how world class they are. Mattias Ekholm and Ryan Ellis‘ development process from Milwaukee to Nashville has been a joy to watch them become such strong well-rounded players. For this season, the Predators added veteran defenseman Barret Jackman to provide a touch more of experience to the group. And this all gets said without name dropping Victor Bartley, Anthony Bitetto, and this kid named Jones.
For all the iterations of the past, with so many of the same pieces, with the current set it all boils down to a simple fact. That fact is that defensemen and defensemen alone aren’t what win Stanley Cups. Teams win Stanley Cups. Teams with a well structured and balanced roster are what succeed. And the Nashville Predators, as great as that defense and goaltender are and have been, haven’t been that. For that reason and that reason alone a change needed to be made. A surplus of high-end defensive talent was in the pocket and time and time again that first choice center wasn’t there to be had. Enough was enough. The talent pool on defense was used to get that center. That center’s name was Johansen and now it’s time to see if the team’s balance can shift from defense heavy to an across the board well-rounded team.
What I think of most with this move is where my joke came in. Hey, that Granberg move finally has some fog lifting from it all of the sudden! But when you really think about it that’s where that waiver claim was always leaning towards. The Predators were aware of Granberg. They saw a chance to snatch him up clean through the waiver wire. Tested him out after his injury that sidelined his start to the 2015-16 season with a conditioning assignment here with the Milwaukee Admirals. Returned to Nashville. And now finds himself as a seventh choice defenseman at the NHL level with Bitetto stepping in early but with Granberg, the right handed shooting defenseman of those two, due to get a look to test his waters with the Predators.
So the defensive replacements were already in place to facilitate the loss of Jones. Bartley had cleared waivers to reach Milwaukee. Bitetto and Granberg can operate and rotate bottom line right side defense. Should that go faulty the Predators can do Bartley but, for those unaware in Nashville, he is currently nursing an injury and only returned to practice yesterday.
That’s all that for the Predators. An awesome moment to actually sit back and see happen. Two NHL teams trading very young highly talented players which both arrive to teams as tremendously welcomed additions fulfilling long time needs. Plus, it was a straight up deal – one for one – one fourth overall selection taken in the 2013 NHL Draft for one fourth overall selection taken in the 2010 NHL Draft. As it stands today, I think Predators General Manager David Poille should be commended for getting a move like this done now and getting it done without a frenzied rush or batch of pieces being off-loaded from the team. Last season’s trade to Toronto felt weird from Day #1 and if it didn’t for you then I’m sure it did when the Predators didn’t have a first round draft pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. This was a smooth deal and I feel like both can highly benefit from it.
Another bright spot for Nashville is that, because of the nature of this trade, if another trade is possible or on the table with a chance to step in and add another dynamic piece to the offense – they have all those additional assets within their control right now. The prospect pipeline is fresh. It’s thriving. It is still intact. All that was traded away yesterday was one defenseman and nothing else Could more be ahead for the Predators before the trade deadline closes? I don’t know – but it is possible thanks to the resources still being there.
As far as the Admirals are concerned, this move tilts things slightly where the defense of the Predators has been chipped away a small bit in an effort to push the forward depth. An increase at forward could mean, once everyone is healthy, a possibility of Viktor Arvidsson or Miikka Salomäki returning to the team. The Admirals are already expecting to get Vladislav Kamenev back after a great showing at the 2016 IIHF World Juniors captaining his country Russia. With team captain Colton Sissons also back here in the mix lately the forward depth of the Admirals might be trending back towards the lineup that saw them set a franchise record ten-game winning streak.
The Admirals have been getting by for what feels like a month’s worth of hockey with guys like Frédérick Gaudreau. Max Görtz, Félix Girard, Kevin Fiala, Pontus Åberg, Max Reinhart, and Adam Payerl all being tasked with achieving more, being put in bigger roles than they had been tasked with, and succeeding to the point where the Admirals are currently the top team in the AHL’s Western Conference despite the necessity to make PTO signings such as Matt White and Zac Larraza just to be able to fill out a twelve man forward group. It’s worked regardless of injuries or call-ups.
It’s about to get even better as bodies return to the team in the form of returning faces or healed bodies. Taylor Aronson had been playing incredibly well until a lower-body injury put him down for what is expected to be a few more weeks yet. Trevor Murphy and Cody Bass are both back to practicing from “upper-body” injuries. Plus, signs point to Bartley getting back sooner rather than later. So many banged up bodies. So many other players rising to the occasion. It’s been a pretty miraculous season to date for the Admirals. What’s fun to think is this.
There is every bit the reason to believe the Admirals 2015-16 season could be even more special than that of their parent club, the Predators, and it’s thanks to their acquisition of Johansen. Swapping a defenseman like Jones allows a hard working polished defenseman like Bitetto to take his place at the NHL level while the Predators finally got their first line center. The defensive depth hasn’t really changed all that much but the forward depth has in a big way. Those shockwaves can alter how the Predators choose to roll out certain players and some might need to return to Milwaukee. The system depth at forward just got stronger at the NHL and AHL level. The days ahead are about to prove just that.
What was your reaction to the Nashville Predators trade yesterday? Is Ryan Johansen for Seth Jones a fair deal for both sides? Do you think the Predators are done shopping for forwards or is another deal ahead?
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Hey, Czech it out. It’s Maz! (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
Today the Milwaukee Admirals conducted a full practice at the BMO Harris Bradley Center following last night’s 4-0 shutout loss to the Lake Erie Monsters. With how the January schedule is setup I was planning to go in and conduct some more interviews for this feature series Fifteen and stockpile them for the month ahead. Instead, the interviews were so good that they have forced my hand. And I’m divvying up the three interviews I did today over the next three days.
As I’ve said in regards to this feature: I want you readers and fans involved. I’d love to interview as many players on the team for this feature as possible but it’s even more fun being able to provide for you the players you want to hear from ASAP. I’ve formed a list of all the requests and I’m getting through that list. So, keep participating and keep the names coming.
The very first name that came up after the debut of Fifteen with Colton Sissons was goaltender Marek Mazanec. That was the top request. And this is his interview. Of note, for those listening into the audio, I don’t censor anything. What’s said – is said. So keep that in mind.
~Fifteen~
Admirals Roundtable: What were your inspirations to play hockey?
Marek Mazanec: Well, I don’t know. I started skating since I was three-years old and I just went with it. My father was a hockey player. My uncle was a hockey player. We were a hockey family. So that’s probably it.
AR: What point growing up did you realize you were going to be doing this for a career?
Mazanec: Probably when I was fourteen and [HC Plzen] picked me up from my hometown and I moved there. I was fourteen and I lived by myself. I kind of realized that I probably have some skill and I should probably pay more attention to my hockey career.
AR: Who was the first famous player that you ever met in the game?
Mazanec: That’s a tough question. I met a lot of players. There was a lockout in the NHL so a bunch of players played in the Czech league. I played with Tuukka Rask. He was on my team [HC Plzen]. That was pretty cool. I played against [Jaromír Jágr]. (AR: Jágr would be up there.) Yep.
AR: What would you say is your greatest hockey moment?
Mazanec: Probably when we won the championship in Czech [2012-13 Czech Extraliga Championship]. (AR: I remember seeing the trophy. That trophy was gigantic.) Yeah, it’s huge. It’s all one, sixty-years old trophy. (AR: Like the European Cup they have in the Champions League that looked like three times the size of that.) It’s a big one! It’s heavy, too.
AR: Now, I ask most guys what is the most memorable goal they’ve scored. You were close to actually getting on that last year with a long shot from the net scoring a goalie goal -but- what would you say is the most memorable save you’ve made?
Mazanec: I’m not the kind of goalie that makes like highlight reel saves. So, I don’t know. I never make like huge saves for highlights. I made one for Nashville my first year here. It was against Pittsburgh. I think it was.. (AR: Don’t you have a profile picture up with you and Sidney Crosby?) Yeah, but he actually missed that puck. It was a [James Neal] shot I think. I got pulled out right after that. (AR: So, when you went to Nashville did you tell him anything about that?) No, I don’t think he remembers. Like, he doesn’t really care.
AR: What is the strangest game that you’ve ever played in?
Mazanec: I played a lot of those games. Definitely last night. I didn’t play that game but last night was a pretty weird game. It was boring. That was boring as hell. (AR: It was very slow. We’ve played about seven games in eleven days. They’re on like a ten game road trip. So it came off very slow. But I want to throw out one game to memory, because you had the best audio clip of all last year describing it, when Magnus Hellberg got into a fight that had to be up there as far as strange games.) That was, yeah, that was strange. I was just like sitting comfortably behind the glass and the Magnus was leaving the ice and was like, “Maz! Go!” I was like, “F*** no! I’m not going in! Finish it.” There was like ten-minutes to go, it was in Charlotte, and we lost that game. I was like, “Hey, thanks Magnus.” I think we were up like 3-2 and, right when I got in, they scored then they scored again I was like, “Oh my god. Thank you Magnus. Boy…” I played another one last year when I got called up. I was in Montreal and I was leaving Montreal at like six in the morning. I was backing up Magnus and Magnus got pulled out after like four-minutes. It was 2-0 for [the Utica Comets]. (AR: I remember talking to you after that game. audio clip one – audio clip two) We won that game like 3-2 in a shootout. (AR: You were running literally no sleep.) Yeah, I slept like two hours.
AR: What’s the most embarrassing hockey moment in your career?
Mazanec: I don’t have any of those actually. Do you know about something? (AR: I don’t!) I think it happened to me my first year in training camp. We played against Florida. They dumped the puck on the glass and I went chasing it. It hit the stanchion, bounced in front of my net, and they scored on an open net. That’s kind of embarrassing but nothing I can do about it.
AR: What’s the most painful moment that you’ve had in hockey?
Mazanec: What you mean, like, hurt? Well. I’m a goalie you know. No one is beating the sh** out of me. I never got hurt. I got hit on my collarbone. That’s like four-years ago. That was pretty bad but nothing serious. (AR: I imagine the worst thing that can happen is getting those shots around the head area that catch you unaware.) Yeah, but that’s what we have gear for you know.
AR: What are your favorite uniforms in hockey?
Mazanec: I like our jerseys. I like those baby blue with the old logo. I really like those jerseys.
AR: Who are the funniest players that you’ve met?
Mazanec: Funniest player. [pauses] You mean like he looks funny on the ice or in the locker room like being funny from there? (AR: Being funny -BUT- if you want to do both.) Funniest player on the ice, like most funny I’ve ever seen, was for Chicago last year [Brent Sopel]. That was hilarious! Watching him it was hilarious. I had so much fun watching him playing hockey. Funny guy in the locker room? Jamie Devane is a pretty funny guy. It’s hard to say honestly because I didn’t speak English for two-years so I didn’t know what was funny or not. I didn’t understand them. But, this year, Jamie – Jamie is a pretty funny guy.
AR: What’s your favorite aspect of Milwaukee?
Mazanec: I think the people here. All the people like to have fun. It’s amazing because the weather here sucks. I hate the weather. It’s so cold outside. And people are still positive, they still like to have fun. (AR: Yeah, real winter hasn’t even kicked in yet.) Thank God, but I’m still freezing out there.
AR: What’s your favorite food?
Mazanec: It’s a Czech food: oven roasted duck with dumplings.
AR: What’s your favorite non-hockey hobby?
Mazanec: I don’t have a lot of those -but- I really liked working on my house this summer. When I was young and I was working on my dad’s house I hated it. But then I bought my own house and I started working on that and it’s fun. Much fun this summer.
AR: What’s your favorite non-hockey memory?
Mazanec: Definitely when my daughter was born. (AR: Were you able to make it in time for the birth and all that because I know you left quick.) No, I got there two hours late. I was getting on the plane in Nashville and my girlfriend went to the hospital. (AR: Still, that an incredible moment and they were here for the holidays too right?) Yeah.
AR: What are your plans after hockey?
Mazanec: Well, I would like to stay in hockey. I’d like to be a goalie coach or something like that.
Thanks to Marek Mazanec for toughing it out, answering fifteen, and being his typically hilarious self. Tomorrow will see Max Görtz in Fifteen followed by Scott Ford on Friday. Who would you like to hear from next on Fifteen?
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From his first day with the Milwaukee Admirals the Nashville Predators organization seemed to be the perfect fit for Frédérick Gaudreau. His tremendous work rate and all-around play this season in Milwaukee earned him his first career NHL contract yesterday. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
Yesterday’s news that Frédérick Gaudreau had signed a two-year entry level contract with the Nashville Predators was a picture perfect example of why I love covering life at the AHL level. It’s a league that features plenty of NHL prospects, high-end draft picks, low-end draft picks, former high and low end draft picks, and then the merry band of those who went undrafted fighting to earn their dream of one day playing NHL hockey despite the long road they face in front of them. Gaudreau was one of those players on the outside looking in. Yesterday was his first big break.
Who is this Gaudreau fellow then? Well, for those in Milwaukee and Cincinnati I feel that answer is fairly easy to muster up. Yet it is the Nashville audience that might be in the dark as to who their new prospect is. After all, he is now their property and someone worthy of keeping on an NHL radar given his success with the Milwaukee Admirals this season that forced the Nashville Predators hand into delivering him his first career NHL contract. So, without further ado, allow me to introduce you fine people of Nashville to Mr. Gaudreau.
(Photo Credit: L’hebdo du St-Maurice)
Gaudreau is a native of Quebec, Canada whose junior playing career started with the Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL) after being team captain of the Magog Cantonniers (QMAAA). In his first season with Shawinigan he played 64 games, scored 20 points (5 goals, 15 assists), and ended the debut junior hockey campaign off as a winner of the CHL Memorial Cup (2011-12 season). His career would continue with Shawinigan up until a trade in late-November 2013 that saw him move to the Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL). His junior playing career ended with him winning the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the QMJHL’s Most Sportsmanlike Player and having totaled 195 games in the QMJHL with 134 points (50 goals, 84 assists) to his name.
As an undrafted free agent the search for a professional playing career began after Drummondville was eliminated from the 2014 President’s Cup Playoffs by the eventual winners the Val-d’Or Foreurs. It was a search that took less than three months to find his first professional playing contract. He signed an AHL contract with the Milwaukee Admirals on 6/11/14.
(Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
In his first professional playing season Gaudreau displayed qualities that showcased his range as a forward. He is a natural center but was utilized on the wing often where his game opened up more and provided him with a bit more freedom to skate and operate. The downside to his debut pro season was simply the numbers game. The Admirals roster was hefty and often times it forced Gaudreau from the lineup. Gaudreau was brought in as one of those roster depth signings in the first place and I don’t suspect when the Admirals 2014-15 season started they were expecting to take on the likes of Rich Clune and Viktor Stålberg as they wound up doing. As such, Gaudreau was frequently healthy scratched and also split time between the Admirals at the AHL level and with their ECHL affiliate the Cincinnati Cyclones.
In 2014-15, Gaudreau scored 11 points (4 points, 7 assists) in 43 AHL games for the Admirals and 7 points (5 goals, 2 assists) in 14 ECHL games for the Cyclones. That’s a combined season total of 18 points (9 goals, 9 assists) in 57 games.
(Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
What stands out from that first pro season was what came at the end of an exhausting and painful Admirals season that saw the team miss the playoffs for the first time since their inaugural AHL playing season of 2001-02. The team was sputtering. The performances fluctuated on a nightly basis with wins alluding the team time and time again. Yet, there was a kid rocking the #89 that spent his April of 2015 working his butt off shift-after-shift – game-after-game. In an angry and disappointing end to the season Gaudreau’s work rate in the face of the Admirals missing the playoffs was a true bright spot. The team might have been struggling but he played with a fire and a spark that the Admirals desperately missed when Miikka Salomäki went down for the rest of the season and Brendan Leipsic was traded away – all on the same day. That display and effort wasn’t unnoticed. Gauadreau would sign the second professional contract of his career by signing another AHL contract with the Admirals.
(Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
On opening night of the 2015-16 Admirals season Gaudreau found himself where he so often did at the AHL level the season prior. Gaudreau was a healthy scratch. To this point, it is the one and only game that he hasn’t played in for the Admirals this season and there is a good reason for why that’s the case. He has been phenomenal. Gaudreau’s skill set appeared to be that of a very good skating defensively fine tuned player. He looked great on the penalty kill and stationed on the lower operating lines for the Admirals. As this season has progressed Gaudreau kept climbing up the ladder with solid performances and saw himself being tasked with larger roles. His offensive game really opened up and it appeared that the fire he displayed late in the Admirals 2014-15 season had manifested itself on a whole other level this season.
“His last two hockey games that he played for us, we were out of the playoffs, we played him a ton,” said Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason back on 11/20/15. “We asked him to translate his skill level from practice into the games. He did that those last two hockey games. It’s funny to say that but he’s brought those two hockey games into training camp, was real good, and has continued that through the year. [Gaudreau] is a guy that, if you watch him in practice and off the ice, he is intense. He trains. He plays practices – trains all the same way. And it’s allowed him to have success. He has great skill. His hands are great. He does so many real good things out there. But he has earned what he is getting out there right now.”
(Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)
Where Gaudreau’s season to this point can best be showcased came right around the same time when Admirals team captain Colton Sissons was recalled by the Nashville Predators on 11/26/15. It was at this point when a player that was healthy scratched on opening night, who started as a fourth line winger, suddenly worked himself into the roles of the team’s captain and he was succeeding. From the day of Sissons recall to where Gaudreau finds himself today, playing on the wing with Sissons on the Admirals top line, he has produced 12 points (4 goals, 8 assists) in 19 games while averaging 2.1 shots on goal per game. But what goes missing behind those fancy numbers is his work rate on the penalty kill alongside Félix Girard. His work at center winning faceoffs. His creativity on the power-play. His defensive contributions in all three zones of the ice. It’s a cliché expression but true: he doesn’t take a shift off. It’s a mentality like that which sees a Salomäki in Nashville. It’s a work rate such as Gaudreau’s that has Viktor Arvidsson in Nashville. Which begged the question. Why not Gaudreau?
That question was given a hard answer yesterday. Gaudreau signed his third career professional contract and first with the title NHL attached to it. He penned a two-year entry level contract. It was a contract that wasn’t handed out like a reward. Gaudreau earned it in the same manner he has worked from junior hockey to the Admirals top performer in 2015-16. He earned it through hard work.
The Admirals are 36 games deep into this season. Gaudreau currently leads the team in scoring with 24 points (9 goals, 15 assists) from 35 games played – which already has last season’s combined scoring total in the dust. His work rate on the Admirals power-play, a role he wasn’t utilized in last season, has seen him produce 15 power-play points (6 goals, 9 assists) – points that dwarf is overall scoring total in his debut AHL season in 8 games less work.
In the space of 24 hours Gaudreau should have gone from a relative unknown to fans of the Nashville Predators that they should very seriously start paying attention to in Milwaukee. What Gaudreau has to offer is a full-slate of skills on the puck, the defensive smarts to be a quality penalty killer, and an ever-growing offensive game that has won over the coaching staff to push him into roles he never could have dreamed of a season ago and is excelling in. Put Gaudreau on your radar, Nashville. Put him on your radar because he worked hard enough to put himself on the Predators radar in order to sign him to an NHL contract.
If Gaudreau was driven to play professional hockey with the dream of playing NHL hockey, going undrafted, signing an AHL contract, playing ECHL hockey, and playing AHL hockey as hard as he does – I greatly look forward to seeing how Gaudreau plays with that dream now dangling within an arm’s reach for him to clutch and run with it. The hard work to get there has gotten him here. Now the real work for Gaudreau begins.
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