News April 19, 2015April 19, 2015

2015 AHL Calder Cup Playoffs Set

OpeningBracket-1415-1 — Place your bets! …please don’t but guess away please! (Photo Credit: AHL)

The 2014-15 AHL regular season officially came to an end today and now the first round playoff matches are set. The Manchester Monarchs and Utica Comets are the top seeds of their respective conferences. As far as what was decided Sunday night the Portland Pirates survived a thriller of a game to secure the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, the Toronto Marlies took down the Chicago Wolves to claim the seventh seed and push the Amtrak Rivals down to the eighth spot in the Western Conference.

With all things in order, and the dust neatly settled from the regular season, here is the opening round match-ups for the 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs.

~Western Conference~

(1) Utica Comets vs. (8) Chicago Wolves
Game 1 – Apr. 22 – Utica @ Chicago, 7pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 24 – Utica @ Chicago, 7pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 29 – Chicago @ Utica, 6pm CST
Game 4 – May 1 – Chicago @ Utica, 6pm CST
Game 5 – May 2 – Chicago @ Utica, 6pm CST

(2) Grand Rapids Griffins vs. (7) Toronto Marlies
Game 1 – Apr. 25 – Grand Rapids @ Toronto, 2pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 26 – Grand Rapids @ Toronto, 2pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 29 – Toronto @ Grand Rapids, 6pm CST
Game 4 – May 2 – Toronto @ Grand Rapids, 6pm CST
Game 5 – May 3 – Toronto @ Grand Rapids, 4pm CST

(3) San Antonio Rampage vs. (6) Oklahoma City Barons
Game 1 – Apr. 23 – San Antonio @ Oklahoma City, 8pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 25 – San Antonio @ Oklahoma City, 8pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 29 – Oklahoma City @ San Antonio, 8pm CST
Game 4 – May 1 – Oklahoma City @ San Antonio, 8:30pm CST
Game 5 – May 2 – Oklahoma City @ San Antonio, 8pm CST

(4) Rockford IceHogs vs. (5) Texas Stars
Game 1 – Apr. 24 – Rockford @ Texas, 8:30pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 25 – Rockford @ Texas, 8:00pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 29 – Texas @ Rockford, 8:00pm CST
Game 4 – May 1 – Texas @ Rockford, 8:00pm CST
Game 5 – May 2 – Texas @ Rockford, 8:00pm CST

~Eastern Conference~

(1) Manchester Monarchs vs. (8) Portland Pirates
Game 1 – Apr. 23 – Portland @ Manchester, 6pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 25 – Portland @ Manchester, 6pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 26 – Manchester @ Portland, 4pm CST
Game 4 – Apr. 30 – Manchester @ Portland, 6pm CST
Game 5 – May 2 – Portland @ Manchester, 6pm CST

(2) Hershey Bears vs. (7) Worcester Sharks
Game 1 – Apr. 24 – Hershey @ Worcester, 6pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 25 – Hershey @ Worcester, 6pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 29 – Worcester @ Hershey, 6pm CST
Game 4 – Apr. 1 – Worcester @ Hershey, 6pm CST
Game 5 – May 3 – Worcester @ Hershey, 4pm CST

(3) Hartford Wolf Pack vs. (6) Providence Bruins
Game 1 – Apr. 22 – Providence @ Hartford, 6pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 25 – Providence @ Hartford, 6pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 26 – Hartford @ Providence, 6:05pm CST
Game 4 – Apr. 28 – Hartford @ Providence, 6:05pm CST
Game 5 – May 1 – Providence @ Hartford, 6pm CST

(4) W-B/Scranton Penguins vs. (5) Syracuse Crunch
Game 1 – Apr. 24 – Syracuse @ W-B/Scranton, 6:05pm CST
Game 2 – Apr. 25 – Syracuse @ W-B/Scranton, 6:05pm CST
Game 3 – Apr. 29 – W-B/Scranton @ Syracuse, 6pm CST
Game 4 – Apr. 30 – W-B/Scranton @ Syracuse, 6pm CST
Game 5 – May 2 – Syracuse @ W-B/Scranton, 6:05pm CST

There you have it! The opening round is a best-of-five format before shifting to a best-of-seven in the conference semifinals. One thing that is bugging me while looking at these fixtures is… isn’t the opening round format meant to be the choice of the top seed either playing the first two games at home or last three games at home? What’s up with Monarchs/Pirates, Wolf Pack/Bruins, and Penguins/Crunch?

Well, per the AHL press release, the phrase “unless building availability dictates otherwise” is the key there. If I’m the lower seed in any of those match-ups I’d be fairly frustrated if there is a game five scenario because there is a massive advantage given to the high seed to start and end a playoff series on home ice. While that doesn’t sound like anything that new, it’s how any best-of-seven works, the team selection of home ice for two games to start or three games to end the series can play a big role in how a series plays out. Interestingly, as you can see in the schedule, some teams elected to get those home games first and take the risk of three road games to end the series. Most tend to elect for the final three games of the series on home ice. Is that any different than having two games to start the series and one game for the crucial deciding game five? To me it is because you get home ice momentum at the start and for the finish which otherwise wouldn’t be the case – and isn’t for teams who can actually use their playing facility on a scheduled date for a game.

That was a weird things for me to see and I’d love to see some of those series go the distance to see some of the banter that gets raised from such questions I posed above. Could be a difference. Could be no difference what so ever. Either way it should be fun to kick back and see if it actually has an impact.

I’m not sure who you folks have taking the Calder Cup this season but I’ve got my mind made up already. I think the 2015 Calder Cup Finals will be between the Griffins and Monarchs with the Midwest Division leaders from Grand Rapids taking their second championship in three seasons.

Who do you see advancing from the opening round? Do you have any favorites to win it all now? What is your predictions for the Calder Cup Final and pick to win?

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News April 19, 2015

Thanks From Admirals Roundtable

The year may not have ended the way it started but that didn’t stop the Milwaukee Admirals from taking to center ice to salute the fans in their last home game of the season on Friday night. (Photo Credit: Scott Paulus)

The Milwaukee Admirals 2014-15 season officially came to a close this weekend. While it is sad that playoff hockey will not be happening it was a year of learning and growing that I feel can be a big boost for so many players on the Admirals team moving forward. There will be some departures from this year to next year, sure, but there will also be plenty of returning faces. I think the nucleus that returns will be stronger and smarter thanks to the ups and downs of this past season. And that makes me optimistic and excited about what could be in-store for the team later this fall.

I want to thank all of you great fans who have taken the time to make what I get to do so much fun. This was my second season operating Admirals Roundtable and third season following the Milwaukee Admirals from up close. To share my passion for this sport and team with fellow fans has been so fantastic. I love that this community that I’m part of is as savvy and hilarious as it is. It makes doing what I do that much more rewarding.

Get ready for a long list because there are some specific people I would like to thank for their contributions and comradery this season: Charlie Larson of the Admirals front office for taking time out to help set up interviews with coaches and players throughout this season. Aaron Sims for always being there to provide his help on plays or notes from the road while also being the brilliant broadcaster that he is (if you haven’t liked the “Admirals Center Ice” Facebook page please do). Dave Boehler (did you know he has a blog?) for once again being my pal up on press row this season and for all the banter we’ve had. Mario Tirabassi for being a great addition to Admirals media scrums this season. Jason Karnosky for his contributions to Admirals Roundtable throughout the season. Nashville friends such as Justin Bradford, Kristopher Martel, Robby Stanley, and Jeremy K. Gover for laughs and insight of all things Predators this season. The people of Predlines (Mark Carson Harris and Cutler Klein) for allowing me to chip in there earlier this season and chat Admirals hockey. Fellow AHL Bloggers Stephen Meserve of 100 Degree Hockey and Jack of Comets Army for their contributions to “Scouting the Enemy” this season. And, most importantly to me, my family and friends for all their love and support as I continue living out my dream covering a hockey club such as the Admirals.

Lastly, because some confessed as being readers this season, a massive thank you to all players of the Milwaukee Admirals this season. I can’t say enough of how much I appreciate the time you’ve taken out after a game, practice, or pre-game session of two touch soccer to have conversations with me. Thanks for your time, honesty, the laughs, and incredible work on and off the ice this season.

What’s on tap for Admirals Roundtable now that the season is over? Plenty. In the immediate future there will be a new feature story up Monday morning and then a decent amount of season recap material in the days after. I also plan to keep you all up to date with 2015 Calder Cup Playoff news as things move along. When off-season moves come I’ll be right back at it to provide the updates, as well. I plan on keeping things continuously moving still. So keep staying tuned and adding your commentary.

Again, thank you all so much your contributions as readers to Admirals Roundtable. This website is here because of fans and continues to exist because of you fans. Thanks for making this yet another great year for myself following the Milwaukee Admirals and being able to write, report, and be the dork that I am. Cheers.

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Game Recaps April 18, 2015April 18, 2015

Admirals Season Finale Ends in a Shootout Defeat

The Admirals lost 4-3 in a shootout on the road against the Chicago Wolves Saturday night. Perhaps it would be fitting for the Admirals 2014-15 season finale to have played out the way that it did. The Wolves didn’t have a lead in this contest until Terry Broadhurst’s seventh round shootout attempt beat the glove of Marek Mazanec. A season of high highs and low lows ends with the Admirals on a six-game losing streak to end the year in last place of the Midwest Division.

Rich Clune and Yannick Veilleux did their interpretation of the Wolves pre-game ceremonies via face-punching midway through the first period. It was a really spirited bout as both knocked each other’s hats off before running out of gas in the fight.

Mark Van Guilder was on the receiving end of a rare error by Jordan Binnington to notch his eleventh goal of the season. The Wolves netminder overplayed a puck to the right of his cage in an attempt to paddle a puck behind his net but Zach Budish was directly on him to spin around a pass on the left side for a tap in for Van Guilder to give the Admirals a first period lead.

In the second period the Admirals survived an onslaught of power-play time for the Wolves, including two successive five-on-three chances, only to concede momnts later. Colton Parayko threw a puck towards the front of the net from the right wing half-wall and the shot deflected past Marek Mazanec off of Joe Piskula’s left skate and in for Parayko’s fourth goal of the season.

Fortunately for the Admirals they would regain the lead only fourteen seconds later after yet another brilliant goal scored by Viktor Arvidsson on the season. The Swede flew in from the neutral zone, faked a slap shot from the high right point that froze both a defender and the netminder, swooped behind the net, and snapped home the wrap-around shot for his twenty-second goal of the season.

Unfortunately, the Admirals were burnt with less than ten-seconds remaining in the second period. The Wolves were able to outmaneuver the overlapping Admirals defensive pairing of Garrett Noonan and Anthony Bitetto with Robby Fabbri passing off to Terry Broadhurst’s center lane drive. Broadhurst took that pass first time and beat Mazanec stick side to tally his eighth goal of the season.

It took forty-nine seconds of the third period for the Admirals to regain the lead. Austin Watson worked around the boards and chipped a pass from the left wing wall to Colton Sissons as he broke in with speed towards the net. Sissons was able to skate around Joel Edmundson, get a shot off, and score on his own rebound before Parayko could close him down. The goal for Sissons is his twenty-fifth goal of the season. Per Aaron Sims, he became the first member of the Admirals in the AHL history of the team to start his career off with back-to-back twenty-five goal seasons.

A blunder by Johan Alm led directly to the Wolves equalizing goal less than three minutes after the tally for Sissons. Alm had plenty of space around him at the Admirals attacking blue line but attempted to pass across to Bitetto. Colin Fraser was directly in that passing lane and forced the puck out to center before winning the footrace and burying his breakaway for his ninth goal of the season.

The Admirals season would end after one final dryscrape, four-on-four to three-on-three overtime period, and shootout later. The netminders were solid in the shootout. The forced it to last seven round and only the final attempt was the lone success from the skaters that stepped up. Broadhurst weaved his way in on Mazanec before beating him on a forehand shot to the glove side to finish the game off. The Wolves never lead until claiming victory in the shootout.

This season is officially over and the Milwaukee Admirals 2014-15 campaign ends with a record of 33-28-8-7 (81 points). The way that results shaped out have landed the Admirals in last place of the Midwest Division this season behind the Lake Erie Monsters. The Grand Rapids Griffins officially clinched the division with a Rockford IceHogs loss to the Toronto Marlies tonight.

Ramblings: The Admirals dressed seven defensemen tonight with Joe Pendenza picking up a knock to his left wrist in last night’s home finale. This meant Jimmy Oligny joining the defensive ranks with the fourth line cycling a different center throughout the night. Joining Pendenza as scratches tonight were Felix Girard (out for the season), Miikka Salomaki (out for the season).

With the season over, what are your thoughts on all that transpired? What were the highlights and what were the lowlights? Was this game a microcosm of the last few months for the Admirals?

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News April 18, 2015April 22, 2015

Admirals Set To Send Nine To Nashville

I had first heard that this was in the cards last night from a reliable source. During tonight’s broadcast Aaron Sims just announced it. There will be nine members of the Milwaukee Admirals joining the Nashville Predators camp after tonight’s game against the Chicago Wolves comes to an end: Colton Sissons, Viktor Arvidsson, Rich Clune, Austin Watson, Anthony Bitetto, Joe Piskula, Johan Alm, Magnus Hellberg, and Marek Mazanec. The Predators are currently in Chicago with their playoff series against the Blackhawks shifted there for games three and four.

When this news becomes official, or if changes are made with the news, I will provide an update to this story.

4/22/15 UPDATE: It has finally become official. One change though. Both head coach Dean Evason and assistant coach Stan Drulia will also be accompanying the nine from Milwaukee.

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Scouting April 18, 2015April 24, 2015

Wolves: Scouting the Enemy

It has come down to this. Tonight is the Milwaukee Admirals 2014-15 season finale. Sad, but I don’t think the mentality of the team is down in the dumps about it. If anything, there should be a big fat chip on everyone’s shoulders in regards to how the season faded away and how last night’s game summed it all up.

The Amtrak Rivalry has already been decided. The Chicago Wolves won the Amtrak Trophy with a 7-2-2-0 record against the Admirals this season. That doesn’t mean there isn’t something to play for though. These two teams have exchanged plenty of barbs from start to finish and I don’t anticipate this contest to be any different. The Wolves want to enter the playoffs on a high note. The Admirals want to end the season with a win to take some of the bitterness away from how things have spiraled. There shouldn’t be any easing up from either of these two teams.

~Short & Sweet~

The Wolves enter tonight’s game with a record of 39-28-6-1 (85 points). They currently have the exact same record as the Toronto Marlies but hold the seventh seed over the Canadian side courtesy of regulation/overtime wins. That all goes away should the Wolves drop points with the surging Marlies bagging more though.

Speaking of dropping points, last night the Wolves lost on the road to the Rockford IceHogs by the final score of 4-3. You know how in Chatterbox I mentioned how nice it would be to have that two-goal cushion? That is precisely what the IceHogs had last night, twice in fact, to help them get past the Wolves.

Should the current standings in the Western Conference hold the Wolves would be in an opening round match-up with the Grand Rapids Griffins. Those Griffins are currently on a run of 8-2-0-0 in their last ten games. Though, I can’t say the alternative as the eighth seed is any better. In the Utica Comets last ten games they’ve gone 7-1-1-1.

~Jake Allen 2.0~

There was a guy named Jake Allen who it felt like could do no wrong against the Milwaukee Admirals last season. Remember him? He went 7-0-0-2 against the Admirals in 2013-14 with a 1.51 goals against average, 0.939 save percentage, and 2 shutouts. There’s probably a reason why he won last year’s Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award and is starting in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs for the St. Louis Blues. I just can’t quite put my finger on it though.

This season there has been this kid named Jordan Binnington who has stepped up to fill that Allen void and all he has done in the Amtrak Rivalry is win every single one of his six starts in net while sporting a 1.81 goals against average and 0.931 save percentage. Interestingly enough, despite how dominant he has been, he hasn’t managed to shutout the Admirals. He has held the Admirals to a lone goal three times this season including the last time he squared off while stopping 39/40 shots on goal.

If last night’s game and this season’s head-to-head are anything to go on I feel as if Binnington is a lock to start in net tonight. Not only does he have the Admirals number but Matt Climie, who was yanked from net after stopping 16/19 shots on goal last night in Rockford, has never done all that well against the Admirals historically. For the Admirals to solve Binnington they’ll need to do just about exactly the same as they did last time they faced him. Get pucks to the net and make him work. He could be brilliant as he was that night but you’d never know if you don’t test him and try for rebounds.

~Moving Pieces~

There are some shake-ups to the Wolves since the Admirals last saw them. Ty Rattie is currently up with the Blues during their playoff run and that has brought in not so like-minded replacement Cody Beach from the Alaska Aces of the ECHL. Rattie is third on the Wolves in scoring and second in goals: 42 points (21 goals, 21 assists). Beach, on the other hand, has 9 points (2 goals, 7 assists) and a whopping 203 penalty minutes. Think that sounds like a lot of penalty minutes? Amusingly enough, Beach isn’t even in the league’s top five for penalty minutes this season.

The Blues first round selection of the 2014 NHL Draft, Robby Fabbri, has also recently joined the Wolves. He had just finished up his junior playing season with the Guelph Storm of the OHL. This past season he tallied 51 points (25 goals, 26 assists) in 30 games. He was fourth on the team in scoring but, with less games on his ledger, had the best points per game on the entire team with a 1.70. The next closest in points per game on Guelph’s team this season was team scoring leader Tyler Bertuzzi with 1.44 points per game.

Expectations for the Milwaukee Admirals season finale? Are there certain players who you feel need to put one last stamp down before the season ends? Who could be playing their last game as a member of the Admirals tonight?

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Chatterbox April 18, 2015

The Chatterbox, Vol. 80

Last night was the final home game of the Milwaukee Admirals 2014-15 season and, sadly, it ended the way so many games have lately. I think the single most frustrating thing with this late season tailspin has been that there are many positives done in-game by the team but a few bad breaks or bounces have gone against them. For all the positives mustered up they are nullified thanks to the result and rinse, repeat, rinse, repeat. It has been a never ending cycle which will hopefully end with one last hurrah before the season officially ends.

When looking back on last night’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Toronto Marlies the third period was everything. How much different is that game if the Admirals can gain a two-goal cushion in the third period rather than get back into the nervous cycle of holding to a one-goal lead? It’s happened so often late this season where that has taken place and the Admirals lose out on a regulation win because they can’t get that extra goal to take some tension out of the group.

Instead of that insurance goal for the Admirals there was an equalizer for the Marlies. I’m not even going to lie to you folks. When that goal happened my first reaction was, “why is the goal light on?” I was certain the puck landed on the side netting and Magnus Hellberg was just gloving it down. Nope. Perhaps any other season that’s the case but not this one. That flukey shot went in off of Hellberg on the near post where there was almost zero space for a puck to go in… almost zero space.

What more can you say? The end to this season has been full of games like last night. It’s been wild. It really has been. That’s not to say that the negatives completely stain the positives this season but it always comes back to the results. The Admirals went 16-16-2-4 on home ice this season. Only the Norfolk Admirals, Bridgeport Sound Tigers, and Iowa Wild were worse at home this season. The 38 points on home ice this season for Milwaukee was down 15 points from last season alone. When you have as many regulation defeats as you do wins at home? That’s never acceptable. I think the entire team is fully aware of that and that’s why my hopes for next season are high for a big turn-around.

After the game ended I did my darndest to get interviews before the deafening sound of Slaughter and Great White took to the stage. I’m not sure if the audio on my recorder came off poorly or if I’m just bad of hearing from the concert while editing the audio. I spoke with Dean Evason, Rich Clune, Anthony Bitetto, and was lucky enough to snag Brendan Leipsic before he and the Marlies took to the road. Here is what they all had to say after the game.

Continue reading “The Chatterbox, Vol. 80” →

Game Recaps April 17, 2015April 18, 2015

Milwaukee Admirals Lose Home Finale 3-2 in OT

The Admirals lost 3-2 in overtime against the Toronto Marlies Friday night. In the final home game of the Admirals 2014-15 season things went as they have lately. The Admirals showed some spurts of genius but ultimately couldn’t get a two-goal lead and fell in overtime. The Marlies have now locked up the AHL Western Conference playoff picture by securing their place tonight.

The Marlies opened up the scoring in the closing seconds of an abbreviated power-play opportunity. Rich Clune was called for a holding penalty to end the Admirals power-play and William Nylander’s twelfth goal of the season came moments later. Matt Frattin and Byron Froese wheeled along the end board and Froese passed out from the left wing side of the net to the on-rushing Nylander. Magnus Hellberg made the initial save with his glove but the puck fell free and Nylander scored on his own rebound.

In the second period Anthony Bitetto scored his fourth goal of the season to level things up at 1-1. Frederick Gaudreau passed off from the low left wing for Bitetto as he skated in from the right point. Bitetto controlled and then snapped a wrister in on goal that deflected off of Greg McKegg’s stick and past his goaltender Antoine Bibeau.

The Admirals took the lead on a power-play goal from Viktor Arvidsson. Pontus Aberg’s initial shot from the low right wing half wall deflected off the net front screen of Austin Watson and back into the path of Arvidsson sitting on the left wing faceoff dot. He hammered a slap shot past Bibeau for his twenty-first goal of the season.

In the closing seconds of the second period, T.J. Brennan engaged Clune in a verbal spat that escalated with Clune getting called for a roughing minor with Brennan ducking a physical altercation. When the second period horn sounded Mike Liambas and Frazer McLaren were jawing each other to pieces and finally threw off various bits of their hockey attire to throw down. The officials were having none of this and prevented a fight from happening but not without more words and a few punches thrown through striped shirts. Both received game misconducts for the altercation.

Just past the halfway point of the third period the Marlies equalized at 2-2 after a goal by Sam Carrick. A loose puck to the blocker side of Hellberg was given a wild swipe by Carrick and the shot somehow alluded the big Swede in net and found its way in for Carrick’s ninth goal of the season. The general reaction of the play was mute as the goal light went on but no one really reacted to the shot. It was only officially called a goal after video review.

This game would spill into overtime and the three-on-three portion. Toronto would cap off the Admirals home finale by burying a wing-to-wing feed from Nylander to Brendan Mikkelson that was buried on the right wing back post of Hellberg for Mikkelson’s ninth goal of the season. The win for the Marlies secured their spot in the 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs.

Ramblings: The Milwaukee Admirals were officially eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday night when the Toronto Marlies defeated the Iowa Wild 5-2. It ends a run of twelve straight playoff seasons for the Admirals in the AHL. This will be the first season without playoff hockey in Milwaukee since the Admirals debut season to the AHL of 2001-02. The Admirals roster moves since last Friday included: Kevin Fiala being recalled to the Nashville Predators, Garrett Noonan being recalled to the Admirals from the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL, Gary Steffes being released from his PTO contract to rejoin the Allen Americans in the ECHL for their playoff run, and Scott Ford also being released from his PTO contract to rejoin the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL for their playoff run. Tonight’s scratches for the Admirals were Felix Girard (out for the season), Miikka Salomaki (out for the season), and Jimmy Oligny (healthy).

Thoughts on tonight’s game? Do you feel the team looked any different without the pressure of getting into the playoffs on their backs? Who do you feel played their last game in Milwaukee as a member of Admirals tonight?

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News April 17, 2015

Brian O’Neill Named 2014-15 AHL MVP

(Photo Credit: Fred Kfoury III // Icon Sportswire)

This year’s Les Cunningham Award has just been announced and Brian O’Neill of the Manchester Monarchs has won the distinction as the 2014-15 AHL MVP. O’Neill currently leads the AHL in scoring and assists on the league’s top team this season.

Press Release via AHL:

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today that right wing Brian O’Neill of the Manchester Monarchs has been voted the winner of the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL’s most valuable player for the 2014-15 season.

The award is voted on by coaches, players and members of the media in each of the league’s 30 cities.

O’Neill has scored 22 goals and leads the AHL with 56 assists and 78 points in 69 games heading into the final weekend of the regular season. His plus-28 rating leads all AHL forwards and ranks second overall, and he is tied for the league lead with 26 power-play points. Powered by O’Neill, the Monarchs are third in the league in offense (3.19 goals per game) and first in power-play efficiency (21.0 percent), and have clinched their first Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy as the AHL’s regular-season points champions. O’Neill has strung together three separate scoring streaks of at least seven games each this season, and his five-assist night at Portland on Dec. 17 established AHL season highs for both assists and points in a game. He was selected to participate in the 2015 AHL All-Star Classic but missed the event due to injury, and last week was voted a Second Team AHL All-Star.

A 26-year-old native of Yardley, Pa., O’Neill has steadily and dramatically improved his offensive numbers over his three professional seasons; he put up 15 points as a rookie in 2012-13 and tallied 47 points a year ago. O’Neill, who played four seasons at Yale University and finished as the second-highest scorer in school history, signed as a free agent with Los Angeles on Mar. 15, 2012, and has totaled 52 goals, 90 assists and a plus-60 rating in 190 career AHL games, all with Manchester.

The AHL’s most valuable player award honors the late Les Cunningham, a member of the AHL Hall of Fame who was a five-time league All-Star and three-time Calder Cup champion with the Cleveland Barons. Previous winners of the Les Cunningham Award include Carl Liscombe (1948, ’49), Johnny Bower (1956, ’57, ’58), Fred Glover (1960, ’62, ’64), Mike Nykoluk (1967), Gilles Villemure (1969, ’70), Doug Gibson (1975, ’77), Pelle Lindbergh (1981), Ross Yates (1983), Paul Gardner (1985, ’86), Tim Tookey (1987), Jody Gage (1988), John Anderson (1992), Don Biggs (1993), Derek Armstrong (2001), Jason Spezza (2005), Darren Haydar (2007), Keith Aucoin (2010), Cory Conacher (2012), Tyler Johnson (2013) and Travis Morin (2014).

In operation since 1936, the American Hockey League continues to serve as the top development league for all 30 National Hockey League teams. Nearly 90 percent of all players competing in the NHL are AHL graduates, and through the years the American Hockey League has been home to more than 100 honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame. The 2014-15 regular season ends Sunday, and then 16 clubs will continue to vie for the league’s coveted championship trophy when the 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs get underway next week.

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Scouting April 17, 2015

Marlies: Scouting the Enemy

The Milwaukee Admirals were eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday night. So what’s left to play for? For starters, why not get some revenge against the team that swept the Admirals out of last season’s playoffs and prevented them from getting into this season’s playoffs?

~I Play For Keeps~

The Toronto Marlies enter tonight’s game with a record of 37-27-9-0 (83 points). Their mission is simple. Win tonight and they punch their playoff ticket to lockout the Eastern Conference.

First things first, because I have to point a finger at something I find incredible this late in the season, the Marlies have not lost in the shootout this season. There are only two other teams in the entire league that can say the same: Syracuse Crunch and Hamilton Bulldogs. The Marlies won their only shootout of the season while the Chicago Wolves lost their one and only shootout this season and the Bulldogs -still- have yet to play in a shootout. The Admirals… *sad violin* have played in eight shootouts this season and lost six times.

In the Marlies last ten games they have gone 7-3-0-0 including wins in their last four straight games. During the four game win streak they have outscored teams 20-8 with a power-play that has gone 6/16. The game they played on Tuesday night in Iowa was the first first penalty-free game in the AHL in more than three years. You’d have to go back to the 2011-12 season when a team named the Peoria Rivermen played the Grand Rapids Griffins.

~Him Again~

Brendan Leipsic will play against his former-teammates tonight for the first time since he was traded by the Nashville Predators back in mid-February. I had made mention of it. The date in which he was traded, paired with the season ending injury to Miikka Salomäki, really signaled the beginning of the end to the Admirals 2014-15 season. Ever since those two left the fold the Admirals have gone 4-14-4-2.

How has Leipsic done since the trade to Toronto? It seems to be a tale of three different parts. At first, Leipsic hit the ground running. He scored points in five of his first six games as a member of the Marlies, 6 points (2 goals, 4 assists), but then went on a cold spell. Leipsic went the next thirteen games with only an assist to his name. It’s the current form that he is on that made him this week’s CCM/AHL Player of the Week. In his last five games he has 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists) – including a hat trick performance against the Adirondack Flames.

~Him Again, Too!~

T.J. Brennan was part of a trade that took him from the Rockford IceHogs and brought him back to the Marlies – with whom he won the Eddie Shore Award with last season as the AHL’s top defenseman. The man he was traded for was Spencer Abbott who has since exploded for 21 points (12 goals, 9 assists) in 17 games. It wasn’t a bad deal, mind you. Brennan’s points per game with Toronto (0.67) is better than it was in Rockford (0.75).

In my time following Brennan in the AHL he is nearly more of a forward than a defenseman. He actively steps up from the point and gets involved on the offense and, in his time with the IceHogs, was punishing the Admirals by doing just that: 6 points (4 goals, 2 assists) in 11 games. I would expect more of the same from him up and down the left side of the ice.

With the playoff pressure off now, how do you expect the Admirals to play tonight against the Marlies? To you, what are the Admirals playing for in these last two games of the season?

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News April 16, 2015

Matt Murray Named AHL Goalie of the Year

It wasn’t all that surprising when netminder Matt Murray of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins claimed the Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award as the AHL’s most outstanding rookie for the 2014-15 season. Perhaps then it shouldn’t be surprising that Murray has also taken this season’s Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award and the league’s top goaltender as well.

Press Release via AHL:

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today that Matt Murray of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins has been voted the winner of the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding goaltender for the 2014-15 season.

The award is voted on by coaches, players and members of the media in each of the league’s 30 cities.

A 20-year-old rookie, Murray has helped the Penguins clinch their 13th consecutive trip to the Calder Cup Playoffs, and is a big reason why Wilkes-Barre/Scranton leads the league in team defense (2.11 goals per game). Entering the final weekend of the regular season, Murray owns a record of 25-9-3 in 39 appearances, and his 1.51 goals-against average, .943 save percentage and 12 shutouts not only lead the league in 2014-15, they also all represent the second-best marks in the 79-year history of the AHL.

Murray set an AHL record for longest shutout streak by a goaltender when he held Wilkes-Barre/Scranton opponents off the scoreboard for 304 minutes and 11 seconds between Feb. 8 and Mar. 8, a stretch that included four consecutive shutout victories. Murray is an impressive 13-3-3 on the road this season, and since the All-Star break overall, he is 15-2-1 with 17 goals allowed and nine shutouts in 18 starts.

Murray, a native of Thunder Bay, Ont., was a third-round pick by Pittsburgh in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. He was named a First Team AHL All-Star and the winner of the Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding rookie, and becomes just the second rookie in the last 20 years to win the Baz Bastien Award.

The Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award, which was first presented in 1984, honors former Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Baz Bastien, who played four seasons in goal with the AHL’s Pittsburgh Hornets (1945-49) before suffering a career-ending eye injury. Bastien would go on to serve as head coach and general manager of the Hornets, leading them to the 1967 Calder Cup championship. Previous winners of the award include Jon Casey (1985), Sam St. Laurent (1986), Mark Laforest (1987, 1991), Felix Potvin (1992), Corey Hirsch (1993), Manny Legace (1996), Martin Biron (1999), Dwayne Roloson (2001), Jason LaBarbera (2004, 2007), Ryan Miller (2005), Michael Leighton (2008), Cory Schneider (2009), Jonathan Bernier (2010), Niklas Svedberg (2013) and Jake Allen (2014).

In operation since 1936, the American Hockey League continues to serve as the top development league for all 30 National Hockey League teams. Nearly 90 percent of all players competing in the NHL are AHL graduates, and through the years the American Hockey League has been home to more than 100 honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame. The 2014-15 regular season ends Sunday, and then 16 clubs will continue to vie for the league’s coveted championship trophy when the 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs get underway next week.

The winner of the 2014-15 Les Cunningham Award (most valuable player) will be announced Friday.

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