Ramblings October 14, 2016

10 Bold Predictions for the Admirals This Season

I don’t often like making outlandish predictions. They often come back to haunt the prognosticator and become a point and stare contest in years that follow. That said, optimism is and should be extremely high for a number of reasons for the 2016-17 Milwaukee Admirals. The majority of last season’s highly successful team is back. New veterans and prospects inject experience and new competition into the squad. So here are ten bold predictions that you should expect to see coming to light over the course of this year’s campaign.

1. Frédérick Gaudreau and Vladislav Kamenev make their NHL debuts.

One of these two guys last season felt like they could make a push for the NHL with an explosive start to the year. And the other wasn’t even signed to the Nashville Predators. Both Gaudreau and Kamenev are being positioned for successful seasons at the heart of the Admirals forward group. Kamenev had a really good debut season to the North American scene but it was all done with a comfort level to his surroundings being a challenge. He knows the city of Milwaukee now. He is very familiar with the coaching staff, his teammates, and the style of play that the AHL delivers. He should take things up to a new level and eventually get a loom topside with Nashville. The same can be said of Gaudreau who can play at center or wing and in all game situations. Gaudreau is very defensively sound and his speed and skill on offense last season in addition to the defensive work rate put him on Nashville’s radar. He was placed in Colton Sissons role with the Admirals and arguably did better than Sissons during the Admirals captain last season. Gaudreau is a relentless worker who still treats practice sessions like job interviews. He’s gone from the ECHL to the AHL and has set himself up to complete his incredible story off by getting into the NHL as an undrafted talent in his third pro season .

2. Jimmy Oligny is signed to an NHL contract by the Nashville Predators.

The Nashville Predators have a freakish amount of defensive depth. And, if the most recent NHL Draft is anything to go by, the Predators are only building on it. So why would the Predators need an Oligny? Because he’s that good. Oligny, like Gaudreau, is another undrafted talent that has dialed himself in through the Milwaukee Admirals these last two seasons. His play last season was such that I named him the team’s Defenseman of the Year. As great as the Predators defensive depth is I feel retaining it is important. And, while the Predators 2016 NHL Draft Class is looking good, the likes of Dante Fabbro and Samuel Girard aren’t likely becoming pros in the system for a little bit anyways. Having Oligny become your man waiting in the wings in the event of a recall would be smart. He’s polished defensively and showed improvements to his offensive game last season to back that shutdown defensive ability up. If he stays the course? He’s due for Nashville to provide him a similar pat on the back which his pal Gaudreau received for his efforts last season.

3. Kevin Fiala will return one last time to the Milwaukee Admirals.

Nashville can rejoice that FialaMania has arrived but a lot of him sticking around topside this season will come down to consistency. I love that the Predators seem to have him positioned in a place to succeed as part of the team’s upper tier forward lines rather than lumped down with a checking line. It should allow for his speed and skill to sparkle that little bit brighter. The problem is, how often will he really shine and how long before a lack of shimmer make other options or permutations that much more attractive? I think Fiala hits a bump early in the season that sees him fluttered back to the Admirals for a spell that gets him top line minutes in the AHL that sets him on a course to fire back in the NHL. It worked for Viktor Arvidsson. It will work for Fiala. The key for all parties involved here is patience. In a different situation? Fiala at 20-years of age could well be making his debut season as a pro in the AHL such as Anthony Richard. Fiala is massively ahead of the curve in his pro level development. Now he just needs to figure out the NHL’s speed and grind. He will. Just be patient and expect some speed bumps.

4. Justin Kirkland will predominantly play at center this season.

At Development Camp this Summer in Nashville I watched a number of face-off drills taken with Kamenev squaring up against Kirkland. Much to my surprise the Russian, who played all of last season as a center in the AHL, was losing frequently to the WHL winger that transitioned to center midway through the season to ease the Kelowna Rockets during some injury woes. Kirkland is a big boy at 6-3 and 185 lbs. He’s very strong but deceptively quick. Best of all, he isn’t just an out and out goal scorer but someone who enjoys playing the role of provider and setting up his teammates. It may have been unfortunate circumstances that put Kirkland at center in juniors last season but I feel Kelowna found Kirkland’s best position. I imagine the Admirals coaching staff will be smart enough to see exactly that, as well.

5. Max Görtz will lead the Milwaukee Admirals in overall scoring and goal scoring this season.

As the prospect pool grows I truly hope Görtz isn’t someone that gets lost in the Predators organization. I get to view a lot of players transitioning from Europe to North America at the AHL level and, frankly, not many pan out or are all that suited for the smaller rink and North-South game. Görtz experience in his first North American season? He produced 47 points (18 goals, 29 assists) in 72 games. That point production was second best on the Admirals to Fiala who had 50 points (18 goals, 32 assists) in 66 games. Not only was Görtz producing offensively but he was incredibly smart and successful defensively. His Plus/Minus of +14 was tied for second with Oligny and trailed team leader Max Reinhart by 2 points. Görtz gets it. And his shot is a wicked one. He should carry on from where he was last season and, if anything, improve across the board.

6. Mike Liambas will be the one and only member of the Milwaukee Admirals to get snake bitten by the AHL’s new Fighting Major policy.

Remember the 2013-14 season when Liambas set an Admirals record for penalty minutes in a season with 267 penalty minutes? That was fun. That was 25 fighting majors worth of fun. Consider now that at fighting major #10 you will be automatically suspended for a game by the AHL, as well as fighting majors #11, #12, #13, and that the penalty increased to a two-game suspension at fighting major #14 and on forwards… I don’t think we’ll see Liambas as Liambas as he can be. That being said, you cannot take the fight out of the dog and Liambas is the fight and, in a lot of ways, the heart of the Admirals. When he gets close to #10 the discussions will be had for him to relent and take the high road but hockey things tend to happen and sometimes you just can’t help it. Remember last season when Oligny was dragged into his second fighting major to get him ejected from a game… by Liambas? It just happens. And players who are smart enough to know someone is hovering around this new rule might take advantage of the situation. The story of Liambas’ 2016-17 season will be composure and using his head. That said, even if he cut last season’s fighting majors in half he would still hit the AHL’s new fighting major policy and be suspended a game. It might just be unavoidable. If anything, make the fights count for something.

7. Austin Watson will remain in the AHL for the 2016-17 season but record his fourth consecutive 20 goal AHL season.

I’ve already gone over Watson extensively but now allow me to put a bit of a stamp down. This isn’t a knock against Watson, because it isn’t, but the surrounding talent in the organization has simply exploded past him. Whether it is a center such as Sissons or wingers such as Miikka Salomäki or Viktor Arvidsson. The prospect pool has come up and swallowed Watson whole. Fiala is there now. Kamenev is waiting in the wings. Gaudreau has come out of nowhere and is knocking on the door. Watson is a solid lower-line defensively crisp winger at the NHL level who might just be in the wrong organization at this stage of his career. With that said, he is surrounded by an incredibly talented Admirals team at the AHL level where he can vault himself back into other team’s radars once his contract expires after this season. He became one of just three Admirals to score three 20+ goal seasons to start his career. And, considering the teams he did that damage with compared to this season’s lineup, he might be in for his best AHL season of his career. Watson needs to make the AHL his NHL for this season. It might be bittersweet but the payoff if he plays his cards right could get him back where he wants to be.

8. The Milwaukee Admirals repeat as AHL Central Division Champions.

Taking a look around the AHL’s Central Division and you immediately turn your head to last season’s Calder Cup Champions the Cleveland Monsters or the team that swept the Admirals from the playoffs the Grand Rapids Griffins. The Monsters are still a beefed up team that have a lot of returning names from last season’s success. The Griffins? Ditto. Those are the real challenges to that crown this season. The Chicago Wolves have a depleted, familiar, and uninspired looking team. The Iowa Wild… And the Rockford IceHogs have essentially migrated the successful parties of their team from last season to the Chicago Blackhawks to help ease cap space woes. The Admirals really managed to overachieve a season ago with a 101 point (0.664 point percentage) campaign. The team was incredibly young and layered with inexperience that spoke more towards how great the 2016-17 season could be. Well, last season ended up being rather special. And this season should at the very least match last season success of claiming a divisional crown.

9. Dean Evason will secure his first AHL Playoff series victory since becoming head coach of the Milwaukee Admirals in the 2012-13 season.

This is Evason’s fifth season as head coach of the Milwaukee Admirals. He has made the playoffs three of the previous four seasons. In those three playoff appearances Evason’s playoff record is 1-9. His only ever victory came in his second playoff game behind the bench for the Admirals. He has lost eight straight playoff games and the Admirals have been swept out of the playoffs in their last two appearances. Thankfully, with the roster compiled this season, that simply isn’t going to happen to the 2016-17 Admirals. The mad scramble to locate veteran character in the middle of the season? The Admirals already have that in bulk. The fight to break into Nashville’s glass ceiling to make it into the NHL is as competitive as it has ever been with several NHL caliber talents stuck in Milwaukee simply due to the numbers game in Nashville. The Admirals are the sort of a team that could make a deep playoff run. Perhaps the most exciting element to the season? Juuse Saros as the -first- first choice Admirals goaltender since Jeremy Smith back in the 2011-12 season. He’s only going to make the comfort level of the team that much better knowing what he’s capable of night in and night out.

10. The Milwaukee Admirals will crack into the AHL’s “Top 10 in Attendance” list for the first time since the 2011-12 season.

The last time the Milwaukee Admirals were in the Top 10 in Attendance for the AHL they drew 236,579 fans for an average of 6,226 per night. Last season’s numbers were a touch down from that -but- not by too much. The Admirals drew 234,404 fans in the 2015-16 season for an average of 6,169 per night which listed them at eleventh in the AHL. That’s on the cusp but, what’s exciting, is simply Admirals hockey right now. Last season’s attendance saw a year-to-year boost of 13,659 fans. Those fans, either new or being reenergized by last season’s excitement, should be along for the ride as that same high level team takes to a building that they can now humbly consider their home: the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. I’ve read comments from loyal fans that remember seeing Admirals hockey at the ol’ MECCA and are excited to see that sight return. But I also consider myself in the mix when it comes to fans who probably need something such as Admirals hockey in that building… to reintroduce me to that building. I last saw an event in the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena when it was called the US Cellular Arena when I was just a motocross fanatical kid. It makes me wonder just how many fans attending games or events at the BMO Harris Bradley Center all these years may have neglected the old barn as much as myself. But these times are a changin’ and so to is the ol’ MECCA. Downtown Milwaukee right now is a construction zone where not only is the new becoming new but the old is becoming new too. It’s exciting to think that the Admirals, whose history at the MECCA is incredible, is going to take life for an entirely new generation of fans with a venue that will start to take shape into just that generation of fans. The attraction of Admirals hockey speaks for itself. The attraction of returning, reintroducing, or first-time experiencing the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena this season also speaks for itself.

Of the ten provided, which stands the greatest chance of coming true? What are your bold predictions for the Milwaukee Admirals 2016-17 season?

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

Chatterbox October 13, 2016

Chatterbox, Vol. 141

Today was Media Day for the Milwaukee Admirals. It was also the final day that the team will be in town before they travel to San Antonio, Texas for the 2016-17 season opener. The Admirals face-off against the San Antonio Rampage on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.

Before the Media Day activities swung into action we once again got a good look at how the Admirals are setting up shop ahead of this weekend’s games. It might have been a different day but the story was essentially the same in regards to the formation of the line combinations.

Zolnierczyk-Kamenev-Watson
Florek-Smith-Åberg
Richard-Gaudreau-Görtz
Liambas-Girard-Payerl
(White-Kirkland)

Irwin-Granberg
Oligny-Carrier
Murphy-Dougherty (Diaby)

Saros
(Gunnarsson)

It’s a safe bet to say, right now, that Matt White, Justin Kirkland, and Jonathan Diaby will not factor into Saturday’s season opener based on practice all this week. White and Kirkland have essentially been operating as flex options in and out of different drills but they really haven’t had line rushes or other three-man drill sessions like any of the other lines shown above. It could change for the Sunday afternoon game – but we’ll see.

Media Day activities meant several local news outlets turning out to get their season previews in for TV. The day was split between interviews at the MSOE Kern Center rink and at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena by the locker room area. I’m fairly certain you’ll be able to tell which interviews were recorded where.

Today I chatted with Milwaukee Admirals head coach Dean Evason. He had a wee bit of a gaffe when announcing who the team captain was but, thankfully, I also chatted with the newly named Admirals captain Trevor Smith directly after that. Also in the mix were Petter Granberg, Mike Liambas, Juuse Saros, and Anthony Richard. Here is what everyone had to say before packing up the bags for San Antonio.

Happy with who the team has selected as far as the captains are concerned? Do you feel Juuse Saros starts both games this weekend or would it be good to get Jonas Gunnarsson’s North American pro debut out of the way?

News October 13, 2016October 13, 2016

Trevor Smith Named Team Captain of the Admirals

TORONTO, ON- OCTOBER 15 - Trevor Smith celebrates his first goal as a Leaf in first period action as the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Minnesota Wild at Air Canada Centre in Toronto. October 15, 2013. (Photo Credit: Steve Russell // Toronto Star) — TORONTO, ON- OCTOBER 15 – Trevor Smith celebrates his first goal as a Leaf in first period action as the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Minnesota Wild at Air Canada Centre in Toronto. October 15, 2013. (Photo Credit: Steve Russell // Toronto Star)

The Milwaukee Admirals have announced that Trevor Smith will be serving as team captain for the 2016-17 season. In Smith’s previous two AHL seasons he was the captain of the Toronto Marlies. The Admirals also announced that Matt Irwin and Mike Liambas were named as the team’s alternate captains.

In Smith’s AHL career he has logged 453 games while amassing 346 points (153 goals, 193 assists). The 31-year old Ottawa native also has 106 games of NHL level experience where he has 20 points (9 goals, 11 assists) to his name in spurts with the New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Last season he ventured to Europe for the first time in his career playing for SC Bern in Switzerland.

The process for who becomes the Admirals captain has always been the same way under head coach Dean Evason. The locker room gets to vote for their candidate and the coaching staff gets the last say. There hasn’t been an alteration from who the players chose to what the coaching staff feels is right since Evason has been behind the bench.

To go along with the alternate captain selections of Irwin and Liambas the team also has named a list of players in reserve that will wear an “A” in the event of injuries or call-ups. Those players were: Harry Zolnierczyk, Adam Payerl, and Félix Girard.

Chatterbox October 12, 2016

Chatterbox, Vol. 140

Happy Wednesday, everybody. The Milwaukee Admirals 2016-17 regular season is nearly upon us. Today was the second to last practice the team will have in Milwaukee before traveling to San Antonio on Friday for their first two games of the season on Saturday and Sunday.

Yesterday provided a really solid look into how this year’s Admirals team could look on opening night. All reinforcements from the Nashville Predators, including two that passed through waivers, were on hand and the same can be said for early this afternoon. Today saw the exact same line combinations used.

Zolnierczyk-Kamenev-Watson
Florek-Smith-Åberg
Richard-Gaudreau-Görtz
Liambas-Girard-Payerl
(White-Kirkland)

Irwin-Granberg
Oligny-Carrier
Murphy-Dougherty (Diaby)

Saros
(Gunnarsson)

I’m extremely curious as to how Justin Kirkland and Matt White will fit in. They were again used as flex options that rotated in and out with different groups and in a few different situations. I would have expected the two odd-men out to actually be Mike Liambas and Justin Florek but, per practice, it looks like this could be what you get this weekend.

After practice I had the opportunity to swing by the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena and get a close up look at the new Admirals locker room. It is simply stunning. The look and feel of the place is NHL quality. Players seem just as awestruck as those of us who have been around the team at the BMO Harris Bradley Center for a number of years. It’s remarkable. And it is still in the process of being fitted with more bells and whistles that will make the place that much more world class.

Once I got the shock factor of my new environment relatively in check I managed to round up a good chunk of interviews. Inside today’s Chatterbox we have: Frédérick Gaudreau, Jack Dougherty, Austin Watson, the aforementioned Kirkland, and Admirals head coach Dean Evason. Here is what everyone had to say this afternoon from the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

Apologies if the audio for today’s interviews came in on the loud side. Tried editing that as best I could without distorting things but it just seemed like a hot mic with all the goings on around the locker room construction zone today.

News October 11, 2016

Admirals Roster Begins to Take Shape

This is the final week of the Milwaukee Admirals Training Camp. Frankly though, Training Camp is already over and this week has the look and feel that it should. The 2016-17 AHL regular season begins this weekend and the Admirals have two games against the San Antonio Rampage on Saturday and Sunday. So, it isn’t as much Training Camp anymore as it is prep for competitive game action.

I attended this morning’s practice with the excitement surrounding the fact that all of Sunday’s roster moves should have pretty much cemented the Admirals roster to what it should be come opening night. There might still be some moves down to the ECHL to be made but even in saying that the group is rather set. So, how would this team shape up? Especially now that Austin Watson and Petter Granberg are here after clearing waivers from the Nashville Predators.

Zolnierczyk-Kamenev-Watson
Florek-Smith-Åberg
Richard-Gaudreau-Görtz
Liambas-Girard-Payerl
(White-Kirkland)

Irwin-Granberg
Oligny-Carrier
Murphy-Dougherty (Diaby)

Saros
(Gunnarsson)

This is how the lines looked at today’s practice. It’s important for me to state however that just because the lines are listed as they are doesn’t necessarily mean Line 1, Line 2, and so on. Especially in the AHL I think you find the difference in what line is which doesn’t matter all that much. This year’s prospective Admirals forwards group sort of speaks to that. Essentially you have three lines there that can easily pass as the Admirals top line so it is more Line 1-A, 1-B, 1-C, and a grind line.

Of note, both Matt White and Justin Kirkland were flex options today that cycled in and out of different drills with different lines. When they did feature as a line Anthony Richard rotated in as the right winger with Kirkland at center. Additionally, Jonathan Diaby seemed to only rotate in and out with Jack Dougherty to play alongside Trevor Murphy. While the lefty playing left and righty playing right set-up is straight forward for Murphy-Dougherty the Diaby rotation meant shifting Murphy over on the right side of the ice.

The practices today went about as I expected them to go after two 4-1 defeats in sloppy exhibition games this past weekend. It was primarily passing drill heavy with an emphasis on firm tape-to-tape passes getting connected and connected at pace. It’s no mystery that this year’s Admirals team is going to be featuring a good combination of speed and skill. Making sure that the high level of speed the Admirals possess doesn’t get stunted by your own ineffective passing is kind of a no brainer. The crisper the better and added time for everyone getting on a better page with each other will go a long way.

No interviews were conducted on my part today. The team has a golf outing today so I just assume let them race over to the links where they’d rather be anyways. Tomorrow will be a better day for interviewing and Media Day is on Thursday. Plenty of interview content will be on the way. And I’m aiming for a few added stories before we get rolling with Game 1 of the Admirals season this weekend.

Thoughts on how the Admirals lines look from today’s practice? Which two forwards do you feel are the odd men out? Could Jonathan Diaby manage to stick around as the Admirals seventh defensive option or would he be better suited to staying active and playing in the ECHL until needed?

Feature October 11, 2016

The Austin Watson Roller Coaster

The current state of the Milwaukee Admirals roster heading into the 2016-17 season features a roster the strengths of which hasn’t been seen in a long time. There are numerous players sitting on the edge of being an NHL call-up. Some are veterans. Some are prospects right on the radar. And some are prospects that can shoot into that radar this season.

It’s shouldn’t be that surprising that players such as Petter Granberg and Austin Watson would be high on that list of potential quickfire call-ups. Both went through the waiver wire process and were assigned to the Admirals to start their season in the AHL. With the exception of a conditioning assignment that Granberg had last season both were in the NHL season for the whole of the 2015-16 season. Yet, of the two, one seems more capable of achieving an NHL return during the course of this season while the other one is named Watson.

I still find it curious how Watson’s 2015-16 season played out. Last season was the first part of a two-year contract that saw the first stint work as a two-way deal before turning into a standard NHL one-way contract. It seems the reverse of that contract is playing out right now: NHL the first half, AHL the second half. The only explanation I can cook up on last season is that head coach Peter Laviolette must have liked enough of what Watson could provide to either (a) play him (b) keep him as a rotational forward option. At some point he must have been close enough to being sent down, as evidenced by a fully prepped Admirals road jersey seen at the team’s Garage Sale this off-season, but it never came to be. He spent the whole of the season with the Nashville Predators and logged 57 games in the process.

Now that Watson has fallen down to the AHL there is a simple and concise question to ask: now what?

Watson already has 229 games of AHL experience to his name. He is one of only three Admirals in the team’s AHL history to score 20 goals or more in each of his first three seasons: 20 goals (2012-13), 22 goals (2013-14), and 26 goals (2014-15). He was also one of the most durable players the Admirals featured during those three seasons. The only reason he missed any AHL time during those three seasons were due to a 6-game spell in the NHL with the Predators during the 2012-13 season. Beyond that? He has a 100% record of showing up to work. Which, given his shot blocking prowess on the Admirals penalty kill at the time, is mightily impressive that he never was dinged up enough to facilitate an unhealthy scratch.

He’s a solid AHL level player. The numbers scream it. His versatility at the AHL level shows it: center, wing, penalty kill, power-play, etc. And yet here we are. Now what?

I feel the reason why we are where we are with the Predators first round draft pick from the 2010 NHL Draft has more to do with the prospect pool around Watson than Watson himself. He is a very strong and polished player. Watson isn’t the sort of player you would pick out and say he made boneheaded play after boneheaded play. The problem is, compared to all that are bottled up behind him, Watson is never going to be able to provide the high level speed and skill to go with his polished game. Frédérick Gaudreau is a perfect example of just the sort of player that is comparable to Watson and should be considered a better option as a call-up than Watson. Gaudreau has Watson’s versatility and range of use all while being a much faster skater with the skill to be more of a threat on offense. Then comes the freight train of names that could pretty much say the same: Calle Järnkrok, Viktor Arvidsson, Miikka Salomäki, Colton Sissons, Kevin Fiala, Pontus Åberg, and Vladislav Kamenev.

The only true player in the mix where you can have an argument over “Watson vs.” would be Cody Bass. Even that becomes a pretty cut and dry case. Bass is a chiseled veteran with great face-off skills and provides a far -far- more physical element to his game than Watson does. As big of a forward as Watson is, with the exception of one awesome hit to Ryan Getzlaf, he never really used his body as a battering ram to compensate for a lack of pace that others around him feature to shadow over him. Bass does lay the body down to bowl people over. Salomäki has the reputation as a bull in a china shop for his checking abilities. Watson? He’s just an alright smooth player that goes about his business. Which is fine. But it’s not a long term skill set to be an NHL level talent.

What Watson’s 2016-17 season is going to really need isn’t just what everyone knows he’s capable of at the AHL level but a display of what he hasn’t been capable of in the NHL level. He needs to start being a force to be reckoned with. He needs to start grinding people up to go along with his knack for scoring and penalty killing that he is already good at. Watson needs that extra dimension to his game or else I hazard to guess what sort of contracts would be on offer for him in the 2017-18 season. He already fell through the cracks of a waiver wire process. No other team in the NHL wanted him. That shouldn’t be met with anger or despair. It should be met with a wake-up call.

The talent level in hockey right now is shooting to the moon. Next off-season Watson will be 25-years old with a smattering of NHL performances. Watson could either become just who Bass was for the organization last season or Max Reinhart. One of those names are in the NHL. The other is in Germany. Watson’s response this season will go a long way to see whether or not he reclaims an NHL opportunity. And that goes for with the Predators organization and beyond.

News October 9, 2016

Admirals Roster Reduced by Ten Players

Today’s roster activity isn’t over. The Milwaukee Admirals have reduced their Training Camp roster by ten players. Eric Robinson, Jaynen Rissling, and Mark Visentin have been assigned to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL. They have also released Gabryel Boudreau, Eric Knodel, Shawn O’Donnell, Kenny Ryan, Tylor Spink, Tyson Spink, and Dominic Zombo from their try-out contracts.

Press Release via Milwaukee Admirals:

Milwaukee, WI– Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has assigned forwards Pontus Aberg, Frederick Gaudreau, Felix Girard and Mike Liambas, and defenseman Petter Granberg to the Admirals.

In addition, the Admirals have assigned forward Eric Robinson, defenseman Jaynen Rissling, and goalie Mark Visentin to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL. The Ads have also released forwards Kenny Ryan, Gabryel Boudreau, Shawn O’Donnell, Tylor Spink, Tyson Spink, and Dominic Zombo and defenseman Eric Knodel from their try-out contracts.

Milwaukee heads to San Antonio next weekend to open the regular season on Saturday, October 15 at 7 pm against the Rampage. The Ads commence their home schedule on Saturday, October 29 at 6 pm when they host the Iowa Wild at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

The biggest news here is that Jonas Gunnarsson appears to have won the back-up job in net for the Admirals out of Training Camp. Juuse Saros is the clear cut first choice goaltender for the 2016-17 season but the back-up battle was extremely tight between Gunnarsson and Visentin. For all we know this position could flip about a few times as the season progresses.

At the moment the Admirals roster stands at 24 players (14 forwards, 8 defensemen, 2 goalies). I suspect the last bit of roster trimming will be completed by the team before Thursday’s Media Day.

News October 9, 2016

Admirals Receive Five from Nashville

The Nashville Predators have assigned five players to the Milwaukee Admirals which sets their roster to the required amount for opening night. Assigned this afternoon to the Admirals were: Pontus Åberg, Frédérick Gaudreau, Félix Girard, Petter Granberg, and Mike Liambas.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (October 9, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has assigned forwards Pontus Aberg, Frederick Gaudreau, Felix Girard and Mike Liambas, and defenseman Petter Granberg to Milwaukee (AHL).

Nashville’s training camp roster is now at 22 players – 13 forwards, seven defensemen and two goaltenders. An updated roster is available here.

Nashville opens the regular season with a doubleheader against the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday, October 14, and Saturday, October 15. Friday’s contest will be played at Bridgestone Arena and shown live on NBCSN.

Great interest-free payment plans are currently available for all Nashville Predators season-ticket packages, with full-season packages starting as low as $18 per game and half-season packages beginning at $30 per game. In addition to saving money off the individual ticket price and getting access to certain games only available through plans, these plan holders receive 20 percent off at the Predators Team Store, 10 percent discount at Bridgestone Arena concession stands and highest distinction in Smashville Rewards, the official rewards program of the Nashville Predators. For more information, or to purchase, visit NashvillePredators.com or contact a ticket representative at (615) 770-7800.

That sets the Predators for opening night but it only makes filling out the Admirals roster before their regular season begins this coming Saturday. By adding Granberg to the mix the defense could likely see the return of head coach Dean Evason‘s favorite mixture which sees three left-handed defensemen paired with three right-handed defensemen. So, that’s no bother.

Where the real challenges are come at the forward position now where the roster is completely loaded. Decisions for final cuts are going to be tough. And the biggest beneficiary will be the Admirals ECHL affiliate the Cincinnati Cyclones. I have to believe some high quality players will be arriving there to start the season by sheer volume of players in Milwaukee.

If you were to fill out an opening night roster for the Milwaukee Admirals right now – who ends up off your roster? How will Austin Watson and Petter Granberg add to this year’s Admirals?

News October 8, 2016

Roster Rodeo; Three Up, Two Down

The Nashville Predators placed Austin Watson on waivers yesterday. With the waiver process complete he has been assigned to the Milwaukee Admirals. That wasn’t the only move made, either. The Predators also reassigned Vladislav Kamenev to the Admirals while recalling three from their AHL affiliate: Pontus Åberg, Félix Girard, and Mike Liambas.

Press Release via Milwaukee Admirals:

Milwaukee, WI– Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has recalled forwards Pontus Aberg, Felix Girard and Mike Liambas from Milwaukee (AHL). In addition, the team assigned Vladislav Kamenev and Austin Watson to Milwaukee.

Watson spent parts of four seasons with the Admirals, most recently in 2014-15 when he led the team with 26 goals and was second with 44 points. He is fourth in Admirals AHL history with 68 goals and is one of only three players since the team joined the AHL in 2001 to have 20 or more goals in each of his first three seasons with the team. In 2015-16 the Ann Arbor, MI native tallied 10 points (3g-7a) in 57 games with the Predators.

Kamenev posted 15 goals and 22 assists for 37 points in 57 games with the Admirals last season, his first in North America. The Orsk, Russia native was selected to play in the AHL All-Star Classic and also captained Team Russia to their second consecutive silver medal at the World Junior Championships.

The Admirals will finish off the pre-season Saturday night when they travel to Chicago to take on the Wolves.

Milwaukee heads to San Antonio next weekend to open the regular season on Saturday, October 15 at 7 pm against the Rampage. The Ads commence their home schedule on Saturday, October 29 at 6 pm when they host the Iowa Wild at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

The Watson move down seems to reflect both where Watson is right now in his career but even more so how the rest of the prospect group has performed this Pre-Season. Watson played 229 games as a member of the Admirals and produced 127 points (68 goals, 59 assists) in that time. His last AHL season (2014-15) saw him produce a career high and team best 26 goals. He spent all of last season with the Predators where he logged 57 games and scoring 10 points (3 goals, 7 assists).

Chatterbox October 7, 2016October 8, 2016

Chatterbox, Vol. 139

Justin Florek participated in the Boston Bruins playoff run at the end of the 2013-14 season. (Photo Credit: Greg M. Cooper // USA TODAY Sports)

I’m not too certain there is a lot you can take away from last night’s exhibition game other than to say: it happened. A storm of penalty calls descended from the heavens and rained down on the MSOE Kern Center in that game and, whether warranted or not, it all made evaluating the team and individuals a difficult process to do.

If anything, you can say that the Admirals penalty kill did get a heck of a run out. There were a variety of different looks and players getting a chance to get out on the penalty kill and several did a great job. Still, constant penalty killing means playing two forwards at a time and it gets the lines out of whack once things become even strength – although that did feel like a rare occurrence from the second period to the end of the game.

A player I feel did stand out on the evening was Cincinnati Cyclones roster invitee Shawn O’Donnell. Yes, he did have a nice fight against Sam Carrick and everything but past that his play was really good. In such a scrambly sort of game O’Donnell always seemed to provide a positive energy on the ice for the Admirals. That goes for him operating along the boards or seeing him break forward from defense to offense. There weren’t many players, for either team, that made you point and go “him” but for me O’Donnell was that for the Admirals on the night.

The biggest takeaway for me from this game that the Admirals are going to need to work on: passing. It’s the pre-season. There were players playing at a high level game speed that never really played together and the way the penalty killing jumbled up lines it made it all the more of a mess. I get that. But there were hardly tape-to-tape passes that connected in this game from start to finish. So, yes the game was very sloppy and a penalty festival, but it could have been eased a fair bit with crisp clean passes. I suspect with the exhibition game tonight in Chicago and an off-day scheduled for Monday that Tuesday’s practice will be rather dominated by passing drills. I’ll be there to drink those drills in and see if there are improvements.

After the game I was able to chat with goaltender Juuse Saros who played the full contest for the Admirals against the IceHogs. I then chatted with Admirals head coach Dean Evason as well as the forwards that officially signed contracts ahead of the game Eric Robinson and Justin Florek. Here is what they had to say following the game.

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