Scouting April 12, 2016April 12, 2016

Wolves: Scouting the Enemy

When thinking about tonight’s game, and really the remaining games, it might well feel like there isn’t much to play for anymore. The Milwaukee Admirals clinched the Central Division on Sunday and have three games left in the regular season. There are a lot of new names being kicked into the system and playing time is there to be afforded to allow for the newbies to get a run out. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t something to play for.

When looking at the new names that the Admirals have seen introduced recently you’re seeing players that as seeking to seize an opportunity and test themselves. A.J. White, Jack Dougherty, Anthony Richard, and Aaron Irving all have the chance to make solid early impressions as newly christened professional hockey players. While the Admirals may have been fighting, as a team, for their placement in the standings the individual aspect of moving to the next level spills into exactly what these youngsters will be providing in the coming games.

Tonight’s game against the Chicago Wolves marks the last Amtrak Rivalry contest of the season. It’s also the final meeting between these two teams at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Regardless of how different these two teams’ 2015-16 seasons there is still much to play for. For the Admirals they’ll be looking to keep this incredible momentum storming forward as they return to the playoffs after a season removed for playoff hockey. For the Wolves there will be plenty of individuals looking to treat each game like a job interview. One of those aspects is eyes looking forward. Another of those aspects is on the here and now. This game shouldn’t be taken lightly.

~Amtrak Rivals~

The Wolves enter tonight’s game with a record of 31-34-5-3 (70 points). Their 0.479 points percentage has them in sixth place of the Central Division and thirteenth place in the Western Conference standings. The lone two teams separating the Wolves from the bottom of both categories are the Manitoba Moose (0.399) and Iowa Wild (0.397).

It’s been incredible following the Wolves this season but incredible for all the wrong reasons. Their 2015-16 season reminds me of the 2014-15 season of the Admirals. All the right pieces are there. They just can’t get the consistent results. The Wolves have gone from a team that had a goal differential of +12 a season ago to that of -35 this season with three-games remaining. It’s almost beyond belief that they’ve fallen backwards so hard.

This season the Wolves will not be featuring in the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-13 season. At that time they were the AHL affiliate to the Vancouver Canucks but it’s worth noting their then iteration the Peoria Rivermen, as these Wolves are affiliates to the St. Louis Blues, also missed the playoffs. That Rivermen team of 2012-13 lost 35 games in regulation from 76 games. If the Wolves lose tonight in regulation they match that.

~Who What Now?~

The Wolves leading scorer this season is team captain Pat Cannone who has managed to enjoy a career season despite all the woes for the team. In 71 games he has produced 50 points (20 goals, 30 assists) and is one of the few players having logged more than half the Wolves game played this season to have a positive plus/minus rating.

It might be unfair to point fingers at anyone specific individual but, if there was any one player I feel sums up the Wolves struggles this season, it would be Ty Rattie. This is Rattie’s third season of AHL hockey. In that time he hasn’t improved he has actually regressed. Take a look:

Rattie, 2013-14: 48 points (31 goals, 17 assists) in 72 games while averaging 2.9 shots on goal per game… Rattie, 2014-15: 42 points (21 goals, 21 assists) in 59 games while averaging 3.3 shots on goal per game… Rattie, 2015-16: 43 points (15 goals, 28 assists) in 59 games while averaging 2.5 shots on goal per game…

For awhile it always felt like Rattie was the igniter to the Wolves offense. Now he takes less shots with less finishes to his shots on goal. Despite his drop in performance, and his lack of explosiveness, he is still third on the Wolves in scoring. A struggling and faltering sniper is still third on the Wolves in scoring. That just about sums up their offensive struggles to me.

In net the Wolves feature Pheonix Copley and Jordan Binnington. The man with the most appearances for the Wolves was the man who had the Admirals number all last season, Binnington.

The follow-up to a great first full season to the AHL for Binnington hasn’t been matched to say the least. In 2014-15 Binnington had 25 wins from 45 appearances with a 2.35 goals against average, 0.916 save percentage, and 3 shutouts. This season he has more losses than wins (16-17-5-3 record) in 39 appearances with a 2.89 goals against average, 0.905 save percentage, and a single shutout.

Copley’s play alongside Binnington on the Wolves has also seen a drastic drop off from last season to this season. As a member of the Hershey Bears in the Washington Capitals organization Copley posted a 17-4-3-1 record from 26 appearances in 2014-15 with a 2.17 goals against average, 0.925 save percentage, and 3 shutouts. He also had a strong playoff run for the Bears by winning 3 games from 5 appearances with a 1.83 goals against average and 0.946 save percentage. As part of the Wolves this season Copley’s numbers have fallen off largely: 14-16-3-0 record from 36 appearances, 2.82 goals against average, 0.907 save percentage, and 3 shutouts.

~Head To Head~

The Admirals secured the Amtrak Trophy earlier this season and lead the season series with a record of 8-3-0-0. This season the Amtrak Rivalry has only had two-games spill past regulation. In those games the Admirals won both times, once in overtime and another in a shootout. The Admirals have won the last four-games straight in the season series.

As far as the head-to-head scoring goes the top scorer in this year’s Amtrak Rivalry is none other than Mr. Rattie of the Wolves who has scored 11 points (5 goals, 6 assists) in 9 games. That’s quite impressive to consider he has scored one-third of his goals this season against the Admirals.

The other side of that coin sees two Admirals tied for the top slot on scoring against the Wolves. Max Reinhart has 9 points (7 goals, 2 assists) from 11 games. Kevin Fiala has 9 points (5 goals, 4 assists) from 10 games.

In net, Juuse Saros has won 6 games from 8 appearances against the Wolves but it has been Marek Mazanec with the better numbers in the Amtrak Rivalry this season. Mazanec has appeared in 3 games against the Wolves this season and has a 1.34 goals against average with a 0.951 save percentage.

~Pre-Game Interviews~

This morning I raced in, braved all the nasty road construction around the ol’ barn, and got some pre-game interviews from morning skate. Hear from head coach Dean Evason as well as the two newbies on defense Jack Dougherty and Aaron Irving.

Some notes from morning skate: Taylor Aronson is not with the team as he is out due to personal reasons at the moment. Both Dougherty and Irving, as well as forward Anthony Richard, are not going to play in tonight’s game. Richard is nursing a leg injury right now and the hope is to see him get a game at some point. A.J. White will return to the Admirals lineup after having sat out as a healthy scratch the last three-games. He will be placed on the wing of former linemate at UMass-Lowell Joe Pendenza tonight.

Expectations for tonight’s game? Can the Admirals twelve-game point streak continue? There are a lot of names potentially making their debut to the Milwaukee ice. Who excites you the most?

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.

News April 11, 2016

Admirals Sign Aaron Irving to ATO Contract

The roster news today keeps on rolling in as the Milwaukee Admirals have announced that they have signed defenseman Aaron Irving to an ATO contract. Irving was selected by the Nashville Predators in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Draft. Irving is now the fourth member of that draft class on the Admirals roster alongside Kevin Fiala, Vladislav Kamenev, and Jack Dougherty. He joins Anthony Richard, Marek Mazanec, and Corey Potter as part of the team’s roster moves today.

Press Release via Milwaukee Admirals:

Milwaukee— Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has assigned defenseman Corey Potter, goaltender Marek Mazanec and forward Anthony Richard to Milwaukee. In addition, the Admirals have signed defenseman Aaron Irving to an Amateur Try-Out Contract (ATO) and reassigned goalie Brandon Whitney to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL.

Potter played in his first game with the Predators in their 3-2 loss to Dallas last Saturday night. He has three assists in 16 games for the Admirals since joining the Nashville organization at the Trade Deadline, helping them to a 12-2-2 record in that span. In 77 total AHL contests this season with Milwaukee and Springfield, the 6-foot-3, 205-pound native of Lansing, Michigan has 20 points (5g-15a). Potter also has 130 NHL games to his credit with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh, Edmonton, Boston and Calgary since 2008-09, posting 32 points (8g-24a). A fourth-round selection (122nd overall) of the Edmonton Oilers in the 2003 Entry Draft, Potter spent four seasons at Michigan State University from 2002-06. He won gold medals with Team USA at the 2002 Under-18 World Championship and the 2004 World Junior Championship.

Mazanec, who backed up Carter Hutton in the Preds season finale last Saturday, has posted a 19-14-5 record with four shutouts (tied for sixth in the AHL), a 2.33 goals-against average (eighth) and a .916 save percentage in his third season in North America in 2015-16. The 6-foot-4, 202-pound native of Pisek, Czech Republic has appeared in 27 career NHL games since 2013-14, and was named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for November 2013 after going 5-4-1 with two shutouts, a 2.00 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage. Mazanec was Nashville’s ninth choice, 179th overall (sixth round), in the 2012 Entry Draft, and catches with his right hand; only five of 91 goalies to appear in the NHL this season do so.

Richard recently completed his fourth QMJHL season with Val-d’Or, tying for 11th in league points (25g-36a-61pts), ranking 12th in assists and tying for 14th in goals despite missing the final three weeks of the regular season due to injury. The Trois-Rivieres, Quebec native also tied for the league lead in shorthanded points (5g-3a-8pts), ranked second in game-winning goals (8) and third in shorthanded goals. A season ago, Nashville’s third choice, 100th overall (fourth round), in the 2015 Entry Draft ranked eighth in the QMJHL in goals (43) and tied for eighth in league points, then tied for third in the 2015 QMJHL Playoffs in goals (12) and ranked ninth in postseason points (22) as the Foreurs advanced to the league semifinals. In his first full season with Val-d’Or in 2013-14, he helped the club win the 2014 President’s Cup and advance to the Memorial Cup, ranking fourth on the team and tying for seventh among all skaters in postseason goals (10).

Irving recently completed his season with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL where he finished second among team defenseman and fourth overall with 40 points (9g-31a). The Predators sixth round pick in the 2014 NHL Draft has spent the parts of the past four seasons with the Oil Kings, accumulating 83 points on 24 goals and 59 assists to go along with 240 penalty minutes in 205 games. The Edmonton, Alberta, native put up 30 points (9g-21a) in 63 games for the Oil Kings in 2013-14 and helped them win their first Memorial Cup in franchise history.

The Admirals begin the final week of the regular season when they host the Chicago Wolves on Tuesday night at 7 pm in Amtrak Rivalry Action at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Tickets for any Ads game can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Groups of ten or more can receive great discounts over single game prices. Those interested in booking a group can call the Admirals office at (414) 227-0550.
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It’s worth noting that, unlike Richard, Irving has yet to sign his entry-level contract with the Predators. This signing is an amateur try-out contract. It’s not to say the Predators won’t be penning the 20-year old defenseman to that ELC deal in the near future but just worth pointing out.

Irving just finished up his third full-season with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL where he enjoyed his best season of junior hockey. In 72 games he produced 40 points (9 goals, 31 assists). During his WHL career he has logged 205 games, all with the Oil Kings, and scored 83 points (24 goals, 59 assists).

News April 11, 2016

Mazanec and Potter Returning to the Admirals

After a quick cup of coffee both Marek Mazanec and Corey Potter have been reassigned by the Nashville Predators to the Milwaukee Admirals.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (April 11, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Monday that the club has reassigned defenseman Corey Potter and goaltender Marek Mazanec to Milwaukee.

The Nashville Predators open the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs on the road on Friday, April 15 against the Anaheim Ducks for Game One of the seven-game series (9:30 p.m. CT). The series shifts to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville for Game Three on Tuesday, April 19 at 8:30 p.m. CT and Game Four on Thursday, April 21, at 7 p.m. CT. Limited tickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting NashvillePredators.com.

Potter managed to suit up and make his Predators debut in their regular season finale on Saturday night. The Predators lost 3-2 on the road to the Dallas Stars but Potter registered 19 shifts which amounted for 14:44 of ice-time. The Predators became Potter’s sixth career NHL team that he played for. As for Mazanec, the Czech goaltender spent his second game with the Predators this season sitting on the bench.

News April 11, 2016

Anthony Richard Assigned to Milwaukee

Val-d'Or Foreurs Anthony Richard celebrates his game winning goal on Edmonton Oil Kings goalie Tristan Jarry during second overtime period Memorial Cup hockey action in London, Ont., Tuesday, May 20, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Dave Chidley — (Photo Credit: Dave Chidley)

The Milwaukee Admirals have yet another teenage prospect joining the ranks. The Nashville Predators have assigned Anthony Richard to the Admirals ahead of tomorrow night’s home game against the Chicago Wolves.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (April 11, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Monday that the club has assigned forward Anthony Richard to Milwaukee (AHL).

Richard, 19 (12/20/96), recently completed his fourth QMJHL season with Val-d’Or, tying for 11th in league points (25g-36a-61pts), ranking 12th in assists and tying for 14th in goals despite missing the final three weeks of the regular season due to injury. The Trois-Rivieres, Quebec native also tied for the league lead in shorthanded points (5g-3a-8pts), ranked second in game-winning goals (8) and third in shorthanded goals. A season ago, Nashville’s third choice, 100th overall (fourth round), in the 2015 Entry Draft ranked eighth in the QMJHL in goals (43) and tied for eighth in league points, then tied for third in the 2015 QMJHL Playoffs in goals (12) and ranked ninth in postseason points (22) as the Foreurs advanced to the league semifinals. In his first full season with Val-d’Or in 2013-14, he helped the club win the 2014 President’s Cup and advance to the Memorial Cup, ranking fourth on the team and tying for seventh among all skaters in postseason goals (10).

The Nashville Predators open the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs on the road on Friday, April 15 against the Anaheim Ducks for Game One of the seven-game series (9:30 p.m. CT). The series shifts to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville for Game Three on Tuesday, April 19 at 8:30 p.m. CT and Game Four on Thursday, April 21, at 7 p.m. CT. Limited tickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting NashvillePredators.com.

Richard was drafted by the Predators in the fourth round of the 2015 NHL Draft. He is the first member of the Predators 2015 Draft Class to play pro hockey and is coming off of a junior playing season with the Val-d’Or Foreurs (QMJHL) in which he scored 87 points (37 goals, 50 assists) in 58 games with a plus/minus rating of +28 and 37 penalty minutes. In his four-seasons playing in the QMJHL he amassed 238 points (111 goals, 127 assists) in 232 games.

News April 10, 2016

Admirals Clinch 2015-16 Central Division Title

After winning 4-2 this afternoon all the Milwaukee Admirals needed was a little bit of help tonight from the Rochester Americans. The Lake Erie Monsters were the last remaining team capable of matching the Admirals for the Central Division title but needed to win out for the rest of the season to do so with the Admirals not securing a single point from their next three games. The Americans shutout the Monsters 2-0. The Admirals have just been crowned the Central Division Champions for the 2015-16 season.

This is the first divisional title for the Milwaukee Admirals since they claimed the West Division in the 2010-11 season. That was back when the AHL held an 80 games regular season and the Admirals finished with a record of 44-22-6-8 (102 points). It wasn’t a thing needed to determine the who and what of the standings at the time but that season the Admirals had a 0.638 point percentage. The Admirals 2015-16 season features a 76 game regular season and, through 73 games played, they have a record of 47-21-3-2 (99 points) with a 0.678 points percentage.

To put it simply, this year’s Admirals team has been so special in the way that they have been consistent in earning results no matter who was featured in the lineup. It is a rare trait to have in the AHL but one required of a team to have this high level of success. The Admirals might not have certain individuals high up in the league scoring ranks but instead have a solid team with multiple players capable of contributing at any given attack.

The current run that the Admirals find themselves on sort of speaks to the strength of how good the team has been this season. They are currently on a twelve game point streak and a six game winning streak. That hasn’t come with necessarily any single player carrying the team but the team being able to cement their dominance over a full course of sixty-minutes night after night.

As far as what is left to play for the Admirals do still have a chance to knock off the Ontario Reign for the best record in the entire Western Conference. The Admirals 0.678 points percentage is lesser than that of the Reign’s 0.689. It will take some help with more Admirals success. The Reign have two more games remaining in their regular season while the Admirals have three. The Admirals also have a chance to win 50 games in a season for the first time in their history of playing in the AHL. They simply would need to win out and push this point streak and winning streak all the way until the playoffs.

The Admirals return home on Tuesday night to play against the Chicago Wolves and then get the Bakersfield Condors on Friday night in the last regular season Admirals game at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. They finish the regular season on the road against their prospective opening round playoff opponent the Rockford IceHogs on Saturday.

Game Recaps April 10, 2016

On The Brink Of Winning A Division Title; Ads Win 4-2

The Milwaukee Admirals won 4-2 on the road against the Charlotte Checkers Sunday afternoon at the Bojangles’ Coliseum.

It is now a wait and see mode for the Admirals who extended their point streak to twelve games with today’s win. If the Lake Erie Monsters lose in any fashion tonight to the Rochester Americans the Admirals can clinch the Central Division title. It would be the Admirals first divisional crown since the 2010-11 season.

The Admirals were able to get out in front with a first period power-play from Pontus Åberg. Kevin Fiala instigated some post-whistle shoving to draw a roughing call against Kyle Hagel. From there the age old Admirals formula of placing a Swede with a right-handed shot on the left wing circle for a one-timer held true. Taylor Aronson fed the puck off to Åberg who unloaded with a first-time shot that rifled past John Muse for the Swede’s team leading twenty-third goal of the season.

The Checkers were able to answer back 1:36 into the second period off of a counter attack following a turnover from Fiala in the neutral zone. David Wohlberg managed to score to Juuse Saros’ glove side while falling down to make it a 1-1 game on his ninth goal of the season.

Taylor Aronson’s efforts to jump up in attack helped see the Admirals regain their lead by flipping a pass out from behind the net to Matt White. Aronson skated down from the point, swooped around the cage, and caught White just on the right wing side of the net with a pass that beat Muse to the near post for White’s twelfth goal of the season.

Åberg’s hot run as of late continued into the second period as he picked up his second goal of the game to make it a 3-1 Admirals lead. Max Reinhart ripped a shot from the left wing that Muse was able to shrug off to his right side but Frédérick Gaudreau was on-hand to recover the rebound and dish across the goal mouth to find Åberg for a tap in and his twenty-fourth goal of the season.

The Checkers managed to cut the lead down to one-goal by scoring with 14.4 seconds remaining in the second period. Justin Shugg was battling on the puck with Trevor Murphy in the slot. As the puck kicked towards the left wing a touch Shugg followed and followed with a wrister that hopped up on Saros for the forward’s twelfth goal of the season.

It was a testing third period for the Admirals as the Checkers dictated much of the action and dumped eleven shots on Saros. With a late power-play chance, and the net emptied and extra attacker on, the Checkers effectively had a two-man advantage as the clawed for an equalizer in the final minute of play. Yet, Vladislav Kamenev was able to score into the empty net shorthanded to seal this game up at 4-2 on the Russian’s fifteenth goal of the season. That was the Admirals eleventh shorthanded goal of the season and second scored in as many games.

Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals last played there were no roster moves made. Today’s line combinations were the same as yesterday with the Admirals dressing seven defensemen and eleven forwards: Reinhart-Gaudreau-Åberg, Fiala-Kamenev-Payerl, White-Girard-Görtz, Devane-Pendenza, Näkyvä-Aronson, Oligny-Elliott, Murphy-Mullen, Dougherty. Today’s scratches were: Cody Hodgson (upper-body), A.J. White (healthy), and Johan Alm (lower-body).

Thoughts on today’s game? Is this the best that Pontus Åberg has played as a member of the Milwaukee Admirals? How solid was Juuse Saros this afternoon in securing the win?

Game Recaps April 9, 2016April 9, 2016

Admirals Win Demolition Derby in Charlotte, 6-3

(Photo Credit: Charlotte Checkers // flickr) — (Photo Credit: Gregg Forwerck)

The Milwaukee Admirals won 6-3 on the road against the Charlotte Checkers Saturday night at the Bojangles’ Coliseum.

This was about as nutty of a game as there has been this entire season. The second period, in particular, speaks for itself. There were twelve combined shots on goal in the second period that resulted in six goals being scored. The Admirals were able to win out in this track meet tonight to extend their point streak up to eleven games.

As has been the theme of this recent run for the Admirals they had a less than stellar start to the contest. The Checkers were dictating the early action and, as a result, earned the game’s opening goal. Brody Sutter whipped a wrister from the right wing circle that beat Juuse Saros against the grain and beat him to his blocker side. The goal for Sutter was his twelfth scored this season.

A little past five-minutes following the Checkers goal the Admirals equalized off of a brilliant rush off the defense by Stefan Elliott. The Admirals defenseman jumped up into the rush, motored down the right wing, swooped past Jake Chelios, and threw the puck low on John Muse that went between his legs to complete a dazzling goal for Elliott’s seventh of the season. The man with the lone assist on the play was Jack Dougherty who was making his professional debut with the Admirals tonight.

Elliott would be targeted moments later after another rush up ice into the attacking zone. As Elliott was cutting around Dane Fox on the left wing wall and racing to the slot, fired a shot on Muse, and was checked to the head by Brock McGinn as he watched his shot get shrugged to the side of the net. Elliott’s helmet went flying off and he stayed down for a few moments but was able to skate back to the Admirals bench under his own power.

The second period might rank as one of the craziest played this season with the Admirals on the ice. The two teams combined for two fights, twelve shots on goal, and six goals being scored with the goals being scored at even-strength, shorthanded, and on the power-play.

Sutter opened up the second period with his second goal of the game to regain the Checkers lead. His shot from the left wing circle took a deflection off of Kristian Näkyvä’s skate and slid underneath Saros for his thirteenth goal of the season.

There were then a pair of fights that followed one after the other. Patrick Mullen and Justin Shugg grappled for a bit before the Admirals defenseman took a scary fall that appeared to see him hit the back of his head on the ice. He was checked over by Admirals head trainer Doug Agnew on the ice and helped back to the locker room. Mullen was able to rejoin the action in the second period. Moments after that fight came and went Jamie Devane paired with Kyle Hagel and the Admirals bruiser unloaded massive uppercuts again, and again, and again. That fight may have dragged out long enough for the both of these two fights and Devane got his money’s worth.

The Admirals then scored twice in the span of 1:30 of ice-time to claim their first lead of the game.

Following a slashing minor against Adam Payerl the Admirals scored their tenth shorthanded goal of the season after Elliott managed to once again burn through the Checkers and scored a brilliant in-tight backhander for his second goal of the game and eighth of the season.

As Payerl exited the box from his penalty he joined Joe Pendenza on a quickfire two-on-one attack that ended with a lofted pass by Pendenza to get past Mike Cornell to reach Payerl in the left wing for a one-timer that beat Muse for his twelfth goal of the season.

Following the goal from Payerl the Checkers called it a night for Muse in net. He stopped 11/14 shots on goal before giving way to Daniel Altshuller who would proceed to face two shots on goal the rest of the second period and allow both pucks to beat him. More on that later because Justin Shugg was able to equalize for the Checkers less than two-minutes after Payerl’s goal that chased Muse from the net. Shugg’s snap shot alluded the glove of Saros for his eleventh goal of the season which made it a 3-3 game.

Altshuller was given a rude introduction to the contest thanks to great link up play between Félix Girard and Matt White. The first shot the Admirals were able to get on the Checkers goalie on in relief beat him with Girard tagging the charging run of White on the right wing to the back post. White’s goal was his eleventh of the season.

Dennis Robertson was called for a tripping minor to give the Admirals their first power-play late in the second period. As time was winding down on the power-play Mullen passed over from the point to the right wing where Kevin Fiala unleashed a slapper that blazed past Altshuller on the second shot he faced in the period to make it 5-3 Admirals. The goal for Fiala was his eighteenth of the season.

Midway through the third period the Admirals were able to tag Altshuller once again with Payerl scoring his second goal of the night. Vladislav Kamenev was able to carve his way through the Checkers defense but lost the handle of the puck just as he was breaking in on goal. Payerl was able to find the loose puck before anyone and whirled a shot from the left side of the net that surprised Altshuller near post and banked in off of him for Payerl’s thirteenth goal of the season.

With 6:14 remaining in regulation the game received its third fight. Jimmy Oligny and Cornell squared off and the heart and soul of the Admirals French Fries trio landed a hard shot that stung Cornell. As the Checkers defenseman was looking to answer that punch by Oligny he fell backwards hard and that was the end of that scene.

The fireworks and scoring would finally, mercifully, end right there. The Admirals may not have had their greatest defensive outing of the season but Saros was able to earn yet another win to push his season tally up to twenty-seven wins. Saros has won ten of his last eleven starts including his last six straight starts. He stopped 19/22 shots on goal tonight against the Checkers.

Ramblings: Since the Milwaukee Admirals last played on Wednesday night the team has seen the likes of Corey Potter and Marek Mazanec recalled to the Nashville Predators with Brandon Whitney joining the team from the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL. In addition, the Predators assigned defenseman Jack Dougherty to the Admirals after he finished up his junior playing season with the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL. The Admirals dressed seven defensemen and eleven forwards as Dougherty made his professional playing debut tonight in Charlotte. Tonight’s line combinations were: Reinhart-Gaudreau-Åberg, Fiala-Kamenev-Payerl, White-Girard-Görtz, Devane-Pendenza, Näkyvä-Aronson, Oligny-Elliott, Murphy-Mullen, Dougherty. Tonight’s scratches were: Cody Hodgson (upper-body), A.J. White (healthy), and Johan Alm (lower-body).

Thoughts on tonight’s game? Was this the craziest game of the season? Any slight concerns about the defensive outing for the Admirals tonight or does the way the offense responded lessen the sting of that? Should Brock McGinn have been given a match penalty for his head shot to Stefan Elliott? How will tomorrow’s game play out after a roller coaster such as tonight’s game?

News April 9, 2016April 9, 2016

Mazanec and Potter Recalled by Nashville

According to AHL Transactions this morning both Marek Mazanec and Corey Potter have been recalled by the Nashville Predators from the Milwaukee Admirals. The Predators are playing their regular season finale tonight on the road against the Dallas Stars while the Admirals also are on the road this weekend with two games against the Charlotte Checkers.

This can end the speculation around why the Admirals recalled Brandon Whitney from the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) yesterday. As for the move for Potter going up, of anything, it provides room for Jack Dougherty to make his professional playing debut tonight with the Admirals while giving the veteran Potter a trip up to the team that traded for him on the NHL’s Trade Deadline Day. The Admirals have gone 12-2-0-2 since Potter’s debut with the Admirals on 3/3/16.

Mazanec is enjoying his best season since arriving to North America from his native Czech Republic. In 38 appearances this season he has 19 wins with a 2.33 goals against average and 0.916 save percentage. Those are all career highs for his work in the AHL as a member of the Admirals and his 4 shutouts recorded this season match that of last season as a personal best. He was recalled under emergency conditions earlier this season but did not get to log any ice time during his time up with the Predators.

Potter has yet to play a game in the NHL this season. At the time he was acquired by the Predators he was playing for the Arizona Coyotes AHL affiliate the Springfield Falcons who are sitting at the bottom of the AHL’s Eastern Conference standings. In his career Potter has 129 games of NHL experience as a member of the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, and Calgary Flames. He has scored 32 points (8 goals, 24 assists) at the NHL level while also having produced 170 points (33 goals, 137 assists) from 420 career games in the AHL.

UPDATE: Per the Nashville Predators, Mazanec’s recall is listed as an emergency conditions recall while Potter’s is a bog standard recall.

Scouting April 9, 2016

Checkers: Scouting the Enemy

Tonight marks the end of the regular season for both the Nashville Predators and Cincinnati Cyclones. Not the Milwaukee Admirals, though, as they will be facing the Charlotte Checkers tonight and tomorrow at the 11am hour our time. This will be followed by the Admirals returning home for games against the Chicago Wolves and Bakersfield Condors before ending their regular season one week from today on the road against the Rockford IceHogs.

As far as what the Admirals are hunting down in these final games there are a few possibilities:

(1) The thing that will need the most help, and probably winning out, would be bumping the Ontario Reign for the best record in the Western Conference. The Admirals have a 0.669 points percentage to the Reign’s 0.685 point percentage.

(2) The Admirals have five points of wiggle room between themselves and the second placed team in the Central Division the Grand Rapids Griffins. The most points the Griffins can secure by winning out the rest of their season is 100 points. That’s the number to keep an eye on as the Admirals already have 95 points this season. Wins this weekend would put them to 99 points meaning a win on the returning home game Tuesday could clinch the Admirals first divisional title since the 2010-11 season. Any losses for the Griffins only helps that number drop that much more and they will be facing the Wolves tonight after having beaten them last night in a tight 4-3 contest.

(3) As far as the Admirals record goes the last time they reached the 100 points plateau was that West Division Championship season of 2010-11. That season the Admirals secured 102 points but did it back when the AHL held an 80 game season. Other previous seasons in which the Admirals have eclipsed 100 points on a season also game during the 80 game schedule: 102 points (2003-04), 103 points (2004-05), 108 points (2005-06), and 107 points (2008-09).

(4) Another feat that is still a possibility would be if the Admirals could win out the rest of the season to reach 50 wins in a season for the first time in the franchise’s history in the AHL era of the team. The Admirals record right now is 45-21-3-2. The previous high for wins in an AHL season for the Admirals came during the 2005-06 season when they ended just one win shy of 50 wins by ending the 80 season campaign off with a record of 49-21-6-4.

~Checkers or Wreckers~

The Checkers come into this weekend’s games against the Admirals with a record of 36-28-3-5 (80 points). Their 0.556 points percentage has them in fifth place of the Central Division and in eighth place of the Western Conference.

In regards to the upcoming playoff picture the Checkers are putting themselves into a very amusing place. Allow me to explain and expand on why I get a laugh out of all of this because it is a bit choppy and I’m not sure how many realized that the actual playoff format changed this season.

Right now four teams in the Central Division have clinched playoff spots: Admirals, Griffins, Monsters, IceHogs. The Pacific Division, which features Californian teams that are playing eight less games than everyone else during the regular season, features a flex spot in their final season standings that states that if the fifth place team of the Central Division has a higher points percentage than the fourth placed team of the Pacific Division they will supersede the team from the Pacific Division’s place and enter the Calder Cup Playoffs as the fourth seed of the Pacific Division.

The Texas Stars are struggling here and there but it looks like they should be finishing in third place of the Pacific Division. They just haven’t clinched their playoff spot as of yet because the San Jose Barracuda have a near enough points percentage to keep things interesting. The points percentage right now all comes down to this: Checkers (0.556), Barracuda (0.546). If the season ended today the Checkers would supersede the Barracuda and become the Pacific Division’s fourth seed.

Where this all becomes funny, and at the same time maddening for myself, is that the playoff format isn’t about a match up of: #1 vs #8, #2 vs #7, #3 vs #6, #4 vs #5. It doesn’t work that way this season. Instead, the playoff format will see the top team in the division play the fourth team in their division with the second and third place teams pairing up. The winner of the first round faces the winner of their own divisional bracket in the second round before seeing the top two remaining teams from respective divisions clash in the Conference Finals.

Speculation on my part leads me to believe this was another way to cater to Californian teams and the possibility of wild traveling arrangements. Which is hilarious to then think that the Reign could now draw the Checkers as their opening round opponent. That’s a distance of 2,427 miles from Citizens Business Bank Arena to the Bojangles’ Coliseum, a 34-hour car trip, or a 6 hour and 35 minute flight. If points percentage hasn’t been stupid enough for most of this season, if playing less games isn’t a black eye enough for the AHL, then I take that as a small piece of karma. And wouldn’t it be spectacular if the Reign get roughed up in round one due to the games and travel right out the shoot and flame out fast?

~Who What Now?~

Before the Checkers possibly play wreckers to the Reign’s plans they’ll be looking to possibly spoil some of the momentum the Admirals have built up with this current ten-game point streak. They have the squad to do it as well. The Checkers are 5-3-0-2 from their last 10 games and are coming off of a 2-1 regulation loss to the IceHogs that was played Wednesday night in Charlotte.

The Checkers leading scorer this season is not with them at the moment. Derek Ryan has a team best 55 points (23 goals, 32 assists) but he is currently up with the Carolina Hurricanes. This means the second best scorer on the Checkers roster is one that actually did most of his damage for a different team, Andrew Miller. This season for Miller is split between the Condors and Checkers. He totals 44 points (18 goals, 26 assists) from 53 games but has 5 points (3 goals, 2 assists) from 9 games since joining the Checkers.

At the blueline the Checkers have a pair of great offensive minded defensemen, Trevor Carrick and Jake Chelios. Carrick is tied for eighth among AHL defenseman this season for scoring with 40 points (9 goals, 31 assists). Chelios has 30 points (7 goals, 23 assists). Of note, the two combine for a plus/minus rating of -28.

Between the pipes the Checkers have a goaltending duo of John Muse and Daniel Altshuller. Muse returned to his ol’ Checkers team after being part of the Texas Stars for the first half of the season. The splits for Muse returning the Checkers have been alarmingly better for him. With the Stars: 19 games, 3.02 goals against average, and 0.904 save percentage. With the Checkers: 15 games, 1.88 goals against average, and 0.925 save percentage. Needless to say he has been the backbone for the Checkers while the first-year pro Altshuller continues to have spotty performances after a high quality start to his AHL career.

Expectations for these games against the Checkers? Are you excited for the debut of Jack Dougherty? If Dougherty does debut which defenseman sits for the evening? Do you think the Admirals have a chance to win out the rest of the season to earn their first 50 win season?

News April 8, 2016

Brandon Whitney Recalled by Admirals

The Cincinnati Cyclones have made note that the Milwaukee Admirals have recalled goaltender Brendan Whitney. As a result the Cyclones have added Jake Reed as an emergency backup for their final two regular season games tonight and tomorrow.

Perhaps this move comes down to sheer karma as I poked at the Admirals goaltending not having needed their third choice goaltender much the last two seasons. Whitney has made some trips to join the Admirals this season but both occasions were made on an emergency basis and he sat on the bench. Rob Madore did much the same thing last season as the Admirals third choice goaltender.

Whitney has played in 21 games this season in the ECHL where he holds a record of 9-8-1-0 in net with a 3.18 goals against average, 0.891 save percentage, and no shutouts. I had spoken with Dakota Johnson of Sin Bin Cyclones yesterday about Whitney’s season with the Cyclones and this is what he had to say:

“Whitney has had his fair share of bright and dark spots this season. He hasn’t seen a ton of action since Andy Iles was claimed off waivers back in January, only appearing in a handful of games. He definitely has some strengths. The obvious one being his size. But, his struggles have outweighed the good unfortunately. Rebound control has been his worst nightmare. I can safely say a good 80% of the goals he’s given up, have come off of humongous rebounds he left out that could’ve been prevented if he had been able to hold onto it. Sitting all this time hasn’t done him much justice either. When he had to relieve Iles in the 3rd period of a game in Indy a couple weeks ago, I noticed his reaction timing to shots was really slow, and he just seemed to be real stiff overall in goal. I know he’s under contract through the end of 16-17, so he’ll most likely be in Cincinnati again next season. I’m very interested to see how he’s able to work on things over the off-season and see if he comes back next season with the kinks worked out.”

I’m sure the question that comes with this news from everyone is why has Whitney been recalled and that is an answer I feel will be more thoroughly answered ahead of tomorrow night’s game. Right now, speculation is about as good as it gets and that’s something that I’ll do about now: (1) Whitney hasn’t been featuring much in the ECHL anyways so why not bring him up for the Admirals potential playoff run as a third goaltender (2) Marek Mazanec did take a knock not too long ago in practice that forced Dov Grumet-Morris out of the woodworks to sit on the Admirals bench as an emergency backup for a night – perhaps Grumet-Morris was too busy to travel as far as Charlotte… (3) this is why I don’t enjoy speculating all that much because your guess is as good as mine right now.

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