Admirals Cruise into the Holiday Break
Published on December 21, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release
NORFOLK, Va. - The Norfolk Admirals used a pair of road wins against East Division Rivals to enter the holiday break tied for first place in the East Division standings.
Norfolk opened last week with a thrilling matchup against the Hershey Bears on Friday night in front of a season-high crowd of 6,246 fans at Scope. The Admirals nearly erased a two-goal deficit in the third period, but ultimately fell to the Bears, 4-3. Norfolk then traveled north to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, where 12 different players recorded points in a 5-2 win over the Penguins. The following night, the Admirals once again entered the third period trailing the Bears by two goals. However, they scored five unanswered goals to defeat Hershey, 6-3.
Following the holiday break, the Admirals will return to Scope next week for matchups against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Wednesday and Friday nights. They then return to Hershey on New Year's Eve for another showdown against the Bears.
STANDINGS UPDATE
At 18-11-0-1 (37 points), the Admirals are once again tied with the Hershey Bears (16-8-3-2) and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (16-9-1-4) for first place in the AHL's East Division and second place in the Eastern Conference. The Syracuse Crunch (12-12-2-1, 27 points) and Binghamton Senators (11-18-1-1, 24 points) round out the East Division.
THE ADMIRALS' WEEK AHEAD
The Admirals do not play any games this week. The schedule for next week is as follows:
Wed., Dec. 28 ... vs. Bridgeport Sound Tigers (New York Islanders) ... 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 30 ... vs. Bridgeport Sound Tigers (New York Islanders) ... 7:30 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 31 ... at Hershey Bears (Washington Capitals) ... 6:00 p.m.
ADMIRALS' LOG
- Norfolk has won eight of its last 11 games.
- Friday night's crowd of 6,246 fans was the highest attendance for any AHL Admirals game played prior to the turn of the calendar year (October, November or December) since 2000.
- Norfolk has won five of 15 games this season when they were trailing entering the third period.
- The Admirals lead the AHL with 44 goals in the third period. Norfolk has out-scored its opponents, 44-24, in the third period this season.
- The Admirals are 11-2-0-0 when scoring first. Norfolk's 0.846 winning percentage when scoring the first goal of the game is tied for third in the AHL.
- A rookie has scored a goal in 28 of Norfolk's first 30 games this season - including each of the last 19 games.
- Rookie Philip-Michael Devos recorded his first career AHL goal and added two assists for first star honors Sunday in Hershey. His goal tied the game at 3-3 after the Admirals entered the third period trailing, 3-1.
- Mark Barberio leads all AHL defensemen in scoring and is tied for the overall AHL lead in plus/minus. Barberio has recorded three goals and 26 points with a plus-19 rating in 28 games this season.
- Barberio (T-14th) joins Trevor Smith (37 points, T-3rd) and Cory Conacher (35 points, 6th) in the top 15 of AHL scoring.
- Conacher now leads the entire AHL in goals (18) and remains the AHL's leading rookie scorer.
- Smith's goal on Sunday in Hershey was his fourth game-winning goal of the season, tying him for the overall AHL lead.
- The goal also extended Smith's point streak to six-games (4G, 8A).
- After going 28 games without a point, both Norfolk goaltenders recorded assists this weekend. Dustin Tokarski posted an assist on Tyler Johnson's second period goal on Saturday in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Jaroslav Janus assisted on J.T. Wyman's third period goal on Sunday in Hershey.
- Defenseman Scott Jackson recorded just the second multiple-point game in his AHL career on Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton with two assists. His last multiple-point AHL game came on January 3, 2009, with the Admirals at Portland (also two assists).
- The Admirals and Bears have scored 48 goals in five meetings between the teams this season.
- On Monday, the Tampa Bay Lightning recalled forward J.T. Wyman and defenseman Evan Oberg from the Admirals. The Lightning are on the road in San Jose tonight and in Colorado on Friday.
ADMIRALS VALUE NIGHTS
The Admirals return to Scope on Wednesday, December 28, to face off against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in another Weekday Value Night. The game will once again feature Family Fun Packs and Student Rush Nights.
Family Fun Packs include four discounted Red Level Tickets for just $48 plus four free hot dogs, four free popcorns and four free sodas. Fans get all of that for just $48 - that's a savings of $37!
Student Rush Nights provide $8 White Level Tickets (normally $12) for high school and college students with a valid current high school or college ID. In addition, when you buy a Student Rush Night Ticket, you get a buy-one, get-one free offer for the next Student Rush Night.
Family Fun Packs are available at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 or online at Ticketmaster.com. Student Rush Night Tickets are available ONLY at the Scope Box Office after 2:00 p.m. on the day of the game.
POST-GAME SKATE WITH THE ADMIRALS
Also on Wednesday, the Admirals will hold their third post-game skate of the season where fans can skate at Scope with their favorite Admirals following the game. A limited number of skates will be available or fans may bring their own skates.
ADMIRALS TRADING CARD GIVEAWAY - SET TWO
On Friday, December 30, the Admirals and Sound Tigers will square off again. The first 2,000 fans through the gates will receive the second set of 2011-12 Admirals trading cards.
NORFOLK LEADERS
Goals: Cory Conacher (18)
Assists: Mark Barberio (23)
Points: Trevor Smith (37)
Games: Carter Ashton, Trevor Smith (30)
PP goals: Cory Conacher (7)
SH goals: J.T. Wyman (2)
+/- Rating: Mark Barberio (+19)
PIM: Pierre-Cedric Labrie (63)
GAA: Dustin Tokarski (2.50)
Spct: Dustin Tokarski (.896)
Wins: Dustin Tokarski (11)
Losses: Dustin Tokarski (7)
GPI: Dustin Tokarski (18)
Minutes: Dustin Tokarski (1056)
BRIDGEPORT LEADERS
Goals: David Ullstrom (12)
Assists: Casey Cizikas, Tim Wallace (11)
Points: Tim Wallace (20)
Games: Casey Cizikas, Tomas Marcinko, Aaron Ness, Ty Wishart (29)
PP goals: Jeremy Colliton (4)
SH goals: Tomas Marcinko, Tim Wallace (1)
+/- Rating: Casey Cizikas, Nino Niederreiter (+4)
PIM: Brett Gallant (66)
GAA: Anders Nilsson (3.16)
Spct: Anders Nilsson (.902)
Wins: Kevin Poulin (6)
Losses: Kevin Poulin (9)
GPI: Kevin Poulin (15)
Minutes: Kevin Poulin (884)
HERSHEY LEADERS
Goals: Chris Bourque (16)
Assists: Keith Aucoin (39)
Points: Keith Aucoin (47)
Games: Keith Aucoin, Chris Bourque, Christian Hanson, Jacob Mickflikier (29)
PP goals: Graham Mink (9)
SH goals: Chris Bourque (2)
+/- Rating: Boyd Kane (+10)
PIM: Joel Rechlicz (115)
GAA: Dany Sabourin (2.72)
Spct: Dany Sabourin (.909)
Wins: Braden Holtby (9)
Losses: Braden Holtby (7)
GPI: Braden Holtby (18)
Minutes: Braden Holtby (1067)
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
December 17, 2011 DELETE D Evan Oberg - Recalled from loan by Tampa Bay (NHL)
December 18, 2011 ADD D Evan Oberg - Returned on loan from Tampa Bay (NHL)
December 19, 2011 DELETE D Evan Oberg - Recalled from loan by Tampa Bay (NHL)
DELETE RW J.T. Wyman - Recalled from loan by Tampa Bay (NHL)
TICKETS
Individual tickets are now on sale for all Admirals regular season home games at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com.
Don't miss a minute of Admirals action by purchasing your 2011-12 season tickets or 10-packs today. Stop by the Admirals' Administrative Offices at Scope, call (757) 640-1212 weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or visit norfolkadmirals.com anytime!
ON THE RADIO/INTERNET
All regular season games will air live on "The Game" 102.1-FM, 1490-AM and online at 1021TheGame.com. AHL Live will also carry online video of every Admirals game on a pay-per-view or season pass basis. Fans can log in to watch, listen or get more information about AHL Live's online audio and video features at ahllive.com.
American Hockey League Stories from December 21, 2011
- Late Surge Pushes Marlies to 4-1 Win Over Rockford - Rockford IceHogs
- Heat Misers Melt Griffins in Overtime - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Monsters Lose Despite Doubling Rochester in Shots - Cleveland Monsters
- Aeros Fall to Stars 3-2 - Houston Aeros
- Valentenko Goal Lifts Whale Late - Connecticut Whale
- Falcons Beat Sharks 6-3 - Springfield Falcons
- Stars Hang on for 3-2 Win in Houston - Texas Stars
- Amerks Down Monsters for Second Straight Win - Rochester Americans
- B-Sens Blanked by Devils, 3-0 - Binghamton Senators
- Late Deflection Defeats Phantoms - Adirondack Phantoms
- Bah-Hum-Bug, Sharks Lose 6-3 to Falcons - Worcester Sharks
- Sabourin Backstops Bears to 5-2 Win at Holiday Break - Hershey Bears
- Devils Claim Shutout Win Heading into Holiday Break - Albany Devils
- Crunch Drop 5-2 Decision in Hershey - Syracuse Crunch
- Flames Recall Nemisz from Heat - Abbotsford Heat
- Panthers Recall Dadonov and Repik from San Antonio - San Antonio Rampage
- Islanders Recall Haley and Nilsson - Bridgeport Islanders
- Spend New Year's Eve with the Griffins - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Aeros Game Day, December 21: Aeros Vs. Stars - Houston Aeros
- Worcester Sharks Announce Dates of Four High School Hockey Doubleheaders - Worcester Sharks
- Rochester Americans Sign Campbell, Gongalsky to Pro Tryouts - Rochester Americans
- B-Sens Weekly - Binghamton Senators
- Pirri Recalled by the Blackhawks from Rockford - Rockford IceHogs
- American Hockey League Announces Suspensions - AHL
- Penguins Weekly - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Crunch and B'Ville Diner 'Shoot to Cure MS' - Syracuse Crunch
- Gameday Preview - Texas at Houston - Texas Stars
- Hurricanes to Recall Riley Nash from Charlotte - Charlotte Checkers
- Phantoms Add Bourbeau on PTO - Adirondack Phantoms
- Admirals Cruise into the Holiday Break - Norfolk Admirals
- Griffins Look to Cool off Heat - Grand Rapids Griffins
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