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AHL Norfolk Admirals

Admirals Drop Two of Three Contests

March 10, 2003 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Admirals missed an opportunity to increase their South Division lead this past weekend when they lost two of three contests on home ice. Norfolk held Lowell to just 12 shots as they shut out the Lock Monsters 3-0 on March 7. The next evening, the Worcester IceCats made their first-ever appearance at Scope, outlasting the Admirals 2-1. A pair of power play tallies enabled the Philadelphia Phantoms to blank the Blue and Gold 2-0 on March 9.

The Hershey Bears (Colorado Avalanche) return to Norfolk for a 7:15 p.m. match up on Wednesday, March 12. The Admirals then head for New England to begin a five-game road trip, stopping off first in Worcester for a 7:05 p.m. face off with the IceCats (St. Louis Blues) on Friday, March 14. The next evening finds the team in Manchester for a contest against the Monarchs (Los Angeles Kings) at 7:35 p.m. On Sunday, March 15, the Admirals visit the Lowell Lock Monsters (Carolina Hurricanes) for a 4:00 p.m. match.

Norfolk remains in first place in the South Division with 76 points (32-20-8-4). Hershey is second (30-23-11-2, 73 points), Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is in third (29-26-5-5, 68 points) and Philadelphia sits fourth (26-28-5-6, 63 points).

THE WEEK AHEAD

Wednesday, March 12...Norfolk vs. Hershey Bears...7:15 p.m.

Hershey remains the least-penalized squad in the Western Conference (1,078 PIM). The Bears have the best record against divisional foes of all South Division clubs (13-8-3-1, 30 points). The team from Chocolatetown ranks 22nd in the AHL on the power play (15.15) and third on the penalty kill (87.11). Brian Willsie is the Bears' leader in goals (29), points (57, 28 assists), power play goals (11) and shorthanded tallies (four). Eric Bertrand's 29 helpers are most on the team. Charlie Stephens is the top-scoring rookie on Hershey (16+25=41 points) and he is among the AHL rookie scoring leaders. Dale Clark's plus-9 is the best rating on the Bears, while Steve Moore's minus-12 is the lowest rating. Brent Thompson currently has the most PIM on the club with 126 PIM. Phil Sauve is 21-16-10 with a 2.34 GAA and a .916 spct. while Peter Budaj is 9-9-1 with a 2.81 GAA and a .905 spct. Sauve has the most ties (10) and ranks seventh in the League in GAA and third in minutes played (2,764).

Friday, March 7...Norfolk @ Worcester IceCats...7:05 p.m.

Worcester won the first-ever meeting between the clubs, 2-1 on March 8 at Scope. Worcester's special teams are seventh with the man-advantage (18.10) and 18th when shorthanded (82.33). The club ranks fifth in shots per game (32.91) and sixth in shots allowed per game (28.58). Sergei Varlamov tops his squad in goals (21), assists (35) and points (56), and is tied with Justin Papineau for the team lead in power play tallies (nine). His plus-11 rating is second among current IceCats only to Aris Brimanis (plus-13). John Pohl is second in the team in scoring, with 16+27=43 points in 47 games. He is also among the top AHL rookie scorers. Igor Valeev and Terry Virtue and have the most PIM with 138 PIM and 132 PIM, respectively. In net are Phil Osaer (23 GPI, 8-9-3, 2.98 GAA, .885 spct.), Cody Rudkowsky (9 GPI, 1-4-3, 3.02 GAA, .894 spct.) and Reinhard Divis (2 GPI, 2-0-0, 0.98 GAA, .966 spct.).

Saturday, March 8...Norfolk @ Manchester Monarchs...7:35 p.m.

The Admirals and Monarchs are 2-2-2-0 against each other all-time. Only Hamilton (149) and Portland (159) have allowed fewer goals in the Eastern Conference than Manchester's 170 goals against. The Monarchs are second in the League on the power play (19.64) and 11th when shorthanded (84.93). They have been outscored 68-53 in the second period, but have outscored their foes 67-51 in the first period, 75-47 in the third period and 6-4 in overtime. The club is led in scoring by Steve Kelly (18+34=52 points). Eric Healey's 32 lamplighters are most on the team and second-most in the AHL. He is also first on the Monarchs and tied for third in the League with 13 power play goals. Tomas Zizka leads all defensemen on the squad with 11+29=40 points, and he is tied with Portland's Josef Boumedienne for sixth in scoring among AHL blueliners. Travis Scott has spent the most time in the cage, playing in 37 games with a record of 15-15-4, a 2.66 GAA and a .916 spct. B. J. Boxma has made one appearance, registering a 9.79 GAA and a .714 spct. in a losing effort.

Sunday, March 9...Norfolk @ Lowell Lock Monsters...4:00 p.m.

The Lock Monsters have the fewest wins (16) and points (40), and have suffered the most losses (42) of any AHL team. Lowell is last in goals per game (2.18, 144 scored) and 26th in goals allowed per game (3.44, 227 allowed). Lowell ranks 23rd on the power play (14.48) and 28th in penalty killing (77.61). The Lock Monsters are currently led in scoring by Jeff Daw 's 14+16=30 points, followed by Brad DeFauw (11+12=23 points) and Steve Halko (4+19=23 points). DeFauw, along with Cleveland's David Cloutier, have the lowest plus/minus rating among all current AHL skaters (minus-30). Between the pipes, Patrick DesRochers is 4-12-1 with a 2.80 GAA and .912 spct. in 17 games for Lowell (25 GPI, 6-16-2, 2.53 GAA, .907 spct. overall). Randy Petruk is 3-17-2 with a 3.10 GAA and a .915 spct. in 25 appearances.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS

Wednesday, March 12 (Hershey Bears)

* Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipbuilding Night - employees of NNS who show proper ID at the Scope Box Office or any TicketMaster outlet receive $2.00 off any ticket purchased.

Saturday, March 22 (Cincinnati Mighty Ducks)

* The final AJ Gator's pre-game party at the 244 Granby Street location in downtown Norfolk - For $15.00, fans receive a Blue Level ticket to that night's game, a voucher for two drinks (soda, beer or well drinks) and an hors d'oeuvre buffet. Tickets are available through the Scope Box Office and all TicketMaster outlets.

Sunday, March 23 (Philadelphia Phantoms)

* SpongeBob SquarePants Appearance - fans can meet Nickelodeon's popular cartoon character from Bikini Bottom in the Pacific Ocean and have their picture taken with SpongeBob.

* Post-Game Skate - Fans can bring their skates, or a limited number of rentals will be available.

TEAM NOTEBOOK

* Philadelphia's 2-0 win over Norfolk on March 9 marked only the third time this year the Admirals have been held scoreless. They were last shut out 1-0 versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 27.

* Norfolk's loss to Philadelphia dropped the team to 11-10-2-0 against the South Division this season.

* When the Blue and Gold shut out Lowell 3-0 on March 7, it was the eighth shutout of the year for the Admirals, tying a team mark for shutouts in a season. Only Hamilton (11) and Portland (10) have blanked their opponents more times.

* The Admirals have allowed the fewest shots this year (1,724) and rank second in the AHL in shots allowed per game (26.94 - Houston, 26.49).

* In their last four contests, the Blue and Gold have scored just six times, posting a record of 2-2-0-0. During that stretch, the Admirals' top five scoring leaders have combined for just seven points (three goals, four assists; Brett McLean - one goal; Mike Peluso - one goal; Casey Hankinson - one goal, two assists; Marty Wilford - one assist; Matt Henderson - one assist).

ON THE RADIO

All games are broadcast on the Admirals' Flagship Station, WBVA 1450-AM "The Buzz". The games are also cybercast on the World Wide Web at SportsJuice.com. Go to www.SportsJuice.com, or click on the link at www.norfolkadmirals.com. Pre-game broadcasts begin 20 minutes prior to game starting time.

The Admirals Radio Show will air Thursday, March 13 on WBVA AM-1450 "The Buzz" when Pete Pochkowski welcomes a special guest in the studio as he broadcasts live from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets for all remaining contests on the Admirals' home schedule are available at the Scope Box Office, all TicketMaster outlets, charge-by-phone at (757) 671-8100 and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Family Four Packs and AJ Gator's pre-game party packages are available at Scope's Box Office and all TicketMaster outlets. Flex Vouchers and Group Tickets are available through the Admirals' office. For more information, contact the Admirals at (757) 363-1900 or visit the team's website at www.norfolkadmirals.com.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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