AHL Milwaukee Admirals

Admirals look for first road win Wednesday

Published on October 31, 2005 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Milwaukee Admirals News Release


IN MEMORY...The Admirals lost a true friend and co-worker this past week when play-by-play broadcaster Kyle Schultz passed away. Kyle brought an enthusiasm that was second to none to all of his broadcasts and was responsible for some of the most exciting calls in Admiral's history, including the team's Calder Cup Championship in 2004. To honor Kyle the team will wear a commemorative patch the rest of the season. The black patch is embroidered with his initials (KS) and has the phrase "Old Time Hockey," a saying that Kyle frequently used, around the edges.

LAST NIGHT...The Admirals picked up their first win of the season on Friday night in a 6-1 win over the Houston Aeros. Kris Beech led the offensive assault on Houston, scoring two goals and also picking up an assist. Pekka Rinne stopped 26 of 27 Aero shots to earn his first professional victory. Timofei Shishkanov also scored two goals for the Admirals. Darren Haydar, Vern Fiddler, Kevin Klein, and Libor Pivko each added two assists in the effort. Rinne was stellar again on Saturday night as he blanked the Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights to lead the Ads to a 4-0 win. Rookie Shea Weber scored his first career goal and also picked up two assists, while Scottie Upshall recorded a goal and an assist to pace the Milwaukee offense.

Vs OMAHA...The Admirals and the Knights do battle for the second time this season and the first in Omaha. The two teams will face each other a total of ten times this season, split evenly between Milwaukee and Omaha. The Knights, who are in their first season in the AHL, are affiliated with the Calgary Flames.

Vs CHICAGO...The Admirals closest geographical opponent, the Chicago Wolves, make their first of five appearances this season at the Bradley Center on Friday night. Last season the Admirals won the season series with a 6-2-1-1 record, including a 4-1 mark at the BC. In 112 career meetings between the two teams, Milwaukee has accumulated a 59-40-1-12 mark versus the Wolves. Of those games, 80 of them have been decided by just one or two goals.

POWERED UP...In Saturday night's win over Omaha, all four of the team's goals came on the power play, marking the first time since February 3 of last season that the team had recorded as many PPGs. After converting just 3 of 32 (9.4%) power play opportunities in their first four games, the Admirals were 6 of 23 (26.1%) over the weekend.

ONE QUICK TRIP...While most of the Admirals did not play a game last week prior to Friday's contest in Iowa, forward Vern Fiddler received a quick call-up to Nashville on Wednesday. Fiddler suited up for the Preds in Wednesday night's contest at Columbus, logging 8:05 of ice time in the Predators' 3-2 OT loss, before being sent down after the game and back in Milwaukee for Thursday morning's practice.

A DAY AT THE BEECH...With three goals and an assist over the weekend, center Kris Beech takes over the Admirals scoring lead on the season with seven points (4g-3a) in six games. The Salmon Arm, BC native spent parts of the previous three seasons with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and played for the Baby Pens in 2004 when they lost to the Admirals in the Calder Cup Finals. Last season Beech posted 14 goals and 48 assists for 62 points in 68 games with WBS.

FOR THE FIRST TIME...Four new faces on the Admirals roster found the back of the net for the first time this weekend. Defenseman Rick Berry, recently acquired via a trade with the Phoenix Coyotes, scored a goal in his first game as an Admiral on Friday night against Houston. Forward Chris Bala, signed to a PTO at the beginning of the season, also lit the lamp versus the Aeros. On Saturday, Blueliner Sheldon Brookbank notched his first tally in an Admirals sweater. The bruising defenseman signed with Nashville in the off-season after spending the previous two season with the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks. Finally, rookie Shea Weber notched his first professional goal when he scored a power play marker on Saturday night versus Omaha.

MORE FIRSTS...Rookie goalie Pekka Rinne had a weekend he will not soon forget after picking up his first professional victory and first pro shutout in Friday and Saturday night's contests. His totals for the two games looked like this: 2 wins, 42 saves, 1 shutout, a .977 save percentage and 0.500 goals against average. Rinne improved his season record to 2-3-1 to go along with a .937 save percentage and a 1.76 GAA.

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN...Noel has appointed defenseman Greg Zanon as the Captain of the Admirals for the 2005-06 season. A native of Burnaby, BC, Zanon had two goals and 19 assists for 21 points and 59 penalty minutes last year for Milwaukee. The third-year pro was also a member of the Admirals AHL Championship team in 2003-04. Forwards Darren Haydar and Vernon Fiddler will serve as alternate captains and will wear the "A" on their jerseys.

OVER THE AIR AND ON THE WEB... The Admirals have a new flagship radio station this season in Milwaukee's ESPN Radio 1510 AM (days)/1290 AM (nights). In addition, the team has a one-hour hockey magazine dubbed "Milwaukee Admirals Center Ice" that airs every Tuesday from 6-7 pm on ESPN Radio. Aaron Sims, who has done play-by-play work for the University of Wisconsin television broadcasts, has been picked to fill in for Kyle Schultz on an interim basis. Fans can watch all Admirals games, home and on the road, live on the internet via B2 Networks. Simply go the Admirals website at www.milwaukeeadmirals.com and click on the B2 logo.

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American Hockey League Stories from October 31, 2005


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