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Norfolk Admirals

Admirals Open Regular Season with Pair of Wins

October 15, 2012 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


NORFOLK - The Norfolk Admirals began a new era as the top development team of the Anaheim Ducks last weekend with a pair of wins over the Worcester Sharks at Norfolk Scope Arena. The 2012-13 regular season schedule continues this weekend with a pair of games against the Connecticut Whale at Scope.

After dropping the 2012 Calder Cup championship banner from the rafters on Friday night, the Admirals took to the ice and defeated the Sharks, 4-2. Troy Bodie broke a 2-2 tie midway through the third period, and goaltender Frederik Andersen stopped 19 shots for his first North American professional win. The following night, Patrick Maroon scored twice, Igor Bobkov made 42 saves, and both Kyle Palmieri and Peter Holland scored in the shootout as Norfolk defeated Worcester, 4-3.

This weekend, the Admirals host the Connecticut Whale in contests on Friday (7:30 p.m.) and Saturday (7:15 p.m.) at Scope. On Saturday night, the Old Dominion University and Northern Virginia Community College hockey clubs will play a match at Scope at 2:00 p.m. More details on that game are listed below.

STANDINGS UPDATE

The Admirals lead the East Division and are tied for the Eastern Conference lead in the AHL standings:

Rank Team GP W L OTL SL PTS PCT

1 * Springfield Falcons 2 2 0 0 0 4 1.000

2 * Manchester Monarchs 2 2 0 0 0 4 1.000

3 * Norfolk Admirals 2 2 0 0 0 4 1.000

4 Bridgeport Sound Tigers 2 2 0 0 0 4 1.000

5 Syracuse Crunch 2 1 0 0 1 3 0.750

6 Binghamton Senators 1 1 0 0 0 2 1.000

7 St. John's IceCaps 2 1 1 0 0 2 0.500

8 Adirondack Phantoms 2 1 1 0 0 2 0.500

9 Worcester Sharks 2 0 1 0 1 1 0.250

10 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 1 0 1 0 0 0 0.000

11 Albany Devils 1 0 1 0 0 0 0.000

12 Hershey Bears 1 0 1 0 0 0 0.000

13 Portland Pirates 1 0 1 0 0 0 0.000

14 Connecticut Whale 2 0 2 0 0 0 0.000

15 Providence Bruins 2 0 2 0 0 0 0.000

*Division Leader

Eight teams in each conference shall qualify for the 2013 Calder Cup Playoffs. Following the conclusion of each team's 76-game regular season, the three division winners in each conference will be seeded first through third (in order of regular-season points) and the next five best teams (in order of regular-season points) will be seeded fourth through eighth.

THE ADMIRALS' WEEK AHEAD

Fri., Oct. 19 ... vs. Connecticut Whale (New York Rangers) ... 7:30 p.m.

Sat., Oct. 20 ... vs. Connecticut Whale (New York Rangers) ... 7:15 p.m.

ADMIRALS' LOG

- Norfolk has begun a season with two wins for the fifth time in the team's 13-season AHL history (2001-02, 2002-03, 2004-05, 2010-11, 2011-12).

- The Admirals have only started a season with three straight wins twice - in 2004-05 and 2010-11.

- The longest winning streak to start an AHL season by the Admirals is four straight victories in 2010-11.

- Kyle Palmieri (1g, 1a), Peter Holland (1g, 1a), John Mitchell (2g) and Devante Smith-Pelly (3a) each have points in both of Norfolk's games so far.

- On Friday night, Frederik Andersen, Ryan Lasch, Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen each made their American Hockey League and North American professional debuts after beginning their pro careers in Europe.

- Also on Friday night, Chris Wagner made his professional debut. He recorded his first professional point on Saturday night with an assist.

- Lindholm became the youngest player to appear in an Admirals game at 18 years, eight months and 23 days old. He surpassed the previous mark held by Dana Tyrell, who made his debut at 18 years, ten months and 28 days old on March 21, 2008.

- Vatanen earned his first AHL/North American pro point on Friday with an assist on Troy Bodie's game-winning goal.

- The Admirals are now 7-5-0-1-0 all-time in AHL season openers.

- Norfolk is now 8-4-1-0-0 all-time in home openers since joining the AHL.

- Friday night's crowd of 5,004 was the largest home opener crowd for the Admirals in five years (5,627 on October 19, 2007, vs. Binghamton).

- On Saturday, the Admirals were out-shot by Worcester, 45-29. The last time Norfolk was out-shot by 16 or more shots was on January 30, 2010, when Adirondack outshot Norfolk, 37-19, at Scope. That contest was 190 regular season games ago.

SCOUTING REPORT

- The Admirals play the Connecticut Whale on Friday and Saturday nights at Scope. Connecticut is the top development club of the NHL's New York Rangers.

- Norfolk and Connecticut last met during the 2012 Calder Cup Playoffs, with the Admirals claiming the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Semifinals series, four-games-to-two.

- Part of that Norfolk team that beat Connecticut in last season's playoffs was forward Brandon Segal, who is now a member of the Whale. Segal appeared in 99 career regular season games with the Admirals, scoring 38 goals and 76 points between the 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2011-12 seasons. He also won the 2012 Calder Cup with the Admirals.

- Former Admirals defenseman Mike Vernace also plays for the Whale. Vernace skated in 90 games with the Admirals from 2010-12, posting nine goals and 40 points.

- Last weekend, the Whale opened the season with two losses at the XL Center in Hartford, falling to Bridgeport, 6-4, on Friday before losing to St. John's, 3-2, on Sunday.

- Five of the six goals Connecticut scored last weekend were power play goals. The Whale have the second-best power play in the AHL (5/13, 38.5%).

- Center Kris Newbury (3g, 0a) and rookie center Kyle Jean (2g, 1a) lead Connecticut with three points in the team's opening two games. Jean scored a goal on a penalty shot in his professional debut on Friday.

- Goaltenders Scott Stajcer (4ga, 32sh) and Jason Missiaen (5ga, 38sh) each took a loss last week.

- Whale forward Chris Kreider made his NHL debut with the New York Rangers during the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, netting five goals and seven points in 18 games. Kreider recorded two assists in two games with Connecticut last weekend.

HEAD COACH TRENT YAWNEY IS THIS WEEK'S ADMIRALS HOUR GUEST

The Admirals Hour, presented by Michael and Son, returns to its normal time slot this week - Tuesday from 4-5 p.m. on 102.1-FM, 1490-AM and 1021TheGame.com. This week, Admirals Head Coach Trent Yawney will join "The Voice of the Admirals" Pete Michaud and "The Original Admiral" Dennis McEwen in the studios to take your calls. To join in the conversation, call (757) 490-2750.

FRIDAY'S GAME TO AIR ON SIRIUSXM NHL NETWORK RADIO

Friday night's game between the Admirals and Connecticut Whale will be carried on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. "The Voice of the Admirals" Pete Michaud's call of the game will air on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio's main channel (Sirius 207, XM 92). SiriusXM NHL Network Radio provides more than 20 million subscribers in Canada and the United States with groundbreaking 24/7 hockey talk. This marks the eighth consecutive season that AHL action will air on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio, including the annual AHL All-Star Game, the Calder Cup Finals and other regular-season and playoff games.

COLLEGE HOCKEY SHOWDOWN AT SCOPE ON SATURDAY

Join us on Saturday for a college hockey showdown as Old Dominion University takes on Northern Virginia Community College at 2:00 p.m. ODU and NVCC hockey fans have the ability to purchase discounted tickets for the game through Thursday at norfolkadmirals.com/groups. A ticket gets you into both the ODU/NVCC game and the Admirals game against Connecticut. Proceeds benefit ODU Hockey or NVCC Hockey. You will need to contact ODU Hockey or NVCC Hockey to get the special promo code to purchase the discounted tickets online.

BOOK YOUR BIRTHDAY PARTY TODAY

Do you want your child to have a birthday party to remember? Look no further than a party at a Norfolk Admirals game! We have three different packages to choose from a simple message on the video scoreboards to a fully-catered party with a tour of the Admirals locker room. However, dates are filling up quickly. Book your party today! For more information, visit norfolkadmirals.com or contact Dana DeFilippo at (757) 640-1212 ext. 11.

NORFOLK LEADERS

Goals : Patrick Maroon, John Mitchell (2)

Assists : Devante Smith-Pelly (3)

Points : Devante Smith-Pelly (3)

Games : Several (2)

PP goals : Patrick Maroon (1)

SH goals : --

+/- Rating : Nate Guenin (+4)

PIM : Troy Bodie, John Mitchell (5)

GAA : Frederik Andersen (2.00)

Spct : Igor Bobkov (.933)

Wins : Frederik Andersen, Igor Bobkov (1)

Losses : --

GPI : Frederik Andersen, Igor Bobkov (1)

Minutes : Igor Bobkov (65)

CONNECTICUT LEADERS

Goals: Kris Newbury (3)

Assists: Chris Kreider, J.T. Miller (2)

Points: Kyle Jean, Kris Newbury (3)

Games: Several (1)

PP goals: Kris Newbury (3)

SH goals: Kyle Jean (1)

+/- Rating: Kyle Jean (+1)

PIM: Micheal Haley (7)

GAA: Scott Stajcer (3.04)

Spct: Scott Stajcer (.875)

Wins: --

Losses: Jason Missiaen, Scott Stajcer (11)

GPI: Scott Stajcer (2)

Minutes: Scott Stajcer (79)

TICKETS

Individual tickets are on sale now 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 season tickets 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.

Check out the Norfolk Admirals Statistics

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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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