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AHL Norfolk Admirals

Admirals Post Back-to-Back Shutouts

March 31, 2003 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Behind the goaltending of Michael Leighton, the Admirals posted consecutive shutouts this past weekend, and finished the week at 3-1-0-0 to maintain their South Division lead. On Wednesday, March 26, Norfolk scored four unanswered goals to defeat Philadelphia 4-2 in a come-from-behind victory at Scope. The Rochester Americans out-dueled the Admirals 2-1 on Friday, March 28. On Saturday, March 29, Matt Henderson scored twice and Leighton made 21 saves as the Blue and Gold thumped Binghamton 4-0. The next evening, Leighton stopped all 19 shots he faced as he blanked the Phantoms 1-0.

The Hershey Bears (Colorado Avalanche) face off against the Admirals for the final regular season game at Scope on Wednesday, April 2 at 7:15 p.m. The Blue and Gold visit Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for a pair of matches against the Penguins (Pittsburgh Penguins) on Friday, April 4 and Saturday, April 5 at 7:05 p.m. each night. Norfolk's regular season concludes with a 6:00 p.m. match up against the Bears in Hershey on Sunday, April 6.

Norfolk remains in first place in the South Division with 88 points (36-24-11-5), four points ahead of Hershey (34-26-14-2, 84 points). Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is in third (33-32-6-5, 77 points) and Philadelphia sits in fourth (32-32-6-6, 76 points). The Admirals' magic number to clinch the Division outright stands at five.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Wednesday, April 2...Norfolk vs. Hershey Bears...7:15 p.m.

Sunday, April 6...Norfolk @ Hershey Bears...6:00 p.m.

Norfolk leads the season series 3-2-3-0 against Hershey (1-1-2-0 at Scope, 2-1-0-0 at the Giant Center). The Bears are the least-penalized squad in the AHL (1,223 PIM, 16.1 PIM per game). They rank 21st on the power play (15.21) and second in penalty killing (87.39). Hershey is fourth in the League in shots per game (33.29) and eighth in shots allowed (29.51). Eric Bertrand has the most points among current Bears (18+36=54 points). Charlie Stephens is fifth in scoring on Hershey (16+31=47 points) and tied with Cincinnati's Tony Martensson for 10th in scoring among AHL rookies. Travis Brigley's six shorthanded tallies place him second in the League in that category. Rob Voltera's 170 PIM are most on the club. Steve Brule's plus-9 rating is best on the Bears, while Steve Moore's minus-15 rating is the lowest. In net, Phil Sauve is 25-19-12 with a 2.33 GAA and a .919 spct. while Peter Budaj is 9-9-2 with a 2.72 GAA and a .908 spct. Sauve is tied with Grand Rapids' Marc Lamothe for most appearances this season (58). He is second in the AHL in minutes played (3,274), first in saves (1,440) and ranks third in GAA among current League goaltenders.

Friday, April 4...Norfolk @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins...7:05 p.m.

Saturday, April 5...Norfolk @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins...7:05 p.m.

The Penguins hold a 5-3-0-0 edge in the season series, though the Blue and Gold are 2-1-0-0 on the Baby Pens' pond. Wilkes-Barre's 19 home wins are most among South Division teams. The Pens' power play unit is sixth in the League (17.98) while their penalty killers rank 19th (82.58). They have been out-scored 79-65 in the opening period and 5-1 in overtime, while out-scoring their opponents 85-80 in the second period and 85-79 in the third. Toby Peterson tops the club in goals (28) and points (62, 34 assists). Tom Kostopoulos (20+41=61 points) is second in scoring, and his 41 helpers are most on the team. Matt Murley has 56 points (20+36), placing him fourth in points and third in assists among AHL rookie skaters. Ross Lupaschuk's 17 lamplighters are second only to Houston's Curtis Murphy (22) among League defensemen. Jason MacDonald leads the Pens with 135 PIM. Rob Scuderi's plus-4 rating is best on Wilkes-Barre, while Peterson's minus-21 rating is the lowest. Between the pipes for the Penguins are Robbie Tallas (33 GPI, 14-11-3, 3.37 GAA, .898 spct.) and Jean-Sebastien Aubin (13 GPI, 2.21 GAA, .927 spct.).

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS

Wednesday, April 2 (Hershey Bears) - Final Regular Season Home Game

* Bahamas Trip Giveaway - One lucky fan will win a trip for two to the Bahamas (airfare and accommodations), courtesy of TradeStaff & Company.

* Fan Appreciation Night - Throughout the game, lucky ticket holders selected at random will win a variety of prizes from the Blackhawks, the AHL, the Admirals and their sponsorship family.

* Shirts Off Our Backs - At the conclusion of the game, lucky ticket holders selected at random will win the game-worn jerseys right off the players' backs.

TEAM NOTEBOOK

* Norfolk's 4-0 win at Binghamton on March 29 snapped a franchise-high 11-game road winless streak (0-7-4-0 since February 8).

* The Admirals' two shutouts over the weekend (4-0 at Binghamton March 29, 1-0 at Philadelphia March 30) gave them 10 on the year, establishing a new team record for shutouts in a season (eight, 2001-2002).

* After going a stretch of seven games in which they scored 2 or fewer goals each contest (March 8 through Marc h 19, 0-5-2-0), the Blue and Gold have scored four goals in four of their past seven games, and are 4-1-1-1 during that stretch.

* Norfolk has allowed the fewest shots in the AHL (2,028, 26.68 per game). Only Grand Rapids (168 GA, 2.18 per game) and Hamilton (175 GA, 2.30 per game) have allowed fewer goals than Norfolk (178 GA, 2.34 per game).

* G Michael Leighton is tied with Hamilton's Ty Conklin for ninth among current AHL goaltenders in goals against average with a 2.50 GAA. Leighton is also tied with several others for fourth in the League in shutouts (four).

* LW Travis Moen tallied his first pro goal in the Admirals' 4-2 win versus Philadelphia March 26.

* LW Quintin Laing snapped a streak of 27 games without a goal (since January 22) when he scored against Binghamton on March 29.

* C Brett McLean has nine points (four goals, five assists) over the last nine contests.

* F Casey Hankinson has posted 5+2=7 points in the past seven games. He led all Norfolk scorers with 13 points (8+5) in 16 games during the month of March.

* D Todd Gill registered his first points as an Admiral with an assist at Binghamton on March 29 and an assist at Philadelphia on March 30.

* D Burke Henry and G Craig Andersson were reassigned to Norfolk by the Blackhawks on March 31.

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 final Admirals Radio Show of the season airs Thursday, April 3 on WBVA AM-1450 "The Buzz" when host Pete Pochkowski welcomes Pat Shetler as his guest in the studio as he broadcasts live from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets for Wednesday's game are available at the Scope Box Office, all TicketMaster outlets, charge-by-phone at (757) 671-8100 and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Admirals playoff tickets go on sale Friday, April 4 for games A and B at the Scope Box Office, all TicketMaster outlets, charge-by-phone at (757) 671-8100 and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Flex Vouchers and Group Tickets are available through the Admirals' office. 2003-2004 Season Tickets are also on sale now 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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