AHL Milwaukee Admirals

Admirals Top Flames 3-2 in Shootout

February 19, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Milwaukee Admirals News Release


Milwaukee, WI - John Vigilante scored in the fifth round of a shootout to clinch the win for the Milwaukee Admirals as they defeated the Quad City Flames 3-2 Tuesday night at the Bradley Center. Matt Ellison also added third period and shootout goals to help the Admirals.

Both teams had difficulty penetrating their respective offensive zones during the first period of play. Despite power play opportunities for each squad, the penalty killing units were strong for both sides. The score remained at zero until the 17:24 mark when the Flames caught Rinne too far out of the Milwaukee net allowing Brandon Prust to knock in a loose puck. Milwaukee ended the frame a man down as Rich Peverley was sent to the sin bin with only 3 seconds left to go.

The Admirals upped their game entering the second period as they still had to kill off 1:57 of Peverley's hooking call. Netminders Rinne and Matt Keetley played a solid game, shutting down offensive advances even when play was crowded around their nets. Milwaukee finally cracked Keetley, however, with only 36 seconds left to play in the period. John Laliberte recovered the puck just behind the Quad City net and sent it to Kevin Ulanski positioned near the top of the crease. Ulanski's one-timer beat Keetley stick side to tie the game at 1.

Quad City answered Milwaukee's challenge shortly into the third period. The Ads found themselves on the wrong side of a two-man advantage as Janne Niskala and Ulanksi watched play from the box. The Flames' advantage was just enough as Krys Kolanos lit the lamp at the 3:34 mark.

The tables were turned however, as the Flames saw two of their own sent to the box just over three minutes later. Capitalizing on the 5-on-3 advantage, Ellison potted his 17th goal of the season with assists coming from Cal O'Reilly and Niskala. The last few minutes of play saw both teams narrowly missing game-winning scoring chances and the game was forced into overtime. Netminders Rinne and Keetley were unbeatable in the five minute 4-on-4 sudden death action, and the score remained unchanged as the teams prepared for a shootout.

In the first four rounds, two shooters from each team were successful: Jason Guerriero and Ellison for the Ads, and Adam Pardy and Carsen Germyn for Quad City. As the fifth shooter for Milwaukee, winger Vigilante needed to beat Keetley to help secure the win. Vigilante's dekes were too much for the Quad City goalie, and the Admirals took the lead with one shooter to go. Grant Stevenson streaked up the ice to the Milwaukee net and attempted to go five-hole, but Rinne butterflied to save the game.

Ellison's third period goal was his 17th of the season, moving him into second place overall for the Admirals. O'Reilly's assist on the same goal marked the fifth game in a row in which O'Reilly scored at least one point and made at least one assist. Goaltender Rinne had 26 saves on the night.

The Admirals face off Friday night against the Rockford IceHogs at 7:00 p.m. Fans can purchase tickets to any Admirals home game by calling the Admirals front office at (414)227-0550 or by logging onto www.ticketmaster.com.

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American Hockey League Stories from February 19, 2008


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