AHL Norfolk Admirals

Norfolk Admirals Weekly

November 11, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


NORFOLK, Va. - Despite dropping two of three games on last week's road trip, there were many positives for the Norfolk Admirals. The team was able to pick up their first victory away from home ice on Friday night and defenseman Shea Theodore continued to display endless potential.

Wednesday's game at Bridgeport began at 11 a.m and didn't start well for the Admirals. The Sound Tigers scored three goals in the opening 20 minutes in rookie Ryan Faragher's debut courtesy of C.J. Stretch, Alan Quine and Justin Courtnall. Norfolk was able to tighten up defensively in the final two periods and a shorthanded goal by John Kurtz brought them within striking distance. Unfortunately, Kurtz's goal was the only one to find twine behind Bridgeport goalie Kevin Poulin in a 3-1 loss.

The Admirals turned things around on Friday night at Syracuse. After the Crunch built an early 2-0 lead, the Norfolk offense awoken. Nic Kerdiles and Chris Wagner lit the lamp in the second period to even the game at two. Joseph Cramarossa tied the game at three late in the third period to force overtime with the Crunch. Shea Theodore's blast from the point gave Norfolk the 4-3 win just two minutes into the extra frame and Norfolk goalie Igor Bobkov recorded his first victory of the season.

Saturday night saw the Admirals take control for nearly 45 minutes in the second half of the two-game set with Syracuse. Theodore scored two power play goals in the opening 11 minutes to give the team a 2-0 lead. Louis Leblanc and Brad Winchester would put the team up 4-1 heading into the third period. Unfortunately, numerous defensive breakdowns doomed the Admirals as Syracuse struck twice within a minute on two separate occasions in the third to pull out a 5-4 win.

The road trip that ended on a sour note Saturday, did see many bright spots along the way. Chris Wagner continued his hot start and now has 6 goals and 9 points in eight games so far. Joseph Cramarossa recorded another multi-point game on Friday night to bring his total to four points this year, and of course, Theodore has continued to live up to the billing that has surrounded the 2013 first round pick. The 19-year-old blueliner had three goals and five points in five games with Norfolk. His conditioning stint with Norfolk is now over and he has since been reassigned to Seattle (WHL). Center Charlie Sarault also broke into the scoring category with two assists on Friday, his first points of the season.

The Admirals now hold a 5-7-0-0 record on the season with a total of 10 points. They currently sit in fourth place in the East division, just one point back of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for third.

Up next for Norfolk, they head back to home ice, which has been good to them this season (4-2 home record). They host the Binghamton Senators at 7:30 p.m. on Friday night. The two teams meet once again on Saturday evening at 7:15 p.m.

ON THE RADIO/INTERNET

All regular-season games will air live on 1650 AM WHKT "The Answer" and online at 1650theanswer.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.

Tune in live to 1650 AM "The Answer" every Tuesday from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. for the "Admirals Hour" with the "Voice of the Admirals" Pete Michaud and the "Original Admiral" Dennis McEwen. Michaud and McEwen discuss the latest in Norfolk Admirals hockey, speak with guests, update you on the Anaheim Ducks, as well as answer any calls during the show. Ask Pete and Dennis your questions by calling in to the studio at 757-454-1650.

STANDINGS UPDATE

At 5-7-0-0 (10 points), the Admirals are in 4th place in the East Division and are in 13th place in the Eastern Conference.

Eight teams in each conference shall qualify for the 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs. Following the conclusion of each team's 76-game regular season, the three division winners in each conference will be seeded 1-3 (in order of regular-season points) and the next five best teams (in order of regular-season points) will be seeded 4-8.

THE ADMIRALS' WEEK AHEAD

Fri., Nov. 14 ... vs. Binghamton Senators (Ottawa Senators) ... 7:30 p.m.

Sat., Nov. 15 ... vs. Binghamton Senators (Ottawa Senators) ... 7:15 p.m.

ADMIRALS SPOTLIGHT

- Defenseman Mat Clark received his first call of the season up to Anaheim on Sunday. Clark made his NHL debut with the Ducks in the 2011-12 season and played two games.

- Fellow defenseman Josh Manson remains with the Ducks and has participated in four NHL games this season. Though he is minus-2 on the ice, Manson mixed things up with Vancouver defenseman Ryan Stanton this past Sunday for his first fight in the NHL.

- Former Admirals' goaltender Frederik Andersen continues to be solid between the pipes. Though he's dropped shootout decisions to both Vancouver and Arizona, Andersen remains in second in the NHL with a 1.56 goals-against average (GAA) and third in the league with a .943 save percentage (SV%). He is 2-1-2 in his last five but has only allowed nine goals in that span and 16 in 10 games.

ADMIRALS' LOG

2013 first-round draft pick Shea Theodore showed why everyone is excited about his future. The 19-year-old major junior defenseman finished his conditioning stint with Norfolk averaging a point per game in five starts. Two Theodore slap shots on the power play found their way past Crunch netminder Kristers Gudlevskis on Saturday in the first period alone. He rejoins the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League as a result of age restrictions in the AHL. Charlie Sarault recorded his first points of the season over the weekend. Sarault assisted on Shea Theodore's first power play goal Saturday night and helped Louis Leblanc find the net for his second goal of the season later in the second period. The center from Ontario seems to be finding his way in the attacking zone and will be a welcome addition to the scoresheet for Norfolk if he continues to produce. Former free-agent goaltender Yann Danis is the newest member of the Admirals. Danis agreed to a professional tryout contract with Norfolk over the weekend and will back up Igor Bobkov. Goalies Ryan Faragher and Etienne Marcoux were reassigned to the Utah Grizzlies of the ECHL.

NORFOLK LEADERS

Chris Wagner (6)

Assists: Nic Kerdiles (6)

Points: Chris Wagner, Brad Winchester (9)

Games: 12 players tied (7)

PP Goals: Shea Theodore, Brad Winchester (2)

SH Goals: Chris Wagner (2)

+/- Rating: Nathan McIver (+4)

0 Nathan McIver (49)

0 Jason LaBarbera (2.80)

A0 Jason LaBarbera (.898)

A0 Jason LaBarbera (3)

Losses: Igor Bobkov (3)

0 Jason LaBarbera (5)

Minutes: Jason LaBarbera (300:06)

ABOUT THIS WEEKEND'S MATCHUPS

Norfolk and Binghamton have not gone toe-to-toe yet this season, but saw plenty of each other in 2013-14. Both members of the East Division, the two teams faced off a total of eight times, with the Senators taking the series 6-2. Six of the eight games were won by at least a two-goal margin.

The Admirals (5-7-0) return to Virginia after an up-and-down road trip which saw them post their first victory of the season away from home between two defeats. On the heels of a 5-4 loss to Syracuse in which Norfolk had a 4-1 lead in the third, expect a focused and disciplined team to take the ice Friday night at Scope against a divisional team in Binghamton that only has seven points in their last 10 games. Norfolk sits one spot ahead of Binghamton in both the East Division and Eastern Conference. The top goaltender for each squad continues to try and find their way and will attempt to do so against each other this weekend. The Admirals Igor Bobkov is 1-3-0 and Andrew Hammond has carried the load for the Senators but is just 3-7-2 in 12 games. With the productive Theodore and experienced Clark subtracted from the defensive corps, the Admirals will rely on the likes of veterans Brendan Bell and Nathan McIver to stabilize the blue line and simplify Bobkov's weekend.

The Senators (4-7-2) have had a rough time themselves, most recently splitting a pair of road games against Utica and Rochester before losing to the Penguins at home. Reigning AHL Player of the Month defenseman Chris Wideman put up six goals and 11 points in nine games during October and has 17 total points in 13 contests. Seven Senators have at least seven points and three of those seven players are defenseman. Binghamton can score from all over the ice and will present a worthy challenge for Norfolk following a third-period letdown last weekend. Six of Binghamton's losses have finished with one-goal margins, so close games could be the theme of this weekend with both teams needing to come out on the winning end of the ledger.

BINGHAMTON LEADERS

Chris Wideman (8)

Assists: Chris Wideman (9)

Points: Chris Wideman (17)

Games: 12 players tied (13)

PP Goals: Chris Wideman (4)

SH Goals: Buddy Robinson (1)

+/- Rating: Aaron Johnson (+6)

0 Darren Kramer (39)

0 Andrew Hammond (3.53)

A0 Andrew Hammond (.902)

A0 Andrew Hammond (3)

Losses: Andrew Hammond (7)

0 Andrew Hammond (12)

Minutes: Andrew Hammond (714:51)

**UPCOMING EVENTS AND PROMOTIONS**

Friday, November 14 vs. Binghamton Senators

- Tattoo Night

Our very first Tattoo Night means discounted tickets for all those with ink! Show your appropriately visible tattoo at the Scope Box Office and receive a discounted Admirals' ticket. Temporary Admiral logo tattoos will be given away at the door.

Saturday, November 15 vs. Binghamton Senators

- EVMS Diabetes Awareness Night

A portion of ticket sales will benefit the EVMS Strelitz Diabetes Center (SDC) in Norfolk.

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.

Check out the Norfolk Admirals Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from November 11, 2014


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