Sports stats



AHL Norfolk Admirals

Norfolk Admirals Weekly

February 10, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


NORFOLK, Va. - The Norfolk Admirals shared four points with the visiting Worcester Sharks this past weekend, a two-game set characterized by shutouts.

It started last Friday at Scope when Charlie Sarault's snipe caught the inside of the top right corner at the 12:41 mark of the first period. Sarault's third goal of the season lifted Norfolk to the only lead of the evening. Andrew O'Brien's production from the blue line continued with his blast that found a way through traffic at the net for a 2-0 lead. O'Brien's tally at 18:56 of the opening period supplied Norfolk with momentum heading into the middle frame.

The lead survived the second as well as the third. Chris Wagner chalked up the win for the Admirals using an empty-net goal with 33 seconds left to cement a 3-0 shutout victory for goaltender John Gibson in a 36-save performance.

In Game 2 of the weekend, Jason LaBarbera tended net for the Admirals but suffered the 4-0 loss to the Sharks. Worcester jumped out to the early 1-0 lead on John McCarthy's seventh goal of the season three minutes and 40 seconds into the contest. Micheal Haley finished off some tidy passing with a one-time poke that sent the puck fluttering over LaBarbera's left pad at 12:41 on the power play. The visitors carried the 2-0 advantage into the second period.

The hole became three when Travis Oleksuk converted on another power play near the end of the second. His rebound clean-up at 16:44 of the middle frame planted Worcester with a firm three-goal lead as the third period began. Just past the halfway point, Ryan Carpenter extinguished any comeback hope with his second point of the evening and eighth goal of the year to make it 4-0 at 10:22 of the final frame. The Sharks' maintained playoff position and halved the two-game set with Norfolk.

Syracuse arrives this weekend to finish the season series. The back-to-back on Friday and Saturday will decide the series winner after the Admirals and Crunch split a pair of contests in New York back in November.

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 19-24-3-2 (43 points), the Admirals are in 4th place in the East Division and are in 14th 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., Feb. 13 ... vs. Syracuse Crunch (Tampa Bay Lightning) ... 7:30 p.m.

Sat., Feb. 14 ... vs. Syracuse Crunch (Tampa Bay Lightning) ... 7:15 p.m.

ADMIRALS SPOTLIGHT

- Forward William Karlsson appeared for the Ducks in a game on February 6 against Washington for the first time since November 16, 2014. Captain Ryan Getzlaf was held out with an injury, giving the 22-year-old native of Sweden his 17th professional NHL game. Karlsson currently remains on the Anaheim roster.

- Goaltender John Gibson returns to the NHL today as the Ducks made his recall official Tuesday afternoon. Despite allowing six goals in his season debut against Pittsburgh, Gibson rallied to a 2-2-0 record including a shutout before suffering a lower-body injury that placed him in the AHL for conditioning purposes. His last start for Anaheim came on October 30 at St. Louis.

ADMIRALS LOG

The aforementioned Gibson shut out the eighth-place Worcester Sharks in the first half of this past weekend's doubleheader. The Pittsburgh native made 36 saves in Norfolk's 3-0 victory to push his record to 6-3-2 on the year for the Admirals. Jaycob Megna has looked comfortable since his return from an upper-body ailment that kept him away from the ice all season until January 30. His season debut came against the Binghamton Senators. The Norfolk blue line is even more daunting now with the addition of the 6-foot-5, 220-pound Megna. Four Admiral defenseman stand 6-foot-4 or taller.

NORFOLK LEADERS

Goals: Emerson Etem, Chris Wagner (13)

Assists: Brendan Bell (21)

Points: Nic Kerdiles (25)

Games: Nic Kerdiles, Dave Steckel (48)

PP Goals: Emerson Etem (6)

SH Goals: Chris Wagner (2)

+/- Rating: Mark Fistric (1)

PIM: Nathan McIver (122)

GAA: John Gibson (2.07)

Spct: John Gibson (.935)

Wins: John Gibson (6)

Losses: Jason LaBarbera (11; 3 in OT)

GPl: Jason LaBarbera (976:11)

ABOUT THIS WEEK ' S MATCHUPS

Norfolk completes its two-series homestand this weekend with a back-to-back against the Syracuse Crunch, which is the last time the squads will face off in the 2014-15 season. Each team has won once so far, both in New York, although it was current Utah Grizzlies goaltender Igor Bobkov who manned the net for the Admirals in those matchups.

The Admirals put together a roller coaster series against Worcester last weekend when they shut out the Sharks, 3-0, on Friday only to be shutout themselves, 4-0, the following night. Norfolk has gotten unusual offense lately from defenseman Andrew O ' Brien, who has buried three goals in his last six games after going scoreless in the 12 prior. Chris Wagner hasn ' t been puck-shy recently, netting eight points in his last 16 games to land him just one point behind the team lead, in 13 fewer games. Although Nic Kerdiles has been quiet his last three outings, he has notched a point in each game against Syracuse this season. If Dany Heatley registers points, expect a positive result - Norfolk has gone 2-0-1 in games Heatley has contributed to the scoresheet. This weekend will likely mark the return of Stefan Noesen, who has been out with an injury since October 18. A sturdy net-front presence, Noesen can provide a spark to the offense and scored three points in four games to start the year.

Points would go far for conference-leader Syracuse, looking to separate itself from the Monarchs, who sit only one point behind them in the standings. The Crunch roster will have a different look to it, as five skaters have been added over the past week, including Nicolas Deschamps who compiled 53 points in 111 games with Syracuse from 2010-12. Vladislav Namestnikov has been lighting it up for the Crunch, having not gone longer than two straight games without a point in his 25 games and registering 24 points. Team points leaders Jonathan Marchessault and Yanni Gourde are also ones to watch out for; the forwards have combined for 24 points in the last 14 games. Don ' t be surprised if Tanner Richard ends up on the right side of the ice, since he ranks ninth in the AHL in plus-minus at plus-16. Kristers Gudlevskis will predictably carry the load this weekend considering Andrei Vasilevskiy's absence to the NHL. Gudlevskis comes in a tie for eighth in the AHL in wins with a 15-6-1 record. Clamping down on the Crunch ' s scoring must be a focus, as the club is second in the Eastern Conference in goals-for with 137. Fortunately for the Admirals, Syracuse is mediocre on special teams: its penalty kill comes in at 22nd in the league, and its power play at 27th.

SYRACUSE LEADERS

Goals: Yanni Gourde (16)

Assists: Jonathan Marchessault (26)

Points: Jonathan Marchessault (26)

Games: Four players tied (47)

PP Goals: Mike Angelidis (4)

SH Goals: Four players tied (4)

+/- Rating: Tanner Richard (16)

PIM: Mike Angelidis (105)

GAA: Andrei Vasilevskiy (2.38)

Spct: Andrei Vasilevskiy (.919)

Wins: Kristers Gudlevskis (15)

Losses: Andrei Vasilevskiy (10; 5 in OT)

GPl: Kristers Gudlevskis, Andrei Vasilevskiy (24)

Minutes: Andrei Vasilevskiy (1412:14)

**UPCOMING EVENTS AND PROMOTIONS**

Friday, February 13 vs. Syracuse Crunch

- Military Appreciation Night

$11 Red-Level tickets available at Scope Box Office with military ID

Saturday, February 14 vs. Syracuse Crunch

- Trading Card Set Giveaway #2, presented by John's Tax Service

- Post-Game Skate with the Admirals, presented by Dave and Buster's

"Hockey is for Lovers Package" available until Friday at 2 p.m. Includes two Red-Level tickets to Valentine's Day game versus Syracuse at 7:15 p.m., $20 in Hockey Bucks, and a video scoreboard message.

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 February 10, 2015


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.

OurSports Central