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AHL Norfolk Admirals

Norfolk Admirals Weekly

April 7, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


NORFOLK, Va. - The Lehigh Valley Phantoms edged the Norfolk Admirals last Wednesday night before the Admirals halved a two-game weekend home set with the Eastern Conference's second place team and the leaders of the East Division, the Hershey Bears. The trio of contests closed the Admirals season-long, six-game homestand in which they went 1-4-1-0.

The latter half of the homestand began with Lehigh Valley on Wednesday. The Phantoms tossed Norfolk into an early two-goal deficit, but Antoine Laganiere and Max Friberg dug the Admirals out with markers late in the first and second periods. Rookie sensation Scott Laughton went five-hole on Jason LaBarbera on a power play at 10:45 of the third for a 3-2 lead and Lehigh Valley held on for the remaining 9:15 to snatch the road win.

"Thank goodness it's Friday" applied for the Admirals as the weekend commenced with a tilt versus Hershey. Friberg and Laganiere each scored again as well as Charlie Sarault and Matt Bailey, but goalie Ryan Faragher starred for Norfolk in a 24-save performance. Friberg tallied with 57 seconds left in the first to give the Admirals a 1-0 lead. Sarault picked up his seventh of the season on a power play at 3:08 of the second and Bailey followed with a wrister at 15:59 to separate Norfolk from Hershey, 3-0, for the final 20 minutes. Laganiere reached double digits for the year with his 10th goal at 9:24 of the third, sending Faragher to a 4-0 shutout victory, his first such decision as an AHL netminder.

Despite another solid outing from the defense, Hershey squared the weekend with a 2-0 shutout result of its own on Saturday. Stan Galiev recorded his league-leading 15th power-play strike of the season and Casey Wellman's empty-netter at 18:54 cemented the win for the Bears. Pheonix Copley made 25 saves for Hershey while Faragher let in one of 28 shots. It was the seventh time in 2014-15 Norfolk was shutout.

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 24-38-6-3 (57 points), the Admirals are in 5th place in the East Division and are 15th 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

Tue., Apr. 7 ... at Binghamton Senators (Ottawa Senators) ... 7:05 p.m.

Fri., Apr. 10 ... at Lehigh Valley Phantoms (Philadelphia Flyers)... 7:05 p.m.

Sat., Apr. 11 ... at Lehigh Valley Phantoms (Philadelphia Flyers)... 7:05 p.m.

ADMIRALS SPOTLIGHT

- Former Admirals forward Stefan Noesen made his NHL debut last Friday night against the Colorado Avalanche. Noesen saw an official 6:54 of ice time on 10 shifts. He also drew a penalty and had a scoring chance deflect off an opponent's stick. Noesen's debut is the reward to a long road of recovery from two severe injuries including a torn ACL and MCL in October 2013 and ruptured achilles tendon in October 2014 that limited him to 25 regular season AHL games over the last two years.

ADMIRALS LOG

After finishing four years at the University of Denver, Ty Loney joins the Admirals on an amateur tryout basis. Loney concluded a productive career two weeks ago when the Pioneers fell to Providence, 4-1, in the NCAA Division I Tournament. He leaves Denver with 152 career games played, 39 goals, 50 assists and 89 points. Rookie goaltender Ryan Faragher enters the current road trip coming off a great weekend in which he allowed a single goal on 52 Hershey shots. Faragher earned his second win of the season in a 24-save shutout of the Bears on Friday night, a 4-0 victory for Norfolk. He is 2-8-0 in 10 appearances but concluded the weekend with a 1.02 goals-against average and .980 save percentage.

NORFOLK LEADERS

Goals: Chris Wagner (15)

Assists: Mike Sgarbossa (25)

Points: Max Friberg (34)

Games: Dave Steckel (71)

PP Goals: Louis Leblanc (5)

SH Goals: Max Friberg, Chris Wagner (2)

+/- Rating: Brandon Montour (3)

PIM: John Kurtz (173)

GAA: Jason LaBarbera (2.57)

Spct: Jason LaBarbera (.915)

Wins: Jason LaBarbera (8)

Losses: Jason LaBarbera (23; 7 in OT)

GPl: Jason LaBarbera (33)

Minutes: Jason LaBarbera (1888:09)

ABOUT THIS WEEK ' S MATCHUPS

The Admirals depart Hampton Roads for a three-game road trip that takes them to Binghamton and Lehigh Valley. First up are the Senators tonight, a team that has won five of their last nine games and currently own a 4-3 lead on the season series. Norfolk then travels to Allentown for a back-to-back against the Phantoms, whom the Admirals will see three times in a span of 10 days. Lehigh Valley also holds the distinction of being the opponent for Norfolk's last home game as an AHL franchise.

Rookie Ryan Faragher was the hero on Friday when he recorded his first ever AHL shutout over the AHL's second-best team, the Hershey Bears, which broke a six-game winless streak for the Admirals. It was followed up with Norfolk being shutout the next night, but the home team could take solace in that it was only Stanislav Galiev's power-play tally and an empty netter that was the difference. Max Friberg seems adamant to surpass Chris Wagner for the team goals lead, and is just two away from achieving the feat; he has 10 points in his last nine contests. Mike Sgarbossa and Charlie Sarault have been productive in the past six outings, combining for seven points (two goals, five assists) during that time frame. Defenseman Josh Manson contributed on half of Norfolk's markers on Friday, and was a team-high plus-3 on the night. He also registered a career-best seven shots on net. Despite taking the loss Saturday, Faragher upped his stock as an Admirals' netminder, and over the weekend boasted an incredible 1.02 goals-against average, and .980 save percentage.

Binghamton is coming off a loss of their own as they fell on Saturday to the Albany Devils, 4-1, snapping a short two-game win streak and officially eliminating them from playoff contention. As usual, the trio of Carter Camper, Shane Prince and Cole Schneider will be the group to watch. Over the last three outings between the Senators and Admirals, each has recorded at least one tally, and Schneider and Prince earned four helpers apiece. In April alone, they combined for three goals and three assists, while Prince ranks 10th in the AHL in goals (25). Binghamton's 4-3 win on Friday was in large part due to Ryan Dzingel, whose backhander was the effort needed to lift his team. Dzingel now sits on a three-game scoring streak, though just two of his 30 points have come against Norfolk this year. Despite Scott Greenham and Andrew Hammond being the go-to goalies for Binghamton, Chris Driedger is rapidly showing his mettle: the rookie boasts a 4-0-0 record with a 2.72 goals-against average and .913 save percentage.

BINGHAMTON LEADERS

Shane Prince (25)

Assists: Chris Wideman (36)

Points: Shane Prince (57)

Games: Fredrik Claesson (70)

PP Goals: Shane Prince (9)

SH Goals: Buddy Robinson (3)

+/- Rating: Buddy Robinson (11)

PIM: Darren Kramer (240)

GAA: Scott Greenham (2.63)

Spct: Scott Greenham (.919)

Wins: Scott Greenham (13)

Losses: Peter Mannino (15; 4 in OT)

GPl: Scott Greenham (25)

Minutes: Scott Greenham (1437:19)

Following three straight wins, the Phantoms haven ' t had the best performances lately, skating home victorious in just two of their last nine games, one of which came against Norfolk. With both Nick Cousins and Brandon Manning still in Philadelphia, the burden to score remains on Jason Akeson. The right winger answered with two markers and six assists in his last five games; only his points against Norfolk and Binghamton were against non-playoff-bound clubs. Three former Admirals populate the Phantoms' roster. Blair Jones, Jay Rosehill and Zack Stortini spent time in Hampton Roads and have been mainstays for Lehigh Valley this season. Despite Jay Rosehill leading Lehigh Valley in penalty minutes, he is surprisingly quiet against the Admirals, owning just five to his name in four contests this year, all coming in a fight against Nathan McIver on January 3. Rob Zepp will likely get the start in net, for the veteran is 10th in the league in minutes played (2430:41) and ninth in saves (1182) and has a 3-0 record against Norfolk in 2014-15.

LEHIGH VALLEY LEADERS

Jason Akeson (22)

Assists: Nick Cousins (34)

Points: Nick Cousins (55)

Games: Andrew Gordon, Zack Stortini (69)

PP Goals: Nick Cousins (9)

SH Goals: Jason Akeson (3)

+/- Rating: Oliver Lauridsen (3)

PIM: Jay Rosehill (192)

GAA: Rob Zepp (2.69)

Spct: Rob Zepp (.916)

Wins: Rob Zepp (19)

Losses: Rob Zepp (21; 4 in OT)

GPl: Rob Zepp (42)

Minutes: Rob Zepp (2430:41)

**UPCOMING EVENTS AND PROMOTIONS**

Friday, April 17 vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms

- Fan Appreciation Night

Join the Admirals for the last home game of the season on Fan Appreciation Night! It all starts with Party on the Plaza at 5 p.m. Food, drinks and entertainment for the kids gets your night started before the Admirals battle Lehigh Valley at 7:30 p.m. Purchase a ticket to the game and become eligible to win tons of prizes courtesy of the Norfolk Admirals.

- Girl Scout Night

Representatives from the Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast will participate in the ceremonial opening puck drop and provide color guard personnel for the National Anthem. If you are a girl scout, call Norfolk Admirals Group Sales Representative Sami Hamad at 757-640-1212 ext. 24 for more information.

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.

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