Sports stats



AHL Norfolk Admirals

Norfolk Claims South Division Title

April 8, 2002 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Norfolk Admirals News Release


VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - The Admirals defeated Hershey twice last week to win their first South Division title. On Wednesday, April 3 and Friday, April 5, the Blue and Gold swept their final two regular season home games by a 3-1 count over the Bears both times. They concluded the 2001-02 regular season with a 4-2 loss at Philadelphia on Saturday, April 6.

The Hershey Bears (Colorado Avalanche) return to Scope for a rematch of last year's Conference Semi-finals playoff series on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13. Face off for both games is at 7:30 p.m.

Norfolk's Conference Quarterfinals series schedule is as follows:
Game 1 - Friday, April 12 at Norfolk Scope.7:30 p.m.
Game 2 - Saturday, April 13 at Norfolk Scope.7:30 p.m.
Game 3 - Wednesday, April 17 at Hershey.7:30 p.m.
Game 4 - Friday, April 19 at Hershey.7:30 p.m. (If necessary)
Game 5 - Saturday, April 20 at Norfolk Scope.7:30 p.m. (If necessary)

THE WEEK AHEAD

Friday, April 12.Norfolk vs. Hershey Bears .7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 13.Norfolk vs. Hershey Bears .7:30 p.m. Last year, Hershey defeated the Blue and Gold in the Western Conference Semi-finals four games to one. After the Admirals won Game 1 of the series 4-2, the Bears held Norfolk to one or fewer goals the remaining four contests. The Admirals finished the 2001-02 regular season with a 6-2-1-1 record against the Bears, including a 4-0-0-1 mark at Scope. Hershey scored six times in 44 power play opportunities (13.6) while Norfolk recorded six goals in 42 chances with the man advantage (14.3) when the clubs met this year. The Admirals outshot the Bears 322 to 275 in their 10 match ups. Matt Henderson scored 3+7=10 points, Steve McCarthy 2+5=7 points, with Ajay Baines (3+3) and Mike Souza (5+1) chipping in six points each versus Hershey. Baines' plus-5 rating against the Bears is highest on the squad. Shawn Thornton's 37 penalty minutes are most by an Admiral in games between the clubs. Michael Leighton is undefeated (5-0-1) with a 1.64 GAA and .930 spct. in six appearances against the Bears. Craig Andersson has started four times, posting a 1-3-0 record, 2.94 GAA and .909 spct. Jeff Daw has the most points against Norfolk (5+5=10 points), while Yevgeny Lazarev has posted 1+5=6 points and Yuri Babenko 3+2=5 points. Lazarev has a plus-6 rating in seven appearances against the Admirals. Former Admiral Jeff Paul has wracked up 50 PIM against his former team this year. Phil Sauve is 2-3-0 with a 2.45 GAA and .910 spct. in six contests versus Norfolk.

TEAM NOTEBOOK

* Norfolk set team records this season for wins (38), points (92), winning percentage (.575) and road wins (18).

* The Admirals finished with a winning record against each of their South Division opponents (Hershey - 6-2-1-1; Philadelphia - 5-4-1-0; Wilkes-Barre - 6-2-0-2).

* Norfolk posted a record of 0-18-7 when trailing after two periods this year. St. John's was the only other AHL club that failed to win a game when trailing entering the third period (0-22-6).

* Though he was on recall to the Chicago Blackhawks for 20 of the Admirals' games, rookie Tyler Arnason finished as the club's scoring leader with 26+30=56 points. His 56 points broke the team mark of 51 points set by Casey Hankinson last year. Arnason finished third in points among all AHL rookie scorers, and was named to the 2001-02 AHL All-Rookie Team.

* Casey Hankinson registered his 100th career point (an assist) with Norfolk on April 5 against Hershey. In two seasons with the Admirals, he scored 49+51=100 points.

* Shawn Thornton tied a professional career-high with eight goals and surpassed career-highs in assists (14) and points (22) this year. His 281 penalty minutes led Norfolk in PIM and marked only the second time in five professional seasons that he finished with fewer than 300 PIM (225 PIM in 1997-98 with St. John's)

* Dmitri Tolkunov set a franchise mark this season with a plus-22 rating. He finished with the third-best rating among all AHL defensemen.

* Mike Peluso recorded a team-high seven-game points streak from 3/23 to 4/5, posting 12 points (nine goals, three assists) during that span.

* For the second consecutive year, an Admirals' goaltender was named to the AHL's All-Rookie Team: Michael Leighton, 2001-02 (Jeff Maund, 2000-01).

ON THE RADIO

All games are broadcast on the Admirals' Flagship Station, WHKT 1650-AM. 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.

TICKET INFORMATION

Individual playoff tickets are now on sale through the Scope Box Office, TicketMaster outlets, charge-by-phone at (757) 671-8100 and on the World Wide Web at www.ticketmaster.com. Playoff ticket prices are: Gold Section $16.00, Blue Section $14.75, Navy Section $13.50, White Section $10.75.

Season tickets for 2002-2003 are also available now, and can be purchased through the Admirals Ticketing Office, or online at www.norfolkadmirals.com. Prices are as follows: Gold Section $475.00, Blue Section $375.00, White Section $275.00. (The Navy Section has been incorporated into the Blue Section or White Section, depending on seating area.) For more information, please call the Admirals' office at (757) 363-1900 or visit our web site at www.norfolkadmirals.com.

Check out the Norfolk Admirals Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from April 8, 2002


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