Milwaukee Admirals AHL hockey fan site
News blog below. Other stuff and external links listed in the right column.

During the offseason, I'll keep track of the Admirals roster moves on the temporary chart below.


Still under contract:
Forwards
Patric Hornqvist
Hugh Jessiman
Ian McKenzie
Mark Santorelli
Mike Santorelli
Nick Spaling
Andreas Thuresson
Defense
Jonathan Blum
Robert Dietrich
Cody Franson
Teemu Laakso
Alex Sulzer (OWC)
Goaltender
Mark Dekanich

Recently re-signed:
Forwards
Triston Grant
Defense
Scott Ford
Mark Matheson
Russ Sinkewich

To be determined:
Forwards
Oren Eizenman
Ryan Jones (RFA)
Ryan Maki (RFA)
Cal O'Reilly (RFA)
Jed Ortmeyer (UFA)
Geoff Peters
Antti Pihlstrom (RFA)
James Sixsmith
Bryan Smolinski
Stephen Werner
Kelsey Wilson (RFA)
Defense
Tim Ramholt (RFA)
Nolan Yonkman (UFA)
Goaltender
Drew MacIntyre (UFA)

Possible new players:
Forwards
Colin Wilson (a)
Goaltenders
Chet Pickard (b)
Jeremy Smith (b)

Signed elsewhere:
Nobody yet

Notes:
RFA = restricted free agent
UFA = unrestricted free agent
OWC = one way NHL contract
(a) - Colin Wilson signed a three year entry level contract with Nashville. It's possible he will skip the AHL and debut at the NHL level.
(b) - With Mark Dekanich returning, either Chet Pickard or Jeremy Smith will likely join the Admirals. Both players have signed with Nashville through 2011.
1 July
2009

The NHL free agency signing period began today.

Here are today's deals involving Nashville...

Joel Ward re-signs with Nashville - two year deal worth $3 million.
Vern Fiddler signs with Phoenix - two year deal worth $2.2 million.
Greg Zanon signs with Minnesota - three year deal worth $5.2 million.
Steve Sullivan re-signs with Nashville - two year deal worth $7.5 million.
7/2 Update
Ville Koistinen signs with Florida - two year deal worth $2.4 million.

No word today on any of the Predators AHL free agents.

Overall, this seemed to be a buseir day than usual... especially with how many goaltenders were signed around the league. Several players received contracts at five or more years in length. Perhaps the biggest joke of the day... the Chicago Blackhawks signed Marian Hossa to a 12 year contract. Hossa is 30 years old.
28 June
2009

The new team in Abbotsford, British Columbia, released their logo this week. Their first attempt at a logo design was rejected earlier this summer due to trademark issues with another logo.

This is their second attempt...






As you can see, very little thought was put into this look. A hockey puck passing by the name of the team. Parent club colors. The only original thing about it is the flags of British Columbia and Canada on the shoulders. Of course, everything in Canada is required to have the nation's flag or a maple leaf on it.
28 June
2009

On Friday night, I wrote about the first round of the NHL Entry Draft (scroll down below). Rounds 2-7 were held on Saturday. Here's a summary of who the Nashville Predators picked on the second day of the draft...

41st overall pick (2nd round) - right wing Zach Budish
Zach is a big boy. 6'3", 230 lbs. This 18 year-old is a risky pick by Nashville because Zach is coming off a torn ACL knee injury suffered while playing for his high school's football team in Edina, Minnesota. Subsequently, he missed the entire hockey season of his senior year. He will attend the University of Minnesota in the fall.

42nd overall pick (2nd round) - defenseman Charles-Olivier Roussel
This 17 year-old has two years of junior hockey experience in the Quebec league with Shawinigan. He finished with 11 goals and 33 assists in 68 games this past season. He has a hard shot and doesn't mind playing a physical game.

70th overall pick (3rd round) - forward Taylor Beck
Another big 18 year-old (6'2", 205 lbs.). The Niagara Falls (Ontario) native has played two years of junior hockey with Guelph. He was fourth on his team in scoring with 22 goals and 36 assists last season.

72nd overall pick (3rd round) - forward Michael Latta
A teammate of the previous pick. This 18 year-old is 5'11" and 200 lbs, and he loves to drop the gloves. He was traded to Guelph after almost a year and a half in Ottawa. He had 22 goals and 35 assists between both teams last season.

98th overall pick (4th round) - center Craig Smith
A Madison, Wisconsin, native who will attend UW in the fall. The 19 year-old has played the last three seasons in the USHL with Waterloo. He finished with 28 goals and 48 assists in 54 games last season. He was the only Badger player selected this year, extending a streak of 12 years with a UW player taken in the NHL draft.

102nd overall pick (4th round) - defenseman Mattias Ekholm
This year's draft featured a ton of Swedish prospects (seven taken in the first round). This selection was the only European Nashville took in the draft. Mattias is a tall 19 year-old (6'4", 194 lbs.) playing with Mora IK in Sweden. He played on the Swedish national team at the World Junior Championships in 2008.

110th overall pick (4th round) - forward Nick Oliver
A tall 18 year-old (6'3", 184 lbs.) from North Dakota. He played last season with Fargo in the USHL, but missed most of the season with a broken collarbone. He will attend St. Cloud State in 2010.

132nd overall pick (5th round) - left wing Gabriel Bourque
A small 18 year-old (5'9", 183 lbs.) from Quebec. Gabriel has played the last two seasons in the Quebec junior league with Baie-Comeau. He finished third on his team in scoring with 22 goals and 39 assists last season.

148th overall pick (5th round) - traded to Tampa Bay for a 2010 5th round pick

192nd overall pick (7th round) - center Cameron Reid
Cameron stands 6'2" and 185 lbs. The 17 year-old has played the last two seasons in the British Columbia Hockey League with Victoria and Westside. He scored 12 goals and 28 assists last season.

202nd overall pick (7th round) - traded to St. Louis for a 2010 7th round pick

Along with the LA Kings, the Predators had the most selections in the draft with 10 players chosen.

Next up on the summer calendar is Wednesday, when free agents are eligible to be signed by other teams. It's possible we'll see some players re-signed on Monday and Tuesday.
26 June
2009

Tragic news this week. Hugh Jessiman's mother, Laura, died on Wednesday from a fall while vacationing in Scotland's Highlands. Read more about it from the Darien Times (the Jessiman's hometown newspaper). She will be honored at a charity hockey game next week in Darien.

My condolences to the Jessiman family.
26 June
2009

The NHL Entry Draft began tonight and will wrap up Saturday. Milwaukee's parent club, the Nashville Predators, entered the weekend with 12 picks in the seven round draft. (1-first round pick, 2-second, 2-third, 3-fourth, 2-fifth, 2-seventh)

With the 11th overall selection, Nashville took defenseman Ryan Ellis. The 18-year old Ontario native has two seasons of junior hockey on his resume with the Windsor Spitfires. In his first season, he averaged a point a game with 15 goals and 48 assists in 63 games. He improved in his second season with 22 goals and 67 assists (89 points) in 57 games, and he was a key member of the team's Memorial Cup victory.

Ellis is known for having a cannon on the power play, but his size (5'9" 183 lbs.) may prevent him from excelling at the NHL level. At the NHL scouting combine held in May, he registered the highest body fat percentage (13.2%) and was rated below average in upper and lower body strength. He ranked fourth at the combine in a hand-eye coordination test. A recent poll of OHL coaches voted him the smartest player, best offensive defenseman, and hardest shot in the Western Conference.

I'll breakdown the Nashville picks in rounds 2-7 later this weekend.
22 June
2009

I've been out of the habit of gathering Admirals news the last fews days, but I've got a good reason.

I was caught in a flash flood Friday night. Rather than blow up this column with the whole story, you can read about my misadventure at this link.
16 June
2009

I'd like to welcome another online source of Admirals news and articles which debuted earlier this month.

Check out Tim Johnson's work on the Milwaukee Admirals Examiner. He will be adding new articles throughout the summer, and he'll write game previews, game recaps, player updates, and general commentary on the team during the season.

If you forget to bookmark it in your browser, you'll be able to get to it through a permanent link I've posted in the right hand column of my site.
15 June
2009

Former Admirals assistant coach Todd Richards landed the job as the head coach for the NHL's Minnesota Wild on Monday. He returns to his home state, where he played four years with the University of Minnesota in 1985-89.

Admiral fans first got to know Richards in his playing days, as he was a strong veteran defenseman in the IHL from 1993-2001 with Las Vegas and Orlando. In 1995, he won the league's award for the season's best defenseman. He played for Orlando from the time the franchise began in 1995 until the team was forced to fold along with the IHL in 2001. In those six seasons, they went to the Turner Cup Final three times, and won the final Turner Cup in 2001.

After finishing his playing career with a season in Switzerland, he was hired by the Admirals to be the assistant coach under (current Predators assistant coach) Peter Horachek, who coached him in Orlando. After Horachek was promoted to the NHL, Richards worked three seasons with head coach Claude Noel, winning the Calder Cup in 2004.

Richards next big break was getting the head coaching job for the Wilkes-Barre Penguins in 2006. He was hired for that job by Chuck Fletcher, the man who would eventually hire him for the Minnesota job. He advanced the Penguins to the Calder Cup Final in 2008, losing to Chicago in six games. In his two seasons of head coaching experience in Wilkes-Barre, he racked up an impressive regular season record of 98-62 (209 pts.).

After his Calder Cup loss in 2008, he was hired by the San Jose Sharks as an assistant under rookie head coach Todd McLellan. The two Todd's led the Sharks to the best regular season record in the NHL this season, but they suffered a disappointing playoff loss in the first round to Anaheim. Soon after their playoff loss, Richards' name was on a short list to be Minnesota's head coach, but the local media painted him as the underdog due to a lack of NHL coaching experience.

Richards has one remarkable achievement under his belt. As a player and a coach in his college and pro career (every year since 1985-86), his team has ALWAYS played in the postseason.

I've probably told this story on this site at one time... but it's my best memory of Richards in his time here. At an Admirals holiday party, I chatted with Todd for about 15 minutes. Most of the conversation dealt with his addiction to the computer simulation game Eastside Hockey Manager. Think of it as an advanced Fantasy Hockey game, where you make GM and coaching decisions of running a hockey team. I had dabbled with the game, but I knew right away I did not have nearly enough free time needed to play the game properly. I wonder how much that computer game helped mold him into the coach that he is today.

Needless to say, I'm happy for Todd and wish him luck in taking the Wild to the next level.
12 June
2009

Tonight the world of hockey crowned two champions from the great state of Pennsylvania. Hershey won in Winnipeg to claim the AHL's Calder Cup, and Pittsburgh won the Stanley Cup in "Hockeytown".

Apparently, "Hockeytown" is a place where the home fans boo when the opposing team is celebrating their championship. I know, I know... I should expect that behavior from a city like Detroit (or Philly... or Chicago).

I stood respectful when witnessing Hershey celebrating on the ice in Milwaukee in '06 and Chicago winning the Turner Cup in '98. Of course, I would have been beaten silly if I would have booed the Wolves in the sold out Rosemont Horizon that night... but I kept my composure and admired the team's emotional postgame celebration in each instance.

Another former Admiral will have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup. Mark Eaton (2001-03) will join the list of Tony Hrkac, Kevin Dean, Steve Kelly, Stanislav Neckar, and Marc Crawford. Former Admiral Chris Minard (2005) was on the Penguins roster after Wilkes-Barre's season ended, but he did not see any ice time in the playoffs. His name might be added to the Cup as he played in 20 regular season games.

The final playoff bracket...
1 Milwaukee           Hershey 1
4-0 Milwaukee       Hershey 4-0
4 Rockford           Philly 4
West 4-3 Houston   Hershey 4-3 East
2 Peoria           Bridgeport 2
4-3 Houston       W.-Barre 4-1
3 Houston     Hershey     W.-Barre 3
Western
Conference		   4-2 4-1   Eastern
Conference
1 Manitoba     Manitoba     Hartford 1
4-2 Manitoba   4-2   Worcester 4-2
4 Toronto           Worcester 4
North 4-0 Manitoba   Providence 4-2 Atlantic
2 Hamilton           Providence 2
4-2 Gr. Rapids       Providence 4-1
3 Gr. Rapids           Portland 3


11 June
2009

Unless you're here for the first time, you'll notice I'm experimenting with a few things on the site. It's what I sometimes do in the offseason... play around with different formats, layouts, and graphics.

My web design skills are completely self taught - mostly through trial and error, and I'm not exactly the most gifted at graphic design, but I'm somewhat satisfied with what I usually whip up.

One thing that makes my ideas hard to implement is creating something that works on different computer screen sizes and browsers. Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Opera often display the exact same web page differently. While I try to test my ideas in different browsers, I tend to skip that step thinking that I've got a good enough grasp on my project... sometimes resulting in a poor result in a particular browser.

Recently, I've had to work around a wider variety of screen sizes. Years ago, I simply had to worry about 1024x768 or 800x600 resolutions. Now, with widescreen LCD monitors becoming more popular, I need to come up with something that looks OK on huge monitors as well as for those still using an 800x600 resolution. I'm hoping that someday soon, I'll have to make fewer compromises after larger monitors become the norm.

If you are using a widescreen monitor or a resolution at least 1024 pixels wide, you'll notice a design in the left and right margins. I'll give you a minute to figure out what it is...

Hint - it's hockey related.

Give up?

It's the texture design of the sides of a regulation hockey puck. I took a photo of a puck and goofed around with it in a graphics program. I cropped down a sliver of the pattern which looked ok when repeated vertically, and I tinted it blue to vaguely match the Admirals color scheme.

It's still an experiment, so it's currently only visible on the main page. After I figure out what I like, I'll slowly take the time to alter the dozens of web pages that make up the entire site in time for next season.

If you see something that looks obviously messed up on your screen, just drop me a line on my contact form.

And one last thing...
GO PENGUINS!!!!
9 June
2009

An unusual spurt of early summer player signings happened this week. Four returning players signed new contracts for 2009-10. We usually do not see many players signed until shortly before free agency begins in early July.

Nashville signed forward Triston Grant to a one year two-way contract. Grant missed two months of last season with a broken jaw suffered in Manitoba in January. He was one of my favorite players from last season for being a high-energy physical presence.

Milwaukee signed defenseman Mark Matheson to an AHL contract. In my mind, he was the most improved player from the previous year, when he was often a healthy scratch. He doesn't figure on the scoresheet often, but he does a fine job in his own end with smart positional play. I'm very pleased to have him back for another year.

Milwaukee signed defenseman Scott Ford to an AHL contract. Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from him at the beginning of last year. His ECHL-heavy resume did not impress me, and I figured he'd be low on the team's depth chart behind the Nashville prospects. Soon after the season rolled along, I changed my opinions. He provided some much needed toughness and played a responsible defensive game.

Milwaukee signed defenseman Russ Sinkewich to a two-way (AHL-ECHL) deal. He played five games with Milwaukee at the end of the season after finishing his senior year at Bowling Green. Because he's on a special contract, it will be easy for Milwaukee to send him to Cincinnati if there are too many Nashville defensive prospects on the roster.

Soon after the Calder Cup Final series wraps up, I'll put together a chart tracking the transactions of those who finished the season with Milwaukee along with those new faces we'll see next season.


On a personal note, I just completed a few days of jury duty. I lost what little respect I had for doctors and lawyers after going through this trial. Especially after hearing how much doctors are paid for providing one hour's worth of testimony. $700... and they didn't even have to come to the courthouse. They were video recorded weeks ago from their own offices!! Meanwhile, jurors are only paid $16 per day (plus a small travel payment) while being there against our will. That is ass-backwards.
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