GAME PREVIEW - MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS AT IOWA WILD 10.31.15
Oct 31, 2015Milwaukee Admirals (2-4-0-0, 4 points) at Iowa Wild (2-5-1-1, 6 points)
Iowa and Milwaukee meet for the second of eight meetings on the season. The two teams will meet twice in the next week with another visit from the Ads on Nov. 5. Iowa is coming off a 4-0 loss at Rockford on Friday night. Iowa is in the midst of playing three games over the course of three days. After Saturday, the Wild hosts Rockford on Sunday. The Admirals fell 3-2 at home to Manitoba on Thursday. Iowa and Milwaukee met eight times in 2014-15, with the Wild taking the season series with a 5-3-0-0 mark. The Admirals lead the all-time series, posting a 12-5-1-1 record over the previous three seasons. Milwaukee is 8-0-1-1 all-time at Wells Fargo Arena, where Iowa is 2-6-2-0. The Wild has never beaten Milwaukee in regulation at Wells Fargo Arena. In the only other meeting this season, the Admirals posted a 3-2 come-from-behind overtime win on Oct. 20 in Des Moines.
Iowa is 1-2-1-1 at home this season, having been outscored 18-11 by the visitors. The Wild is 2-3-1-0 over its last six games. In 2014-15, Iowa was 10-26-1-1 at home, getting outscored 123-86. Iowa plays five straight at home and nine of the next ten at Wells Fargo Arena. Milwaukee will play its next two games against the Wild, both at Wells Fargo Arena. The Admirals are 1-1-0-0 on the road this season, outscored 7-4. Last year, Milwaukee was 24-9-4-1 on home ice, outscoring the visitors 121-92. Milwaukee was 17-12-6-3 on the road last year, edged in scoring 107-104.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
vs. Milwaukee 10/31 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs Rockford 11/1 5:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Milwaukee 11/5 10:30 AM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Lake Erie 11/7 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Lake Erie 11/8 3:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
Transactions:
10.23.15: Delete – F Tanner Eberle – assigned to Quad City (ECHL)
10.23.15: Add – C Andrew Yogan - Signed PTO
10.25.15: Add – LW Kellan Lain - Signed PTO
10.31.15: Delete – F Jordan Schroeder recalled to Minnesota (NHL)
Last Time Out
The Iowa Wild were defeated by the Rockford IceHogs 4-0 in front of 3,420 fans at BMO Harris Bank Center on Friday night. Behind the play of goaltender Michael Leighton, Rockford used second-period goals from Brandon Mashinter and Dennis Rasmussen to pull away from the Wild and post a shutout at home. Leighton stopped all 20 Iowa shots, including nine in the middle period to increase his unbeaten in regulation string to five games. Forwards Pierre-Cedric Labrie and Dennis Robertson also scored in the Rockford win. Wild goalie Leland Irving suffered his first regulation loss of the year with 30 saves on 34 shots.
Iowa Wild
Rookie winger Christoph Bertschy leads the Wild in scoring with six points in nine games, including a team-leading four assists. Bertschy is tied for sixth in the AHL rookie-scoring race. Forwards Jordan Schroeder and Michael Keranen are tied for second in team scoring with five points each. In eight games, Schroeder has two goals and three assists. In nine games, Keranen has two goals and three assist. Center Brady Brassart (2g-1a-3 pts) and defenseman Mike Reilly are tied for fourth in scoring with three points each.
Goalie Jeremy Smith (0-4-1) is among the league leaders with 192 saves through five games played. He has a 3.38 GAA and a .919 SV%. Leland Irving has made four appearances, going 2-1-1 with a 2.19 GAA and a .934 SV%.
Iowa ranks 24th after going 4-for-36 (11.1%) on the power play. The team is 34-for-39 (87.2%) on the penalty kill - ninth in the AHL.
Notables:
· Left wing Kellan Lain is expected to make his Iowa home debut this weekend.
Milwaukee Admirals
The Admirals return 11 players from last year’s team that posted a 33-28-8-7 record with a fifth place finish in the Midwest Division. The club is missing two of its top scorers from the 2014-15 season, with Viktor Arvidsson and Austin Watson graduating to Nashville – Milwaukee’s NHL affiliate. Forward Colton Sissons is the new Captain of the Admirals, returning after potting 42 points in his second pro season last year. Left wing Pontus Aberg also returns after posting 16 goals as a rookie in 2014-15. Defenseman Taylor Aronson was also among the team leaders in points in 2014-15, leading all blueliners with 35 points in 73 games played. He is one of six players on Milwaukee with one point this season.
Goalies Marec Mazanec and Juuse Saros split time in net for Milwaukee. Mazanec is 1-2-0 with a 3.62 GAA and a .882 SV%. Saros is 1-2-0 with a 3.31 GAA and a .889 SV%.
Milwaukee is 6-30 on the power play, sitting tied for 11th in the league on the power play at 20.0%. The Admirals penalty kill is 19-for-27 and sits 29th at 70.4%.