GAME PREVIEW - MILWAUKEE AT IOWA 10.7.17
Oct 7, 2017Milwaukee Admirals (0-0-0-0, 0 Points) at Iowa Wild (0-0-0-0, 0 Points)
Iowa welcomes Milwaukee to Wells Fargo Arena as both teams begin their 2017-18 campaign. Iowa is 1-3-0-0 in home openers, as well as season openers. Ironically, the Admirals visited the Wild for Iowa’s home opener in 2014, handing the Wild a 4-1 loss.
Iowa and Milwaukee met eight times during the 2016-17 season with each team earning four victories. Milwaukee held the edge in points earned by posting a 4-3-1-0 mark. Iowa was 3-1-0-0 at home against the Admirals in 2016-17. Iowa is 13-17-2-2 all time against Milwaukee, including a 6-9-2-0 mark all-time at home. Milwaukee is 21-9-3-1 against Iowa all-time, including an 11-3-2-1 mark in Des Moines.
Iowa opens the season with six of the first seven games at home. Milwaukee begins the season with five of the first seven games on the road. The Admirals will play the Wild again on Sunday before heading to Rockford on Oct. 15.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
vs. Milwaukee 10/7 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Milwaukee 10/8 5:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Ontario 10/13 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
at Rockford 10/14 6:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Manitoba 10/20 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
Transactions:
10.22.16: Delete – D Dylan Labbe – assigned to Quad City (ECHL)
Iowa Wild
Forwards Zack Mitchell and Kurtis Gabriel each enter their fourth season with the Wild in 2017-18. Mitchell is Iowa’s all-time leader in goals and games played. Gabriel is Iowa’s all-time leader in penalty minutes (PIM). Veteran forward Pat Cannone led Iowa in assists and points last season. Sam Anas, Colton Beck and Christoph Bertschy are among returning forwards for Iowa. Defensemen Nick Seeler, Hunter Warner and Zach Palmquist also return for the Wild in 2017-18.
Iowa has some new faces on the roster this season including forwards Landon Ferraro, Kyle Rau, Cal O’Reilly and Ryan Malone, along with defensemen Alex Grant and Ryan Murphy, as well as goaltender Niklas Svedberg. Malone signed a professional tryout agreement (PTO) with Iowa on Thursday. He has 647 games of NHL experience. In 2016-17, Grant finished second in goals among AHL defensemen. Svedberg was named the AHL’s Baz Bastien Award winner in 2012-13 (outstanding goalie).
Forward Luke Kunin, as well as defensemen Brennan Menell and Carson Soucy are among Iowa’s rookies this season. Kunin made his pro debut last season with Iowa. In his first home game, he recorded a first hat trick, the third in Iowa team history. Menell played in 70 games for the Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) in 2016-17. He led the team in assists with 59, placing third overall in points with 71. He also finished second in the WHL for points by a defenseman last season. Soucy turned pro after completing a four-year career at the University of Minnesota – Duluth where he registered 55 penalty minutes and 53 blocked shots in 35 games during his senior year. He skated in three games for Iowa last season.
Notables –
● Iowa finished fourth best in the AHL in 2016-17 with a 2.58 goals against average.
Milwaukee Admirals
There are 16 players on Milwaukee’s opening night roster that played for the club last season, including three of the club’s four top scorers: Vladislav Kamenev, Freddy Gaudreau and captain Trevor Smith.
Kamenev starts his second season for the Admirals in 2017-18. Last season, he finished third on the team in goals (21) and assists (31), as well as led the team with a +11 rating. The left winger also made his NHL debut in 2016-17 with a pair of games for Nashville. Gaudreau joins the Ads for his fourth season in 2017-18 after making his NHL debut last season. He appeared in eight games for the Predators in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He became the first player in 73 years to score his first three NHL goals in the Stanley Cup Finals. Smith wears the “C” for the second consecutive season for the Ads in 2017-18. He finished last season third on the team in scoring with 49 points in 74 games played.
Head Coach Dean Evason returns for his sixth season behind the Milwaukee bench.