 |
| Power
Play |
14TH
- 17.2 |
| Penalty
Killing |
6TH
- 84.4 |
| FORWARDS |
| CAL
O'REILLY |
16-63-79
(+9) |
| MATT
ELLISON |
26-32-58
(+1) |
| JOHN
VIGILANTE |
15-31-46
(+4) |
| DEFENSEMEN |
| JANNE
NISKALA |
19-25-44
(+6) |
| CODY
FRANSON |
11-25-36
(-11) |
| ALEXANDER
SULZER |
7-25-35
(+1) |
| GOALTENDERS |
| PEKKA
RINNE |
36-24-3
(5 SO)
2.47 GA
.908 PCT |
|
| DOV
GRUMET-MORROS |
4-4-0
(0 SO)
2.70 GA
.908 PCT |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
Milwaukee
at Chicago |
|
|
SCHEDULE |
| 1 |
APR.
16 |
MILWAUKEE
4 - CHICAGO 3
(OT) |
SEED
4 |
2 |
APR.
18 |
MILWAUKEE
1 - CHICAGO 2 |
SEED
1 |
44-29-2-3
(95) |
3 |
APR.
20 |
CHICAGO
4 - MILWAUKEE
3 (OT) |
53-22-2-3
(111) |
| |
4 |
APR.
23 |
CHICAGO
0 - MILWAUKEE 2 |
|
| |
5 |
APR.
24 |
MILWAUKEE
1 - CHICAGO 4 |
|
| |
6 |
APR.
26 |
CHICAGO
3 - MILWAUKEE
0 |
|
| |
7 |
APR.
28 |
MILWAUKEE
at CHICAGO |
|
| Chicago
Wins Series 4-2 |
|
SERIES
PREVIEW
|
| Adriel
Bettelheim - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Chicago Wolves
The Western Conference champions were an offensive juggernaut, racking up 300 goals and a .694 winning percentage that was one point shy of the 1999-2000 team’s franchise-best mark. Chicago is getting accustomed to seeing Milwaukee in the playoffs, having dispatched the 'Ads in four straight in last year’s West Division Semifinal. The Wolves won this year’s season series, 6-3-1-0, and are 17-2 in playoff series that begin at home.
Chicago’s high octane lineup is led by league MVP Jason Krog, who became just the third player in the AHL’s 72-year history to lead the league in goals (39), assists (73) and points (112) in 80 games. Krog has posted 17 goals and 46 points in 41 career Calder Cup playoff games.
Other Wolves to watch include Brett Sterling, who was tied for second in the league in goals (38) and who matched a Chicago franchise record with 10 game-winners. Joel Kwiatkowski led AHL defensemen with 21 goals and ranked third among blueliners with 50 points despite appearing in only 59 games due to NHL recalls.
The Wolves aren’t all about offense, however. Goaltender Ondrej Pavelec led AHL rookies with 33 wins in 52 regular season appearances and held the opposition to one or fewer goals 14 times this season. He even got a seven-game call-up to the parent Atlanta Thrashers in October and November.
Milwaukee Admirals
Coach Lane Lambert’s team put together an impressive stretch run, helped by outstanding goaltending from Pekka Rinne, who tied a franchise record and led the AHL with 36 wins this season, in spite of spending time with the NHL’s Nashville Predators.
The team’s offense revolves around playmaking center Cal O’Reilly, who was fifth in league scoring with 16 goals and 63 assists. The top six forwards include left wing Antii Pihlstrom (27 goals), center Matt Ellison (26) and right wing Josh Langfeld (22).
Defensemen Janne Niskala and Alexander Sulzer are capable of sparking the offense, and the roster is speckled with veterans like defensemen Nolan Yonkman and captain Alex Henry. Milwaukee’s best hope is to stifle the high-flying Chicago attack and to try to force a long series. |
|
| Game
1 |
Milwaukee
4 - Chicago 3 (OT) |
| by
Matt Chin - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Milwaukee
Leads Series 1-0 |
Rosemont,
IL - If any game was a prime example on why the
American Hockey League should go to a two referee system
for the playoffs, Wednesday night’s first Western Division
Semifinal game between the Chicago Wolves and the Milwaukee
Admirals would be that game. Postgame sound bites from
a dejected Wolves coach John Anderson showed at least
his team had issues with the officiating.
“Their third goal isn’t any different than the one they
called back from us. I just want you to know that. Because
all I want is a level playing field, very simple," said
Anderson. "I didn’t have a problem with all the calls
but you know what, it’s got to be the same for both teams,
when that happens there is a problem.”
In the first period the Wolves were very aggressive with
the puck where it seemed like they could do no wrong in
the game. There was great puck control on both sides of
the ice where the passing was sharp and crisp but neither
side could make the puck find the back of the net. The
Wolves outshot the Admirals 12-4. The first case of the
night where Chicago might disagree with the officiating
was a non-call where blood was drawn when Brett Sterling
was chasing the puck toward the Admirals goal and Pekka
Rinne raised his stick apparently slashing Sterling’s
face.
The start of the second was where the tide started to
go back and forth and chaos loomed and things started
to turn sloppy. Chicago was called for a rare too many
men on the ice penalty. Milwaukee’s Josh Langfield took
advantage of this with a slapper that got past Ondrej
Pavelec for the first goal of the game. The Wolves struck
next with two goals, one from Sterling and another from
a 2-on-1 break from Bryan Little.
The third is when things mounted where additional officiating
eyes were needed as the referee was way out of place when
calls we made. The Wolves started with a quick powerplay
goal as Brian Fahey fired a cross-ice dish to Jesse Schultz
who slapped the goal for the 3-1 lead. Langfeld then cut
the Admirals deficit to one on the deflected powerplay
goal in front of the net.
The Wolves midway through the period charged the net and
tried to get the puck past Rinne and defensemen Joel Kwiatkowski
was able to poke the puck from underneath Rinne and across
the goal crease but referee Shaun Davis called it a no
goal after he was out of position to see the goal go in.
Now we go the other way as the Admirals rushed Pavelec
with a player in the crease and on top of the Wolves netminder
where an interference call should have been made but the
puck popped out and Langfeld got the hat trick to tie
the game at three goals apiece.
And as predicted we have a close game that will be decided
with the next goal in overtime. Unfortunately for the
Wolves that decision came at the 6:07 mark where Pavelec
came out the play the shot where the rebound went to the
other side where Admiral’ center Cal O’Reilly kicked in
the puck on the wide open net. The Wolves protested the
kicking motion but the score stood and Milwaukee took
the first game 4-3.
Anderson closed his postgame statements saying the Wolves
needed to respond quickly to the setback. “We have to
regroup, we have to stay composed and come back and do
the same thing and hopeful we get a break," said Anderson.
"Playoffs are about playing hard and doing the all the
right things, but there’s one other thing called the X-factor,
you know that it referee’s calls, that’s bounces, and
where somebody screws up, that they would never do that
again, that is the X-factor. We didn’t have that tonight
but will hopefully have that the next game.”
And the next game comes Friday night at the Allstate Arena.
|
|
| Game
2 |
Milwaukee
1 - Chicago 2 |
|
by Matt Chin - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Series
Tied 1-1 |
Rosemont,
IL - The storyline might be the same as in Game 1 but
the results are much better for the Chicago Wolves as
they pulled out and 2-1 victory against the Milwaukee
Admirals in the second game of the Western Division Semifinals.
The event started even before the drop of the puck. During
the warm-ups a few words and slashes were exchanged as
both teams met at center ice to sort things out. After
a few minutes it was over with one helmet rolling on the
ice, no harm no foul.
The Admirals were at a disadvantage through no fault of
their own as they took the ice without two of their big
players. Matt Ellison was sidelined with an injury for
this tilt and Game 1 star Josh Langfeld was called up
by the Nashville Predators earlier in the day due to an
injury to Jason Arnott.
Wolves center Kevin Doell started the tallies with a big
fat rebound that came to him with a wide open net halfway
through the first period. After a scoreless second period
where the Admirals could only muster up four shots, they
came up to tie it in the third as John Laliberte flew
a shot over Chicago netminder Ondrej Pavelec’s shoulder.
But the Wolves quickly rebounded back in just 27 seconds
as Jesse Schultz scored his second goal in as many games
to give the Wolves the lead. Things got a little tense
with a late penalty call on the Wolves with just under
two minutes left but Pavelec and the Wolves prevailed
in another one goal decision.
“We are happy for a win, it was a huge game for us tonight
and we will just keep (it up) to Milwaukee,” Pavelec after
he made 27 saves for win. “It looks like it (could be
a series decided by goaltenders), but you know, it is
Chicago versus Milwaukee and not Pavelec against Pekka
Rinne. So we played unbelievable today again like last
time but today we had a little more luck. We played good
PK and the guys blocked the shots and we scored most important(ly)
the second goal.”
Rinne was no slouch either facing 37 plus shots in both
games. Chicago coach John Anderson praised the Admiral
goaltender and his team, “They played very hard, I got
to give them a lot of credit. They didn’t change their
game plan and they came very hard. Pekka Rinne was outstanding
and our goalie was outstanding. It was a great hockey
game, very exciting, right down to the wire.”
The series will continue on Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee.
|
|
| Game
3 |
Chicago
4 - Milwaukee 3 (OT) |
|
PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Chicago
Leads Series 2-1 |
Milwaukee,
WI - Darren Haydar converted a rebound of a Jason
Krog shot with 14:08 expired in the overtime period to
give the Chicago Wolves a lead in this best-of-seven series.
The power play goal was Haydar's second score of the contest.
Milwaukee took the lead in the third period when Josh
Langfield banged in a pair of goals. Langfield, who was
recently recalled and returned to the Admirals by the
Nashville Predators, fired a slap shot past Chicago netminder
Odrej Pavelec for this first goal. The game-tying goal
was registered by Langfield when he converted a short-handed
breakaway.
Chicago returned the favor when Kevin Doell mimicked Langfield
and scored a short-handed breakaway goal of his own with
11:24 expired in the final period getting the puck past
Milwaukee's Pekke Rinne with a deft move. Doell's tally
stopped the scoring in regulation and forced extra time
upon the two clubs.
The Admirals opened the see-saw affair with a goal by
Kelsey Wilson who scored when his shot tipped off a Chicago
defenseman into the goal. Chicago's Jesse Schultz evened
the score when he banged in a rebound late in the period.
Chicago then took the lead when Haydar converted on a
five-on-three power play when he tapped the puck past
Rinne.
The two clubs will have two days to rest up before they
play Game 4 in Milwaukee on Wednesday night.
|
|
| Game
4 |
Chicago
0 - Milwaukee 2 |
|
by Matt Chin - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Series
Tied 2-2 |
Milwaukee, WI - The Chicago Wolves were held scoreless in a 2-0 loss to the Milwaukee Admirals as Pekka Rinne had an outstanding night in holding off all 37 shots he faced. With the win the Admirals tie the Western Division Semifinals series at two games a piece.
Milwaukee center Rich Peverley, who just returned from the Nashville Predators, scored the first goal and eventual game-winner. Peverley broke away from the Wolves players and took a pass from Bryan Schmidt and fired a shot from the near circle past Wolves netminder Ondrej Pavalec for the tally at 5:45 in the third.
The Admirals finished off the scoring last in the period with an almost identical breakaway type play as Antti Pihlstrom stripped the puck away from the Wolves and went right in an unprotected Pavalec with a goal over his shoulder to cap the game.
Pavalec only faced 17 shots in the game but Rinne had another astounding game in goal. Rinne has faced an average of 36 shots per goal in the series. “I thought both goalies played well, “ said Wolves coach John Anderson. “Obiviously Pekka was outstanding, but it’s not like the two shots beat Ondrej weren’t tough. The good news is we can get right back tomorrow and take another crack.”
It is amazing that this game had only seven penalties and all but one was in the first period. The previous three games averaged 19 penalties with at least six of those called for roughing. This game had none at all.
The two teams meet again for game five of the series where it returns tomorrow to Chicago at the Allstate Arena for a 7:00 PM tilt. |
|
| Game
5 |
Milwaukee
1 - Chicago 4 |
|
by Matt Chin - PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Chicago
Leads Series 3-2 |
Rosemont,
IL - The Chicago Wolves looked like their old
selves after a one-game hiatus, taking Game 5 of their
first-round playoff series against the Milwaukee Admirals,
4-1, Thursday night to take a 3-2 series lead.
Wolves goaltender Ondrej Pavelec had a nearly perfect
game until Mark Matheson scored the Admirals only goal
with with a knuckleball shot eight seconds left in the
game. Pavelec faced 27 shots for the win while Pekka Rinne
had a rough night allowing four goals in the first two
periods before he was replaced in the third by Dov Grumet-Morris
who made his first playoff appearance.
Chicago scored early as Brett Sterling lifted a floater
from the near point over Rinne’s shoulder at the 1:59
mark and never looked back. The Wolves second goal was
like a picture perfect basketball shot as Nathan Oystrick
fired a puck the hit the backboard, bounced back on top
of the net and in front where Darren Haydar tapped it
in for the score.
Chicago got finished their scoring with two more in the
second, as defenseman Brian Fahey fired a one-timer from
the point. Joe Motzko completed the superfecta as he deked
with the puck that force Rinne to go one way while he
backhanded a shot in on the wide open net.
With such a big lead, there was a tendency to become lackadaisical
but Wolves assistant coach Wendell Young told the team
to come out and play in the third as if the score was
zero-zero and it paid off where the team played a consistently
in the third as they have in the first forty minutes.
The penalty kill was in superior form as the team faced
a two-man deficit three times in the game without allowing
a goal. The Wolves played man to man and didn’t allow
any Admirals to run away with a breakaway as they did
in last night’s game. Both teams played physical in front
of the net as each team was trying to develop the play.
“Our goaltender was spectacular on the penalty kills tonight.
That was the difference in the game right there,” said
coach John Anderson. “We got a lucky one off the boards
and our goalie stood up big on the five on three so that
made the difference in the game right there.”
Wolves center Bryan Little left the game near the end
of the first period after getting a stick to the mouth
that required stitches.
The Wolves can close out the series as the two team travel
back up to Milwaukee for Game 6 at the Bradley Center
on Saturday.
|
|
| Game
6 |
Chicago
3 - Milwaukee 0 |
|
PROHOCKEYNEWS.COM |
Chicago
Wins Series 3-2 |
Milwaukee,
WI - It was a night of firsts in Milwaukee for
the Chicago Wolves as two players collected their first
professional playoff goals and netminder Ondrej Pavelec
registered the first playoff shutout of his career.
Arturs Kulda opened the scoring when his shot deflected
off a Milwaukee defender's stick at the 7:19 mark of the
first period. Pavelec and Milwaukee netminder Pekka Rinne
matched each other save for save until Boris Valabik picked
up an unclaimed puck while shorthanded and lifted it behind
Rinne. Valabik finished the scoring with an empty-net
goal late in the third.
Pavelec made 30 stops for the Wolves who beat the Admirals
in the first round for the second consecutive season while
Rinne stopped 24 of 26 in front of his home crowd.
With the win the Wolves set up an all-Illinois West Division
final as they take on the Rockford IceHogs in the next
round. The series is slated to start on Thursday and has
a chance to be heavily attended. The two clubs are roughly
90 miles away from each other and Rockford is the top
farm club for the Chicago Blackhawks.
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
| Power
Play |
3RD
- 20.8 |
| Penalty
Killing |
7TH
- 84.4 |
| FORWARDS |
| JASON
KROG |
39-73-112
(+16) |
| BRETT
STERLING |
38-33-71
(+7) |
| JOE
MOTZKO |
37-43-70
(+10) |
| DEFENSEMEN |
| JOEL
KWIATKOWSKI |
21-29-50
(+23) |
| NATHAN
OYSTRICK |
15-28-43
(+8) |
| BRIAN
FAHEY |
14-23-37
(+13) |
| GOALTENDERS |
| ONDREJ
PAVELEC |
33-16-3
(2 SO)
2.77 GA
.911 PCT |
|
| ROBERT
GHERSON |
8-6-0
(2 SO)
2.61 GA
.914 PCT |
|
|
|
