The Milwaukee Admirals faced off against the Rockford IceHogs on Saturday in the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. It was a battle of the top-4 teams in the Central Division (Milwaukee, 2nd and Rockford, 4th). Little did the fans know what was in store for them. The two teams scored for four goals a piece, sending it to overtime. However, it wouldn’t be decided there. It would go to a shootout where Admirals goaltender, Troy Grosenick saved two of three Rockford attempts. The skaters for the Admirals also scored twice against the Rockford goaltender, giving the team it’s 17th win of the season.
As opposed to the win versus the Chicago Wolves where a rookie pushed the Admirals ahead, it was the opposite this time. Veteran AHL players like center Jasper Weatherby, right wing Denis Gurianov and defenseman Marc Del Gaizo all got on the scoresheet for the Admirals while aforementioned Troy Grosenick made 40 saves against the 44 shots he faced.
Last game’s hero, Zachary L’Heureux, was ejected in the first period for fighting (the AHL doesn’t allow fighting). The Admirals spent most of the time after the L’Heureux ejection on the backfoot. However, the fight may have uplifted the fans and players alike to see a rookie with such passion.
The only goal the IceHogs would score for the first two periods could score had happened prior to that. Weatherby would score to tie the game just 20 seconds after the IceHogs first goal. Going into the 1st intermission, the teams were tied at 1. In the 2nd period, it was all Admirals. Three more Admirals goals making it 4-1.
In the third period, the roles were reversed. The IceHogs scored three consecutive goals in the third while keeping the Admirals off the scoresheet and sending the game into overtime and eventually, a shootout. The three skaters for the Admirals were Denis Gurianov (missed), Jordan Gross (scored) and Egor Afanasyev (scored).
Egor Afanasyev goal + Troy Grosenick save = @mkeadmirals shootout victory 💫 pic.twitter.com/7xsJM4pFzw
— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) December 31, 2023
The Milwaukee Admirals Can Be Dangerous If All The Pieces Are On The Ice And Clicking, Led By Jasper Weatherby, Troy Grosenick.
With the win against the IceHogs, the Admirals have now won 17 games and keep with the Texas Stars for control of the Central Division. The Stars lead by only 4 points and can be easily overcome by the Admirals with the amount of games they have left.
The Admirals will face Rockford again away Sunday night. We can only hope that Sunday is as good as Saturday. The Admirals will have Gustavs Davis Grigals in the net for the second game, letting Grosenick rest.
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