Norfolk Drops The Penguins 4-1

From The Norfolk Admirals:

NORFOLK – Jay Rosehill and Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond each had three-point nights, Jeff Deslauriers made 31 saves and Josh Brittain broke a 1-1 tie early in the third period as the Norfolk Admirals (19-23-2-1) defeated the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (24-19-2-1), 4-1, on Friday night at Norfolk Scope Arena. The same teams play at Scope again tomorrow night.

Rosehill netted two goals, an assist and had a fight for the “Gordie Howe Hat Trick.” Letourneau-Leblond rung up a goal and two assists. Deslauriers (1-1-0) stopped 31of 32 shots for his first win as an Admiral, as Norfolk scored three unanswered goals in the third period.

Norfolk took a 1-0 lead 7:46 into the first period on Rosehill’s third goal of the season. After a strong forecheck behind the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton net, Letourneau-Leblond intercepted the puck along the right half wall. Letourneau-Leblond then sent the puck towards the net. Rosehill, who was stationed on top of the crease with his back to the goaltender, deflected the puck on his backhand between his legs and past Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goaltender Brad Thiessen.

The Penguins tied the game late in the second period. From the right half wall in the Norfolk zone, an Admirals forward attempted to wrap the puck around the end boards to a teammate on the opposite side. However, the puck caromed off a stanchion back towards the slot. Warren Peters found the carom and sent a shot over Deslauriers’ left leg at 17:42 to tie the game at 1-1.

Norfolk entered the third period with a tied score for the third straight game. This time, they exited the period with the win. Just over three minutes into the final frame, Devante Smith-Pelly entered the attacking zone along the left wing. He sent a pass to Brittain, who was trailing the play in the high slot. Brittain sent a wrist shot past Thiessen at 3:02 for his sixth goal of the season and a 2-1 lead.

Norfolk’s lead doubled just over three minutes later. Rosehill forced a turnover along the right wing and spotted Letourneau-Leblond in the right circle. As he saw the puck coming towards him, Letourneau-Leblond spun around and one-timed the puck between the right arm and leg of Thiessen for his first goal as an Admiral at 6:07.

Less than three minutes later, Letourneau-Leblond started the scoring on Rosehill’s second goal by forcing a turnover in the right corner. Chris Wagner then spotted Rosehill all alone on top of the crease, and Rosehill sent a quick one-timer past Thiessen at 8:59 for his fourth goal of the season.

Rosehill finished the “Gordie Howe Hat Trick” when he dropped the gloves with Bobby Farnham just 26 seconds later.

Deslauriers made the lead stand with 12 saves in the third period alone, as he earned his first Norfolk win.

Thiessen (9-9-1) stopped 23 of 27 shots in defeat.

Both teams were 0-for-5 on the power play.

The same teams will face off tomorrow night at Scope at 7:15 p.m. before the Admirals embark on a four-game road trip.

Three Stars:
1. Jay Rosehill – NOR
2. Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond – NOR
3. Jeff Deslauriers – NOR

NOTES … The Admirals (2-1-0-0, 4 points) now lead the season series with the Penguins (1-1-1-0, 3 points) by one point … Rosehill’s last Gordie Howe Hat Trick and multiple-point game in the AHL came on November 7, 2010, as he posted a goal, an assist and two fights for the Toronto Marlies at Oklahoma City … No player has more goals or points for Norfolk since January than Josh Brittain, who has six goals and eight points in 15 games since joining the Admirals from the ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets. Two of Brittain’s goals – including tonight’s – were game-winning tallies … Earlier today, the Danish National Team fell to Slovenia, 2-1, in the second game of their Final Olympic Qualification Tournament. With the win, Slovenia will claim Group F’s spot in the 2014 Sochi Olympics … Frederik Andersen, who is 9-10-1 in 23 games for the Admirals this season, posted a 1-1-0 record with one shutout, a 1.01 goals-against average and .960 save percentage in two games for Denmark during the final Olympic Qualification Tournament. Andersen leads all Group F goaltenders in GAA and SV% … Did not play: Gabe Guentzel, John Kurtz, Brandon McMillan, Troy Bodie, Matt Kennedy, Kyle Bushee.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 1 at Norfolk Admirals 4 – Status: Final
Friday, February 8, 2013 – Norfolk Scope

W-B/Scranton 0 1 0 – 1
Norfolk             1 0 3 – 4

1st Period-1, Norfolk, Rosehill 3 (Letourneau-Leblond), 7:46. Penalties-Samuelsson Wbs (slashing), 2:05; Letourneau-Leblond Nor (delay of game), 11:27; Parent Nor (boarding), 18:36.

2nd Period-2, W-B/Scranton, Peters 8   17:42. Penalties-Grant Wbs (interference), 2:47; served by Rosehill Nor (bench minor – too many men), 5:16; Guenin Nor (slashing), 10:05; Megna Wbs (hooking), 11:35; Wagner Nor (slashing), 15:18; Megna Wbs (charging), 18:42.

3rd Period-3, Norfolk, Brittain 6 (Smith-Pelly, Clark), 3:02. 4, Norfolk, Letourneau-Leblond 1 (Rosehill), 6:07. 5, Norfolk, Rosehill 4 (Wagner, Letourneau-Leblond), 8:59. Penalties-Farnham Wbs (fighting), 9:25; Rosehill Nor (fighting), 9:25; Kostopoulos Wbs (interference), 16:22.

Shots on Goal-W-B/Scranton 7-13-12-32. Norfolk 10-7-10-27.
Power Play Opportunities-W-B/Scranton 0 / 5; Norfolk 0 / 5.
Goalies-W-B/Scranton, Thiessen 9-9-1 (27 shots-23 saves). Norfolk, Deslauriers 1-1-0 (32 shots-31 saves).
A-5,267
Referees-Terry Koharski (10), Jeff Smith (49).
Linesmen-Tom George (61), Mark Hamlett (81).

Fists Fly, Offense Sputters….Admirals Fall To The Crunch 3-0

The Syracuse Crunch provided the opposition for last nights match up at Scope. Many of the players and coaching staff were on last seasons Calder Cup wining Norfolk Admirals.It was an awkward situation for many fans. You want to support your Admirals, but you also want to welcome back those familiar faces. I went an appropriate and traditional route. I clapped and cheered when the former Admirals took the ice for warm ups. When the Syracuse Crunch took the ice for the game I cheered for the Admirals. I learned early that you cheer for the crest on the jersey, not for the name on the back of the jersey. Now I am a Caps fan and I keep tabs on the Bears and the Caps prospects, but I am an Admirals fan and support the Admirals all season long. Last night it seemed like I was one of the few as it appeared that there were many more fair weather type fans that cheered on the Crunch as they shut out OUR Admirals and then skated to center ice and raise their sticks to salute the fans…..Admiral fans (hmmm.) Yes members of the Crunch were Admirals, but the past is the past. We won the cup, we had the nice streak, but its over and time to look into the future. Jay Rosehill put it into perspective… “”Those guys won here, and they’ve got some history, but this is our crowd, and this is our barn,the past is over. There’s going to be a clash, for sure, because they come in here like it’s going to be a reunion. We’re trying to establish that this is our place now.” Hopefully we can get the support of all the fans behind the ADMIRALS and get a win tonight. Our Admirals are the only team that should be raising their sticks on Scope ice.

Now for the game results….

Not much to talk about as far as scoring. The league leading Crunch brought their “A” game to town and it showed. Richard Panik opened up the scoring for the Crunch with a power play goal at 2:28 of the first period. Tyler Johnson scored on a slap shot at 14:50 of the first. Both teams went scoreless in the second to keep the game at 2-0 Crunch. Keith Aulie closed out the scoring at 17:04 to give the Crunch a 3-0 victory.

The Admirals offense was almost non-existent. Dustin Tokarski turned aside all 22 shots he faced. The Admirals are going to need to turn up the heat and put some shots on Tokarski. We know Tic is not a wall and we have witnessed many a melt down in net last year. The Admirals need to get the shots flying and apply the pressure. The wall will crumble.

We saw a very physical game last night. Tempers flared and fists were flying. The highlight of the night was Jay Rosehill’s dismantling of Eric Neilson. There was no skating in circles and posturing in this match. Rosehill flew into the fight and pounded Neilson. Neilson tried to keep up, but I give the fight clearly to Rosehill. Tonight will probably very physical as well, but lets hope our offense shows up as well.

LETS GO ADMIRALS!!

Syracuse Crunch 3 at Norfolk Admirals 0 – Status: Final
Friday, January 4, 2013 – Norfolk Scope

Syracuse 2 0 1 – 3
Norfolk     0 0 0 – 0

1st Period-1, Syracuse, Panik 16   2:28 (PP). 2, Syracuse, Johnson 20   14:50. Penalties-Conacher Syr (roughing), 2:08; Wagner Nor (roughing, roughing), 2:08; Holland Nor (interference), 3:22; Pelley Nor (boarding), 8:53; Conacher Syr (misconduct – continuing altercation), 16:33; Gudas Syr (fighting), 16:33; Neilson Syr (fighting), 16:33; Bodie Nor (fighting), 16:33; Clark Nor (misconduct – continuing altercation), 16:33; Rosehill Nor (fighting), 16:33; Palat Syr (high-sticking), 18:27.

2nd Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Gudas Syr (misconduct), 6:15; Namestnikov Syr (fighting), 6:15; Neilson Syr (misconduct – continuing altercation), 6:15; Bodie Nor (misconduct – continuing altercation), 6:15; Hendry Nor (fighting), 6:15; Rosehill Nor (misconduct), 6:15; Panik Syr (diving), 7:58; Parent Nor (interference), 7:58; Connolly Syr (delay of game – faceoff violation), 10:29; Aulie Syr (interference), 18:26; Holland Nor (tripping, misconduct – abuse of officials), 19:33; Wyman Syr (high-sticking), 20:00.

3rd Period-3, Syracuse, Aulie 3 (Killorn), 17:04. Penalties-Korobov Syr (hooking), 2:35; Gudas Syr (charging), 14:29.

Shots on Goal-Syracuse 10-8-11-29. Norfolk 6-5-11-22.
Power Play Opportunities-Syracuse 1 / 3; Norfolk 0 / 6.
Goalies-Syracuse, Tokarski 14-5-3 (22 shots-22 saves). Norfolk, Andersen 7-8-0 (29 shots-26 saves).
A-6,285
Referees-Terry Koharski (10).
Linesmen-Luke Murray (92), Scott Pomento (25).

Corey Elkins OT Goal Lifts The Admirals Over The Whale 5-4.

Corey Elkins provided the bulk of the Norfolk offense Friday Night. Elkins scored two in regulation and the game winner with less than 30 seconds remaining in OT to help lift the Admirals over the Whale.

Norfolk would jump out to an early lead as Elkins stole the puck from Connecticut defenseman Matt Gilroy and sent the puck to the back of the Whale net at 1:02. The lead would not hold for long as Gilroy answered back with a goal of his own that beat Igor Bobkov at 2:55. The score remained 1-1 until the halfway point of the first period. Elkins would get goal number two of thenight while both teams skated at four aside. Sami Vatanen stole the puck in the Whale zone and passed to Nate Guenin, Guenin returned the puck to Vatanen who found Elkins in the right slot. Elkins would lift the puck over Whale goalie Jason Missiaen at 9:47.

The Whale came back and tied the game at 2-2 halfway through the second period. Matt Gilroy would get his second power play goal of the game. Kyle Jean fed a pass to Gillroy who then sent a shot through a screen and into the Admiral net at 9:13. Norfolk answered back three minutes later with a goal from Jay Rosehill at 12:02. Two minutes later Sami Vatanen and Kyle Palmieri would assist on a Peter Holland power play goal to give Norfolk a 4-2 lead at 14:16.

The third period was all Connecticut Whale. Former Calder Cup Admiral Brandon Segal scored a pair of goals to tie the game up at 4 goals each. Segal would get his first goal a 4:03 and followed up with the second with 1:36 remaining in regulation. The Admirals were unable to regain the lead and this game went to overtime.

The overtime period was a defensive battle and it seemed that the game wold go to  a shootout. Ryan Lasch took the puck from behind the net and passed to Vatanen in the left circle. Vatanen passed the puck to Elkins in the right circle. Elkins burried the puck behind Missianen at 4:30 for the hat trick and the Admiral 5-4 win.

Norfolk and Connecticut will meet again Saturday night at Scope. Game time is at 7:15 p.m. Don’t forget that ODU will play Northern Virginia Community College at 2:00 p.m. Your ticket to the Admirals game get you in to see both games.

Connecticut Whale 4 at Norfolk Admirals 5 (OT) – Status: Final OT
Friday, October 19, 2012 – Norfolk Scope

Connecticut 1 1 2 0 – 4
Norfolk         2 2 0 1 – 5

1st Period-1, Norfolk, Elkins 1   1:02. 2, Connecticut, Gilroy 1 (Kolarik, Newbury), 2:55 (PP). 3, Norfolk, Elkins 2 (Vatanen, Guenin), 9:47. Penalties-Rosehill Nor (hooking), 2:32; Palmieri Nor (cross-checking), 8:57; Kolarik Ct (hooking), 9:01; McMillan Nor (tripping), 17:17.

2nd Period-4, Connecticut, Gilroy 2 (Jean, Newbury), 9:13 (PP). 5, Norfolk, Rosehill 1 (Wagner, Bodie), 12:02. 6, Norfolk, Holland 2 (Palmieri, Vatanen), 14:16 (PP). Penalties-Kreider Ct (major – boarding, game misconduct – boarding), 3:58; Vernace Ct (unsportsmanlike conduct), 3:58; Hendry Nor (unsportsmanlike conduct), 3:58; Bobkov Nor (delay of game – restricted area), 8:14; Parlett Ct (tripping), 9:49; Haley Ct (kneeing), 13:37; Mitchell Nor (holding the stick), 14:57.

3rd Period-7, Connecticut, Segal 1 (Miller, Vernace), 4:03. 8, Connecticut, Segal 2 (Jean, Vernace), 18:24. Penalties-Tessier Ct (interference), 2:04; Smith-Pelly Nor (interference), 2:46; Gilroy Ct (slashing), 7:39; Wagner Nor (tripping), 10:29.

OT Period-9, Norfolk, Elkins 3 (Vatanen, Lasch), 4:30. Penalties-No Penalties

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 6-13-8-3-30. Norfolk 11-6-9-3-29.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 2 / 7; Norfolk 1 / 6.
Goalies-Connecticut, Missiaen 0-2-0 (29 shots-24 saves). Norfolk, Bobkov 2-0-0 (30 shots-26 saves).

A-3,511

Referees-T.J. Luxmore (49), Fred Leblanc (30).
Linesmen-Mark Hamlett (81), Luke Murray (92).

Admirals Sign Jay Rosehill to PTO

And It’s Official……

Norfolk Admirals Press Release:

Admirals Sign Jay Rosehill to PTO

NORFOLK – Norfolk Admirals Assistant General Manager Bob Ferguson today announced that the Admirals have signed forward Jay Rosehill to a Professional Tryout Contract (PTO). The contract is valid for as many as 25 regular season games.

Rosehill appeared in 123 games with the Admirals between the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons. He scored eight goals and 19 points with 415 penalty minutes in those games. Rosehill ranks fourth in penalty minutes all-time in AHL Admirals history. He joins defensemen Jordan Hendry (2005-06 – 2006-07) and Matt Smaby (2007-08 – 2009-10) as former Admirals on the current training camp roster.

Rosehill, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound forward who is entering his eighth professional season, has appeared in 327 career AHL games between Norfolk, Toronto and Springfield, netting 19 goals and 46 points with 928 penalty minutes. The 27-year-old has also played 72 career NHL games with the Toronto Maple Leafs, scoring two goals and five points with 198 penalty minutes.

The Norfolk training camp roster now contains 35 players – 23 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders. Click here for an updated training camp roster.

The Admirals will play the Charlotte Checkers in a pair of preseason contests this weekend in Hampton Roads. On Saturday, the game will be played at Scope beginning at 7:15 p.m. Tickets for this game are $10 for all seats and are on sale now at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com.

The second game will be played at the Chilled Ponds Ice and Turf Sports Complex on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. General admission tickets for this game are $10 and will only be available through the Chilled Ponds Ice and Turf Sports Complex. They may be purchased on site (1416 Stephanie Way, Chesapeake, Virginia) or online at chilledponds.com. Limited seating is available only on a first-come, first-served basis. Proceeds will benefit the Chilled Ponds Ice and Turf Sports Complex youth hockey programs. For more details, please call (757) 420-4488.

The 2012-13 Admirals hockey regular season begins on Friday, October 12, at Norfolk Scope Arena against the Charlotte Checkers. Individual tickets are on sale now at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com.

Don’t miss a minute of Admirals action by purchasing your season tickets today. Stop by the Admirals’ Administrative Offices at Scope, call (757) 640-1212 weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or visit norfolkadmirals.com anytime.

Jay Rosehill Returns To The Norfolk Admirals

Rumor has it … Seen On The Ice At Camp wearing # 3…….Something that will sure make most of us Admiral fans happy. Former Admiral Jay Rosehill returns to the Norfolk Admirals. Most likely a training camp tryout, but lets hope he does well and earns a roster spot for the season. The former Toronto Maple Leaf / Marlies winger last saw action with Norfolk during the 2008-09 season before being traded to the Toronto organization.

Jay Rosehill was selected in the 7th round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft (227th overall) by the Tampa Bay Lightning. He continued to play for the Olds Grizzlys of the AJHL in the 2003-04 season. The next season, he played for University of Minnesota Duluth of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. For most of the next four

Photo: John Wright

seasons, he was placed in the Tampa Bay Lightning farm system, playing for both Johnstown Chiefs of the ECHL and the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League in 2005-06 and 2006-07. Due to new Tampa Bay farm system affiliations, he played for Mississippi Sea Wolves of the ECHL and the Norfolk Admirals of the American Hockey League in 2007-08 & 2008-09. On March 10, 2009, his was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs organization for future considerations.

Rosehill last faced the Admirals as a member of the Toronto Marlies Calder Cup finals team that fell to our own Calder Cup Champion Admirals. It will be nice to see Jay in an Admirals jersey once more. He is not the type of player to back down from anyone and would bring a physical presence to the ice. Rosehill and the Admirals kick of the pre-season this Saturday, October 6, at the Norfolk Scope. Tickets are still available. Get your today.

Calder Cup Finals Observations and Comments

By Ken Peacock

The Calder Cup Finals finally kicked off in Norfolk this past Friday night. The night started off with the raising of 4 new banners to the Norfolk Scope rafters. There was one banner each for the winning the East Division title, the AHL regular season points title, the Eastern Conference title. The fourth banner recognized the Admirals for their history making 28-game winning streak. There was also a trophy presentation that was rudely interrupted by the Toronto players pre-maturely skating onto the ice.

Photo: L. Todd Spencer – The Virginian Pilot

The game itself was fun to watch from the fans perspective. This was the first time that the Marlies and the Admirals have ever met in regular or post-season action. This was the game that would be used to feel each other out and see what could or could not be done. It was a penalty filled affair that saw the Admirals taking more penalties than we would normally like them to take. The upside to the penalties was that the Admiral offense managed to put the puck on net with over 40 shots. The Toronto media had stated that “Toronto has had the benefit of going into sparsely filled rinks and quickly taking out what little crowd atmosphere there has been. The Scope in Norfolk won’t likely sell out either.”    Well I can understand why they may have said that as Toronto has never been down here before. The end result was Norfolk packing the house with a loud crowd and taking a 3-1 victory over the Marlies.

Saturday night the Admirals played before a sellout crowd. It was noticeably colder in the arena than it was the previous night. The honeymoon was over and both teams got down to business. It was a tighter and faster game. The Admirals cut back on the penalties that they took and skated away from any retaliation penalties. Norfolk scored the first goal again and never looked back. The Admirals shut down the Marlies and won the match 4-2. The series now moves to Toronto for games 3,4, and 5 (if needed). Let’s hope they do not have to share this flight up north with the Marlies.

Photo: L. Todd Spencer – The Virginian Pilot

I was not too impressed with the Marlies. Yes they played well and made the finals. If they are as good as what I have read it did not show this weekend. I understand that they have some injuries to some key players, but then what team has not had that happen. The Admirals have had to pull thru some tough times. Cooper has had to Band-Aid the team up and they have answered the call. Ben Scrivens is a great goaltender and was responsible for keeping the Marlies within range of coming back. He was also a pest that should have been penalized a few times for his actions against Admiral players. Just ask Alex Picard what he thought about the goal stick across the eye in game 1 or the goalie interference call in game 2. Jay Rosehill did his best Louis Robitaille impersonation, but the Admirals did not fall for it.  I have never truly appreciated Carter Ashton. Yes he can play, but it’s the tough guy image that he tries to put on that makes me laugh. He did it here and still does it in Toronto. Ashton needs to stick to scoring and leave the tough guy thing to thugs like Rosehill. The Marlies as a whole were not able to adapt to the Admirals. Norfolk just outplayed them this weekend.

Future AHL referee

AHL officials……Hmm…..  I don’t know if it is AHL policy or not, but was it intentional to send the worst officials to the Calder Cup Finals? Embarrassing is one word to describe the officiating performance this weekend. Dave Andrew should be ashamed of what he saw. I understand that there is a tendency to let the boys “play”, but there were some really blatant blown calls. I really feel bad for Alex Picard. He found himself on the bottom of a pile and the Marlie goalie nailed him in the head with the stick and dragged the blade across his eye. In game 2 the goalie came out of the crease and blocked Picard and Alex got called for interference. Yes I am bitching about non-calls that would have benefited Norfolk. I am also bitching about calls made against the Admirals. Some may ask “Why are you bitching when your team won?” Well……The officiating blatantly sucked! There was no hiding that from the sellout crowd. I am just a passionate hockey fan.

Now let’s concentrate on the games ahead.  The Admirals need 2 more to win the Calder Cup. The quest resumes this Thursday in Toronto. There are plenty of options to enjoy this game. We have the radio, internet, and on WGNT TV in the Hampton Roads area.. Big Woody’s will be showing the game