For the fourth time in 16 days, the Milwaukee Admirals will prepare to face elimination from the Calder Cup Playoffs. After finishing its first round series a perfect 3-0 to pull off a “reverse sweep” of the Rockford IceHogs, the team’s hope to keep its back from the wall was spoiled by its second round opponent, the Texas Stars.
On the heels of a four-goal third period, the Stars downed the Admirals 6-1 on Wednesday night to take a 2-1 series lead in the five-game Central Division Finals. The squads, who have met in the playoffs for three consecutive seasons, had split the opening two meetings of the series in Cedar Park before heading north to Milwaukee.
“[The Stars] played good. They were fast and we couldn’t get to our game,” Karl Taylor, Admirals head coach, said in a press conference. “So tip your hat to them, and then we’ll reload and get ready for Friday.”
Texas seized its chances early in the contest, as Kole Lind found his sixth goal of the postseason for the Stars just under four minutes into the evening, putting the puck through Milwaukee netminder Matthew Murray’s legs on a low shot from the blue line.
The Stars kept pressure on Milwaukee through the first period, finishing the first 20 minutes with a 12-8 lead in shots. The Admirals put a scoring chance just outside of the net in the final minute of the frame, as forward Ozzy Wiesblatt tipped a cross-ice rush pass ever-so-slightly to the right of the goalpost.
After an infraction-free opening period, the penalty box had four tenants in the second frame. The Stars paired hooking and holding calls together as the period opened, leaving the Admirals with two full minutes of five-on-three hockey. Despite consistent puck movement, Texas goaltender Remi Poirier faced just two shots, turning both aside.
“You always want to score on the power play, and you don’t always do it,” Taylor said. “The five-on-three you really want to score on, obviously—that’s a huge advantage. And we had some looks. We got our set plays in. We ran the plays we wanted. You’re hoping to score there, and we didn’t.”
The Admirals were yet again put on the man advantage minutes later after Texas was caught with too many men on the ice. Poirier only had to make one save over the stretch, feuling a Texas team that would grow its lead with just under seven minutes left in the period. Taking advantage of the open space around him after receiving a cross-ice pass, Stars captain Curtis McKenzie found the far corner of the net to double Milwaukee’s workload for a comeback.
Special teams were put to use once again to close the second period, as the Stars were put on the power play following a charging call. The Admirals’ penalty kill amounted to the task, negating its ninth of ten power plays to open the series.
The penalty kill kicked momentum into Milwaukee, which cut the deficit in half just over six minutes into the final frame. After rushing up the ice to win a puck battle, Wisconsin native Spencer Stastney collected the rebound on his initial shot and put it past Poirier to light the lamp, awakening UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. The ensuing energy included the ringing of cowbells and the “It’s all your fault” chant of the Admirals crowd, which rained upon Poirier like a cloudburst after allowing his first goal of the contest.
However, Texas put a damper on the party just 71 seconds later by way of a Kyle Capobianco goal, as the defenseman wired a shot to the net from atop the left circle.
“Credit to them, they pushed back,” Kevin Gravel, Admirals defenseman and captain, said in a press conference. “We had 3-1 pretty quickly after [we scored]. And then that can kind of take the wind out of your sails sometimes. And I think it certainly did tonight.”
Having scored a timely goal to kill the Admirals’ momentum, the Stars would make sure to cash in on the lull, putting away an insurance goal just 35 seconds afterward. Emilio Petterson reached Jack Becker with a centering pass and the latter tipped the sweeping puck past Murray’s outstretched glove for his first goal of the postseason.
Discontent with the 4-1 margin on the scoreboard, Texas found the back of the net once more on a rush. Midway through the period, McKenzie connected with Cameron Hughes on a two-on-one chance, which bumped the lead to four. Following the score, Magnus Chrona replaced Murray in the net, who allowed five goals on 33 shots.
While the scoring slowed down following the goalie change, the game’s intensity only grew, peaking with a scrum as the contest reached its final minutes. The storm of penalties and misconducts settled with a Texas power play left in the dust, with which the Stars put the finishing touches on their dominant final period. Justin Hryckowian claimed the night’s final slot on the scoresheet with a power play tally, beating Chrona between the legs to finalize the 6-1 victory.
“Obviously, we don’t feel great about our game tonight, but we’ve done a really good job this year of turning the page,” Gravel said.
Having turned the page to pull off a reverse sweep in the opening round, the Admirals will look to channel the same energy, now pushed to the brink of elimination in Round Two. The Stars, meanwhile, will aim to punch their ticket to the Western Conference Finals with a victory in Game 4 on Friday night.
“We have a lot of good guys in the room, guys that really care, guys that love playing in Milwaukee,” Taylor said. “They’re going to find some energy and they’re going to be great on Friday—because that’s what they’ve done all season.”
This story was written by Lance Schulteis. He can be reached at lance.schulteis@marquette.edu.
