Manitoba Moose

MANITOBA CLOSES OUT SEASON SERIES WITH MILWAUKEE TOMORROW

By Kalen Qually

For the second time this season the Moose surrendered seven goals in a 7-2 loss to the Milwaukee Admirals in front of 6,893 fans at MTS Centre on Friday night.  All of Manitoba’s offence came from the blueline as defencemen Travis Ramsey and Mathieu Schneider netted the pair of Moose goals. Both Cory Schneider and Manitoba product Rejean Beauchemin saw ice-time in the loss.

The first few minutes played out with few shots getting through to the net for either team, but the Admirals were presented the first real opportunity of the game. Manitoba’s recently recalled centre Derek Leblanc took a tripping penalty three minutes into the frame and the home team’s  penalty kill went to work.

The best opportunity of the odd man situation belonged to the Moose. Mario Bliznak and Mike Keane maneuvered a shorthanded two-on-two break into a quality scoring chance toward the end of Leblanc’s penalty, but Milwaukee’s tender Mark Dekanich was there to stone the Moose captain. Manitoba killed off the rest of the penalty and extended their PK streak to 22.

Soon after that Manitoba’s Leblanc, who was called up from the CHL’s Rapid City Rush to replace the injured Marty Murray at centre, tried to make amends for his earlier gaffe. On his next shift he forechecked furiously and finished a pair of solid hits on Admirals’ players.

A ‘knuckler’ is the only way to describe the first goal of the game. Off a clean faceoff won by Milwaukee’s Oren Eisenman, Mark Matheson was fed the puck at the point and flubbed on the one timer. The puck arched toward the net and fooled Schneider on the blocker side. The goal isn’t going to make highlight of the night, but it counts. Thirteen minutes into the game it was 1-0 for the visitors.

The Admirals second goal just over a minute later was far less of a fluke. Manitoba’s defensive pair was caught out of position and Peter Olvecky found a pinching Jonathan Blum, who then tucked the puck into the open cage.

Already facing a two-goal deficit, the second period did not open to much better results for the hometown boys. One minute and forty-one seconds into the second frame, Milwaukee’s Triston Grant capitalized on a giveaway in Manitoba’s end. Just over two minutes later, Chris Mueller scored for the Admirals again.

Winnipeg product Rejean Beauchemin was called up earlier in the day to backup Manitoba’s Cory Schneider. Ideally, Beauchemin would have wanted to make his hometown debut with the Moose under different circumstances but he was thrown to the Admirals at 3:53 of the second period.

Forty seconds into Beauchemin’s cold start, a scramble around the Moose cage resulted in the Admirals’ Wacey Rabbit extending his team’s lead. Before the halfway point in the game the Moose found themselves down 5-0.

With scoring chances so hard to come by for the Moose, Guillaume Desbiens tried to spark the home team the best way he could think of: by fighting the Admirals’ captain. With most other teams, fighting the captain might not be as difficult but the Admirals’ Nolan Yonkman stands at 6’6”, 247-pounds. Desbiens held on early in the bout and lasted a full round before Yonkman scored the takedown.

The Moose were given a powerplay opportunity of their own at 13:24 when Milwaukee’s Eisenman was called for hooking. Manitoba moved the puck masterfully on the powerplay getting three clear shots away before the veteran Mathieu Schneider let one rip and scored unassisted off a banked shot at 15:13.

Before the crowd quieted down, the Moose pulled to within three goals as Travis Ramsey scored his first goal of the year from the point with Matt Pettinger providing the blanket on the Admirals’ goalie. The second ended with the game still within reach, 5-2 Admirals.

Beauchemin wasn’t the only Winnipegger making his hometown AHL debut in tonight’s game. The Admirals’ rookie forward Colin Wilson was also playing to family and friends. After assisting on the Admirals’ fourth goal, Wilson also opened the scoring in the third with a goal at 3:51 of the final frame.

The Moose failed to score on a number of opportunities later in the period, including a juicy rebound in the slot that Mario Bliznak could not deposit. The Admirals’ Dekanich somehow found Bliznak’s shot while sliding across the crease from far out of position. Halfway through the third and the score remained 6-2 with the shots split at 26 apiece.

The Admirals were not done there though, as the Moose surrendered a seventh goal to Milwaukee at 14:27 of the third off the stick of Hugh Jessiman. Jessiman’s goal tied a season high of seven goals in one game for the Admirals.