MILWAUKEE - The Admirals put on quite the show for the home crowd Friday night, as 10 different players earned points in the 6-3 win over the North Division Lake Erie Monsters. Forward Michael Latta earned a Gordie Howe hat trick, while goaltender Anders Lindback earned his first AHL win of the season.
Lindback, who was sent to Milwaukee from the Nashville Predators Friday afternoon, hasn't played an AHL game since February of 2011. In eight appearances with the Predators, Lindback has gone 2-4-0 with a 2.95 goals against average so far this season. He stopped 30 of 33 shots, and at 6'6, the 23-year old Swede was certainly a change of pace in the Milwaukee net for coach Ian Herbers.
"Big guy, nice having a guy in there that covers up most of the net... He got tested, we gave up too many shots and too many opportunities, so he got work which is what he came down here for."
Lindback will start tomorrows game, but Herbers expects that he'll head back to Nashville afterwards. Although it's shaping up to be a short two-game stint in Milwaukee, Lindback is making the best of his time between the Milwaukee pipes. When asked what the Predators asked him to work on during his AHL-stint, Lindback said there was nothing specific, and that they just wanted to get him some ice time in a game situation.
Forward Michael Latta, who earned first star of the game honors, earned a Gordie Howe Hat Trick, scoring a first period goal, tallying a third period assist, and throwing down the gloves with Monsters defenseman Mike Brennan in the second. He now sits two points back from team-leader Chris Mueller with 21 points on the season.
Of Milwaukee's six goals, four were scored in the second alone. Ryan Flynn notched his first goal of the season at the beginning of the second, while Scott Ford, Kyle Wilson and Victor Bartley each contributed a goal to make it a 5-2 game going into the third period.
Juuso Puustinen scored his 11th of the season midway through the third to give Milwaukee their sixth and final goal of the night.
Aside from lighting the lamp, the Admirals lit up the score sheet. Milwaukee, who has the least penalty minutes in the AHL, accumulated 30 minutes worth of penalties, including four fighting majors. Two of those majors came from forward Zack Stortini, whom of which impressed Herbers with his physicality on the ice.
"Stortini was a force out there. He was a presence all night long, in there face, making the game difficult for them. I thought it was a great game for him tonight."
Lake Erie saw goals from Patrick Rissmiller, Evan Brophy and Tyson Barrie, while goal leader Hugh Jessiman was held scoreless in the contest. Jessiman, who has 17 goals and 2 assists in 30 games with Lake Erie, played for the Admirals during the 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 seasons.
The Admirals return to the Bradley Center tomorrow night to face off against the Midwest Division-leading Charlotte Checkers.
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