Milwaukee Admirals

Moving On

Posted By: Aaron Sims

May 11

This will be the sappiest blog I write. That’s saying something. 

I’m taking this loss harder than any other I’ve been associated with.
 
To go from a blocked shot in the offensive zone to a game-winning goal for the other team in two blinks is tough to swallow.
 
I told Ryan Miller that the worst thing about the season ending is you lose touch with people while you’re away. It’s kind of like being in middle school. You develop relationships with kids that live on the other side of town. You see them all the time at school. Then summer comes and you can’t drive. You may not see your pals until September. I won’t see my broadcasting pals until next school year. That stinks.
 
Some of the players on this team won’t be back. Some will. I may never see some of those guys again. That stinks.
 
I don’t intend to be sad much longer. There were so many positives from this season. Man, it was fun.
 
Do you know how lucky I am as a broadcaster? I’ve never missed the playoffs in my time with the Admirals. In six seasons with the team, we’ve been in. My other broadcasting friends can’t say that. I’m not rubbing it in. I’m saying that I will never take a postseason appearance, no matter how short or long, for granted, nor should you.
 
Mark Dekanich and Linus Klasen represented Milwaukee in the AHL All-Star Classic. Both of those guys had TV moments with saves and shootout goals.
 
Check out these stats that President Greenberg handed to me.
 
  • The 2010-11 Admirals made the AHL playoffs for the ninth straight season.
 
  • The 2010-11 Admirals posted 102 points during the regular season. It was the eighth straight season of 90 points or more. The team also won 40-or-more games for the eighth straight season. The stretch of 40/90 is the best in the 75 year history of the AHL.
 
  • Over the past eight seasons (2003-04 to 2010-11), the Admirals are one of just two teams to accumulate 800 or more points: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 808; Milwaukee 804; Hershey 798; Connecticut 790; Chicago 772.
 
  • Fifteen former Admirals players were on the Nashville Predators roster at the end of the NHL season, the most homegrown products of any NHL franchise for the second straight year. Two of those players, Shea Weber and Pekka Rinne, are finalists for major NHL awards (Norris and Vezina, respectively).
 
One more thought from me. I saw my first NHL game in person when I was 10. It was at Met Center in Bloomington, MN as the North Stars (not “Stars”) hosted the Detroit Red Wings. Lane Lambert was a rookie forward for Detroit (I need to find that program).
 
Five years ago, after Todd Richards left to coach Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Lane was hired late in the summer to be Claude Noel’s assistant in Milwaukee. When Claude went to Columbus, Lane became the Admirals head coach. He is a phenomenal teacher and coach. No less an authority than Chris Chelios said last season that the adjustments Milwaukee made against Chicago were as impressive as he’s ever seen. Chelios has seen a little bit, right?
 
Lane deserves to be in the NHL. He knows how to coach. He knows how to deal with players. He knows how to deal with the media. He can get the most out of his players. Consider the tight race in the West Division this season. You think a guy that couldn’t motivate a team could get the team to first place when every night seemed to be a must-win? That’s coaching, baby. That’s coaching. Getting your players ready for each game of an 80-game season…that’s coaching.
 
When seasons or careers end, nobody misses the games. They miss the teammates. If/when Lane moves on, I’m going to miss him. He’s the easiest guy to work with as a broadcaster. It’s a shame the Admirals don’t get more media coverage. He’s the best quote in town, as was Claude Noel. He also has the best stories.
 
Lou Gehrig wishes he was me in the luck department. Gary Cooper probably does, too.
 
We’ll be doing some things this summer. I want to get you all together to watch the Stanley Cup. I hope you can attend the party. We’ll have special radio shows throughout the summer. A schedule is forthcoming. We will have a two-hour show May 16 beginning at 6pm.
 
Thanks to all of you for a great season. Follow me on Twitter and be my friend on Facebook. School’s out for summer.
 
P.S. An old friend of mine, Eric Rud, is the head coach of the Green Bay Gamblers. The team is playing for the Clark Cup Friday and Saturday at the Resch Center in Green Bay. Give them some love if you can.

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