With Nick Spaling recalled to Nashville for the foreseeable future, the Admirals will replace him in the lineup with Jamie Lundmark. Lundmark had been on the injured list in Nashville recovering from a groin injury.

 

We should also see Steve Begin in a Milwaukee uniform this weekend. The 32-year-old Begin has appeared in 486 NHL games split between the Flames, Canadiens, Stars and Bruins. In that time, he has 52 goals and 48 assists to go along with 535 minutes in penalties. Begin is known as a hard-working player that is well-liked by teammates and fans alike. It’s been rumored that he’ll be with the Admirals to get in shape. However, Nashville has many players in Milwaukee that are close to ready for the NHL, so maybe Begin will be in Milwaukee longer than we all thought.

 

It’s conceivable that Begin and Spaling will both be in the NHL. Nashville’s penalty killing unit entered Wednesday ranked 28^th out of 30 teams in the NHL. With Spaling on the Preds roster and Begin eventually getting there, Nashville would have two solid killers to put on the ice. People keep asking when Spaling will be back in Milwaukee. If he plays well in the penalty killing role he’ll be asked to play, I don’t know that he will be back. He played 28 games with the Preds last season and also appeared in the playoffs.

 

Spaling was being asked to become more of an offensive force in Milwaukee. He was inserted as the center on what would be considered Milwaukee’s top line along with Linus Klasen and Andreas Thuresson. However, Spaling may have more value to Nashville immediately as a penalty killer than he would later with a more well-rounded offensive game. While Spaling is a talented center, I’ve heard the organization prefers him on the wing. He’ll be a wing with the Predators.

 

Admirals head coach Lane Lambert stated on Milwaukee Admirals Center Ice Monday night that he isn’t anxious to shake up the lines. That leads me to believe that Lundmark will take Spaling’s place with Klasen and Thuresson. Lundmark is a former first-round pick by the New York Rangers. He’s played 295 NHL games. In 306 AHL games, he has accumulated 227 points.

 

Lundmark is a proven commodity in the AHL. Begin is a Scott Nichol-type player. While the Admirals will certainly miss the game of Nick Spaling, the short-term with Lundmark and Begin should be exciting.

 

Moving on…

 

 

If you haven’t been checking out Admirals Rountable, what’s been keeping you?

 

Former Admirals defenseman Reid Cashman has five points in 12 games for Linz EHC in the Austrian League.

 

Tied for the scoring lead for the Admirals next opponent, Grand Rapids, is former University of Wisconsin defenseman Brendan Smith. Of course Smith and Admirals forward Blake Geoffrion helped lead the Badgers to the NCAA Championship game last season.

 

I leave you with former Admirals goalie Mikhail Shtalenkov, who celebrated his 45^th birthday Oct. 20.