Milwaukee, WI – Winger Derek Nesbitt notched two goals as the Rockford IceHogs defeated the Milwaukee Admirals 4-1 Monday night at the Bradley Center. The loss was Milwaukee’s second straight to Rockford.

During the first 20 minutes of play, both teams played with a rivalry-worthy level of aggression and the period was marked by hard hits, five penalties and key plays by the defensive lines. To the dismay of the Admirals, the IceHogs would strike first at the 11:05 mark of the period. Michael Blunden fired a shot that ricocheted off of netminder Dov Grumet-Morris’ shoulder and into the net. The IceHogs weren’t finished, however, and lit the lamp again with only 25 seconds to go as Nesbitt went five-hole from the right face off circle. The second period started as a battle between goalies. Both Milwaukee and Rockford took more shots on goal than they did in the first but Grumet-Morris and Wade Flaherty kept the score unchanged for over half the period. The lone goal of the second period put the IceHogs ahead 3-0 as Nesbitt tallied his second of the night at 13:28.

The last 20 minutes of play began similarly to the second with Flaherty and Grumet-Morros keeping the score at 3-0 for much of the period. Ads fans finally had a reason to cheer when Antti Pihlstrom rippled the mesh at the 13:26 mark. Pihlstrom took a slapshot from the right face off circle and beat Flaherty glove-side.

The tide turned quickly back in favor of the IceHogs as Petri Kontiola potted an empty-netter at the 17:42 mark. With just over two minutes to go, the Ads couldn’t muster a comeback and Rockford held on to win 4-1.

With his third period goal, Pihlstrom tied Matt Ellison for the top spot among goal scorers for the Admirals. Both players have notched 23 goals so far this season.

The Admirals are on the road this week for two away contests, facing off against Grand Rapids and Quad City. They return to the Bradley Center to take on the Houston Aeros Sunday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. Fans can purchase tickets for any Admirals home game by calling the Admirals office at (414) 227-0550 or by logging onto www.Ticketmaster.com.