Milwaukee, WI--Jed Ortmeyer scored two goals while Mark Dekanich made 28 saves to lead the Milwaukee Admirals to a 4-1 win over the Iowa Chops Sunday afternoon at the Bradley Center.

Although the score didn’t pick up quickly in the beginning, the hitting and tension did. This was highlighted when just under three minutes into the game the gloves dropped between Admirals tough guy Triston Grant and Chops left winger Ryan Donally. Although no goals were scored in the first stanza, there was a combined 16 penalty minutes and 17 shots between the two teams.

The second period saw nearly the opposite of the first. There was only one penalty, served by Milwaukee’s Stephen Werner, but both teams were finally able to jump on the scoreboard.

The first goal would come in the Admirals favor at 6:01 of the second when rookie Nick Spaling received a pass from linemate Patric Hornqvist. He was all alone as he strode down the middle of the offensive zone and, rather than passing, he fired a low wrister that beat the left handed Jean-Philippe Levasseu glove side. It was Spaling’s seventh goal of the season. Milwaukee’s captain Nolan Yonkman also recorded an assist on the play for his fourth point of the season.

The Chops would even the score with 7:53 left in the second on a goal from Michigan State Spartan alum Drew Miller. A blistering slapshot was taken from inside the blue line by defenseman Brennan Evans, and Miller was right in front of the net to deftly deflect the puck past the Ads goaltender Mark Dekanich. Petteri Wirtanen was given credit for an assist on the play as well.

A tie-game wouldn’t suffice for the Admirals, especially if Milwaukee newcomerJed Ortmeyer had something to say about it. Defenseman Alexander Sulzer kept the puck in the offensive zone on a clear attempt by throwing it down low into the Chops corner, and forward Ryan Jones was there to scoop it up. With patience, Jones waited until Ortmeyer was all by himself in front of the net and served him a perfect one-timer, giving Jed his second goal of the season.

The third period started in favor of the Admirals, and things would only get better, especially for Ortmeyer. After failing to capitalize on a two-man-advantage early on, at even strength Mark Matheson blasted a slapshot from the point that Levasseu stopped with a pad save. However, Ortmeyer was waiting with eager hands to pop the rebound past the netminder’s stick side for his second goal of the game.

Milwaukee’s fourth goal stemmed from hard gritty play in front of the net with 10:38 left in the game. Forward Triston Grant attempted a wrap-around stuff that was initially blocked by Levasseu, but refusing to give up on the play was Stephen Werner who came diving into the scrum to smash the puck home for his fifth goal as an Admiral. A large scrap ensued in front of the net, and Grant came out of the mess with an assist as well as a roughing penalty.

Ortmeyer’s two tallies paced an Admirals offense that saw ten different skaters record a point. Goaltender Mark Dekanich saved 28 of the 29 shots that came his way. This win marked Dekanich’s sixth win of the season, and the fourth of which came at home. It was also the second consecutive game in which he allowed just one goal.

The Admirals are off for four days before returning to the ice on Friday, December 26th when they play host to the Chicago Wolves at the Bradley Center at 7:00 pm. The first 5,000 fans will receive a cowbell, courtesy of Potawatomi Bingo Casino and Pat McCurdy will play in the east atrium before and after the game. Fans can order tickets by calling Ticketmaster at (414) 276-4545 or online at www.ticketmaster.com. Groups of ten or more people receive a minimum of $2 off of each ticket. For more information or to order group tickets call the Admirals office at (414) 227-0550.

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