Milwaukee, WI—There has been no shortage of tension between the Admirals and Rockford IceHogs this season, and their matchup on Tuesday evening was no different. Despite numerous fights and over 100 combined penalty minutes, Zach L’Heureux continued to stay hot as he slotted home the winner late in the third period, leading the Admirals to a 5-3 victory over the Hogs at historic Panther Arena.
The excitement started with Jake Lucchini opening the scoring just over seven minutes into the first period. After a loose puck found its way to the point, the Admirals AHL All-Star defenseman Ryan Ufko threw the puck towards the net, which found the stick of Lucchini who slipped it past Rockford goalie Drew Commesso, making it 1-0. After a quick response from Rockford forward Dominic Toninato to tie things at one just over halfway through the period, Milwaukee quickly took the lead back. The second goal of the evening came on the powerplay as Oasiz Wiesblatt utilized his great vision to find Jordan Oesterle backdoor with a diagonal pass through multiple defenders, which Oesterle easily tapped in, giving the Admirals the 2-1 advantage.
Tensions rose to a fever pitch in the second stanza of the night, marred by an astounding 88 combined penalty minutes between the two sides in that segment. The IceHogs knotted the scoring at two early in the period after Rem Pitlick was slashed from behind on the breakaway, giving him a penalty shot opportunity that he converted. After another flurry of fights, Reid Schaefer scored his first goal since returning to Milwaukee from a stint in Nashville. The goal was assisted by Ufko, finding Schaefer on the break, who cut across the crease and finished with a smooth backhander. Then with only five minutes remaining in the period, Ethan Del Mastro of Rockford scored a 4 on 4 play to tie things at three heading to the third.
After another pair of players dropping the gloves and a few more penalties, L’Heureux found the game-winner with just over two minutes remaining in the third period, sending the Admirals faithful into a frenzy. Moments later, Reid Schafer would slot his second of the evening into an empty night to put the icing on the cake for a 5-3 Milwaukee victory.
The Admirals travel to Des Moines this weekend for back-to-back road games against the Iowa Wild on Friday and Saturday before returning to historic Panther Arena next Tuesday, February 3rd for a match-up with the league leading Grand Rapids Griffins.
