MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS (8-4-3-0) at CHICAGO WOLVES (8-4-0-1)
Sunday, Nov. 11 | 3 p.m. | Allstate Arena | The U Too | AHLTV | Facebook Live
100 years ago today
On Nov. 11, 1918, the Armistice was signed in Compiegne, France, to bring an end to hostilities on the Western Front of World War I. While the War To End All Wars did not live up to its billing, it did inspire the founding of Armistice Day. In 1954, Congress changed its name to Veterans Day in order to recognize veterans of all wars.
Our veterans and their families are the inspiration for our Military Appreciation Weekend. Today’s commemoration begins with a patriotic song medley entitled Our America that’s dedicated to our veterans. Nearly 2,000 students representing 47 schools throughout the Chicago area will perform the medley between warmups and puck drop.
macek continues to rise
While the Wolves came up short in Saturday’s Illinois Lottery Cup clash against Rockford by a 4-3 count, Wolves right wing Brooks Macek delivered two more goals.
Not only did the 26-year-old Winnipeg native take over sole possession of the AHL’s top spot for goals (14), he also assumed sole possession of the league lead in points (21). He also maintained control of first place in shooting percentage (51.9), though that dropped from 57.1 percent because he launched a season-high six shots Saturday night.
Macek has been particularly potent on Saturday nights this season. He didn’t score in the Wolves’ first Saturday game on Oct. 6, but he registered a hat trick in the home opener against Grand Rapids on Oct. 13, one at Grand Rapids on Oct. 20, two on Nov. 3 at Manitoba and two Saturday night. That’s eight goals in five games. In the Wolves’ first three games against Milwaukee, Macek has contributed two goals, five assists and a +6 plus/minus rating.
TAKE FIVE
This is already the fourth game between the Wolves and the Admirals this season — and the teams have proven that these matchups are going to be entertaining all season. In fact, the winner of each game has stacked up exactly five goals. Left wing Daniel Carr leads the Wolves in this series with six goals and two assists while Milwaukee’s top producer is defenseman Matt Donovan with three goals and two assists.
BY THE NUMBERS
7: Today’s game against Milwaukee marks the seventh of 18 consecutive games the Wolves will play against Central Division foes. From Oct. 26 through Dec. 8, the Wolves have nothing but chances to assert themselves in a tight divisional race. Milwaukee and Rockford share the division lead with 19 points, but the third-place Wolves and the Iowa Wild share the division’s best winning percentage (.654) as they’ve played two fewer games than the leaders.
14: With a pair of goals Saturday night, right wing Brooks Macek broke out of a tie with Cleveland Monsters center Zac Dalpe and seized control of the AHL’s goal-scoring race with 14 markers in 13 games. If he scores one goal today, it will mark the fifth consecutive week Macek scored exactly three goals. Only one Wolves player has scored more than 14 goals in the first 13 games of the year: the incomparable Steve Maltais notched 20 in the Wolves’ first 13 games of the 1995-96 season on his way to 56 for the year.
15: The Wolves outshot the Rockford IceHogs 20-5 in the third period Saturday night, which set the team’s season-high for a period and pushed them to a season-high 40 for the game. Rocky Thompson’s crew also set a season-best for shot differential (+17). It marked just the fifth time this season the Wolves have outshot their opponent, but each of their last three losses have coincided with their last three games where they posted more shots.
17: The Wolves gave up two power-play goals during Saturday’s 4-3 loss to Rockford, which pushed the team’s total for the year to 17. That’s the most in the AHL this year (along with Binghamton and Bridgeport). Milwaukee has posted eight of those 17 PPG during the teams’ three meetings — as the Admirals have converted on 53.3 percent of their chances.
20: With a +2 showing in Saturday night’s 4-3 loss to Rockford, Daniel Carr took sole possession of the AHL lead in plus/minus rating with a +20 (one ahead of teammate Brooks Macek). If Carr maintains this rate the rest of the season, then he’ll finish at +117 for the year. To put that number into perspective, the legendary Wayne Gretzky’s finest season was a +100 during the 1984-85 season with the Edmonton Oilers when he posted 73 goals and 135 assists in 80 games.
353: If you’ve suited up for the Wolves, chances are better than 50/50 that you’ve also played in the National Hockey League. When Daniel Carr, Curtis McKenzie and Zach Whitecloud made their Wolves debuts on Oct. 5, they became the 351st, 352nd and 353rd players (out of 615 Wolves all-time) who have competed for the Wolves and in the NHL. That 57.4 percent overall success rate is even higher among goaltenders. Of the 54 players who’ve tended the net for the Wolves over the years — starting with original goaltenders Ray LeBlanc and Wendell Young and continuing through current Wolves Max Lagace and Oscar Dansk — 37 boast NHL experience (68.5 percent).
6,532: This is the number of days between Brooks Macek’s five-assist effort on Wednesday at Milwaukee and the previous five-assist game by a Wolves player. Rob Brown, who holds the team’s single-game (6) and single-season (91) assist records, handed out five assists on Dec. 19, 2000, in a 7-5 victory at Kansas City.
