AHL: Admirals Command Impressive Crew

The Milwaukee Admirals have one of the younger teams in the American Hockey League in 2008-09, but that hasn't stopped the team from firmly putting it in the early race to the playoffs with an 11-7-0-1 record, largely on the balanced scoring attack provided by the depth of talent the Nashville Predators have supplied the club at forward. Prospects such as Antti Pihlstrom, Patric Hornqvist, Ryan Jones, Cody Franson, and Alexander Sulzer have almost certain futures in Nashville, and a few others aren't far off, either.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey had the opportunity to catch the Admirals twice in late November and files notes on several prospects.

Antti Pihlstrom (Nsh), LW, Milwaukee

As was true in 2007-08, he looks fully capable of playing in the NHL .. has excellent quickness and acceleration .. has quick feet, but also has power when he uses quick strides .. has very good top speed and can also employ longer, powerful strides, taking far fewer than most opponents trying to defend him .. running around for hits less than last season, but still plays a physical game and lays out some big hits .. has very good quickness with the puck to separate from opponents or fight through checks .. engages physically to get the puck .. has a quick wristshot and some finishing ability .. also has a hard one-timer .. quickness and grit makes him difficult for opponents around the net .. plays on both Milwaukee's powerplay and PK .. small in stature, but can play the game however you want to play it .. entering December, had 8 goals and 4 assists in 15 games for Milwaukee, but was up with Nashville (recalled Nov. 24) to end November .. held pointless in four games for Nashville.

Patric Hornqvist (Nsh), C/RW, Milwaukee

Twenty-one-year-old Swede started 2008-09 with Nashville but assigned to Milwaukee Nov. 21 .. good playmaker that makes things happen .. has good speed and agility with the puck and finds open teammates with centering passes or drop-passes .. displays good hand-eye coordination for handling airborne pucks .. has a hard wristshot and a hard slapshot, as well as some finishing ability .. also finishes his checks and is willing to engage physically if necessary .. was a regular on Milwaukee's powerplay .. won't be surprised if he's a second or third-liner for Nashville for years to come .. had 2 goals and 5 assists in 15 games for Nashville prior to being re-assigned .. had 1 goal and 3 assists in 5 games for Milwaukee entering December.

Ryan Jones (Nsh), LW, Milwaukee

Traded to Nashville with a second-round pick by Minnesota Wild July 1, 2008, for Marek Zidlicky .. started the season in Nashville but was assigned to Milwaukee Nov. 20 .. thick, 6-foot-1, 207-pound winger plays a power-forward game .. steps up to make hits in the neutral zone and the defensive zone, and finishes his checks on the forecheck .. will engage opponents physically while handling the puck and can bowl over opponents attempting to knock him down .. sets up shop as a screen in front of the net and is difficult to move out .. also a threat to deflect, re-direct, or tip in pucks from the point .. played on Milwaukee's powerplay .. little reason to believe Jones can't be a third-liner, or at least a fourth-liner, in the not-so-distant future and long term for Nashville .. prior to being sent down, had 3 goals and 3 assists in 15 games for Nashville .. entering December, had 2 goals and 2 assists for Milwaukee.

Cody Franson (Nsh), D, Milwaukee

Has been told he needed to play a more physical game and has really taken that to heart ..

consistently stepped up to body opponents in the neutral zone or at the blueline .. can lay out some big hits doing so or level opponents trying to check him .. also able to separate opponents from the puck down low .. did not backtrack defensively and kept his gaps short for playing the body or for stick checks .. passing game is machine-like in its precision .. breakout passes are always crisp, hard, and on the tape, without fail .. has a nice snapshot and a crisp wristshot from the point .. also has a hard slapper and one-timer .. played on Milwaukee's first powerplay unit and distributed the puck well from the point and found open men down low for chances .. crisp d-to-d passer .. pairs with Alexander Sulzer in almost all situations, and Nashville may want to consider keeping these two together in the NHL, too .. can't imagine Franson needing another year of AHL development after 2008-09 if he keeps this up and is fast becoming an extremely reliable puckmoving defenseman with a physical presence .. entering December, he had 4 goals and 8 assists in 17 games for Milwaukee.

Alexander Sulzer (Nsh), D, Milwaukee

Very reliable puckmoving defenseman .. makes crisp, accurate passes .. very poised with the puck and does not panic when pressured, helping ensure he doesn't make poor, rushed plays on the breakout .. heads-up stickhandler who's able to continually assess the play .. has a hard slapper and one-timer, both of which he does very good to keep low .. also has a crisp wristshot from the point .. willing to engage physically, but not an overly physical defenseman .. excels defensively through mobility, positioning, and stick checks .. played on both the Milwaukee's powerplay and PK .. almost always paired with Cody Franson, as he did in 2007-08, and Nashville should consider keeping them together in the NHL .. wore one of the "A's" .. doesn't have the same potential as Franson (size disparity), but has looked more talented and able than former Admiral Kevin Klein, and far more consistent and reliable .. entering December, he had 1 goal and 9 assists in 19 games for Milwaukee.

Andreas Thuresson (Nsh), RW, Milwaukee

No longer playing a primarily fourth-line role as in 2007-08, now is seeing third-line minutes .. still playing with the physical game he did in his rookie season, launching into defensemen on the forecheck or pressuring defensemen and stripping them of the puck .. successfully creating more chances from his defensive efforts this season .. looks more comfortable handling the puck this season .. plays on Milwaukee's penalty kill .. young Swede looks to be on track to become an above-average fourth-liner in the NHL .. entering December, he had 5 goals and 6 assists in 11 games for Milwaukee.

Mike Santorelli (Nsh), C, Milwaukee

Starting to look like someone worthy of recall and capable of playing on Nashville's fourth line .. is consistently F1 on the forecheck and applies a lot of pressure doing so .. has good speed with the puck and can change things up with quickness, top speed, or stopping quickly .. adept at protecting the puck with swivels and spins along the boards and stiff-arms opponents at times .. possesses some slick hands and can stickhandle in tight spaces .. a playmaking threat off the half boards with quick, accurate passes to the point or down low .. a threat around the net and has a nice wristshot in close and from the perimeter .. played on the powerplay for his skill and the PK for his hustle and defensive efforts .. definitely one of the best performances out of Mike Santorelli and is probably first in line for recall among Admiral forwards who have not yet played in the NHL ..entering December, he had 5 goals and 11 assists in 19 games for Milwaukee.

Cal O'Reilly (Nsh), C, Milwaukee

On pace to increase his points per game in the AHL again, but hasn't improved significantly and it's difficult to see how he'll supplant an existing Predator .. one of the AHL's better playmakers .. has very good offensive vision and is a real threat to create plays in the Gretzky zones .. plays point on the powerplay and is a strong playmaker up there, too .. despite being a center, he does a very good job of holding the zone at the point .. plays a positional defensive game on the forecheck and does force some turnovers .. helps his defensemen down low and often is the one skating the puck out .. played on the penalty kill .. not slow, but not particularly fast, especially compared to some of his teammates .. someone for Nashville to consider inserting if in need of a second-line center, but probably not the man called on if a pure checking line or energy-line center is needed up with the big club .. entering December, he had 4 goals and 19 assists in 19 games for Milwaukee and was 15th in AHL scoring (goals scored as the first tie-breaker).

Nick Spaling (Nsh), C, Milwaukee

Seems like the next Cal O'Reilly for the Nashville organization .. has average speed, but does have good extension to his strides .. able to maintain possession of the puck with spins and swivels down low and in the corners .. a playmaking threat off the half boards .. has a little dangle to his game but must make sure not to reduce his own angle too much .. played on the Milwaukee powerplay .. puts in a good effort defensively on both the forecheck and the backcheck, but is more positional than speed-based .. could go either way in terms of becoming a two-way center or a defensive center in the NHL .. entering December, he had 3 goals and 8 assists in 19 games for Milwaukee.Click the link for a recent interview with Nick Spaling

Robert Dietrich (Nsh), D, Milwaukee

Small defenseman needs to add some size and strength .. too many passes or attempted clears are weak and intercepted .. generally doesn't panic with the puck when pressured low in his defensive zone, but still makes some of the weak passes and/or clears .. has quick feet and is fairly mobile and agile, but could use more power in his strides .. able to use his decent speed and agility with the puck to skate it around opponents .. quick getting to the boards at the point .. packs a cannon of a one-timer and a pretty good slapshot, too .. not very effective physically .. played on the powerplay and received a little penalty kill time to work on that area .. primarily a puckmoving defenseman, but still needs to become more effective physically .. entering December, he had 2 goals and 4 assists in 17 games for Milwaukee.

Kelsey Wilson (Nsh), RW, Milwaukee

Fighting less in 2008-09 but still contributing .. still plays a physical game and will drop to block shots .. offensively, he has a hard wristshot and a nice off-foot snapshot .. showcased a decent passing game with some nice set-ups around the net to teammates and crisp passing .. saw some time on both the powerplay and the penalty kill .. continues to develop his skills to help him become more than just a depth forward at the NHL level .. entering December, he had 3 goals and 4 assists in 19 games for Milwaukee.

Mark Santorelli (Nsh), RW, Milwaukee

First-year pro receiving fourth-line icetime .. looks more like an ECHL-caliber player at this early juncture .. needs to make changes to his skating stride .. brings his feet up a lot in his strides and doesn't generate much power .. almost seems like he's running on his skates .. did show a willingness to go into traffic and engage physically for the puck or to establish position around the net .. entering December, had 1 goal in 18 games for Milwaukee.

Mark Dekanich (Nsh), G, Milwaukee

Rookie-pro serving as Drew MacIntyre's backup after three solid collegiate seasons as Colgate's No. 1 netminder .. limited viewing, as he came off the bench, but was impressive .. hugged the post well when play dictated .. makes smooth pad slides across the crease .. able to load up and move across the crease quickly with pad slides after going down into butterfly .. able to reset quickly .. at 6-foot-2, 192 pounds, he has the size that has become popular for NHL goaltending prospects .. far better than his early statistical returns in AHL show .. entering December, he had played 254 minutes over 5 games, with a 2-2-0 record, a 3.07 goals-against average, and a .877 save percentage.