Calder Cup 2004 Final Preview

Calder Cup Final – Series “O”
W1-Milwaukee Admirals vs.
E3-Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins


Game 1
Tue., June 1
Wilkes-Barre at Milwaukee, 7:00 CT
Game 2
Wed., June 2
Wilkes-Barre at Milwaukee, 7:00 CT
Game 3
Fri., June 4
Milwaukee at Wilkes-Barre, 7:05 ET
Game 4
Sun., June 6
Milwaukee at Wilkes-Barre, 5:05 ET
Game 5
Mon., June 7
Milwaukee at Wilkes-Barre, 7:05 ET (if necessary)
Game 6
Fri., June 11
Wilkes-Barre at Milwaukee, 7:00 CT (if necessary)
Game 7
Sat., June 12
Wilkes-Barre at Milwaukee, 7:00 CT (if necessary)


Regular Season Comparison
Milwaukee Wilkes-Barre
Record 46-24-7-3 34-28-10-8
Points 102 86
Home 23-13-4-0 19-14-5-2
Road 23-11-3-3 15-14-5-6
Goals for 269 197
Goals against 191 197
PP% (rank) 15.6 (11) 14.8 (17)
PK% (rank) 86.3 (11) 80.3 (27)


Calder Cup Playoff History
Milwaukee Wilkes-Barre
Appearances 2nd 3rd
Record (games) 14-10 28-19
Record (series) 4-1 7-2
OT record 5-1 10-6
Calder Cup titles 0 0
Losing finalist 0 1 (2001)


2003-04 Regular Season Series
Did Not Play


2004 Playoff Comparison
Milwaukee Wilkes-Barre
Record 12-6 12-8
Home 6-3 6-3
Road 6-3 6-5
Goals for 56 (3.11) 59 (2.95)
Goals against 39 (2.17) 50 (2.50)
Power play 19/126 (15.1%) 16/111 (14.4%)
Penalty kill 10/92 (89.1%) 9/86 (89.5%)
Top scorers Haydar, 8+10=18
Hrkac, 7+8=15
Gamache, 4+11=15
Kostopoulos, 7+13=20
Surovy, 5+10=15
Koltsov, 4+11=15
Top goalie Flaherty, 12-5, 1.95 Chiodo, 9-4, 1.78
Overtime 4-1 5-4
One-goal games 6-3 7-5
Scoring first 8-1 10-3
Leading after 1st 6-0 6-3
Leading after 2nd 9-0 6-0
Trailing after 1st 1-4 2-4
Trailing after 2nd 1-6 1-6
Outshooting opp. 8-3 8-5


SERIES NOTEBOOK:
The 68th Calder Cup Final pits Milwaukee against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in a best-of-seven series… Wilkes-Barre faces the Admirals, who finished first overall in the regular season, after having already beaten the fourth-, third- and second-place teams in the AHL in 2003-04… The Penguins won the Eastern Conference by becoming the second team in AHL history to win two Game Sevens on the road in the same playoff year… The Admirals have been off since wrapping up the Western Conference with a Game 5 win in Rochester on May 26… Tom Kostopoulos, Toby Petersen and Eric Meloche are the only players remaining from the Penguins’ 2001 Cup Final team… Milwaukee last reached a league championship series in 1983, when the Admirals lost in the IHL’s Turner Cup Final… Both teams’ head coaches – Claude Noel of Milwaukee and Michel Therrien of Wilkes-Barre – won a Calder Cup title in their playing days.