Billy Tibbetts lugged a weighty past onto the Scope ice Wednesday. Tibbetts notched the winner with 47 seconds remaining when he blew down the left wing and shouldered aside Norfolk defenseman Chris McAlpine before flipping the puck past goaltender Jeff Maund. Tibbetts had 68 points and 300 penalty minutes as an ECHL rookie with Johnstown in 1995-96. Four months later, he began a three-year prison term after violating probation for a 1994 rape conviction in his native Massachusetts.
Some guys are perimeter players, some guys are inside players.
Tibbetts shook his head when asked if jail time served to increase his desire. Chris Herperger, recovering from a knee injury, was the Admirals' lone scratch Wednesday. The veteran center is expected to be ready for action this weekend against Saint John. . . . Penguins began Wednesday leading the AHL in attendance with an average crowd of 7,908. Norfolk was 11th in the 20-team circuit at 4,478.