Milwaukee Admirals

The Milwaukee Admirals are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). They play in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee Panther Arena. They are the highest level affiliate of the NHL's Nashville Predators.
The team has been playing since 1970, originally as an amateur team called the Milwaukee Wings, but were renamed as the Admirals after their first season. They played an independent schedule until joining the semiprofessional United States Hockey League (USHL) in 1973. In 1977, the Admirals joined the International Hockey League (IHL) when the USHL transitioned to a junior league. When the IHL ceased operations in 2001, the Admirals joined the AHL.
==History==
===Independent era===
The Admirals first took to the ice in the winter of 1970 as an amateur club known as the Milwaukee Wings. Sponsored by the Wisconsin Citizens Benefit Association, they lost their first game on January 25 when the Madison All-Stars beat them 17–7."Local Skaters Lose In Debut". Milwaukee Journal, via NewsBank: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Historical Newspapers. January 25, 1970. Retrieved September 11, 2021."Milwaukee Teams To Meet In Milwaukee". Milwaukee Journal, via NewsBank: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Historical Newspapers. January 30, 1970. Retrieved September 11, 2021. They got their first win five days later when they defeated the Milwaukee Winter Club 10–8."Wings Win". Milwaukee Journal, via NewsBank: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Historical Newspapers. February 1, 1970. Retrieved September 11, 2021. They finished the season with 8 wins and 7 loses.
The next year the team was sold by the original owner Reed Fansher to a group of investors. One of the investors, Erwin J. Merar, owned an appliance store and the team was renamed the "Admirals" after a brand of household appliances sold in Merar's store.
===United States Hockey League era===
Beginning with the 1973–74 season the Admirals joined the United States Hockey League. Their first season in a league was not particularly successful as they ended the season in last place in their division. They won only 11 games, lost 35, and tied two games that season.
The Admirals won the USHL league championship in 1976, winning seven straight games in the league's playoffs. In the off-season, the team was purchased by former Chicago Blackhawks announcer Lloyd Pettit and his wife, Jane Bradley Pettit.
===International Hockey League era===
For the 1977–78 season the Admirals joined the International Hockey League as the USHL was becoming a strictly amateur league. The Admirals appeared in the IHL's Turner Cup finals only once (1983), where they lost to Toledo in six games.
===American Hockey League era===
The Admirals, along with five other IHL franchises, joined the American Hockey League for the 2001–02 season when the IHL ceased operations. The team was allowed to keep their nickname despite the presence of the Norfolk Admirals in the AHL, as Milwaukee had used the nickname since 1970, well before the Norfolk team was established as the Hampton Roads Admirals in the ECHL. (In the 2015–16 season, that AHL franchise moved to the AHL's Pacific Division as the fourth incarnation of the San Diego Gulls, and a Norfolk club was re-established in the ECHL.)
They won their first Calder Cup in 2004 when they defeated the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Prior to the finals, Milwaukee needed seven games to defeat the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks in the first round. Then the Admirals defeated the Chicago Wolves in six games to advance to the conference finals. The Admirals then eliminated the Rochester Americans four games to one. Milwaukee went on to sweep the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to win the Calder Cup. The Admirals completed a rare postseason run in which they needed one fewer game to eliminate their opponents in each subsequent series.
The Admirals were purchased in June 2005 by a group of investors, led by Harris J. Turer, including Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio, assistant general manager Gord Ash, and pitcher Ben Sheets. The Brewers subsequently became the sole uniform sponsor of the Admirals, and the Admirals wear a Brewers logo patch on their sweaters.
The Admirals won their second division title as a member of the American Hockey League in 2006, clinching the title on the last day of their schedule with a win over the Grand Rapids Griffins.
In the 2006 Calder Cup playoffs after narrowly winning a seven-game playoff series over the Iowa Stars, Milwaukee swept both the Houston Aeros and Grand Rapids Griffins to advance to their second Calder Cup final series. To their disappointment, the Admirals would lose in six games to the Hershey Bears.
On August 1, 2006, the Admirals unveiled a new logo and a change in color scheme from the traditional red-and-blue to black, white, and light blue. They used this logo until 2015, when the Admirals unveiled another new logo, keeping the Lake Michigan blue from 2006, but replaced black with navy blue. Also, the skeleton motif was kept with the hat that adorns the skeleton's head as a callback to the Admirals logos used from 1976 to 1997. This logo received very positive reviews, resulting in it becoming SportsLogos.net's 2015 Best New Primary Logo of the Year.
On March 16, 2016, Milwaukee Admirals owner/CEO Harris Turer along with Wisconsin Center District (WCD) announced that the Admirals signed a 10-year contract, bringing the Admirals to the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee Panther Arena for the 2016-17 AHL season. This 10-year contract also results in a $6.4 million investment to bring the arena up to AHL standards with the Admirals contributing two million and the rest being supplied by the Wisconsin Center District.
The team won its second regular season championship in the 2019–20 season, which was curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the ongoing restrictions during the pandemic, the Admirals were one of three teams that opted out of the 2020–21 AHL season. After the Admirals announced their season was cancelled, team ownership also announced that all of their full-time employees would still be paid for the year.
On November 17, 2023, the Admirals made history when defenseman Luke Prokop made his AHL debut as the first openly gay player in the league's history.
During the 2023-24 season, the Admirals set a new franchise record of 19 consecutive wins, which is also the second-longest winning streak in AHL history as of 2024. The winning streak lasted from January 5, 2024, which was also their first game of the calendar year, until February 25.
== Team information==
===League membership===
*1970–1973: independent
*1973–1977: United States Hockey League
*1977–2001: International Hockey League
*2001–present: American Hockey League
===NHL affiliation===
The Admirals have been the top-level affiliate of the Nashville Predators since that team's founding in 1998.
Coincidentally, the two cities' baseball franchises share a reverse affiliation, as the Nashville Sounds are the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.
During the 2006–07 season, the Admirals were also part of an unusual affiliation agreement with the Edmonton Oilers, who used five partial affiliates in the AHL for the 2006–07 season. These five affiliates included the Milwaukee Admirals, the Grand Rapids Griffins, the Iowa Stars, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and the Hamilton Bulldogs. This arrangement lasted one season, as the Oilers announced a three-year affiliation with the Springfield Falcons on March 19, 2007.
===Mascot===
During the 1998 Admirals rebranding efforts, the Admirals created a new mascot, named Roscoe. Roscoe is a "sea dog"-like animal with bright orange fur, a hockey puck-shaped nose, and wears a bicorne admiral's hat along with an Admirals jersey with the number 98, representing the year Roscoe joined the Admirals organization.
At times during breaks and intermission, Roscoe will also ride a zamboni modified to look like a pirate ship. When interacting with fans, Roscoe will sometimes take souvenir hockey pucks from fans and place them on his nose.
In 2014, when the Nashville Predators' mascot, Gnash, got injured, Roscoe was "called up" to the Predators and to the NHL, joining with other mascots to entertain fans in Nashville while Gnash recovered.
== Season-by-season results==
Legend: – round did not exist at the time
Regular season	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season 	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs 	Playoffs
Season 	Games 	Won 	Lost 	Tied 	OTL 	SOL 	Points 	PCT 	Goalsfor 	Goalsagainst 	Standing 	Year 	Qualifying 	1st roundOpening Round 	2nd roundQuarterfinals 	3rd roundSemifinals 	Finals
1970 	15 	8 	7 	0 	— 	— 	16 	.533 	 	 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1970–71 	22 	14 	7 	1 	— 	— 	29 	.659 	 	 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1971–72 	24 	11 	12 	1 	— 	— 	23 	.479 	167 	117 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1972–73 	32 	26 	5 	1 	— 	— 	53 	.828 	228 	145 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1973–74 	48 	11 	35 	2 	— 	— 	24 	.250 	192 	318 	5th, Southern 	1974 	— 	— 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
1974–75 	48 	18 	30 	0 	— 	— 	36 	.375 	241 	288 	3rd, Southern 	1975 	— 	— 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
1975–76 	48 	23 	25 	0 	— 	— 	46 	.479 	279 	270 	3rd, Southern 	1976 	— 	— 	W, 2–0, SC 	W, 2–0, TC 	W, 3–0, GB
1976–77 	48 	23 	23 	2 	— 	— 	48 	.500 	231 	241 	1st, Southern 	1977 	— 	— 	— 	W, 2–0–2, GB 	L, 1–2–3, GR
1977–78 	80 	27 	38 	15 	— 	— 	69 	.431 	257 	299 	3rd, South 	1978 	— 	— 	L, 1–4, TOL 	— 	—
1978–79 	80 	21 	48 	11 	— 	— 	53 	.331 	260 	391 	4th, South 	1979 	— 	— 	L, 3–4, GRO 	— 	—
1979–80 	80 	29 	41 	10 	— 	— 	68 	.425 	327 	402 	3rd, South 	1980 	— 	— 	L, 0–4, SAG 	— 	—
1980–81 	82 	32 	35 	15 	— 	— 	79 	.482 	354 	371 	3rd, West 	1981 	— 	— 	L, 3–4, FWK 	— 	—
1981–82 	82 	41 	34 	7 	— 	— 	91 	.543 	385 	351 	2nd, IHL 	1982 	— 	— 	L, 1–4, SAG 	— 	—
1982–83 	82 	43 	30 	9 	— 	— 	98 	.579 	407 	312 	1st, West 	1983 	— 	— 	BYE 	W, 4–1, KAL 	L, 2–4, TOL
1983–84 	82 	46 	27 	6 	3 	— 	101 	.616 	403 	335 	2nd, IHL 	1984 	— 	— 	BYE 	L, 0–4, FLI 	—
1984–85 	82 	25 	47 	5 	5 	— 	60 	.366 	292 	389 	5th, West 	1985 	— 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
1985–86 	82 	48 	28 	1 	5 	— 	102 	.622 	368 	306 	2nd, West 	1986 	— 	— 	L, 1–4, PEO 	— 	—
1986–87 	82 	41 	37 	— 	2 	2 	86 	.524 	342 	358 	3rd, West 	1987 	— 	— 	L, 2–4, SLC 	— 	—
1987–88 	82 	21 	54 	0 	7 	— 	49 	.299 	288 	430 	4th, West 	1988 	— 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
1988–89 	82 	54 	23 	0 	5 	— 	113 	.689 	399 	323 	2nd, West 	1989 	— 	— 	W, 4–2, KAL 	L, 1–4, SLC 	—
1989–90 	82 	36 	39 	0 	7 	— 	79 	.482 	316 	370 	3rd, West 	1990 	— 	— 	L, 2–4, SLC 	— 	—
1990–91 	82 	36 	43 	— 	3 	0 	75 	.457 	275 	316 	4th, West 	1991 	— 	— 	L, 2–4, PEO 	— 	—
1991–92 	82 	38 	36 	— 	5 	3 	84 	.512 	306 	309 	3rd, East 	1992 	— 	— 	L, 1–4, MUS 	— 	—
1992–93 	82 	49 	23 	— 	3 	7 	108 	.659 	329 	280 	1st, Midwest 	1993 	— 	— 	L, 2–4, KC 	— 	—
1993–94 	81 	40 	24 	— 	17 	0 	97 	.599 	338 	302 	2nd, Midwest 	1994 	— 	— 	L, 0–4, ATL 	— 	—
1994–95 	81 	44 	27 	0 	10 	— 	98 	.605 	317 	298 	1st, Central 	1995 	— 	W, 3–2, SD 	L, 1–4, LV 	— 	—
1995–96 	82 	40 	32 	— 	— 	10 	90 	.549 	290 	307 	1st, Midwest 	1996 	— 	L, 1–3, PEO 	— 	— 	—
1996–97 	82 	38 	36 	— 	— 	8 	84 	.512 	253 	298 	4th, Midwest 	1997 	— 	L, 0–3, LB 	— 	— 	—
1997–98 	82 	43 	34 	— 	— 	5 	91 	.555 	267 	262 	3rd, Midwest 	1998 	— 	W, 3–1, HOU 	L, 4–2, CHI 	— 	—
1998–99 	82 	38 	28 	— 	— 	16 	92 	.561 	254 	265 	4th, Midwest 	1999 	— 	L, 0–2, MTB 	— 	— 	—
1999–00 	82 	37 	36 	— 	— 	9 	83 	.506 	222 	246 	5th, Eastern 	2000 	— 	L, 1–2, CLE 	— 	— 	—
2000–01 	82 	42 	33 	— 	— 	7 	91 	.555 	244 	217 	5th, Eastern 	2001 	— 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2001–02 	80 	30 	35 	10 	5 	— 	75 	.469 	198 	207 	5th, West 	2002 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2002–03 	80 	32 	27 	14 	7 	— 	85 	.531 	247 	251 	4th, West 	2003 	W, 2–1, RCH 	L, 0–3, HOU 	— 	— 	—
2003–04 	80 	46 	24 	7 	3 	— 	102 	.638 	269 	191 	1st, West 	2004 	BYE 	W, 4–3, CIN 	W, 4–2, CHI 	W, 4–1, RCH 	W, 4–0, WBS
2004–05 	80 	47 	24 	— 	4 	5 	103 	.644 	247 	207 	2nd, West 	2005 	— 	L, 3–4, CIN 	— 	— 	—
2005–06 	80 	49 	21 	— 	6 	4 	108 	.675 	268 	234 	1st, West 	2006 	— 	W, 4–3, IWA 	W, 4–0, HOU 	W, 4–0, GRG 	L, 2–4, HER
2006–07 	80 	41 	25 	— 	4 	10 	96 	.600 	227 	230 	3rd, West 	2007 	— 	L, 0–4, CHI 	— 	— 	—
2007–08 	80 	44 	29 	— 	4 	3 	95 	.594 	231 	212 	4th, West 	2008 	— 	L, 2–4, CHI 	— 	— 	—
2008–09 	80 	49 	22 	— 	3 	6 	107 	.669 	229 	195 	1st, West 	2009 	— 	W, 4–0, RCK 	L, 3–4, HOU 	— 	—
2009–10 	80 	41 	30 	— 	2 	7 	91 	.569 	237 	220 	4th, West 	2010 	— 	L, 3–4, CHI 	— 	— 	—
2010–11 	80 	44 	22 	— 	6 	8 	102 	.638 	226 	194 	1st, West 	2011 	— 	W, 4–2, TEX 	L, 3–4, HOU 	— 	—
2011–12 	76 	40 	29 	— 	2 	5 	87 	.572 	210 	190 	2nd, Midwest 	2012 	— 	L, 0–3, ABB 	— 	— 	—
2012–13 	76 	41 	28 	— 	4 	3 	89 	.586 	197 	200 	2nd, Midwest 	2013 	— 	L, 1–3, TEX 	— 	— 	—
2013–14 	76 	39 	24 	— 	6 	7 	91 	.599 	215 	199 	3rd, Midwest 	2014 	— 	L, 0–3, TOR 	— 	— 	—
2014–15 	76 	33 	28 	— 	8 	7 	81 	.533 	206 	218 	5th, Midwest 	2015 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2015–16 	76 	48 	23 	— 	3 	2 	101 	.664 	224 	193 	1st, Central 	2016 	— 	L, 0–3, GR 	— 	— 	—
2016–17 	76 	43 	26 	— 	4 	3 	95 	.612 	225 	215 	3rd, Central 	2017 	— 	L, 0–3, GR 	— 	— 	—
2017–18 	76 	38 	32 	— 	4 	2 	82 	.539 	216 	235 	6th, Central 	2018 	— 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify 	Did not qualify
2018–19 	76 	36 	24 	— 	14 	2 	88 	.579 	217 	207 	2nd, Central 	2019 	— 	L, 2–3, IA 	— 	— 	—
2019–20 	61 	41 	14 	— 	5 	3 	90 	.714 	211 	141 	1st, Central 	2020 	— 	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21 	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic	Did not participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021–22 	76 	39 	28 	— 	5 	4 	87 	.572 	229 	228 	3rd, Central 	2022 	BYE 	W, 3–2, MB 	L, 1–3, CHI 	— 	—
2022–23 	72 	41 	24 	— 	5 	2 	89 	.618 	238 	211 	2nd, Central 	2023 	BYE 	W, 3–2, MB 	W, 3–2, TEX 	L, 2–4, CV 	—
2023–24 	72 	47 	22 	— 	2 	1 	97 	.674 	238 	193 	1st, Central 	2024 	BYE 	W, 3–2, TEX 	W, 3-2, GR 	L, 1-4 CVT 	—
==Players==
===Current roster===
Updated March 24, 2024.
|}
===Team captains===
*Neil Meadmore, 1987–88
*Peter Bakovic, 1988–1991
*Gino Cavallini, 1994–1996
*Tony Hrkac, 1996–97
*Jeff Nelson, 1997–1999
*Marc Moro, 1999–2001
*Andy Berenzweig, 2002–03
*Ray Schultz, 2003–04
*Tony Hrkac, 2004–05
*Greg Zanon, 2005–06
*Sheldon Brookbank, 2006–07
*Alex Henry, 2007–08
*Nolan Yonkman, 2008–2010
*Brett Palin, 2010–11
*Scott Ford, 2011–12, 2013–14
*Mike Moore, 2012–13
*Joe Piskula, 2014–15
*Colton Sissons, 2015–16
*Trevor Smith, 2016–2018
*Jarred Tinordi, 2018–2020
*Cole Schneider, 2021–2023
*Kevin Gravel, 2023–present
===Retired numbers===
Milwaukee Admirals retired numbers
No.	Player 	Position	Career 	No. retirement
9 	Phil Wittliff 	C 	1973–1977 	April 3, 1977
14 	Fred Berry 	C 	1980–1984, 1985–1987	December 27, 2003
14 	Mike McNeill 	C 	1992–1998 	December 27, 2003
20 	Darren Haydar 	RW 	2002–2006 	February 21, 2020
26 	Tony Hrkac 	C 	1994–1997, 2003–2005	March 14, 2008
27 	Danny Lecours 	LW 	1975–1984, 1985–1986	January 4, 1987
44 	Kevin Willison	D 	1981–1984, 1985–1986	February 28, 2004
44 	Gino Cavallini	C 	1993–1996 	February 28, 2004
===Notable NHL alumni===
List of Milwaukee Admirals alumni who played more than 100 games in Milwaukee and 100 or more games in the National Hockey League.
*Pontus Aberg
*Shawn Antoski
*Victor Bartley
*Michel Bergeron
*Anthony Bitetto
*Jonathon Blum
*Gabriel Bourque
*Randy Boyd
*Sheldon Brookbank
*Alexandre Carrier
*Gino Cavallini
*Kevin Fiala
*Vernon Fiddler
*John Flesch
*Cody Franson
*Frederick Gaudreau
*Dan Hamhuis
*Alex Henry
*Tony Hrkac
*Andrew Hutchinson
*Kevin Klein
*Jeff Larmer
*Michael Latta
*David Mackey
*Bob Mason
*Chris Mason
*Andrew McBain
*Mark Mowers
*Rob Murphy
*Cal O'Reilly
*Mathieu Olivier
*Rich Peverley
*Pekka Rinne
*Miikka Salomaki
*Mike Santorelli
*Brandon Segal
*Colton Sissons
*Trevor Smith
*Wyatt Smith
*Nick Spaling
*Jeremy Stevenson
*Zack Stortini
*Alexander Sulzer
*Tom Tilley
*Jarred Tinordi
*Eeli Tolvanen
*Mike Tomlak
*Jordin Tootoo
*Yakov Trenin
*Steve Tuttle
*Scottie Upshall
*Austin Watson
*Greg Zanon
*Richard Zemlak
==Team records==
===Single season===
*Goals: Danny Lecours, 75, (1982–83)
*Assists: Dale Yakiwchuk, 100, (1982–83)
*Points: Dale Yakiwchuk, 138, (1982–83)
*Penalty minutes: Don Gibson, 381, (1992–93)
*GAA: Connor Ingram, 1.92, (2019–20)
*SV%: Connor Ingram, .933, (2019–20)
===Career===
*Career goals: Danny Lecours, 445
*Career assists: Fred Berry, 379
*Career points: Danny Lecours, 814
*Career penalty minutes: Ken Sabourin, 1233
*Career goaltending wins: Rich Sirois, 119
*Career shutouts: Brian Finley, 11
*Career games: Danny Lecours, 641
==Logos==
 	 	90px 	 	 	 	
logo duringindependent years	1973–1977	1977–1981 logo,the first “Skating Sailor”	1982–1997	1998–2006	2006–2015	2015-present
==References==
==External links==
*
*The Internet Hockey Database - Milwaukee Admirals (AHL)
*The Internet Hockey Database - Milwaukee Admirals (IHL)
*The Internet Hockey Database - Milwaukee Admirals (USHL)
*The Internet Hockey Database - Milwaukee Admirals (Independent)
 
Category:Boston Bruins minor league affiliates
Category:Chicago Blackhawks minor league affiliates
Category:Nashville Predators minor league affiliates
Category:Vancouver Canucks minor league affiliates
Category:Ice hockey teams in Wisconsin
Category:Ice hockey clubs established in 1970