Editors note: This is the fourth installment of Admirals Playoff Diary, OnMilwaukee.coms exclusive look at the Milwaukee Admrials as they progress through the American Hockey League playoffs in search of their second Calder Cup championship in three years.
I'VE NEVER PLAYED ON A TEAM THAT HAS SCORED this many goals in back-to-back games. Back in juniors, I remember beating teams, 7-1, or so, but I don't recall doing it back-to-back. Things are going pretty well for us right now. Guys seem to be clicking.
My older brother Wade is a defenseman for the Vancouver Canucks [and a former Milwaukee Admiral]. I haven't really razzed him about them not making the playoffs, because you never know when the tables will turn. He recently came down to watch the first game of the series with Houston and is planning on coming back if we play Manitoba in the next round because the Moose are the affiliate for the Canucks and he knows a lot of the guys who are currently on the team.
Last season, I played on the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks and our goaltender was Ilya Brazgalov, who has received a lot of attention lately because he has had three straight shutouts for Anaheim in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I can't say I'm surprised at what is happening, but I knew from playing and practicing with him that he was this good. It was generally just a question of whether he was ready to play every night and when he was, he was one of the best in the business.
He had a really thick, Russian accent and was always joking around in the locker room. But, he knew English well enough that never had trouble communicating with anyone. He certainly knew how to keep things light in the (locker) room.
Besides being a hockey fan, I am also a big baseball fan. When I was younger, I cheered for the Blue Jays because they were Canada's team, but I also cheered for the Oakland A's. I was a big fan of the Bash Brothers, back in the day.
My favorite player right now is Vernon Wells because he can do everything. He is the total package. I am also a big Doc Halladay fan.
When the Jays won the World Series back in 1993, our whole school shut down to watch the games. It was very exciting, especially because I was just a kid.
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