Monday, June 11, 2012

Alums Claim Calder Cup

Alums Claim Calder Cup
Five of the top seven playoff scorers for the Norfolk Admirals played college hockey.

Former college players dotted the lineup as the Norfolk Admirals won their 10th straight playoff game Saturday night in Toronto and claimed the Calder Cup as champions of the AHL.

Five of the Admirals’ top seven playoff scorers came from the college route, led by AHL MVP and Rookie of the Year Cory Conacher, who was a senior at Canisius last season.

Conacher had four assists in the 6-1 clinching victory in Game 4 of the Finals, not far from his Burlington, Ontario, home. The former Golden Griffins star reflected on his time on campus in a Buffalo News feature that ran the day of Game 4:

“The coaching staff showed a lot of confidence putting me in key situations on the ice, and being able to play in those situations really helped my game. Going into Canisius, I was mostly just an offensive player. I wasn’t really good defensively, and it was important for me to learn that coming into pro because if you’re only a one-way player you won’t go far. Coach Smith taught me a lot defensively about being in the right lane and being in the right place in the D-zone and just taking care of the puck in the D-zone. I learned a lot from that.”

Conacher was part of a storybook season for the Admirals, who won a pro hockey record 28 straight games to close out the regular season.

College Leaders

Defenseman Mike Kostka, a graduate of UMass in 2008, had two goals in the final game and led the league’s defensemen with 12 points in the playoffs.

Former New Hampshire star Trevor Smith shared the playoff lead with 16 points. Alex Killorn – who joined the team after his season at Harvard ended and picked up his degree during the playoffs – ranked fourth among AHL rookies with 12 playoff points.

On defense, in addition to Kostka, Evan Oberg (Minnesota Duluth) and Jeff Dimmen (Maine) played big roles.

The Admirals head coach, Jon Cooper, played on the club hockey team at Hofstra, where he also played varsity lacrosse. Formerly a USHL head coach and general manager with the Green Bay Gamblers, a number of Cooper’s former players are in Division I now.