On another night, against another team, the St. John's IceCaps might have come away with a point or two.
But not Friday against the Norfolk Admirals.
The Admirals sailed into Mile One Centre and dominated just about every facet of the game as they downed the IceCaps 6-2, handing American Hockey League-leading St. John's its first loss in seven games
This was a case of the Admirals, with what IceCaps' head coach Keith McCambridge called a "dynamic" offence, being very much on their game, and the home side being well off their’s.
Friday's second period, which saw Norfolk score three unanswered goals to take a 4-1 lead, can be described as the IceCaps' worst of the season and was the main contributor to St. John's worst contest of the 17 they've played to date. Then again, at 11-3-3, the Caps haven't had many stinkers with which to compare. What's more, they have an immediate opportunity for redemption as they face the Admirals (10-6-1) in a rematch 7:30 p.m. tonight at Mile One.
For Norfolk, first star Tyler Johnson had two goals and an assist, Trevor Smith scored twice and Carter Ashton had a goal and an assist. Ashton's marker was his 12th of the season, giving him the AHL lead in goal-scoring, at least without knowing the results of Friday's late games
Captain Mike Angelidis had the other goal for the visitors, while Norfolk leading scorer Cory Conacher had three assists, giving him 21 points in 17 games
Paul Postma, in his first game after being returned from the parent Winnipeg Jets, got a first-period power-play goal for St. John's, while Carl Klingberg scored shorthanded early in the third. For Klingberg, who also had an assist, it was his team-leading ninth goal of the season
Notes: Eddie Pasquale, who suffered his first loss in seven decisions this season, faced 31 shots in the St. John's goal, while Jaroslav Janus made 26 saves for Norfolk ...Ashton was the game's second star, while Klingberg was the choice as the third star. The IceCaps' hardest-working player was centre Garth Murray, who fought twice, taking on Angelidis in the game's opening minutes and Admiral defenceman Radko Gudas in the second, after the latter had levelled IceCaps' forward Aaron Gagnon with a clean open-ice hit ... The parent Jets have assigned forward Kenndal McArdle to St. John's ... IceCaps' scratches Friday were forwards Kevin Clark and Jason Gregoire, both nursing injuries, and defenceman Jake Marto ...
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