Admirals Steal Victory, Tie Stars for Division Lead

The Milwaukee Admirals capped off a dominant weekend, sweeping the Texas Stars with a decisive 3-1 victory on Sunday night. This second consecutive loss on home ice for the Stars against the Admirals marks their fourth straight defeat at the H-E-B Center. More significantly, the loss pulls the Admirals into a tie for the top spot in the Central Division standings.

Milwaukee drew first blood midway through the opening period. Grigori Denisenko expertly redirected a Kevin Gravel slapshot from the blue line, beating Stars netminder Remi Poirier. The second period remained scoreless, with both teams trading chances but failing to find the back of the net.

The Admirals extended their lead late in the third period. Denisenko capitalized on a 3-on-1 rush, burying his second goal of the night with 8:27 remaining in regulation. The Stars offered a glimmer of hope just over two minutes later the power play. Justin Hryckowian deflected a shot from Matej Blümel past Milwaukee goalie Matt Murray, cutting the deficit to one.

However, with time running out and Poirier pulled for an extra attacker, Milwaukee’s Ozzy Wiesblatt sealed the victory with an empty-net goal in the final seconds.

Poirier stopped 19 of 21 shots for the Stars, while Murray stood tall in the Admirals’ net, turning away an impressive 35 of 36 shots to secure his second win of the weekend.

Despite the recent struggles, Texas Stars head coach Neil Graham remains optimistic. “We’ll work on things,” Graham stated. “We’ve led the American (Hockey) League in offense through 63 games, and four games have not. So, let’s, maybe, get back to some of those things that have brought us that success.”

He further emphasized the team’s competitive spirit, saying, “I believe our group will be motivated enough. We’re a team that likes to win. We’re a team that is extremely competitive in nature. We don’t take losing well. The fact that we’ve had four losses in a row, especially at home, I think that’s enough motivation to get back on track.”

With the division lead now shared, the upcoming games will be crucial for both the Admirals and the Stars as they battle for playoff positioning.