Admirals sweep series vs. Stingrays

Norfolk tightens hold on second place in the North Division

The Norfolk Admirals couldn’t quite complete a shutout Saturday night, but they achieved a two-game series sweep with a 2-1 victory over the South Carolina Stingrays.

The crowd of 5,692 at Scope put the two-night total over 11,000, and they have to like what they’re seeing from a team that seems headed to its first playoff berth since rejoining the ECHL in 2015.

Admirals goalie Oskari Salminen, recently sent down by the American Hockey League’s Manitoba Moose, made 19 saves and was named the night’s No. 1 star.

Gehrett Sargis put Norfolk ahead 1-0 6:23 into the game off assists from Sean Montgomery and Josh McDougall. That score stood until Kamerin Nault’s second goal of the series, which came 1:56 into the third period and was assisted by Chesapeake native Brandon Osmundson and Andrew McLean.

Norfolk led 2-0 before the Stingrays, who are affiliated with the Washington Capitals, pulled goalie Mitchell Gibson for an extra attacker with about two minutes remaining. The tactic worked as Ivan Lodnia scored with 20 seconds to go, cutting the lead in half, but the Admirals held on to tighten their grip on second place in the Eastern Conference’s

North Division.

Norfolk (29-19-3-1) has won nine of its last 11 games and is five points of Newfoundland for second place. The Admirals are 16 points clear of fifth-place Maine in a division whose top four teams will go to the league’s 16-team playoffs. Even the first-place Adirondack Thunder (33-11-4-2), which once seemed untouchable, only leads the Admirals by 10 points.

The Admirals will be back at Scope at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday to take on the Thunder.