Opening weekend report on the Admirals

ADMIRALS REPORT

A weekly look at some of the issues coming out of the Norfolk Admirals’ weekend of play.

What happened to all the fans?

A year ago, Norfolk drew 5,627 for its home opener. Friday, only 3,745 saw the Admirals debut at Scope with a 5-3 loss to Hershey, by far the lowest opening-night home gate in franchise history.

Theories for the low turnout abound, a struggling economy and an earlier-than-usual start chief among them. “But I hate to start talking about excuses,’’ VP Joe Gregory said. “We’re just going to have to re-double our efforts and work harder.’’

A few positives, according to Gregory: * Walk-up sales were up 30 percent over last year’s home opener.

* The enthusiasm and noise generated by the fans gave Scope a fuller sound than the gate figure would suggest.

* Saturday’s attendance (3,423) was very similar to the first Saturday home figure last year (3,553).

“It’s a challenge, but it’s one we’re ready for,’’ Gregory said. “It’s just nice to have 18 days to regroup and really put that focus on the next homestand.’’ Norfolk’s next home game is on Oct. 29 against Philadelphia.

Is criticism of the defense fair? It was Friday night, according to coach Darren Rumble. “That was definitely the least bright spot,’’ he said. “We weren’t moving the puck well, and guys were going out of their way looking for big hits instead of containing. But we were much better in the D-zone on Saturday.’’ Norfolk fell 4-3 in a shootout to the Bears in Saturday’s rematch.

How good are the Bears?

Said Rumble: “That might be the best team we see all year.’’ As a result, the coach said playing Hershey so soon may actually benefit the Admirals in the weeks ahead.

“It let us know immediately what we need to work on,’’ Rumble said.

So, what are the Admirals working on this week?

Rumble: “Defensive zone coverage — we need to identify our man quicker in our own end — and wingers playing along the wall under pressure.’’

Defenseman Justin Fletcher was dealt to Peoria for future considerations? What does that mean?

According to general manager Mike Butters, the term is a catch-all used when the teams haven’t decided on whether the compensation will be cash or a player to be named later. In this case, Butters said the Admirals will receiver a player, most likely as the team gears up for the playoffs.

The video scoreboard displayed a graphic of the word “Pow!’’ over a Jay Rosehill punch on a fight replay Saturday. What is this, an episode of “Batman!’’

Actually, the idea sprung from the creative mind of Chantel Copes, the graphic operator for the new scoreboard. “I thought it was pretty cool,’’ video operations director Jody Cox said.

Copes and Cox plan to spend the next couple of weeks playing around with other ideas. Cox also encourages fans to e-mail their thoughts to him directly at jc@jchits.com

What’s the deal with Brent Henley?

The 6-foot-6, 258-pound defenseman/forward/enforcer signed an AHL contract with the Admirals on Thursday, but the Coquitlam, B.C. native was unable to play over the weekend due to immigration issues. Unless Henley gets the go-ahead by Wednesday, he will also miss Friday’s game at Lake Erie and Saturday’s contest in Hamilton. The visa process can take up to 14 days.

Immigration issues also delayed the arrival of winger Juraj Simek, who was acquired in a trade with Vancouver on Oct. 6. Simek went through his first Admirals practice on Monday.

How did Zenon Konopka get hurt in Saturday’s game?

The Admirals captain took a skate in his left thigh during Saturday’s second period was down for a couple of minutes before regaining his feet. The rugged Konopka said the injury bothered him throughout the game and was still an issue Monday, as he sat out practice. “It really hasn’t gone away,’’ said Konopka, who sported a purple bruise about the size of a baseball on his upper leg. “Fortunately we’ve got a good training staff here. They’ll take care of me.’’

Other injury news:

* Bracken Kearns — The center missed part of Friday’s game and all of Saturday with a “charlie horse’’ but went through a full practice Monday and says he’s good to go. “It was more of a precautionary thing,’’ Kearns said. ‘’I feel 100 percent now.’’

* Pete Zingoni — Also missed the weekend’s games with a lower body injury but said he felt good after Monday’s grueling workout. “I’m pretty hopeful I can play this weekend,’’ he said.

ASK AWAY Have Admirals-related questions? Send them to paul.white@pilotonline.com. We’ll try to answer them in the next installment.