DES MOINES, IA – Nic Petan made short work of the extra session, scoring 27 seconds into overtime to give the Iowa Wild a 3-2 victory over the Milwaukee Admirals. Iowa twice held a one goal advantage is in this contest, only to see Milwaukee score power-play goals to tie the score in each instance. However, Petan used the man advantage to deliver the game-winner. Jesper Wallstedt made 36 saves and Marco Rossi had two assists in the contest.

This was a scoreless tie through the first frame, as Wallstedt and Yaroslav Askarov were both spectacular early on. Wallstedt saved 13 shots in the first period, and Milwaukee continued to pepper the Wild netminder, putting 13 shots on net in the second and 12 in the third. Askarov stopped eight in the first to keep the game scoreless.

In the second, Damien Giroux scored 1:25 into the frame to give Iowa the lead. Turner Ottenbreit had the puck behind the net, passing it to Michael Milne, who fed it quickly to Giroux. He beat Askarov with a wrist shot to the short side for his third goal of the season.

Milwaukee responded 12 minutes later when Phil Tomasino scored on the power-play to tie the game at one. Jordan Gross fired a shot from the point that Tomasino redirected past Wallstedt for his 12th goal of the year.

The Wild retook the lead less than four minutes later when Adam Beckman netted his 12th goal of the season. With the teams playing 4-on-4, Rossi took the puck along the half boards, sped behind the net to the opposite side before moving toward the slot. There he found defenseman Dakota Mermis who took the pass, then quickly fed it across the slot to Beckman at the opposite circle. He blasted a one-timer by Askarov to make it 2-1.

Iowa held the one goal advantage into the second intermission, but Kiefer Sherwood tied the score, netting a power-play goal 1:55 into the third. Tomasino took a shot that Wallstedt saved, but Sherwood was able to knock in the rebound for his 15th goal of the season.

Tied at two, the game went to overtime. However, Roland McKeown had taken a tripping penalty with 11 seconds left in regulation. That gave Iowa the power-play to start the extra frame and they made short work of it. Joe Hicketts fed the puck to the right face-off circle to Petan, who blasted a laser past Askarov to give the Wild the skate off goal. Rossi earned an assist on the play, his second of the game. He snapped a three-game pointless streak which followed a six-game point streak.

Wallstedt continues his impressive run, stopping 36 shots. That was his fifth straight victory, and he has allowed five total goals in his last five games.

The Iowa Wild (19-14-4) will welcome the Milwaukee Admirals (21-14-3) on Saturday night. These teams are separated by just three points in the standings. The puck drops at 6:00.

Gamesheet

by Robert Pannier