Wild Fall to IceHogs in Shootout, 3-2
ROCKFORD, IL – Zane McIntyre stopped 32 shots, but the Rockford IceHogs were able to pull out the victory in shootout, downing the Iowa Wild, 3-2. Arvid Soderblom was outstanding for Rockford, stopping 23 shots and all three attempts he faced in the shootout. The Wild got goals from Joseph Cramarossa and Brenden Miller.
The IceHogs controlled play through much of the first period, outshooting the Wild, 14-8. That helped them to take the lead 15:20 into the contest. Carson Gicewicz used the forecheck to gain control of the puck inside the Iowa end, passing it back to Jakub Galvas at the point. He slid across the blueline to the high slot before firing a shot that beat McIntyre for his second goal of the year.
Rockford held the one goal lead through the first frame, but Iowa tied the score 10:18 into the second period. Marco Rossi fed a pass to Miller in the slot, who wristed a shot past the IceHogs netminder for his first goal in a Wild uniform. Rossi earned an assist on the play, giving him points in four straight games and he has 12 points in his last nine contests.
The Wild took the lead 5:07 into the second, as Cramarossa netted his eighth tally of the year. With Rockford on the power-play, McIntyre made a save, directing the puck toward Keaton Thompson. He then found Cramarossa streaking through the neutral zone, putting the puck right onto his tape, sending the Wild forward in on a breakaway. As Cramarossa moved in on Soderblom, he went to his backhand, tucking the puck between the legs of the Rockford netminder to give Iowa a 2-1 lead.
With a little over three minutes left in the contest, the IceHogs rolled the dice, pulling their netminder early. It paid off right away when Ian Mitchell fired a one-timer from the point that beat McIntyre to tie the score at two.
Neither team could find the back of the net in the extra session, sending the contest to a shootout. Neither team was able to score in the first two rounds, but Mitchell provided the game-winner in Round 3 to give Rockford a 3-2 victory.
The loss was a tough one for the Wild (20-17-6), as they moved 15 percentage points behind the IceHogs (20-16-4). Iowa is now 2-1-2 in February. The Wild will move on to take on the Chicago Wolves for a two-game set starting on Saturday evening. The puck drops at 7:00.
By Robert Pannier
