COMPLETE NUTRITION GAME PREVIEW VS MANITOBA 10.15.16
Oct 15, 2016 Manitoba Moose (1-0-0-0, 2 Points) at Iowa Wild (0-1-0-0, 0 Points)
Iowa opened the 2016-17 season at home on Friday night with a 3-1 defeat to the Moose. The same two teams meet again on Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena. Iowa and Manitoba meet for the second of eight meetings this season. The Wild and Moose met eight times last year, with Iowa posting a 6-2-0-0 mark, including a 3-1-0-0 record at home. Manitoba was 2-5-0-1 against Iowa, including a 1-3-0-0 record in Des Moines. The two teams finished at the bottom of the central division last season. The Moose went 26-41-4-5 and placed seventh in the division with 61 points. The Wild managed a 24-41-5-6 overall record, which landed the team in eighth place in the division.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
vs. Manitoba 10/15 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Grand Rapids 10/18 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Charlotte 10/21 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
vs. Charlotte 10/22 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio / MC22
vs. Cleveland 10/25 7:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
Transactions:
10.13.16: Add – F Jeff Hoggan – signed PTO
10.13.16: Add – D Scott Czarnowczan – signed PTO
Last Time Out
The Iowa Wild was defeated by the Manitoba Moose 3-1 in front of 9,110 fans on Friday night at Wells Fargo Arena. Manitoba goalie Eric Comrie stopped 28 of 29 shots and forward Jack Roslovic led the Moose with a goal and an assist. Forward Quinton Howden and defenseman Nelson Nogier also added goals in the first game of the year. Iowa goalie Alex Stalock stopped 20 of 23 shots in defeat. Iowa defenseman Gustav Olofsson scored his club’s lone goal. The crowd of 9,110 was the second largest opening night crowd in team history.
Iowa Wild
Iowa experienced major changes over the summer, starting with the hiring of Derek Lalonde as the fourth head coach in team history. He joins the team after two seasons in Toledo, that saw him post a 97-35-7-5 (.715) record in two ECHL seasons. In his first season, the team rattled off 50 wins and amassed the largest point-total turnaround in league history by adding 58 points from the season before.
Just over 70% of the team played at least one game for Iowa last season. Of the 24 announced players on the roster, 13 of them spent the majority of the season with the club. The team returns leading scorers Zack Mitchell (22g,20a=44pts in 70 GP), Grayson Downing (19g-21a=40pts in 56 GP), Christoph Bertschy (11g-24a=35 in 72 GP) and Jordan Schroeder (14g-20a=34 pts in 40 GP). Veteran defenseman Maxime Fortunus leads a defense corps that includes all-star defenseman Gustav Olofsson and second-year blueliner Zach Palmquist. The franchise’s all-time leading scorer Tyler Graovac has also returned for his fourth season in Des Moines. He joins Marc Hagel and Kurtis Gabriel as the only remaining players who suited up in the team’s first year of existence.
The team features plenty of newcomers including Pat Cannone, who led the Chicago Wolves in scoring last season and was named the MVP of the AHL All Star Classic. He is joined by a handful of promising prospects who will be making their pro debuts this weekend, including first round pick Alex Tuch (18th overall in 2014) and Hobey Baker Finalist Sam Anas, who led the nation in scoring as a junior at Quinnipiac. Forward Nick Saracino also joins rookie defensemen Nick Seeler and Hunter Warner.
In net, veteran Alex Stalock joins Iowa after signing a one-year contract with Minnesota over the summer. In 180 career AHL games, the 29-year old is 66-40-7 with a 2.62 GAA and a .908 SV%. Rookie Steve Michalek will also see time in net, he went 7-5-2 with a 2.63 GAA and a .910 SV %.
Notables –
● The Wild slipped to 1-2-0-0 in home openers and 1-3-0-0 in season openers.
Manitoba Moose
The Moose experienced a change behind the bench with Pascal Vincent replacing Keith McCambridge. The team returns 19 players from last year’s team, including defenseman Brendan Kitchton, who led the team with 30 assists and 41 points in 68 games played. Fellow scorers Chase De Leo (19g-21a=40 pts in 73 GP). Scott Kosmachuk (19g-17a=36 pts in 67 GP) and Pascal Cormier (15g-17a=32 pts in 65 GP) also return for another season with the Moose. The team has some new additions with Marko Dano (4g-19a=23 pts in 34 GP) and Scott Glennie (former first round pick of Dallas).
Goaltender Eric Comrie returns after a successful rookie campaign. Despite posting a 13-25-7 record, Comrie managed a 3.12 GAA and a .907 SV%. He will be joined by NHLer Ondrej Pavelec, who went 13-13-3 with a 2.78 GAA and a .904 SV% in Winnipeg with the Jets last season.