COMPLETE NUTRITION GAME PREVIEW AT ROCKFORD 12.30.16
Dec 30, 2016 Iowa Wild (14-15-2-1, 31 points) at Rockford IceHogs (10-15-2-3, 25 points)
Iowa and Rockford meet for the fourth time this season, as the Wild wraps up a two-game road trip on Friday. The two teams met all three times this season in Des Moines, this is the first of five visits the Wild makes to Rockford. Iowa took the last meeting on Monday – a 4-1 win at Wells Fargo Arena on Dec. 26. The Wild enters the game after falling 3-0 at Milwaukee on Wednesday. Rockford is coming off its second straight loss with a 6-2 defeat at home to Chicago on Wednesday.
As far as rivalries go, the Wild has played the IceHogs more than any other team in AHL history with the 34th meeting on Friday. Iowa is 11-21-1-0 all-time against Rockford, including a 5-9-0-1 mark on the road. The IceHogs are 22-7-2-2 against the Wild all-time, including a 10-2-1-1 mark at BMO Harris Bank Center. The two teams will meet ten times this season.
Iowa is 6-5-2-0 on the road this season and 4-5-1-0 over the last 10 outings. Iowa has points in four of its last six games. The Wild has been outscored by the home teams 36-29 this season. The Hogs are 7-6-1-2 at home and 3-5-1-1 over the last ten games. Rockford has been outscored by the road teams 54-49.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
at Rockford 12/30 7:00 PM CT KXNO/ iHeartRadio
vs. Chicago 12/31 3:00 PM CT KXNO /iHeartRadio
at Grand Rapids 1/4 6:00 PM CT KXNO/ iHeartRadio
at Manitoba 1/7 7:00 PM CT KXNO/ iHeartRadio
at Manitoba 1/8 2:00 PM CT KXNO/ iHeartRadio
Transactions:
12.27.16: Delete – F Jordan Schroeder – recalled by Minnesota (NHL)
12.30.16: Add – F Kurtis Gabriel – assigned by Minnesota (NHL)
Last Time Out
The Iowa Wild were defeated by the Milwaukee Admirals 3-0 in front of 7,287 fans on Wednesday night at UWM Panther Arena. Milwaukee goalie Jonas Gunnarsson made 21 saves for his first North American shutout. Forwards Mike Liambas, Frederick Gaurdreau and Justin Kirkland supplied the offense, as Milwaukee improved to 3-2-0-0 against Iowa this season. Iowa goalie Alex Stalock stopped 24 of 27 in defeat. It marked only the second regulation loss in the last eight games for the Wild.
Iowa Wild
Through the first 32 games of the regular season, right wing Teemu Pulkkinen leads the club with 11 goals and 20 points in 22 games played. Pulkkinen also leads the team in power-play goals (4), first goals (5), game-winning goals (3) and shots (76). Recently recalled to Minnesota, forward Jordan Schroeder is among the leaders in scoring with 12 assists and 18 points in 25 games played. Schroeder’s 12 assists are tied for first on the team. Rookie Alex Tuch is third in scoring with 17 points in 31 games played. Tuch has seven goals and 10 assists, ranking in the top 20 for all AHL rookies in points. Veteran center Pat Cannone is fourth in scoring with 16 points, off 12 assists and four goals. Mike Reilly and Gustav Olofsson are next in scoring with 12 points, leading all defensemen in points. Olofsson has three goals and nine assists in 30 games played. Reilly also has three goals and nine assists, but has played in 20 games. Forward Colton Beck (3g-9a) and rookie Mario Lucia (4g,8a) also rank among the team’s scoring leaders.
Veteran Alex Stalock and Steve Michalek split time in net for Iowa. Stalock is 9-8-2 with a 2.68 GAA and a .907 SV%. Michalek is 5-7-1 with a 2.85 GAA and a .915 SV%.
Iowa’s power play sits 17th in the league after going 21-for-127 (16.5%). The Wild’s penalty kill sits 18th after stopping 102-of-126 (81.0%).
Notables –
● Iowa is 13th in the AHL in goals against average at 2.84. On Nov. 12, the team was 27th in the AHL with a 3.62
Rockford IceHogs
Center Mark McNeill leads the IceHogs in scoring with 21 points in 30 games played. He leads the team with 16 assists and has added five goals. Tanner Kero was recently recalled to Chicago, leaving with seven goals and 20 points in 28 games played. Kero was first in goals and second in assists. Right wing Spencer Abbott has seven goals and 17 points in 28 games played. Ville Pokka leads all defensemen in points with 14 in 30 games played. He is third on the team with 12 assists.
Goalies Lars Johansson and Mac Carruth share time in net for Rockford. Johansson sees the majority of time and is 7-9-1 with a 2.75 GAA and a .905 SV %. Carruth is 3-5-3 with a 3.21 GAA and a .889 SV %.
Rockford’s power play is 16th, going 22-for-129 (17.1%). The Hogs are 25th on the penalty kill, stopping 90 of 124 (78.9%).