GAME PREVIEW - LAKE ERIE MONSTERS AT IOWA WILD 11.21.15
Nov 21, 2015Lake Erie Monsters (9-3-0-2, 20 points) at Iowa Wild (3-12-1-2, 9 points)
Iowa and Lake Erie meet for the sixth of eight meetings this season. The two teams split a two-game set in Cleveland in on Oct. 16-17. The Monster followed up with a sweep at Wells Fargo Arena on Nov. 7-8. The Monsters defeated the Wild last night 3-2. Lake Erie is 4-0-0-1 against Iowa this year, outscoring the Wild 13-8. All eight games of the season series will be played by the first week of December. Iowa is 8-4-0-1 all-time against Lake Erie and 4-2-0-1 at home. Lake Erie is 5-4-2-2 all-time and 3-3-1-0 in Des Moines.
Iowa is 2-8-1-2 at home this season, having been outscored 43-25 by the visitors. The Wild is 1-8-0-1 over its last 10 games. The Wild is mired in a eight-game winless skid, tied for the franchise record. Iowa plays the last of five straight at home. Lake Erie is 5-3-0-0 on the road this season, scoring and giving up 21 goals. The Monsters are 7-2-0-1 over the last ten games and they are one of three teams in the league to rank among the top ten in both power play and penalty kill.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
vs. Lake Erie 11/21 12:30 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
at Chicago 11/22 4:00 PM KXNO / iHeartRadio
at Grand Rapids 11/25 6:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
at Charlotte 11/28 6:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
at. Charlotte 11/29 12:00 PM CT KXNO / iHeartRadio
Transactions:
11.16.15: Delete – F Brett Bulmer recalled by Minnesota (NHL)
11.20.15: Add – F Michael Keranen assigned by Minnesota (NHL)
11.20.15: Add – D Gustav Olofsson assigned by Minnesota (NHL)
Last Time Out
Monsters defensemen led the charge, scoring all three Lake Erie goals in the win. Defenseman Jamie Sifers scored twice, including the game winner at 9:56 of the third. Lake Erie goalie Joonas Korpisalo made 31 saves on 33 shots for his third win of the season. Defenseman Justin Falk also scored the Monsters, who picked up their third straight win. Iowa goalie Leland Irving made 33 saves on 36 shots in the loss. The Wild received goals from forwards Grayson Downing and Michael Keranen in a losing effort, extending the team’s winless skid to eight straight (0-7-0-1) - tying the franchise record.
Iowa Wild
Forward Michael Keranen leads the team in points with five goals and nine points in 14 games played. Forward Christoph Bertschy is second with six assists and eight points in 17 games played. Forward Grayson Downing and defenseman Mike Reilly are tied for third on the team in points with six. Reilly and Zach Palmquist lead all defensemen with two goals each. Forward Zack Mitchell rounds out the top scorers with five points.
Goalie Jeremy Smith (1-7-1) is among the league leaders with 301 saves through nine games played. He has a 3.21 GAA and a .917 SV%. Leland Irving has made eight appearances, going 2-5-2 with a 2.62 GAA and a .920 SV%.
Iowa ranks 29th after going 6-for-70 (8.6%) on the power play. The team is 61-for-73 (83.6%) on the penalty kill – 15th in the AHL.
Notables:
· Iowa Wild defenseman Gustav Olofsson made his NHL debut for Minnesota on Thursday night in Boston.
Lake Erie Monsters
Leading scorer Kerby Rychel is currently in the NHL. Forwards Markus Hannikain and T.J. Tynan lead the team in points with nine in 14 games. Center Michael Chaput leads the team in goals with five. Forwards Ryan Craig, Alex Broadhurst, Chaput, and defenseman Andrew Bodnarchuk are all tied for second on the team with eight points. Bodnarchuk also leads the blueline scoring through 14 games.
Anton Forsberg (5-2-0) and Joonas Korpisalo (4-1-2) split time in net for Lake Erie. Forsberg has a 2.44 GAA and an .899 SV%. Korpisalo boasts a 1.88 GAA and a .940 SV%. Korpisalo was a third-round pick (#62 overall) by Columbus, while Forsberg was a seventh rounder (#188 overall).
Lake Erie is 11 of 48 on the power play, sitting fourth in the league on the power play at 22.9%. The Monsters penalty kill is 54-for-60 and sits third at 90.0%.