IOWA FALLS 4-3 IN BACK-AND-FORTH AFFAIR AT MILWAUKEE
Jan 5, 2018Wild earn a point as Admirals win in the shootout
MILWAUKEE, WIS. – Iowa Wild (15-11-6-3; 39 pts.) earned a point against Milwaukee Admirals (17-13-4-0; 38 pts.), as the team lost 4-3 in the shootout at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.
Iowa opened the scoring for the first time in four games when forward Christoph Bertschy buried his seventh of the season at 14:00 in the first period. Center Pat Cannone skated behind the Milwaukee net and quickly made a no-look pass to Bertschy, who was crashing the net. Bertschy ripped a shot toward the far post and beat Anders Lindback (20 saves) to give the Wild a 1-0 lead.
Milwaukee evened it up 1-1 at 18:35 when defenseman Joonas Lyytinen, fresh off a reassignment from Nashville, put a shot on net, which bounced off Anthony Richard and past Wild goaltender Steve Michalek (23 saves). The first-period horn sounded with the teams tied at 1, but with Milwaukee holding a 13-7 shot advantage.
Wild forward Kyle Rau gave Iowa a 2-1 lead with a wrist shot from the left face-off dot just 2:45 into the second period. Forward Luke Kunin brought the puck into the offensive zone off a pass from defenseman Zach Palmquist and worked his way down low, drawing the Milwaukee defenders with him. Rau filled into the open space, caught the pass from Kunin and rifled a shot into the back of the net to reclaim the lead.
Richard tallied his second score of the game less than two minutes later when he snuck a shot past Michalek on a breakaway at 4:35 in the second period. His multi-goal night was his first of the 2017-18 season.
Once again the Wild broke ahead from Milwaukee, as defenseman Alex Grant recorded a power-play goal at 6:46 in the second period. Grant one-timed a pass from defenseman Ryan Murphy, finding pay dirt and giving the Wild its third lead of the game. Cannone earned the secondary assist on the goal for his first multi-assist night and fourth multi-point game of the season, while Grant’s tally was his first since Dec. 1.
Heading into the third period, the Wild led 3-2, while the Admirals had an 18-17 lead in shots.
Admirals forward Harry Zolnierczyk recorded his 13th goal of the season when he redirected a shot from Emil Pettersson past Michalek at 14:45 in the third period. Milwaukee’s second power-play goal sent the game into overtime.
After a scoreless overtime, the two teams went to the shootout. Winger Sam Anas scored for the Wild, but Admirals forwards Justin Kirkland, Freddy Gaudreau and Zolnierczyk all scored, giving the hosts the 4-3 victory.
The Wild return to Iowa for a clash with the AHL-leading Manitoba Moose Saturday. Puck drop is at 7:00 p.m. CT.
The Iowa Wild 2017-18 season is presented by Mercy Medical Center and runs from October through April. For more information, please contact the Wild office by calling 515-564-8700 or by visiting www.iowawild.com.