IOWA LOSES TO MILWAUKEE 7-2
Mar 25, 2018Wild drops out of playoff spot for first time since January
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – Iowa Wild (30-22-9-5; 74 points) lost to Milwaukee Admirals (34-28-4-1; 73 points) by a score of 7-2 Sunday evening at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. With the loss, the Wild dropped out of a playoff spot for the first time since Jan. 17.
Just 16 seconds into the game, Milwaukee’s Bobby Butler got the home team on the board. The forward received a pass from defenseman James Oligny and taking advantage of a Wild miscue, beat Iowa goaltender Niklas Svedberg (19 saves) to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
Seventy-five seconds later, the Admirals scored again, as center Mark McNeill tapped in a pass from forward Tyler Gaudet. McNeill’s tally was his 12th of the season and Milwaukee took a 2-0 lead. Forward Trevor Smith gave Milwaukee a 3-0 lead as he wristed a shot over Svedberg’s blocker at 14:29 in the first period.
Through 20 minutes, Milwaukee held a 3-0 lead while outshooting Iowa 15-5.
The Admirals made it four consecutive goals when forward Anthony Richard capitalized on a Wild turnover at 13:18 in the second period. Richard raced in on Svedberg alone, besting the goaltender to give Milwaukee a 4-0 lead.
Iowa got on the scoreboard at 19:09 in the second period when forward Cal O’Reilly tipped a shot from defenseman Zach Palmquist past Anders Lindback (26 saves). O’Reilly, using his backhand, redirected Palmquist’s slap shot past Lindback’s glove to cut the deficit to 4-1. O’Reilly’s goal extended his point streak to nine games, while forward Kyle Rau earned the secondary assist, extending his point streak to eight games.
The Admirals led 4-1 at the end of the second period and held a 21-20 shot advantage.
Forty-five seconds into the final frame, Frederick Gaudreau made it 5-1 for the home squad. Less than five minutes later, Gaudreau potted his second of the game, giving the Admirals a 6-1 lead.
Wild forward Pat Cannone scored his 16th of the season at 7:58 in the third period, putting the score at 6-2 in favor of the Admirals. Defenseman Viktor Loov sent Cannone a pass from below the goal line and he slipped the puck short side past Lindback.
Forward Yakov Trenin tallied his fifth goal of the season at 10:38 in the third stanza, giving the Admirals a 7-2 lead. That score held until the final whistle, with Iowa outshooting Milwaukee 28-26.
Iowa closes out its two-game road trip with a contest at Chicago Wednesday. Puck drop is at 7:00 p.m.
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.