GAME PREVIEW - LAKE ERIE MONSTERS AT IOWA WILD 1.18.14
Jan 18, 2014MEDIA KIT - HERE
Lake Erie Monsters (17-17-0-3, 37 points) at Iowa Wild (16-16-3-2, 37 points)
Saturday’s game is the second of four meetings this season between the two clubs. Iowa beat Lake Erie 6-1 in the first meeting between the two clubs on Friday night in Des Moines. The Wild visits the Monsters for a pair of games in Cleveland on Feb. 21 and 22. The two clubs played four times last year while Houston was Minnesota’s AHL affiliate. The Monsters took the season series by going 4-0-0-0, while Houston was outscored 17-11 en route to an 0-3-0-1 mark.
Iowa plays the final game of three straight at home, coming off a 6-1 win over Lake Erie on Friday. The team has points in 15 of the last 20 outings (10-5-3-2 /.625). The club ended a three-game winless skid with a win on Friday. The Wild has a record of 8-12-1-0 at Wells Fargo Arena, getting outscored by the opposition 56-45. Iowa is 4-3-1-2 over the last ten outings and 2-2-0-0 against the North Division. The team is in a stretch of four straight against North Division teams.
Lake Erie plays the final of five straight road games. The team has dropped its last five road games, including Friday night’s loss at Iowa. Overall, Lake Erie has lost four in a row and five of the last seven games. The AHL affiliate of Colorado is 4-6-0-0 over the last ten games and 4-7-0-0 against the Midwest Division. The Monsters have posted a 5-11-0-2 record on the road, having been outscored 68-43.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
vs. Lake Erie 1/18 12:35 P.M KXNO 1460 / iHeartRadio
at Texas 1/22 7:30 P.M. KXNO 1460 / iHeartRadio
at San Antonio 1/24 7:30 P.M. KXNO 1460 / iHeartRadio
Latest Transactions:
1/18 – Add defenseman Jonathon Blum (assigned by Minnesota – NHL)
1/17 – Add forward Broc Little (signed PTO from Springfield– AHL)
1/17 – Add forward Mike Ullrich (signed PTO - from Orlando – ECHL)
Last Time Out:
The Iowa Wild defeated the Lake Erie Monsters 6-1 in front of 7,704 fans at Wells Fargo Arena on Friday night. Iowa forwards Jake Dowell and Marc Hagel, as well as defenseman Brian Connelly, each scored a goal and added an assist, leading the Wild to victory. Iowa defender Jon Landry also had a two-point game (two assists), improving the Wild’s record to 8-12-1-1 at the Wells Fargo Arena. Iowa goalie Johan Gustafsson stopped 25 shots, including 11 in the second period, helping the Wild gain points in 15 of the last 20 outings. Wild forwards Carson McMillan, Tyler Murovich and Warren Peters also scored in the lopsided win. Monsters goalie Sami Aittokallio played the first two periods, stopping 24 of 28 shots in the loss.
Iowa Wild
After 37 games, defenseman Brian Connelly leads the team in scoring with 22 points in 35 appearances. Connelly has a team-high 20 assists, including a team-leading nine on the power play. Carson McMillan is second in scoring among active skaters with eight goals and nine assists for 17 points in 35 games played. Leading goal scorer Brett Bulmer (10) is currently out with an injury. Zack Phillips and Warren Peters are also among the active skaters in points. Phillips has six goals and ten assists for 16 points in 37 games played. Peters has four goals and ten assists for 14 points in 31 games played. Jonathon Blum (17 pts) returned from Minnesota on Saturday morning. Forwards Erik Haula (17 pts.) and Jason Zucker (13 pts) are on NHL recall with Minnesota.
Goalies Johan Gustafsson and John Curry man the nets for Iowa. Darcy Kuemper is on recall to Minnesota. Johan Gustafsson is 7-7-1 with a 2.75 GAA and a .910 SV %. Curry is 2-2-1 with a 2.33 GAA and a .925 SV%.
Iowa is 27-for-162 (16.7%) on the power play and has allowed 33 power-play goals against on 158 attempts (79.1%) The Wild is 24th in the AHL with a 2.49 goals per game average and the team sits 14th with a 2.76 goals against average.
Notables –
· The Monsters lead the Western Conference with 814 penalty minutes.
· Friday night’s game marked the most goals in a home game for the Iowa Wild.
Lake Erie Monsters
Center Mark Olver leads the Monsters in scoring with 19 assists and 28 points in 34 games played. His 19 assists and 11 power-play assists are team highs. Left wing Bryan Lerg is second on the club with 27 points. He leads Lake Erie with 12 goals and is tied for the lead in power-play assists with 11. Berg also leads the Monsters with a -22 rating. Forward Andrew Agozzino is third on the team with 26 points, tied for second in goals (9) and second overall with 17 assists. Matt Hunwick leads all D-men in scoring with eight goals and 11 assists for 19 points in 26 games played. Guillaume Desbiens (78 PIM I 24 gp) and Mitchell Heard (91 / 31 gp) lead the Monsters in penalty minutes.
Goalies Calvin Pickard and Sami Aittokallio split time in net for Lake Erie. Pickard is 9-8-2 with a 3.00 GAA and a .895 save percentage. Aittokallio is 8-9-1 with a 2.95 GAA and a .899 SV%.
Lake Erie is sixth in the league on the power play, going 35-for-175 (20.0%). The Monsters penalty kill has allowed 35 goals on 191 chances (81.7%). The team averages 2.78 goals per game while allowing 3.24 goals against per game.