GAME PREVIEW - IOWA WILD AT LAKE ERIE MONSTERS
Feb 21, 2014Iowa Wild (21-19-6-4, 52 points) at Lake Erie Monsters (21-24-0-4, 46 points)
Friday’s game is the third of four meetings this season between the two clubs. Iowa beat Lake Erie 6-1 in the first meeting and followed up with a 1-0 victory in the second meeting, both at Wells Fargo Arena in mid-January. The two teams conclude the season series with a rematch on Saturday in Cleveland.
Iowa has dropped three of the last four games and is coming off a 3-2 overtime loss at Rochester on Wednesday night. Iowa only has two wins over its last nine games (2-3-3-1). The Wild has a record of 11-6-3-3 on the road, outscored by the opposition 70-67. Iowa is 3-3-3-1 over the last ten outings and 3-1-2-1 against the North Division. The team is in a stretch of three straight against North Division opponents.
Lake Erie opens up a four-game homestand with Iowa on Friday. The Monsters have dropped three straight on home ice and five of the last six games at Quicken Loans Arena. Lake Erie is 13-11-0-1 at home, outscored by the visitors 74-69. The AHL affiliate of Colorado is 4-5-0-1 over the last ten games and 5-8-0-0 against the Midwest Division. The Monsters are coming off a 5-4 shootout win at Oklahoma City on Feb. 15.
Upcoming Games:
Team Date Time Radio / TV
at Lake Erie 2/21 6:30 PM CT KXNO 1460 / iHeartRadio
at Lake Erie 2/22 6 PM CT KXNO 1460 / iHeartRadio
vs. Rockford 2/25 5:35 PM KXNO 1460 / iHeartRadio / Mediacom 22
Latest Transactions:
2/19 – Delete Defenseman Jonathon Blum and forward Jake Dowell (recalled - Minnesota - NHL)
2/17 – Delete forward Jack Downing (released from PTO – returns to South Carolina - ECHL).
2/16 – Add forward Taylor Matson (recalled from Orlando – ECHL)
Last Time Out:
The Iowa Wild were defeated by the Rochester Americans 3-2 in overtime in front of 3,774 fans at Blue Cross Arena on Wednesday night. Rochester forward Phil Varone snapped a wrist shot past Iowa goalie John Curry with 1:09 remaining in overtime, giving the Americans their second straight OT win at home. The Wild led 2-1 in the third period until Rochester’s Johan Larsson scored with 8:56 left in regulation, tying the game 2-2 and forcing the eventual overtime. Iowa rookie forward Erik Haula scored twice, as his club saw its winless skid hit three games (0-2-1-0). Americans goalie Nathan Lieuwan stopped 18 Iowa shots for the victory. Wild goalie John Curry made 31 saves on 34 shots, as Iowa slipped to 11-6-3-3 on the road this season.
Iowa Wild
After 50 games, defenseman Brian Connelly leads the team in scoring with 30 points in 47 appearances. Connelly has a team-high 26 assists, including a team-leading 13 on the power play. With nine points in his last five games, Forward Erik Haula moved into second for the team-scoring race with 26 points in 29 games. He has a team-high 14 goals and is third with 11 power-play points. Defenseman Jonathon Blum, as well as forward Carson McMillan are also among the top scorers. McMillan has 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points in 42 games played. He is currently out with an injury. Blum was recalled on Wednesday, he had six goals and 19 assists for 25 points in 42 games played. Forward Zack Phillips has nine goals and 15 assists for 24 points in 50 games played. Third in goal scoring, Brett Bulmer (10 goals) recently returned from an injury. Forward Warren Peters is also among the active skaters in points with 18 (7g/11a).
Goalies Johan Gustafsson and John Curry man the nets for Iowa. Johan Gustafsson is 8-11-2 with a 3.10 GAA and a .903 SV %. Curry is 6-4-2 with a 2.02 GAA and a .937 SV%.
Iowa is 37-for-211 (17.5%) on the power play and has allowed 38 power-play goals against on 194 attempts (80.4%). The Wild is 25th in the AHL with a 2.52 goals per game average and the team sits 16th with a 2.88 goals against average.
Notables –
· Iowa forward Justin Mercier played for Lake Erie from 2009-12.
Lake Erie Monsters
Forward Andrew Agozzino is first on the team with 33 points, tied for third in goals (10) and first overall with 23 assists. Center Mark Olver is second in scoring with 20 assists and 32 points in 44 games played. His 11 power-play assists lead the team. Left wing Bryan Lerg is third on the club with 27 points in 35 games played. He is also tied for the team lead with 12 goals and the lead in power-play assists with 11. Berg also leads the Monsters with a team low -22 rating. Matt Hunwick leads all D-men in scoring with nine goals and 13 assists for 22 points in 37 games played. Guillaume Desbiens (114 PIM I 35 gp) and Mitchell Heard (119 / 44 gp) lead the Monsters in penalty minutes.
Goalies Calvin Pickard and Sami Aittokallio split time in net for Lake Erie. Pickard is 11-13-3 with a 3.00 GAA and a .898 save percentage. Aittokallio is 10-11-1 with a 2.77 GAA and a .906 SV%.
Lake Erie is 13th in the league on the power play, going 39-for-218 (17.9%). The Monsters penalty kill has allowed 43 goals on 237 chances (81.9%). The team averages 2.59 goals per game while allowing 3.14 goals against per game.