ICEHOGS SCORE FOUR STRAIGHT, HAND WILD 7-4 LOSS
Dec 13, 2022
DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Wild and Rockford IceHogs went back and forth through the first half of Tuesday’s matchup, but the IceHogs scored four consecutive goals over the end of the second period and the opening minutes of the third to pull away and take a 7-4 win over the Wild. David Gust had three goals and an assist for Rockford, while Steven Fogarty totaled two goals and an assist for Iowa.
Marco Rossi gave Iowa a 1-0 lead early in the contest off a two-on-one with Nic Petan. Rossi elected to shoot and put his wrister past Mitchell Weeks (28 saves) at 3:35 of the first period. Fogarty and Andrej Sustr picked up assists on the play.
Rockford took a 2-1 lead on the back of a pair of power-play goals. While the teams played four-on-three hockey, Adam Clendening beat Jesper Wallstedt (14 saves) on a one-timer from Dylan Sikura at 16:52. The IceHogs took the lead 45 seconds later when Gust scored from the high slot on the backhand.
Rockford carried the 2-1 lead into the first intermission. Iowa led the shot count 11-10.
Adam Beckman equalized the score with a power-play marker at 1:34 of the second period. Petan and Rossi combined to set up Beckman with a cross-ice pass to the right circle that Beckman one-timed past Weeks.
Cole Guttman put Rockford back in front when he tipped home a centering pass from Sikura at 2:37 of the second period, giving the IceHogs a 3-2 lead.
Fogarty tied the game at 3-3 with a shorthanded bid at 9:03 of the middle frame. After winning the puck in the neutral zone, Fogarty gained a step on the Rockford defense and slid the puck between the legs of Weeks.
The IceHogs responded with a pair of goals to take a 5-3 lead over the Wild. Gust scored first, going over the shoulder of Wallstedt on the rush at 12:54. Lukas Reichel found Filip Roos 31 seconds later, who banked a shot from the left hash off the post and in.
After 40 minutes of play, the IceHogs led 5-3 but the Wild held a 20-19 shot advantage.
Zane McIntyre (four saves) replaced Wallstedt in the net for the Wild to begin the third period.
Gust completed the hat trick at 3:08 of the third. A point shot by Alec Regula kicked off the end glass directly to the stick of the Rockford forward, who had an empty net to make the score 6-3.
Guttman made the score 7-3 in favor of the IceHogs when he tipped home a shot by Clendening on the power play at 7:21 of the third.
Fogarty capped the scoring with a power-play goal at 11:46 of the third with assists from Joe Hicketts and Rossi.
Iowa outshot Rockford 32 to 25. The Wild went 2-for-4 on the power play while the IceHogs were 3-for-5 with the man advantage.
The Iowa Wild face the Texas Stars at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 16 at Wells Fargo Arena.
Iowa Wild hockey is presented by MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center. For more information, please visit www.iowawild.com. Fans can purchase single-game tickets through the team’s website at www.iowawild.com. Group tickets (10 or more), suites, Wild memberships or premium tickets can be purchased by contacting the Iowa Wild Ticket Department at 515-564-8700 or tickets@iowawild.com. The 2022-23 season marks the 10th anniversary of Iowa Wild hockey. Fans can purchase season tickets for the 10th anniversary season at https://www.iowawild.com/wild-365.
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