IOWA EARNS 3-2 VICTORY AGAINST BAKERSFIELD IN THE SHOOTOUT
Nov 24, 2019-Wild produce league-leading fourth win when trailing after two periods-
Iowa Wild (11-4-2-2; 26 pts.) earned the team’s sixth come-from-behind victory, ousting the Bakersfield Condors (7-8-2-1; 17 pts.) by a score of 3-2 in an eight-round shootout, one of the longest in team history.
Once again, Bakersfield scored the first goal of the contest as forward Josh Currie netted his second tally in as many games. Defenseman Logan Day took a shot from the top of the right circle that Currie tipped between the legs of goaltender Mat Robson (29 saves) for his ninth of the year. Forward Tyler Benson was also credited with an assist.
At the conclusion of the first period, the Condors led 1-0 while the Wild owned a 15-13 shot advantage.
Iowa evened the game at 1-1 at 17:57 in the second period as forward Cody McLeod scored his second goal of the weekend and third of the season. Defenseman Josh Atkinson caught a pass from JT Brown right at the blueline and fired the puck on net, where McLeod deflected his shot past goaltender Dylan Wells (48 saves) for the tally. The goal marked McLeod’s first two-game goal streak since Nov. 21-23, 2015 with Colorado and his three-game point streak is his longest since March 25-29, 2014 with Colorado.
With just 21.3 seconds left in the second stanza, Bakersfield notched a power-play goal to take a 2-1 lead. Day took a shot from the right side of the blueline that deflected off the stick of a Wild defender and past Robson for the score. Defenseman Joel Persson and forward Anthony Peluso logged the assists.
Heading into the third period, Iowa trailed 2-1 despite outshooting Bakersfield 28-25.
The Wild tied the game at 2-2 at 4:32 in the third period as forward Gabriel Dumont recorded his seventh tally of the season. With a man advantage, defenseman Matt Bartkowski took a shot from the point and Dumont tipped it past Wells for the goal. Forward Gerry Mayhew earned the secondary assist on the play and the goal was just the second tally the Wild have scored on the power play in its last six games.
Neither team could break the 2-2 deadlock in regulation, forcing the game to overtime. After a scoreless extra frame, the game moved to a shootout.
It took eight rounds to finally decide a winner, where Brown ripped a shot past Wells through his five-hole while Robson stopped Day with his left pad. Forwards Sam Anas and Nico Sturm registered the other two goals for the Wild as Robson earned his first career shootout victory.
Final shot totals were 51-31 in favor of Iowa, one shot shy of the franchise’s record. The Wild went 1-for-8 on the power play and 4-for-5 on the penalty kill.
With the victory, the Wild have earned points in five of its last six contests. The win also marked the fourth time Iowa has won when trailing after two periods, which leads the AHL.
The Wild head out on the road for a five-game road trip across Texas and Wisconsin, starting Tuesday. The team will take on the Texas Stars Tuesday with a 7:00 p.m. puck drop.
The Iowa Wild 2019-20 regular season is presented by MercyOne Des Moines 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.