IOWA FALLS TO MANITOBA 4-3 IN THE SHOOTOUT
Mar 7, 2020-Forward Sam Anas ties Wild’s single-season point record in the loss-
Iowa Wild (36-17-4-4; 80 pts.) overcame three separate one-goal deficits but ultimately fell to the Manitoba Moose (27-32-1-0; 55 pts.) by a score of 4-3 in the shootout Saturday night.
For the third consecutive game, the Wild allowed the first goal of the contest as forward Kristian Reichel scored his 12th of the season at 10:12 in the opening stanza. Reichel received a pass from forward Kristian Vesalainen inside the left circle and beat goaltender Mat Robson (32 saves) blocker side for the score.
Just 1:20 later, forward Luke Johnson responded for the Wild to tie the game at 1-1 with a power-play tally. After a faceoff win for the Wild, defenseman Brennan Menell found Johnson at the top of the left circle, where he rifled a shot over the blocker of goaltender Eric Comrie (33 saves) for his 16th of the campaign. Forward Sam Anas was credited with the secondary helper on the play.
At the end of the first period, the score was tied 1-1 with Manitoba holding a 14-11 shot advantage.
Manitoba regained the lead with a tally at 14:21 in the second period to move ahead 2-1. Defenseman Jimmy Oligny took a shot from the left point that deflected off a Wild defenseman and into the back of the net for his fourth of the season.
Once again, the Wild countered with a tally less than two minutes later as Manitoba native Cody McLeod scored his fourth of the season at 15:39 in the middle frame. Forward Connor Dewar won a board battle with Comrie behind the net and kicked the puck into the slot. In front, McLeod slammed the loose puck into the back of the net to make it a 2-2 contest.
Heading into the third period, the score was tied 2-2 while Manitoba led in shorts 28-18.
The Moose took its third lead of the game as forward Cole Maier scored his seventh of the season at 12:52 in the third period. Forward Andrei Chibisov dug a puck out from behind the net and sent it in front, where Maier chipped the pass up and over Robson for the score.
Iowa knotted the game at 3-3 with just 3:23 remaining in the contest as forward Kyle Rau scored his 14th tally of the season, coming on the power play. Standing in the right corner, Anas threw a puck into the slot, where Rau redirected the pass behind Comrie for the score. Anas’ assist was his 67th point of the season, tying Cal O’Reilly for the Wild’s single-season points record. Johnson earned the other helper on the play.
With the score tied at 3-3, the two sides headed to overtime. In the extra frame, Iowa drew a penalty with 1:52 remaining in the contest, but the team couldn’t solve Comrie, sending the game to the shootout.
In the shootout, forward JC Lipon scored the lone goal for the Moose, coming in the third round, while Anas, Johnson and Rau were all stopped by Comrie, giving Manitoba the 4-3 victory. Final shot totals were tied 36-36 and Iowa went 2-for-3 on the power play and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill.
Iowa and Manitoba will rematch tomorrow afternoon at Bell MTS Place. Puck drop is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CT.
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.