Iowa Falls to Tucson 4-2 at TRIA Rink in Preseason Opener
September 28, 2018 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Iowa Wild News Release
ST. PAUL, MINN - Iowa Wild dropped its first preseason game by a score of 4-2 to the Tucson Roadrunners Friday evening. The game was played in St. Paul at TRIA Rink, the official practice rink of Minnesota Wild, with the contest open to all fans free of charge.
Neither team found the back of the net until 14:06 in the second period, when Tucson forward Domenic Alberga potted the game's first goal. Alberga's tally was assisted by forward Darik Angeli and defenseman Kyle Capobianco.
The Roadrunners doubled their lead when forward Michael Bunting scored a power-play goal at 8:50 in the third period, with assists coming from Capobianco, his second of the game, and defenseman Robbie Russo.
The Wild got on the board at 10:56 in the final frame, cutting Tucson's lead to 2-1. With the puck at the blue line, defenseman Hunter Warner rifled a shot on net. Forward Dmitry Sokolov got his stick on the shot for a deflection, beating Roadrunners goaltender Hunter Miska (29 saves) for his first score of the preseason. Forward Mason Shaw earned the secondary assist on the play.
Just 42 seconds after Iowa's goal, Tucson made it 3-1 when forward Trevor Cheek knocked a puck past Wild goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen (17 saves). Cheek's goal was set up by forward Brayden Burke.
A pair of Roadrunners penalties led to a 5-on-3 power-play opportunity for the Wild, and defenseman Eric Martinsson capitalized on the man advantage. Tic-tac-toe passing by forwards Sam Anas and Justin Kloos led the puck to Martinsson's stick, resulting in a slap-shot goal for Iowa, bringing the score to 3-2 at 15:35 in the third stanza.
Bunting notched his second goal of the game less than a minute later, recording an unassisted shorthanded tally at 16:24 in the third period, giving Tucson a 4-2 lead.
That score held and when the horn sounded, Tucson skated away with the 4-2 victory. The Wild outshot the Roadrunners 31-21 in the contest.
The two teams will battle it out again Saturday afternoon, with puck drop scheduled at 4:00 p.m. at TRIA Rink. The game is free of charge to all fans.
The Iowa Wild 2018-19 season is presented by Mercy Medical Center and runs from October through April. Iowa Wild's Opening Night will take place on October 5. For more information, please contact the Wild office by calling 515-564-8700 or by visiting www.iowawild.com.
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