McKenzie, Wolves Roast Griffins
November 27, 2019 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Chicago Wolves News Release
ROSEMONT, Illinois - Veteran forward Curtis McKenzie produced two goals and two assists to lead the Chicago Wolves to a 5-2 victory over the Grand Rapids Griffins on Wednesday night at Allstate Arena.
Forward Tye McGinn and defenseman Jimmy Schuldt and Jaycob Megna joined McKenzie in the scoring column as the Wolves (9-12-1-0) snapped a three-game losing streak. Oscar Dansk (4-5-0) posted 27 saves to earn the win.
"Tonight was great," said Wolves head coach Rocky Thompson. "It was a nice mixture. We scored goals at the right time -- when we needed to. Special teams was good tonight. Oscar was excellent. When we made a mistake, he was there and played really well to make the big save at the right time."
The Wolves opened the scoring by capitalizing on the game's first power play. McGinn found an open spot in the slot, corralled defenseman Dylan Coghlan's pass from the corner and whistled a wrister past goaltender Calvin Pickard at 16:40 of the first.
Chicago pushed the lead to 2-0 with 56 seconds left in first when Gage Quinney spied Schuldt speeding alone into the offensive zone. Schuldt took Quinney's pass, rushed to the high slot and fired it home.
Megna got into the act at 8:24 of the second to deliver what proved to be the game-winning goal. McKenzie owned the puck beneath the goal line, spotted Megna moving to an open area in the left faceoff circle and fed him for a quick wrister to make it 3-0.
After Grand Rapids' Chris Terry tipped an Alec McCrea shot to cut the deficit to 3-1, McKenzie scored from close range to regain a three-goal lead for the Wolves. Center Nicolas Roy claimed a loose puck along the right half-wall and backhanded a pass to McKenzie, who surged between defenders and flipped home the puck at 18:37 of the second.
Grand Rapids (9-10-1-1) pulled within two again when Dominic Turgeon scored at 6:51 of the third, but McKenzie answered by swiping the puck just outside the blue line, racing in and banging a shot off the post and home for a 5-2 lead with 3:59 to go.
Pickard (7-6-2) stopped 17 of 22 shots.
The Wolves visit Rockford at 7 p.m. Friday for an Illinois Lottery Cup clash televised by My50 Chicago, then return to Allstate Arena to face the Manitoba Moose at 7 p.m. Saturday. For ridiculous Black Friday deals on Wolves tickets and merchandise, visit ChicagoWolves.com.
American Hockey League Stories from November 27, 2019
- Admirals Set Record with 11th Straight Win - Milwaukee Admirals
- P-Bruins Overcome Three-Goal Deficit, Defeat Hershey Bears in Shootout, 7-6 - Providence Bruins
- Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot - Tucson Roadrunners
- McKenzie, Wolves Roast Griffins - Chicago Wolves
- Senators Score Three Unanswered Goals in the Final Period to Sink Rocket 5-3 - Laval Rocket
- Penguins Hold off Phantoms - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Condors Drop Thanksgiving Eve to Tucson - Bakersfield Condors
- Matt Luff and Paul LaDue Recalled to NHL - Ontario Reign
- Penguins Defeat the Phantoms, 6-2 - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Gibson makes 37 saves; Bellows records two points in Bridgeport's third straight win - Bridgeport Islanders
- Checkers Bounce Back for Crushing 5-2 Win over Monsters - Charlotte Checkers
- Monsters Stumble in 5-2 Loss to Checkers - Cleveland Monsters
- Bears Drop High Scoring Affair in Shootout to Bruins - Hershey Bears
- Sens Battle Back for Victory over Laval - Belleville Senators
- Comets Cruise to 4-1 Win over Crunch - Utica Comets
- T-Birds Can't Overcome Third Deficit in 3-2 Defeat - Springfield Thunderbirds
- Crunch Foiled by Comets, 4-1 - Syracuse Crunch
- Anaheim Ducks Sign Brayden Tracey to Entry-Level Contract - San Diego Gulls
- Thunderbirds, Springfield Fire Department Donate over $8,000 to Family of Lt. Jason Menard - Springfield Thunderbirds
- Ontario Reign Announce Roster Moves - Ontario Reign
- $5 Ticket Special for Black Friday - Rockford IceHogs
- Heat Bring Win Streak to Ontario Wednesday - Stockton Heat
- Hogberg Recalled by Ottawa - Belleville Senators
- Scotty McCreary to Perform March 27 - Milwaukee Admirals
- Game Day Build-Up: Senators vs. Rocket, November 27 - Belleville Senators
- Game Preview: Bears vs. Bruins, 7 PM - Hershey Bears
- Blue Jackets Recall Goaltender Elvis Merzlikins, Assign Net-Minder Matiss Kivlenieks to Monsters - Cleveland Monsters
- Sound Tigers Look to Feast on Birds a Day Early - Bridgeport Islanders
- Game 19 Preview: Tucson at Bakersfield - Tucson Roadrunners
- Iowa Falls to Texas 7-3 - Iowa Wild
- Rampage Top IceHogs on Walman's Winner - San Antonio Rampage
- Stars Shine in Lopsided 7-3 Victory over Wild - Texas Stars
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
