Wolves Fall in Shootout at Rockford
April 17, 2021 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Chicago Wolves News Release
ROCKFORD, Illinois - Despite rookie forward Cole Smith's first two-goal game as a professional, the Chicago Wolves suffered a 4-3 shootout loss to the host Rockford IceHogs Saturday night.
Rookie forward David Cotton also scored and defenseman David Warsofsky handed out two assists as the Wolves (15-4-0-2) dropped their first game of the year when leading at either intermission.
Wolves goaltender Connor Ingram (0-1-1) rejected 37 of 40 saves during regulation and overtime while 27-year-old Russia native Ivan Nalimov (1-1-0) posted 23 saves to earn his first win in North America.
Rockford recorded the game's first goal when Reese Johnson finished off a 2-on-1 rush with a top-shelf blast at 5:56 of the first.
The Wolves answered shortly after Nalimov lost control of his stick and flipped it into the corner. Defenseman Joey Keane ripped a shot from the point that Smith redirected between Nalimov's skates for a 1-1 knot at 14:11.
Chicago received a power play moments later and, 10 seconds into the power play, defenseman Frederic Allard ripped a wrister from the top of the right circle and Cotton battled to swat home the rebound to give the Wolves a 2-1 lead at 14:46.
The IceHogs forged a 2-2 tie on Andrei Altybarmakian's rebound goal at 15:47 of the second, but Smith responded again with a pinpoint one-timer with 11 seconds left in the second. Center Sean Malone took a pass in the neutral zone, glided down the right wing, circled behind the net and flipped Smith a perfect backhand pass in the slot to set up the Wolves' 3-2 lead.
Rockford removed Nalimov with 3:00 left to get an extra attacker on the ice and it paid off when MacKenzie Entwistle was credited with the tying goal with 2:11 remaining in regulation.
After a scoreless overtime, Rockford's Tim Soderlund and Brandon Pirri converted their shootout attempts while the Wolves' Patrick Harper and Cotton were stopped by Nalimov.
The Wolves host their first home game in 18 days at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21, when Rockford visits the Wolves Training Facility in Hoffman Estates.
The Wolves are hosting a Food Drive to help Chicago's Common Pantry on Saturday, April 24, at Allstate Arena. Skates will lead a group accepting donations of canned goods and other non-perishable items from noon to 2 p.m. in the parking lot.
ICEHOGS 4, WOLVES 3 (SO)
Chicago 2 1 0 0 0 -- 3
Rockford 1 1 1 0 1 -- 4
First Period-1, Rockford, Johnson 4 (Busdeker), 5:56; 2, Chicago, Smith 3 (Keane, Warsofsky), 14:11; 3, Chicago, Cotton 8 (Allard, Warsofsky), 14:46 pp.
Penalties-Entwistle, Rockford (cross-checking), 14:36.
Second Period-4, Rockford, Altybarmakian 4 (Busdeker, Osipov), 15:47; 5, Chicago, Smith 4 (Malone, Gust), 19:49.
Penalties-Johnson (unsportsmanlike conduct served by Soderlund, 10-minute misconduct), 10:57; Healey, Chicago (fighting), 13:30; Mitchell, Rockford (fighting), 13:30.
Third Period-6, Rockford, Entwistle 4 (Pirri, Franson), 17:49.
Penalties-Fitzgerald, Chicago (high-sticking, fighting), 7:37; Mitchell, Rockford (fighting, game misconduct), 7:37; Richard, Chicago (high-sticking), 13:27.
Overtime-None.
Penalties-None.
Shootout-Chicago 0 (Harper NG, Cotton NG); Rockford 2 (Soderlund G, Pirri G). Shots on goal-Chicago 9-9-6-2-0-26; Rockford 10-11-14-5-1-41. Power plays-Chicago 1-2; Rockford 0-2. Goalies-Chicago, Ingram (37-40); Rockford, Nalimov (23-26). Referees-Lucas Martin and Peter Tarnaris. Linesmen-Tyler Gregory and Jameson Gronert.
American Hockey League Stories from April 17, 2021
- Penguins Beaten by Crunch, 4-1 - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Stars Drop Final Game in San Jose 4-2 - Texas Stars
- Wild Beat Griffins 4-3 in Overtime - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Wild Clip Griffins in Overtime 4-3 - Iowa Wild
- Crunch Defeat Penguins, 4-1 - Syracuse Crunch
- Wolves Fall in Shootout at Rockford - Chicago Wolves
- Amerks Drop Third Straight to Monsters - Rochester Americans
- Monsters Extend Win Streak to Six Games, Beat Amerks 6-3 - Cleveland Monsters
- Admirals Sign Solow to AHL Deal - Milwaukee Admirals
- Stockton Stifled in Saddledome Finale - Stockton Heat
- Fulcher Reassigned by Detroit, Boyle and Veleno Join Taxi Squad - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Bears Win Fourth Straight, Double up Devils 6-3 - Hershey Bears
- Florida Panthers Announce Player Moves - Syracuse Crunch
- Appleby, Sound Tigers End Skid against Streaking Hartford - Bridgeport Islanders
- Winning Streak Ends in Shutout Loss - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Schnarr Scores Again in 6-3 Loss to Bears - Binghamton Devils
- Columbus Blue Jackets Sign 2017 Sixth Round Pick Carson Meyer to a One-Year Entry Level Contract - Cleveland Monsters
- Heat Battle Belleville in Regular Season Home Finale - Stockton Heat
- Game Day Build-Up: Senators at Heat, April 17th - Belleville Senators
- Game #25 Tucson at Henderson - Tucson Roadrunners
- Condors Welcome Fans Back in Primetime at 8 p.m. against San Diego - Bakersfield Condors
- Sound Tigers Face Wolf Pack in Fourth Straight Tilt - Bridgeport Islanders
- Barracuda Dim Stars 5-3 - San Jose Barracuda
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.
