Wolves Foiled in Overtime by Grand Rapids
December 30, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Chicago Wolves News Release
ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Chicago Wolves forced overtime with a third-period goal, but Grand Rapids defenseman Ryan Sproul scored 2:43 into extra time to send the Wolves to a 2-1 defeat Tuesday night at Allstate Arena.
Forward Jeremy Welsh scored his fourth goal in the last four games for the Wolves (17-12-4-0) while goaltender Matt Climie rejected 29 of 31 shots during Chicago's final game of 2014.
"I thought we played solid," said Wolves head coach John Anderson. "We didn't give up a ton of chances and neither did they. (Climie) was really strong all night."
Grand Rapids (16-11-3-0) opened the scoring 3:43 into the game on Teemu Pulkkinen's American Hockey League-leading 17th goal of the year. Center Tomas Nosek circled behind the net and his wraparound attempt went through the crease, but the puck went directly to Pulkkinen and he found the open side of the net.
The Wolves pulled even at 5:22 of the third with Welsh's power-play goal. Jake Chelios moved the puck from the right point along the blue line to Matt Register, who launched a wrister that Welsh redirected into the net while planted in front of Grand Rapids goaltender Tom McCollum.
Sproul's game-winner occurred shortly as the Griffins launched a 4-on-2 assault into the Wolves zone. Marek Tvrdon carried the puck across the blue line on the right, but veered to the left to create space and saucered a pass across the slot to Sproul for a backdoor score.
McCollum (7-8-3) posted 20 saves to pick up the win. Climie's record moved to 7-7-3.
The Wolves ring in 2015 with a pair of home games as they host Hamilton at 7 p.m. Friday and Rockford at 7 p.m. Saturday. Wolves defenseman Brent Sopel will be honored before Saturday's contest for reaching the 1,000 professional games milestone. To get the best deals on tickets, visit ChicagoWolves.com or call 1-800-THE-WOLVES.
American Hockey League Stories from December 30, 2014
- Monsters Top Milwaukee 5-4 in OT - Cleveland Monsters
- Wolves Foiled in Overtime by Grand Rapids - Chicago Wolves
- Anaheim Reassigns Heatley to Norfolk - Norfolk Admirals
- Bridgeport Falls in 2014 Finale - Bridgeport Islanders
- Bulldogs Edge IceHogs 2-1 - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Devils Lose in Closing Seconds to Bruins - Albany Devils
- Second Period Ends Pennsylvania Run with Loss - Norfolk Admirals
- Sharks Close out 2014 with a Bang - Worcester Sharks
- Bears Defeat Admirals in Final Home Tilt of 2014 - Hershey Bears
- Admirals to Give Away Green Bay Playoff Tickets - Milwaukee Admirals
- Hurricanes Recall Ryan Murphy from Charlotte - Charlotte Checkers
- Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Center Sean Collins - Springfield Falcons
- Phantoms Weekly - Phantoms Kick off 5-Game Road Trip Wednesday - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Martin Ouellette Returned on Loan to Reading - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Red Wings Recall Ouellet - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Griffins Begin Five-Game Home Stand with NYE Battle against Rockford - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Penguins Hosting 2015 NEPA Toyota Dealers High School Hockey Showcase - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Beach Visits Chicago Ridge Library on January 8 - Chicago Wolves
- Paajarvi Loaned to Wolves - Chicago Wolves
- B-Sens Weekly - Binghamton Senators
- Wolves Weekly Notes - Chicago Wolves
- Syracuse Crunch Allen York Recalled from ECHL - Syracuse Crunch
- Rockford Wraps up Homestand against Hamilton - Rockford IceHogs
- Norfolk Admirals Weekly - Norfolk Admirals
- Lightning Recall Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy from Syracuse - Syracuse Crunch
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.
