CANNONE CAPTURES MVP HONORS AT AHL ALL-STAR CHALLENGE
Wolves captain Pat Cannone continued his remarkable start to 2016 by earning the Most Valuable Player award on Monday at the 2016 AHL All-Star Challenge in Syracuse, N.Y. CANNONE scored 3 goals as well as a decisive shootout goal over four games to lead the Central Division to the championship. The new All-Star format split the All-Stars into four divisions for nine-minute games in a round-robin format. The Central Division then defeated the Atlantic Division 4-0 in the title game as CANNONE scored a goal and defenseman Andre Benoit set up the game-winning tally.
MILITARY APPRECIATION NIGHT
The Chicago Wolves are proud to host Military Appreciation Night, presented by Sears Home Services, on Saturday, Feb. 6, when the team faces the Iowa Wild at Allstate Arena. The Wolves and Sears Home Services will honor current and former servicemen, servicewomen and their families for their selfless dedication to our country. Military Appreciation Night also heralds the return of the exclusive Military Appreciation jerseys that the Wolves also will wear on Feb. 18 and 20. Fans can bid on the jerseys via blind auction and silent auction at the games on Feb. 6, 18 and 20.
Fans also have the opportunity to bid in an online silent auction for a personalized Military Appreciation jersey. The auction starts on Feb. 5 and concludes at 5 p.m. on Feb. 22. The winner gets to select the name on the back of a No. 16 jersey. Proceeds from the commemorative jerseys will benefit Chicago Wolves Charities, The Heart of a Marine Foundation, 1Fur1 Foundation, Defending the Blue Line and other military-related charities.
WILD ABOUT DES MOINES
The Wolves are off for four days (Jan. 31 to Feb. 3) during the AHL All-Star Break before taking on Iowa in a home-and-home series that starts Friday in Des Moines. JOHN ANDERSON’s team is in the midst of playing 10 of 12 games on the road. The Wolves have treated Wells Fargo Arena like a second home, winning eight straight games in the building. Both wins on Wild ice this season occurred in dramatic fashion. Last Tuesday (Jan. 26), the Wolves pulled out a 4-3 win after Jordan Caron tied the game with 2:39 left in regulation and Pat Cannone scored the game-winner 41 seconds into overtime. On Dec. 8, Chicago broke a third-period tie with a pair of goals scored 4:27 apart in a 5-3 triumph.
THIS WEEK
Friday, Feb. 5
at Iowa Wild
Wells Fargo Arena
The U Too (26.2)
7 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 30
vs. Iowa Wild
Allstate Arena
The U Too (26.2)
Military Appreciation Night, presented by Sears Home Services
7 p.m.
Visit ChicagoWolves.com for broadcast schedule, or to watch or listen to the action live online
WOLVES HEADLINERS
• Pat Cannone: In addition to claiming the Most Valuable Player award at the AHL All-Star Challenge on Monday, the Wolves captain captured the accuracy shooting title at the All-Star Skills Competition on Sunday … Making his first all-star appearance, CANNONE led the Central Division to the Challenge title by compiling three goals as well as a shootout winner … At the skills competition, CANNONE hit four targets in five attempts in the accuracy shooting event to help the Western Conference defeat the Eastern Conference, 19-14.
• Andre Benoit: Was a member of the winning Central Division team at the AHL All-Star Challenge Monday night … BENOIT finished with 1 goal and 2 assists in four games … the first-time all-star assisted on the game-winning goal in the championship game (a 4-0 win over the Atlantic Division), and scored a goal off an assist from teammate Pat Cannone in the preceding game.
• Ivan Barbashev: Scored just 45 seconds into Chicago’s 3-2 overtime win versus Rockford on Saturday in an Illinois Lottery Cup game … BARBASHEV also assisted on Andre Benoit’s overtime game-winner and finished with a +2 plus/minus rating … The Russian center shares team rookie scoring honors with Jordan Schmaltz, amassing 22 points in 38 games.
• ZACH O’BRIEN: Owns 3 goals in his last four games … lifted a backhanded shot past all-star goaltender Michael Leighton with 5:28 left in regulation to force overtime on Saturday … the center has scored 3 goals against Rockford at Allstate Arena, including a pair of game-winners.
• Danny Kristo: Is averaging 1.5 points over his last six games, having compiled 3 goals and 6 assists during that span … KRISTO leads the team in shots (105) while ranking second in points (27) and third in goals (13) … The Eden Prairie, Minnesota native owns a team-best 11 road goals.
WOLF TRACKS
• As the Wolves embark on the second half of the AHL season, several players are situated among the league’s statistical leaders. Goaltender Pheonix Copley is tied for fifth in shutouts (3), center Pat Cannone shares eighth place in overall scoring (37 points) and Andre Benoit stands tied for ninth among defenseman in scoring (26 points).
• The Wolves are nearly unbeatable when scoring the game’s first goal. The Burgundy and Gold sport a 16-3-0-0 record when striking first, winning 84.2 percent of those games.
• Jeremy Welsh is two points shy of 100 for his AHL career. WELSH is looking to join five other active Wolves players in the AHL Century Point Club: Andre Benoit (198), Pat Cannone (188), Peter Harrold (125), Danny Kristo (119) and Jordan Caron (102).
WOLVES REWIND (1-1-0-0)
Saturday, Jan. 30
(at) Chicago 3, Rockford 2 (OT)
• Andre Benoit scored 1:02 into overtime to propel Chicago to the win over Rockford in an Illinois Lottery Cup game at Allstate Arena
• ZACH O’BRIEN tied the contest with 5:28 left in regulation while Ivan Barbashev scored the other Wolves’ goal just 45 seconds into the contest
• Pheonix Copley made 25 saves to earn the win
Friday, Jan. 29
(at) Rockford 6, Chicago 0
• Rockford produced four goals in the first period and killed nine Wolves power plays to earn the win at the MetroCentre.
• The Wolves placed 20 shots on net, but IceHog goaltender Michael Leighton rejected them all to earn his 45th AHL shutout and tie the league’s all-time record
• Jordan Binnington stopped 3 of 7 shots to take the loss while Pheonix Copley posted 14 saves in the final two periods
