WOLVES GO GREEN FOR EASTER SEALS AND CHICAGO WOLVES CHARITIES
The Wolves debut their commemorative St. Patrick’s Day jerseys, presented by Jewel-Osco, at 3 p.m. Sunday against Grand Rapids at Allstate Arena. The exclusive jerseys also will be worn on Friday, March 18, and Sunday, March 20. The jerseys will be available via auction and raffle at those three games with proceeds benefiting Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago and Chicago Wolves Charities. Goaltender Pheonix Copley will wear a different jersey for each game in order to maximize the amount raised for charity. One of his jerseys is the grand prize for the Golden Ticket Raffle, which is limited to just 50 tickets at $50 per ticket. First-come, first-served. For more information on the auctions and raffle, visit ChicagoWolves.com/StPatricksDay or contact Camille Colletti at ccolletti@chicagowolves.com or (847) 832-1954.
FLEECE BLANKET GIVEAWAY, COURTESY OF KIA
The first 5,000 fans to enter Allstate Arena for Saturday night’s game will receive a Wolves fleece blanket, courtesy of Kia. Saturday’s game also serves as Gift of Hope Night as fans will learn more about organ and tissue donation — and meet people who have benefited from these donations. The Wolves also are hosting Adopt-A-Dog Night with Chicago’s Animal Care and Control. Visit the dogs in Allstate Arena’s South Lobby and learn how easy it is to provide a forever home for one of Skates’ Sidekicks!
WOLVES HOPING TO KEEP CHARLOTTE IN CHECK
Chicago travels to Charlotte for a pair of weeknight games that are crucial Central Division battles. The Wolves are just 3 points behind the Checkers for fifth place in the standings. Coach JOHN ANDERSON’s squad has fared well against Charlotte this year with a 4-1-0-0 record. That includes a split of the team’s games at Bojangles’ Coliseum on Jan. 22-23.
THIS WEEK
Tuesday, March 8
at Charlotte Checkers
Bojangles’ Coliseum
The U Too (26.2)
6 p.m.
Thursday, March 10
at Charlotte Checkers
Bojangles’ Coliseum
The U Too (26.2)
6 p.m.
Saturday, March 12
vs. Milwaukee Admirals
Allstate Arena
The U Too (26.2)
Amtrak Rivalry
Fleece Blanket Giveaway (first 5,000 fans), courtesy of Kia
Gift of Hope Night
Adopt-A-Dog Night
7 p.m.
Sunday, March 13
vs. Grand Rapids Griffins
Allstate Arena
The U Too (26.2)
St. Patrick’s Day Jersey Auction and Raffle, presented by Jewel-Osco
3 p.m.
Visit ChicagoWolves.com for broadcast schedule, or to watch or listen to the action live online
WOLVES HEADLINERS
• Pat Cannone: Needs 4 points to set a personal benchmark for points in a season. He leads the Wolves in scoring with 44 points … In his third season with the Wolves, CANNONE recently reached the 20-goal mark and is closing in on his first team scoring title after finishing as runner-up last year … The Wolves are 13-1-0-1 (.900) this season when he scores a goal.
• Ty Rattie: Scored the Wolves’ third short-handed goal of the season Sunday against Milwaukee … The SHG was unconventional, occurring on a penalty shot as RATTIE scored top shelf on the backhand against Admirals netminder Juuse Saros … The goal was Chicago’s first successful penalty shot since Feb. 9, 2014, when Keith Aucoin scored on Milwaukee’s Marek Mazanec at the Bradley Center.
• Pheonix Copley: Has excelled against Charlotte this season, posting a 2-0-0 record, a 1.84 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage … The former Michigan Tech standout recorded a 23-save shutout in his debut against the Checkers on Oct. 25 … COPLEY backstopped the Wolves to a 3-2 win on Feb. 21, making 28 saves and thwarting 2 of 3 skaters in the shootout … He started the Jan. 22 contest at Charlotte, but departed after 38 minutes of action and was not the goaltender of record.
• Danny Kristo: The right wing is 2 goals shy of reaching 20 for the third straight AHL season … KRISTO, who registered 20-goal campaigns in back-to-back years in Hartford, stands as the Wolves’ second-leading scorer with 38 points (18 G, 20A) in 53 games.
• Jérémie Blain: Defenseman scored his third goal of the season with a first-period tally against Milwaukee on Sunday … Serving his second stint with the Wolves this year, BLAIN has appeared in 10 straight games and is showing some of the offensive skills that made him a top 10 defenseman scorer in the ECHL while with the Brampton Beast.
• Emerson Clark: Signed to a PTO contract by the Wolves on Feb. 13, has provided grit and toughness in the lineup … CLARK dropped the gloves against Milwaukee’s Cody Bass on Saturday and has taken on some of the league’s toughest enforcers in Manitoba’s Darren Kramer and Rockford’s Mike Liambas.
WOLF TRACKS
• Pat Cannone enters tonight’s game at Charlotte ranking 18th overall in AHL scoring with 44 points (20G, 24A) in 56 games.
• Pheonix Copley recorded a personal season-high 38 saves in a 1-0 overtime loss at Milwaukee on Saturday. COPLEY made 21 saves in the third period, which was 6 shy of the team record set in 1996 by Wolves general manager WENDELL YOUNG.
• Forty-two players have worn the Wolves jersey this season – the most since the 2012-13 campaign when 47 players appeared in a regular-season game.
• The Wolves enter the last quarter of the season, with a possible 36 points still up for grabs as 18 games remain in the pursuit of a postseason berth.
• The Burgundy and Gold have gone 17 games since the last time they scored more than 3 goals in a game (Jan. 26, a 4-3 win at Iowa). The Wolves scored 4 goals or more six times in 18 games to start the season.
WOLVES REWIND (0-1-1-0)
Sunday, March 6
Milwaukee 5, (at) Chicago 2
• Milwaukee scored a pair of power play goals 84 seconds apart in the third period to move past Chicago in an Amtrak Rivalry game at Allstate Arena
• Jérémie Blain scored his third goal of the season to put the Wolves on the board first, and Ty Rattie converted on a penalty shot attempt in the third period to account for Chicago’s scoring
• Pheonix Copley stopped 25 of 30 shots
Saturday, March 5
(at) Milwaukee 1, Chicago 0 (OT)
• A defensive battle turned in Milwaukee’s favor as Pontus Aberg scored at 1:29 of overtime to lift the Admirals to victory over the Wolves in an Amtrak Rivalry game at the Bradley Center
• Zack Phillips recorded a team-high 4 shots in his Wolves debut as Chicago suffered its fourth shutout loss of the season
• Pheonix Copley recorded a personal season-best 38 saves, including 21 in the third period, to earn top star honors.
