Sunday, Oct. 30 | 4 p.m. | Allstate Arena
Wolves in the Middle
Through seven games, the Chicago Wolves have tallied 11 of their 19 goals in the second period. That includes three goals during Saturday night’s 7-3 romp over the in-state rival Rockford IceHogs at Allstate Arena. The Wolves do most of their scoring during the middle stanza, which is peculiarly also their lowest shooting period of competition. The Wolves have recorded 11 goals on 65 shots in that frame for a 17 percent shooting percentage during the second period.
Pheonix Rising
In his second start of the season, Pheonix Copley earned his first win as he turned aside 26 shots Saturday night in the Wolves’ 7-3 victory over the the Rockford IceHogs in the second game of 2016-17 Illinois Lottery Cup action this season. He helped keep his team on top, and the Wolves’ offense came live for seven goals — the most this season for Chicago — as seven skaters recorded multi-point efforts. Ivan Barbashev (G, 2A), Jordan Caron (3A) and Brett Sterling (G, 2A) each tallied three points, while Kenny Agostino (G, A), Vince Dunn (2A), Morgan Ellis (G, A) and Brad Hunt (G, A) each picked up a pair of points.
Keep Calm and Caron On
Wolves right wing Jordan Caron skated in his second game back from injury during Saturday’s win over Rockford. Since his return, Caron has registered 3 assists, 4 shots on goal and 24 penalty minutes. The gritty winger was assessed two misconduct penalties, one Friday and one Saturday, in conjunction with each of his minor penalties. In Saturday’s victory, Caron assisted on Brad Hunt’s 50th career AHL goal early in the first period that opened the team’s scoring. He He also assisted on Ivan Barbashev’s goal early in the second period and Brett Sterling’s goal in the final five minutes of the game.
First and 50
Defenseman Morgan Ellis and center Landon Ferraro tallied their first goals of the season in the Wolves’ 7-3 win over the Rockford IceHogs on Saturday night. Defenseman Brad Hunt also notched his 50th career AHL goal to erase Rockford’s early 1-0 lead.
BY THE NUMBERS
- 2: Saturday night, both opponent goaltenders saw action as the Chicago Wolves topped their in-state rival, the Rockford IceHogs, 7-3 in Illinois Lottery Cup action at Allstate Arena. The Wolves netted four goals in the opening 22 minutes of the game, chasing Rockford’s starting goaltender Mac Carruth. Lars Johansson, the IceHogs’ starting goaltender Friday night in Rockford, relieved Carruth. However, his time in net was shortlived and Carruth returned to the game at the beginning of the third period. Carruth allowed six goals on 22 shots, while Johansson gave up just one marker on 11 shots.
- 4: Wolves forward Kenny Agostino scored his team-leading fourth goal during last night’s 7-3 win over the Rockford IceHogs at Allstate Arena. Agostino also picked up an assist on Landon Ferraro’s first goal of the season. He was one of seven Wolves skaters to register at least two points in the Wolves’ first home win of the season.
- 8: Brad Hunt recorded points No. 7 (goal) and 8 (assist) last night against the Rockford IceHogs. He opened the Wolves’ 7-goal outburst in the first period with his 50th career AHL goal. The blueliner is also the Wolves’ leading point-getter with 2 goals and 6 assists through seven games this season. The team’s next leading scorer is forward Kenny Agostino with 7 points and a team-leading 4 goals.
- 50: Saturday night defenseman Brad Hunt registered his 50th career AHL goal. So far this season, Hunt leads the Wolves with eight points (2G, 6A) through seven games. The 2016-17 season marks Hunt’s third stint with the Chicago Wolves in AHL action. Through 271 AHL games, he has 50 goals and 138 assists for 188 career points. Hunt has also spent time with the Oklahoma City Barons and Bakersfield Condors as a member of the Edmonton Oilers organization.
- 200: Left wing Brett Sterling recorded his 200th AHL assist on Saturday against the Rockford IceHogs. He also registered another assist and a goal in the 7-3 victory over the familiar foe. No. 200 came at 16:35 of the third period as the secondary assist on defenseman Morgan Ellis’ first goal of the 2016-17 season. A minute earlier, Sterling scored a goal of his with help from Ivan Barbashev and Jordan Caron. His first point of the night was near the end of the middle frame, setting up Wade Megan’s third goal of the season. All three of Sterling’s points came on the power play. The Wolves’ PP unit was 4 of 7 in the contest.
Recent Games Recap
Saturday, Oct. 29 (at) Chicago 7, Rockford 3
- Chicago captured its first win at Allstate Arena and first in Illinois Lottery Cup competition this season.
- Seven different Wolves players registered at least two points in the victory.
- Defenseman Brad Hunt nabbed his 50th career AHL goal, while Morgan Ellis and Landon Ferraro recorded their first goals of the season.
- Goaltender Pheonix Copley stopped 26 shots to earn his first win of the year.
Friday, Oct. 28 Chicago 2, (at) Rockford 3
- The Wolves dropped the first game of a home-and-home series against the Rockford IceHogs in Rockford.
Rockford scored and answered each of Chicago’s goals from the 3-2 victory.
Left wing Magnus Paajarvi netted a power-play tally his first game of the season with help from Kenny Agostino and Brad Hunt.
Agostino opened scoring with help from Hunt; Hunt now leads the team with six points through six games.
Goaltender Jordan Binnington stopped 34 of 37 shots to help keep the Wolves in the contest.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Tonight’s game begins at 4:00 p.m. on The U Too.The U Too is found over the air at WCIU-DT 26.2. Cable subscribers get the channel on Xfinity 230 and 360, RCN 35 and WOW 170 while Dish Network customers find the games on Ch. 48.
Complete broadcast schedule; all games stream live on AHLLive.com
Join the conversation. Follow @Chicago_Wolves for live game updates.
