Wolves tamed by Wild

Iowa scored three goals in the first period to trigger a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Wolves on Friday night at Wells Fargo Arena.

Rookie forward David Cotton scored his seventh of the year for the Wolves (14-4-0-1), who couldn’t convert any of their seven power-play chances and lost for the first time in five meetings with the Wild (9-9-3-0). Goaltender Connor Ingram (0-1-0) posted 32 saves in his Wolves debut.

Iowa broke on top 54 seconds into the night as defenseman Keaton Thompson ripped a shot through traffic from the left point. The Wild pushed their lead to 2-0 on Connor Dewar’s power-play blast at 8:37 of the first.

Late in the first period, 2019 NHL first-round pick Matt Boldy made his pro debut memorable by rifling home a power-play goal for a 3-0 Iowa lead.

The Wolves’ comeback began at 6:48 of the second when Phil Tomasino poked a shot from the goal line that Iowa goaltender Derek Baribeau deflected nearly three feet into the air. Cotton, standing just outside the crease, took a hefty left-handed baseball swing and swatted it home to cut the margin to 3-1.

Iowa regained momentum with 22 seconds left in the second as defenseman Calen Addison scored on the rush to give the Wild a 4-1 margin.

Iowa goaltender Derek Baribeau (4-1-1) rejected 24 shots to earn the win.

The Wolves stay in Des Moines to face the Wild at 6 p.m. Saturday as their five-game road trip hits the midpoint. Chicago’s next home game is slated for Wednesday, April 21, against the Rockford IceHogs.