HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. – The last time the Chicago Wolves saw the Milwaukee Admirals, they were eliminating their rivals to the north in the 2022 Central Division Finals in May.
On Friday night, the teams squared off in the first of back-to-back exhibition games in preparation for the ’22-23 season and it was Milwaukee that skated to a 3-1 victory over the defending Calder Cup champion Wolves.
Luke Prokop scored twice for the Admirals while Alexander Pashin had the Wolves’ goal.
“I thought some guys showed really well,” new Wolves coach Brock Sheahan said. “I loved our pace and energy for the first two periods and I thought we wore down a little bit as it went. Overall, it’s a good starting point.”
The Admirals opened the scoring when Prokop found the back of the net while on the power play 4 minutes, 42 seconds into the contest.
Milwaukee took a two-goal advantage early in the second when Navrin Mutter beat Wolves goaltender Zachary Sawchenko.
The Wolves fought back and pulled to within 2-1 on Pashin’s goal just over a minute later. The score was assisted by Anttoni Honka and Tuukka Tieksola.
“Pashin and Honka were really good,” Sheahan said. “Both those guys’ skill sets are ridiculous so it was really good to see the progress they made from (Carolina Hurricanes) rookie camp. For the most part, as a team we were there and we were competing but it just wasn’t enough.”
Prokop struck again midway through the third for the final margin.
The teams will face off again Saturday night in Milwaukee in the final preseason contest leading up to the regular-season opener between the teams Oct. 15 at Allstate Arena.
Prior to that game, the Wolves will raise a 2022 Calder Cup championship banner to the Allstate Arena rafters.
For information on Wolves ticket plans for the 2022-23 season — everything from single-game tickets to Flex Packs to group outings — visit ChicagoWolves.com or call 1-800-THE-WOLVES.
