BEHIND THE MASK

November 08, 2023

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STORY BEHIND THE MASK

Adam Scheel doesn’t have to look far to remind himself of many of the historic and fun landmarks located in the Chicago area.

The mask the Wolves goaltender uses each game features a distinct Chicago theme. On the mask are images of the Wolves 30th Season logo, Navy Pier, the Wrigley Field marquee, “Cloud Gate–aka “The Bean” from Millennium Park–the Chicago skyline and a Rosemont Horizon logo, honoring the initial name of Allstate Arena.

“Whichever city I’m playing in I like to do a city theme,” Scheel said. “There are a lot of cool landmarks in Chicago and me and the painter just kind of came up with some fun ideas to go on there.

“It just gives something for the fans to look at and admire,” continued Scheel, who sports a 1-2-1-0 record, 3.04 goals-against average and .905 save percentage with the Wolves this season.

The 24-year-old, Lakewood, Ohio, native signed with the Wolves during the summer after splitting time with the Texas Stars of the AHL and the ECHL Idaho Steelheads the previous two seasons. Prior to that, he spent three years at the University of North Dakota and a short time with Texas.

Scheel said he takes away a part of each city he’s played in.

“I just try to submerge myself in the culture of the city I’m playing in,” Scheel said. “I love exploring new cities. It’s kind of a little hobby of mine.”

The latest helmet incarnation will join those of Scheel’s previous stops as he builds up a collection that he hopes one day to display.

“I’ve got two helmets from Juniors (the Penticton Vees), two from North Dakota and now three from the pro ranks,” Scheel said. “It’s a decent little collection so far. Right now, the others are at home at my parents’ house. One day, maybe I’ll put them up in the basement or in an office and it will be a nice touch.”

TOUGH TIMES

There’s no sugarcoating the Wolves’ record through the first eight games of the season. At 1-5-1-1, the team is not pleased with the way things have started–but there is no panic.

The thought all along was that it was likely to take some time for the team that only had four players returning from the 2022-23 campaign as well as a new coaching staff to gel and find an identity.

That has come to fruition but it’s still early.

“We’re not even 10 games in yet,” forward Josh Melnick said. “There are definitely some improvements to be made both individually for me and as a team. We just have to keep our heads down and come to the rink every day to work. If you do the right things, good things will happen.”

Four of the Wolves’ losses have been by one goal and the hope is for a turnaround that begins this weekend when they host the Iowa Wild on Saturday night and the Rockford IceHogs on Sunday afternoon at Allstate Arena.

“I think we’re right there, honestly,” Melnick said. “We’ve had some games where we started off slow and some other games where we played pretty well and just had a couple of mental lapses here and there. We just have to bear down and play a full 60 minutes and wins will start to come.”

IMPACT PLAY OF THE WEEK

During Saturday night’s game against the Roadrunners in Tucson, Wolves forward Nathan Sucese recorded this highlight-reel shorthanded goal.

 

REPUBLIC BANK SAVE OF THE WEEK

Veteran goaltender Keith Kinkaid stepped up and denied the Roadrunners’ leading goal-scorer, Josh Doan, on a breakaway during Saturday’s contest.

 

C.D.E. COLLISION CENTERS’ COLLISION OF THE WEEK

Wolves forward Kyle Marino continues to make his presence felt with big hits–this time he lowers the boom on Tucson rookie Max Szuber on Saturday night.

Weekly rewind (0-2-0-0)

FRIDAY, NOV. 3

Roadrunners 3, Wolves 2: Rocco Grimaldi and Hudson Elynuik scored but the Wolves came up short in the first of back-to-back meetings between the teams.

SATURDAY, NOV. 4

Roadrunners 5, Wolves 3: Nathan Sucese, Isaac Ratcliffe and Chris Terry scored but it wasn’t enough as the Wolves saw their losing skid extended to five games.

First Star of the Week

Where we stand

1-5-1-1, seventh in the Central Division.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

For information on Wolves ticket plans for the 2023-24 season — everything from single-game tickets to Flex Packs to group outings — visit ChicagoWolves.com or call 1-800-THE-WOLVES.