LIVE: Gulls Fall To Wild 6-1
Jan 29, 2022By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com
A tough first period doomed the San Diego Gulls as they fell to the Iowa Wild 6-1 in the second and final game of a weekend series at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, IA.
Mitchell Chaffee’s first-period hat trick powered an offensive onslaught for the Wild, who won their third consecutive game. Marco Rossi (1-2=2), Mason Shaw (0-3=2) and Calen Addison (0-3=2) each collected multi-point performances, and both Bryce Misley and Cody McLeod chipped in goals.
Zane McIntyre stopped 24 shots to pick up a third straight win. The veteran netminder collected victories in four of his last five starts and has allowed two-or-fewer goals over that stretch.
Nikolas Brouillard scored the lone goal for San Diego, who saw its season-high losing streak hit five. Francis Marotte allowed three goals on just seven shots before being pulled in the first period. Olle Eriksson Ek made 16 saves in relief.
Third Period Recap
Rossi's power-play goal - his third point of the night - restored Iowa's four-goal lead with 9:18 remaining in regulation.
The rookie continues his excellent first season in the American Hockey League. He sits fourth among all first-year skaters in points (11-21=32), third in assists and tied for fifth in goals.
Addison and Shaw collected assists, each recording their third point - and assist - of the game.
McLeod scored Iowa's sixth goal, finishing off a 3-on-1 rush with 2:30 left in the game. The six goals match a season high for the Wild, who scored six goals against the Rockford IceHogs on Oct. 22.
Second Period Recap
Brouillard cut the deficit to three with his sixth goal of the season at 8:22 of the middle frame.
Brent Gates Jr. sent the puck from his own blue line to a streaking Brouillard, who carried the puck into Iowa's end on a 2-on-1 rush. He pulled the puck in tight, working his way around a Wild defenseman before sending his shot past Zane McIntyre for his second goal in the last three games.
Mike McKee earned his first American Hockey League assist and point on the goal.
The Gulls will start the third period with 1:36 left on a power-play chance, their fifth of the game.
First Period Recap
Chaffee's first-period hat trick contributed to a fast start for the Wild.
His first goal opened the scoring just 1:13 into regulation, slamming home the rebound of a Rossi shot for a power-play goal.
San Diego allowed a man-advantage goal in a fifth straight game.
His second came on an odd-man rush, as he finished off a passing sequence at 8:16 for his sixth goal of the season.
Both Rossi (0-2=2) and Shaw (0-2=2) have multi-point performances.
His third of the night came on the power play - his second man-advantage tally of the game - as he slammed home a rebound past the screened Marotte for his seventh goal of the season. It's the third-fastest hat trick scored against the Gulls in franchise history, occuring in 12:59 of game action.
Addison collected his second power-play assist on the goal to collect his third multi-point performance of the season. The defenseman has three points (0-3=3) in this weekend series against the Gulls.
Following the goal, San Diego made a goaltending change, swapping in Eriksson Ek for Marotte. The Quebec native stopped four-of-seven shots in 14:12.
Marotte entered the matchup with a 3-3-1 record, a 3.58 goals-against average (GAA) and .892 save percentage (SV%).
The change did nothing to slow down the Wild, who added a fourth goal on Bryce Misley's first goal of the season with 4:03 left in the period.
The four goals allowed in the first frame are a new season high for the Gulls, surpassing the three scored by Tucson on Oct. 30.
Zane McIntyre is in the cage for the Wild, stopping all seven shots he saw in the first period. The Thief River Falls, MN native is 4-4-0 with a 2.63 GAA and .909 SV% with Iowa this season. Signed by the Minnesota Wild to a two-way contract on January 4 - he started the season on a Professional Tryout with the Tucson Roadrunners - McIntyre carries an overall record of 6-5-0 with a 2.66 GAA and .907 SV% into tonight's game. He's allowed two-goals-or-fewer in four of his last five starts.
San Diego will have 1:11 of power-play time to open the second period.