Chicaggo Wolves Game Notes
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2020-21 Chicago Wolves Game Notes GRAND RAPIDS AT CHICAGO APRIL 1, 2021 2 P.M. AHLTV.COM A SPECIAL GUEST STAR: NO FOOLIN’! 2020-21 The Chicago Wolves are riding a four-game winning streak that has featured a different goaltender — TALE OF THE TAPE Beck Warm, Jeremy Helvig, Antoine Bibeau and Devin Cooley — in the net for each victory. REGULAR-SEASON SERIES As the Central Division-leading Wolves try to stretch their winning streak to five — and to extend their 0-4-0-0 Grand Rapids | 4-0-0-0 Chicago seven-point division lead over the second-place Grand Rapids Griffins — they are summoning yet LAST MEETING Feb. 28, 2021 another goaltender...and it’s one quite familiar to the visiting team. Prior to today’s game, the Carolina Hurricanes loaned veteran goaltender Petr Mrazek to the Wolves as part of a conditioning stint. The 29-year-old Ostrava, Czech Republic, native entered this season as Carolina’s top goaltender, but he has not played since injuring his right thumb on Jan. 30 against 8-4-2-0 12-2-0-1 the Dallas Stars. Mrazek, who required surgery, owns a 2-1-0 record, a 0.99 goals-against average and a .955 save percentage in four games for the Canes this season. SERIES LEADERS Today marks Mrazek’s first American Hockey League appearance since March 6, 2015 — when he GRAND RAPIDS CHICAGO played for the Griffins as part of his six seasons in the Detroit Red Wings organization. Mrazek posted Skater G A Pts Skater G A Pts a 54-27-4 record in 87 regular-season appearances for Grand Rapids and backstopped the Griffins to Barber 3 3 6 x Jarvis 3 2 5 the 2013 Calder Cup. Hirose 1 4 5 Cotton 3 1 4 Criscuolo 3 1 4 Fitzgerald 2 1 3 While in a Grand Rapids uniform, Mrazek faced the Wolves eight times and forged a 5-2-0 record with Cholowski 2 2 4 x Pitlick 2 1 3 1 shutout, a 2.72 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage. SERIES GAME-BY-GAME Mrazek wasn’t the only Hurricanes player sent the Wolves’ way today. Forward Max McCormick, who Date Location Result SF-SA PP PK has appeared in two games for Carolina while spending the whole season to date in Raleigh, also has Feb. 5 Wolves Training Facility W, 3-1 29-23 1-4 4-5 been loaned to Chicago. The 28-year-old De Pere, Wisconsin, native posted 16 goals and 19 assists in Feb. 11 Wolves Training Facility W, 4-2 29-38 1-5 4-5 56 games last year for the Charlotte Checkers (AHL). He paced the Checkers with 120 penalty minutes. Feb. 26 Van Andel Arena L, 1-4 23-35 0-5 4-4 Feb. 28 Wolves Training Facility W, 8-4 35-33 2-4 1-4 JEANNOT APPRECIATION SOCIETY April 1 Wolves Training Facility Yes, we’re not quite halfway through the 33-game regular-season schedule. But if the American April 13 Van Andel Arena Hockey League intends to hand out the Most Valuable Player award at the end of this shortened April 26 Van Andel Arena season, then 23-year-old forward Tanner Jeannot deserves to be on the short list for consideration. May 7 Van Andel Arena May 9 Wolves Training Facility You want stats? He leads the Wolves with 17 points (7G, 10A) in just 10 games. He has scored a goal May 12 Van Andel Arena in his last five games, which shares the AHL’s longest goal streak alongside Texas’ Nick Baptiste and Ontario’s Quinton Byfield. He has scored at least one point in his last nine games, which ranks as the ALL-TIME RECORD BREAKDOWN AHL’s second-longest active streak (behind Baptiste’s 10-game run.) Seasons Home Road Overall 1996-2021 41-37-0-6-2 35-32-2-9-2 76-69-2-15-4 He’s on the power play — and has two power-play goals to show for it. He plays on the penalty kill — and has two shorthanded goals to show for it. He polices the action all over the ice — and has 31 penalty minutes to show for it. Most important? The Wolves are 10-0-0-0 when Jeannot is in the lineup. WE ARE THE WOLVES April Fools’ Day does not rank among the most successful dates in Wolves history. The team has LAST TWO GAMES registered a 3-5-1-1 record (.400) in its first 10 games SUNDAY, MARCH 28 CHICAGO 5, (AT) ROCKFORD 4 on April 1. • After the Wolves and IceHogs battled through four ties and three lead changes, rookie forward Jamieson Rees broke the final tie with a third-period goal to push Chicago’s win streak to 4. This marks the Wolves’ first game on this date since • Rees broke the game’s final two ties with his two goals while Tanner Jeannot extended his goal 2017. Peculiarly, Jordan Binnington started in net streak to five games and Sean Malone and Ryan Suzuki delivered the other goals. three consecutive April 1s for Chicago. He stopped 27 • Goaltender Devin Cooley stopped 20 shots to earn the win in his AHL debut. shots when the Wolves beat Toronto 2-1 in 2015, but the Wolves lost to the Lake Erie Monsters 4-3 in 2016 SATURDAY, MARCH 27 (AT) CHICAGO 6, ROCKFORD 3 and lost to the Cleveland Monsters 5-2 in 2017. • Rookie forward David Cotton and defenseman Max Lajoie scored in the opening 44 seconds to set the tone for the Wolves’ third win in a row. On the flip side, former Wolves star Kevin Doell loved • Cotton posted two first-period goals while Lajoie (G, 2A), Tanner Jeannot (G, 2A), Dominik Bokk playing on April Fools’ Day. He posted 1 goal and 1 and Ryan Suzuki also scored goals and Tommy Novak handed out three assists. assist in a 2006 win over Toronto and 2 goals with 1 • Goaltender Antoine Bibeau notched 23 saves to pick up the win. assist in a 2008 win against Manitoba. 2020-21 Chicago Wolves Game Notes 2020-21 BY THE NUMBERS HOME-ROAD CONTRASTS Regular Season Home Away Difference Yes, if the Wolves play all 33 games on their current regular-season schedule, this season will Goals For 4.89 4.00 0.89 only be 43 percent as long as a normal American Hockey League slate. But after providing Goals Against 2.44 2.67 0.23 1 that caveat, it’s still intriguing to note this year’s squad is on pace to shatter the franchise record for most goals per game. These Wolves have scored 68 goals in 15 games — a league-leading RECORD BY OPPONENT average of 4.53 per outing. The only Wolves team that has averaged more than 4 per game is the Record Win % 2006-07 crew that paced the AHL with 4.14 per game. Cleveland 0-1-0-1 .250 Grand Rapids 3-1-0-0 .750 In the Wolves’ first 14 games, there were a grand total of two lead changes: Chicago recovered Iowa 4-0-0-0 1.000 from a 1-0 deficit on Opening Night (Feb. 5) against Grand Rapids to earn a 3-1 victory. The Rockford 5-0-0-0 1.000 3 next day at Rockford in the IceHogs’ opener, the Wolves fell behind 2-0 and 3-2 during the opening 25 minutes before rallying to secure a 5-4 win. Then came a 12-game run where the team RECORD BY MONTH that scored first (usually the Wolves) went on to win without ever falling behind. Then Sunday’s 5-4 Record Win % win at Rockford happened — and there were THREE lead changes in an eight-minute stretch of the February 8-1-0-0 .889 March 4-1-0-1 .750 second period. Rockford scored first, but the Wolves scored two straight. Then Rockford scored two April 0-0-0-0 .000 straight. Then Wolves rookies Ryan Suzuki and Jamieson Rees scored to provide a 4-3 lead at 12:12 May 0-0-0-0 .000 of the second. Rockford rallied to forge a 4-4 tie, but Rees delivered again at 4:41 of the third to wrap up this season’s wildest game to date. IN OVERTIME (0-0) The Wolves have played just 15 games, but 37 players already have suited up for at least one game. That’s the same number that last year’s squad needed to get through the 61 Goaltender Saves-Shots (3-3) SV% 37 games before the pandemic brought the season to a permanent halt. Nineteen-year-old Antoine Bibeau (0-0) 3-3 1.000 Jeremy Helvig (0-0) 0-0 .000 Luke Evangelista and goaltender Devin Cooley became the latest to hit the ice as they made their Beck Warm (0-0) 0-0 .000 AHL debuts in Sunday’s 5-4 win at Rockford. For those curious about the breakdown between the Wolves’ two NHL partners, the 15 skaters from the Nashville Predators organization have combined IN THE SHOOTOUT (0-1) for 128 games of action. The 18 skaters from the Carolina Hurricanes organization (including the four signed to Wolves contracts) have combined for 142 games. Of the 37 players to compete for the Shooter Goals-Chances (0-3) SH% Wolves this season, 10 have played in the NHL this season as well: Frederic Allard, Alex Carrier, Dominik Bokk 0-1 .000 Jeremy Davies, Morgan Geekie, Tanner Jeannot, Sean Malone, Rem Pitlick, Sheldon Rempal, David Cotton 0-1 .000 Tommy Novak 0-1 .000 Drew Shore and Cole Smith.