Game Preview: Moose @ Wolves – Dec. 21
By: CK Nakhwal | Published: December 21st 2015
MANITOBA MOOSE @ CHICAGO WOLVES
Allstate Arena - Rosemont, IL
Monday, December 21st, 2015
Game time – 7 p.m. CT
Moose Game 27 (8-15-1-2)
Moose Road Game 15 (3-10-0-1)
Listen: MooseHockey.com/listenlive
Watch: AHLLive.com
The Manitoba Moose will play their sixth of eight meetings against the Chicago Wolves this season. This will be the final regular season meeting between these two teams at the Allstate Arena this season with the final two meetings taking place in Winnipeg Feb. 13 & 14. The Wolves lead the season series with a 4-0-1-0 record.
Moose Series Leaders vs. Wolves:
Chase De Leo (2G, 1A) and Patrice Cormier (1G, 2A) lead the way for the Moose in scoring with three points each against the Wolves in five games this season. Jiri Fronk has registered two goals against the Wolves in just three games played. In three games against the Wolves goaltender Eric Comrie has a 1-2-0 record with a 3.96 goals against average and a .854 save percentage.
Wolves Series Leaders vs. Moose:
Wolves scoring leader Andre Benoit (1G, 4A) and Jeremy Welsh (3G, 2A) have led the way averaging a point-per-game in five games against Manitoba. Pat Cannone (3G, 1A) and Spencer Asuchak (3G, 0A) have had success as well scoring three goals each. Asuchak’s three goals all came in the last meeting against Manitoba on Dec. 2, they remain his only three goals scored this season. Pheonix Copley has played three of the games in net for the Wolves posting a 2-0-1 record with a 1.65 goals against average and a .947 save percentage. Jordan Binnington has been excellent as well in his two starts posting a perfect 2-0-0 record with a 2.00 GAA and a .926 save percentage.
Chasing Points:
Rookie forward Chase De Leo is coming off his first career AHL hat trick against the Milwaukee Admirals on Saturday night. His three point effort tied him for the team lead in points with seven goals and nine assists for 16 points in 27 games this season. He is one of seven rookies to be leading their team in points this season. The native of La Mirada, California is currently tied for 12th in AHL rookie scoring.
Petan Settling in:
Forward Nic Petan is off to a solid start in his AHL rookie season. Since joining the Moose after starting the season with the Winnipeg Jets, Petan has recorded 10 points (2G, 8A) in 13 games this season. Petan leads the Moose in points-per-game averaging 0.77 other than Adam Lowry (1.00) who has just played three games so far with the Moose.
Strong Return:
Defenceman Brenden Kichton made a huge impact this past week after missing the previous four games due to injury. In his three games since returning to the lineup, Kichton has a three game points streak and has recorded five assists during that stretch. He is tied with Chase De Leo in Moose scoring with three goals and 13 assists for 16 points in 22 games.
