The Manitoba Moose (5-4-1-0) continued their road swing with a Sunday date against their Central Division foes, the Rockford IceHogs (3-5-0-0).

Rockford started the scoring in the afternoon tilt. With the Moose dominating possession and shots, the IceHogs entered the Manitoba zone. Lukas Reichel gathered the puck behind the net and with the help of a funky bounce, deposited it behind Arvid Holm 11:08 into the game. Rockford added to their lead with under five to play off a goal from Garett Mitchell. The forward found open space in front of the Moose net and beat Holm off a rebound for a 2-0 lead at 15:10. The horn sounded with the Moose down 2-0 after 20 minutes of play despite leading the shot count 15-6.

Despite chances either way, the next goal didn’t come until the final minute of the second period. After a lengthy shift in the offensive zone, the Moose gave the puck away at the blueline. Rockford’s Reichel came streaking in and scored his second of the game for a 3-0 IceHogs advantage. After 40 minutes of play, the Moose were trailing 3-0 while outshooting Rockford 25-17.

The Moose went looking for offence in the third and found it early off the stick of Jeff Malott. Cole Perfetti sent the puck on net and Malott was in the right spot to shovel it home. His first of the season cut the IceHogs lead to 3-1 at 3:28. Rockford fought back and Reichel scored his third of the game to restore the three-goal lead at 4:46. Manitoba came back and chopped into the lead once again, this time off the stick of Cole Perfetti. The forward tipped home a blast from Ville Heinola for a 4-2 score at the 6:04 mark of the final frame. The Moose pulled Holm late in favour of the extra attacker and were rewarded with a goal from Evan Polei. The forward’s first of the season pulled Manitoba within one at the 19:40 mark. Despite one final chance, the Moose couldn’t find the equalizer and the horn sounded to end the game as Manitoba fell 4-3. Final shots on goal saw the Moose finish ahead by a 37-21 count.

Moose Forward Jeff Malott (Click Here for Full Interview)

“Our system revolves around hard work and intensity on the forecheck. It makes it easy to adapt. It makes it easy to jump in with anyone.”

The Moose continue the road swing when they face the Milwaukee Admirals on Wednesday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT. Catch all the action on CJOB.com/sports, MooseHockey.com/LISTENLIVE and AHLTV.