Des Moines, IA - The Iowa Wild (14-14-2-1) scored two goals within one minute and 58 seconds in the second period to defeat the Rockford IceHogs (10-14-2-3), 4-1, and snap the Hogs’ three-game win streak Monday night at the Wells Fargo Arena.
A power play helped the IceHogs find the scoresheet for their lone score at 7:53 of the opening frame. Ville Pokka took a pass from Erik Gustafsson and rifled the puck into the top right corner of the cage to help Rockford score before its opposition for the first time in the last six contests.
The Wild answered back with a power-play goal of their own with just 1:54 to play in the first. A quick pass from Alex Tuch found Mario Lucia open in the slot and he fired a shot off the right post and into the cage to even the scoring heading into the first intermission.
In the second period, Teemu Pulkkinen blocked a shot in Iowa’s own zone, raced in on a breakaway and snapped the puck past Lars Johansson at 16:42. Just 1:58 later, Christoph Bertschy fired a shot through traffic and over the line to bring the Wild lead to 3-1.
Iowa wrapped up the contest when Pulkkinen picked up his second of the game with an empty-net tally.
The IceHogs finished the game 1-for-2 on the power play and are 4-for-8 on the man-advantage against the Wild on the season.
Next Home Game: Wednesday, Dec. 28 vs. Chicago Wolves. Puck drop is 7 p.m. The first 2,500 fans to enter the arena will receive a commemorative Jake Dowell poster courtesy of Hub Printing. It’s also a Winning Weekday presented by Fas Fuel. After every IceHogs home win on a weekday, all fans in attendance can redeem their game ticket for a FREE ticket of equal or lesser value to the next weekday game. Also, one lucky fan in attendance will WIN a $50 gas card courtesy of Fas Fuel. The contest marks another WXRX Dollar Day where fans can take advantage of $2 beers, soft drinks, hot dogs and companion tickets.