Nov. 17, 2021

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Calvin Pickard’s season-high 46 saves proved not to be enough as the Grand Rapids Griffins fell late to the Chicago Wolves 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday at Van Andel Arena during the 20th Annual School Day Game presented by the Army National Guard.

Both teams had several opportunities to score in the opening period, but Pickard and Alex Lyon held their own in goal.

After the scoreless first, Chicago opened up the game with a tally 52 seconds into the middle frame. Jack Drury made a behind-the-back pass to Jamieson Rees who stood in the slot, recording his first goal of the season.

At the 9:52 mark in the second, the Wolves looked to add to their lead when Stefan Noesen took a shot in front of the goal mouth, but Pickard stopped the tally from going in with an acrobatic kick save with his right pad.

Halfway through the final period, the Griffins found a way to score with 11:02 remaining in the game. Wyatt Newpower skated in between the circles and was able to find Brett McKenzie on the right side of the Chicago zone. McKenzie rushed the net and his shot beat Lyon at the left post. This tally marked McKenzie’s first AHL goal during his Grand Rapids debut and Newpower’s helper was his first in a Griffins uniform.

As both teams were unable to find the game-winner in regulation, the contest went to overtime. 31 seconds into the extra frame, Chicago’s Andrew Poturalski skated down the slot and sent the puck past the left leg of Pickard and into the right corner to secure the 2-1 victory for the Wolves.

Notes

• Jon Martin recorded his first point as Griffin on an assist.
• Grand Rapids allowed a season-high 48 shots.
• The Griffins’ power play went 0-for-3 while the penalty kill finished 4-for-4.

Box Score

Chicago 0 1 0 1 - 2
Grand Rapids 0 0 1 0 - 1

1st Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Newpower Gr (delay of game), 4:59; Renouf Gr (tripping), 8:27; Rees Chi (elbowing), 17:26.

2nd Period-1, Chicago, Rees 1 (Drury), 0:52. Penalties-C. Smith Chi (hooking), 10:26; Shine Gr (slashing), 17:38.

3rd Period-2, Grand Rapids, McKenzie 1 (Newpower, Martin), 8:58. Penalties-Murphy Gr (interference), 4:54; Noesen Chi (tripping), 5:53.

OT Period-3, Chicago, Poturalski 7 (Noesen), 0:31. Penalties-No Penalties

Shots on Goal-Chicago 15-19-13-1-48. Grand Rapids 11-12-4-0-27.
Power Play Opportunities-Chicago 0 / 4; Grand Rapids 0 / 3.
Goalies-Chicago, Lyon 3-1-0 (27 shots-26 saves). Grand Rapids, Pickard 5-2-1 (48 shots-46 saves).
A-4,795

Three Stars

1. GR Pickard (L, 46 saves); 2. CHI Poturalski (game-winning goal); 3. GR McKenzie (goal)

Record / Next Game
Grand Rapids: 5-5-1-1 (12 pts) / Fri., Nov. 19 at Texas 8 p.m. EST

Chicago: 8-3-1-0 (17 pts) / Fri., Nov. 19 at Rockford 7 p.m. CST

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins