Moose trample Rockford, 5-2

Posted on by

The Manitoba Moose (7-6-2-0) were winners on Saturday evening, earning a 5-2 victory over the Rockford IceHogs (7-7-1-0) to close their five-game road trip. It was their fourth consecutive win. The Moose were coming off a 3-1 win over the Milwaukee Admirals on Friday night.

The IceHogs got off to a quick start, putting 12 shots on goal in the opening frame. That persistence resulted in the opening salvo 9:37 into the game, with Connor Mylymok tapping home a back-door pass from Jamie Engelbert. Thomas Milic stopped all 11 additional shots, and Stanislav Berezhnoy denied all nine Moose attempts in the Rockford net.

Manitoba exploded offensively in the second, charging out to a 4-2 lead. Danny Zhilkin started the party when he banked a pass off a Rockford defender, which careened into the net. Walker Duehr gave the Moose their first lead of the night, beating Berezhnoy along the ice on a one-on-one chance to make the score 2-1. Rockford tied the game three minutes later courtesy of Brett Seney, but Manitoba wasn’t done. Zhilkin restored the one-goal lead following a patient pass from Duehr on a shorthanded two-on-one. Just 1:29 later, Samuel Fagemo stole the puck at Manitoba’s blue line and rushed in on a breakaway. A smooth finish led to his fourth goal of the season and a 4-2 lead. Ice issues forced an early intermission, sending both teams to the locker rooms with 2:41 left in the second. Milic was tested several times off the restart, but finished the period with 11 more stops on his tally.

The only goal in the third belonged to Manitoba. Mason Shaw snuck a quick shot under Berezhnoy’s pad, giving the Moose a 5-2 lead they held the rest of the night. Walker Duehr set up the marker for his third point of the game. Milic finished with a season-high 33 stops to seal the 5-2 victory.

Statbook

  • Danny Zhilkin recorded his first AHL multi-goal game, setting a new career-high with four goals on the season
  • Jaret Anderson-Dolan and Samuel Fagemo are on three-game point streaks
  • Thomas Milic has won three straight starts
  • Ashton Sautner reached 100 career points with an assist (23G, 77A)
  • Ville Heinola has three points (1G, 2A) in two games against Rockford
  • Manitoba scored its league-leading fourth shorthanded goal