CHARLOTTE, NC – The Iowa Wild (3-16-1-3, 10 points) were defeated by the Charlotte Checkers (11-9-0-9, 22 points) 2-1 in a shootoutin front of 3,304 fans on Sunday at Bojangles Arena. Iowa’s Zack Mitchell scored with 6:39 left in regulation, tying the game and eventually sending it to overtime and a shootout. The Checkers outdueled the Wild 2-0 in the shootout to take the extra point. Charlotte goalie Drew MacIntyre (6-8-0) 
made 22 regulation saves and stopped both attempts in the shootout win. Iowa goalie Leland Irving (2-7-3) stopped 36 of 37 in regulation and he stopped one of three attempts in the shootout loss. With the shootout defeat, Iowa ends a string of nine straight regulation losses. The Wild extended its’ franchise record winless streak to 13 games (0-11-0-2). Checkers defenseman Ryan Murphy scored his club’s lone regulation goal in the team’s eighth straight win over Iowa. The Wild travels to Lake Erie for a 6 p.m. (CT) puck drop with the Monsters on Thursday.
After a scoreless first period of play, Charlotte opened the scoring with the second period’s only goal. Forwards Erik Karlsson and Zach Boychuk worked the puck on the power play up to the Iowa blueline. Defenseman Ryan Murphy blasted a slapshot past Leland Irving at 7:53 of the period, making it 1-0 Charlotte with his first goal of the season.
The Wild tied the game 1-1 at 6:39 of the third period. Defenseman Tyson Strachan found Christoph Bertschy curling through the Iowa zone. Bertschy quickly snapped a pass to the neutral zone for a streaking Zack Mitchell. The Wild forward pushed the puck ahead and raced in for a breakaway behind the Charlotte defense. Mitchell tucked a shot under the pads of Drew MacIntye for his fifth goal of the year and a 1-1 score.
After a scoreless overtime the two teams went to a shootout to decide the winner. Charlotte;’s Justin Shugg and Derek Ryan each scored in the shootout, while MacIntyre stopped both Wild attempts for the extra point.
The Wild continues a six-game road trip on Thursday in Cleveland, playing twice at Lake Erie before returning home on Tuesday, Dec. 8 for a game against the Chicago Wolves. Kids (12 and under) eat free on Tuesday with a “Crash’s Kids Meal” courtesy of 96.5 Country of iHeartMedia Des Moines. The meal includes one hot dog, one soda, one popcorn, one fruit snack, and one Iowa Wild prize. It’s also a Taco Tuesday, where each fan receives a coupon for a free taco from Taco John’s upon entering the arena.
With Iowa game report
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