The Wolves scored twice in the third period Sunday to squeeze past the Manitoba Moose 3-2 at the Horizon, keeping them undefeated in the new year (3-0-0).
The Wolves (30-8-2) have won five in a row and six straight at home (15-3-0), and they lead the IHL with 62 points.
Playing their third game in as many days, the Wolves opted for goalie Ray LeBlanc (5-2-0) over Wendell Young (23-3-2) against the Moose (14-19-4), who return to the Horizon on Wednesday.
“I was excited to play. I had a lot of high adrenaline going,” said LeBlanc who helped the Wolves hold on to a 1-0 lead through a first period that included a full 2-minute, two-man deficit.
The Moose crafted the extra advantage by requesting a measurement on Ravil Gusmanov’s stick after Steve Maltais was whistled for tripping at 11 minutes 2 seconds.
The Wolves took a 2-1 third-period lead when they converted on a major penalty assessed to Manitoba’s Brian Chapman at 7:13 after he cross-checked Steve Martins behind the Moose net. Maltais collected his IHL-leading 16th power-play goal and 24th of the season at 9:30 on a one-timer.
Scott Pearson scored the game-winner, his 17th goal of the season, with 3:33 left in game.
The Moose cut it to 3-2 with 38.5 seconds left when former Wolves defenseman Brett Hauer sent a long-distance shot through traffic down the slot.
