Wolves’ Lack and Longpre both impressive

If goalie Eddie Lack was the best player on the ice for the Chicago Wolves in their 2 wins over Rockford last weekend, then Nathan Longpre was a close second.

Longpre had 2 goals and was plus-2 in Sunday’s 5-3 win after leading the Wolves with 5 shots on goal in Saturday’s 1-0 shootout victory.

Both efforts impressed coach Scott Arniel.

“He’s one of those guys who isn’t a Vancouver guy, but he’s a real valuable guy who you can use in a lot of situations,” Arniel said. “He’s a great skater and works hard. Not knowing him, just seeing him here the last couple weeks, I like what I see.”

Longpre is not a Canucks prospect, signing with the Wolves as a free agent Aug. 1, but that could change if he continues to impress Arniel. He had 8 goals and 10 assists with the Wolves last season before being traded to Springfield.

Sunday marked Longpre’s second career 2-goal game.

Connauton connection:Defenseman Kevin Connauton picked up where he left off last season with 2 assists in Sunday#146;s win over Rockford. He also was a career-best plus-4 in the victory.Connauton ranked sixth on Wolves and shared fourth among AHL blue-liners with 13 goals and paced team#146;s defensemen with 33 points in 71 games last year when he was named to the Western Conference squad for the AHL All-Star Classic.Wolves bits:With a goal and assist Sunday, Brett Sterling has 76 career multiple-point games as a member of the Wolves. #133; Andrew Ebbett#146;s goal Sunday was his first as a member of the Wolves. Ebbett has 58 points in 163 career NHL games with Anaheim, the Hawks, Minnesota, Phoenix, and Vancouver. #133;The Wolves were 0-for-12 on the power play in their 2 weekend wins over Rockford. #133;The Wolves host Peoria on Wednesday night at the Allstate Arena.