Cannone, Wolves edge Rampage in overtime
Pat Cannone's breakaway goal with 29 seconds left in overtime sparked the Chicago Wolves to a 3-2 victory over the San Antonio Rampage on Saturday night before 11,570 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont.
Forwards Jeremy Welsh and Shane Harper scored in regulation for the Wolves (27-19-5-1). Jordan Binnington, who set a franchise record by starting in goal for the 14th consecutive regular-season game, stopped 31 shots to earn the win.
"I wasn't sure whether I should put (Cannone) out there because he was hurting a little bit," said Wolves coach John Anderson with a smile. "I guess I'm a genius. The crowd saw a great game that could have gone either way. They had a breakaway right at the end and 'Binny' came up big and we scored the goal."
The Rampage (29-18-5-0) opened the scoring 2:40 into the game when center Wade Megan swiped the puck at the blue line, carried it in, and launched a wrister from the right faceoff dot that flew over Binnington's blocker.
The Wolves pulled even at 8:39 when Magnus Paajarvi stepped inside the blue line to intercept a clearing attempt. Paajarvi quickly found Welsh open just outside the crease and he knocked it home for his 13th goal of the year.
The Wolves seized a 2-1 lead on Harper's goal at 2:49 of the second period - one second after a power play expired - set up by crisp passing in the offensive zone. Cannone whisked the puck from the left circle to the right circle for Paajarvi, who waited for a defenseman to slide out of the play before setting up Harper in front of the net for an unchallenged goal.
The Rampage needed just 62 seconds to tie, as left wing Garrett Wilson flipped home a shot from the bottom of the right circle for a power-play goal at 3:51 of the second.
Cannone's game-winner came during 3-on-3 action as both teams battled to pick up the extra point. Defenseman Joel Edmundson's backhand pass threaded the needle between two Rampage players and enabled Cannone to race in unopposed on goaltender Dan Ellis.
Binnington (18-10-3) won for the fifth time in the last six games. Ellis (22-10-3) made 27 stops in regulation and overtime.
The Wolves host the Rampage today at 3 p.m. as their seven-game homestand continues.