The Sudbury Wolves wasted no time returning to the win column, claiming a 5-4 victory over the Niagara IceDogs on day one of their two-day road trip.
Wolves goal scorers were Shane Bulitka, Adam Ruzicka, Owen Robinson, Nolan Hutcheson and Macauley Carson in this exciting match up between two Central Division leaders. Final shots on goal were 51-24 in favour of Niagara.
The Wolves got off to a slow start in the opening frame, trailing behind Philip Tomasino who opened the scoreboard for the IceDogs 2:43 into play. Quick to his heels was Wolves' Bulitka, who settled the score 1-1.
The IceDogs regained their lead on the power play with a heavy-handed shot by Michigan athlete, Jason Robertson. The Wolves persistent offence paid off when a smooth pass to Ruzicka, waiting in the slot, found the open net past Stephen Dhillon to tie the game at two.
Finding themselves in the right place at the right time, Robinson and Carson delivered twin-like goals on the glove side of IceDogs' Dhillon. Moving off a slick-pass by Carson, Hutcheson shot one through the high slot to finish off the pack's offensive outburst with a score of 5-2.
Niagara left it all on the ice in the final frame, bringing the game to 5-4 with only a minute left in play thanks to goals by Akil Thomad and Ben Jones. The Wolves were not about to let this win out of their grasp, securing the match with an exceptional 47 saves by Luukkonen.
The Wolves finish off their two-game road trip this afternoon at 2:05 p.m., with their second match of the season against the Oshawa Generals.
