CHICAGO – Some stories just write themselves.
Rookie Rory Kerins — recalled Friday to the AHL Wranglers — got his first NHL start Monday and collected two assists on the first two goals en route to a 5-2 win over the Blackhawks.
Oh, and those two goals were scored by another youngster – Jakob Pelletier, he remembered in December. The two players were Wranglers players and good friends off the ice.
Mikael Backlund, Jake Bean and Yegor Sharangovich also scored for the Flames, who started the four-game road trip in style with their third straight win as they beat Chicago 36-24.
They had already beaten Chicago twice this season.
It was Pelletier’s second and third goals of the season, and Kerins – who had his parents, sister, brother and girlfriend in the stands at the United Center to see him – became the first Flame since Sergei Makarov in 1989 to get two assists for his team. The first NHL.
He finished the night with an impressive +3 in 14:57 of ice time, and nearly scored his first goal late in the second period when he shot high into the blue paint with the Blackhawk on his back, but Chicago netminder Petr. Mrazek made a backup pad.
Pelletier also had an assist and finished +3, again, on four shots.
Dustin Wolf – making his fourth straight start – got the win, making 22 saves.
Jonathan Huberdeau continued to shine, assisting on Sharangovich’s goal. He now has 21 points in his last 21 games.
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