In a thrilling overtime showdown at Tech CU Arena, the San Jose Barracuda's impressive streak in games decided in OT came to an end, as they fell 4-3 to the Calgary Wranglers. This marks a rare slip for the Barracuda, who have been formidable in such tight situations.
The action kicked off with San Jose's Oliver Wahlstrom lighting up the scoreboard midway through the first period. Wahlstrom, continuing his hot streak, netted a power-play goal at 6:23, courtesy of a slick pass from Kasper Halttunen. This marked Wahlstrom's third consecutive game with a goal, setting the tone early for the Barracuda.
Calgary, however, roared back in the second period. Daniil Miromanov quickly tied things up just 1:41 into the frame.
Not long after, William Strömgren put the Wranglers ahead at 4:38, and Martin Frk extended their lead to 3-1 at 10:18. But Wahlstrom wasn't done yet; he answered with his second power-play goal of the night at 13:29, narrowing the gap and keeping San Jose in the hunt.
The third period saw Brendan Hoffmann stepping up for the Barracuda. At 16:46, Hoffmann, with an assist from Jack Thompson, scored his first AHL goal, leveling the game at 3-3 and pushing the contest into overtime.
It was in the extra session that Strömgren emerged as the hero for Calgary. Just 48 seconds in, he broke away and scored the decisive goal, capping off a stellar night with two goals, an assist, and a plus-four rating.
In net, Laurent Brossoit put up a valiant effort for San Jose with 39 saves, while Calgary's Ivan Prosvetov was solid, stopping 33 shots. Special teams were a highlight for the Barracuda, who went 2-for-5 on the power play and were perfect on the penalty kill, going 7-for-7.
Despite the loss, San Jose's resilience and Wahlstrom's standout performance give fans plenty to be excited about as the season progresses.