Joseph Cramarossa scored two goals, but the Rockford IceHogs allowed three second-period goals in a 3-2 loss to the Cleveland Monsters on Saturday night at BMO Harris Bank Center.
Stefan Matteau had a goal and an assist, and Adam Clendening had two assists against his former team for Cleveland (14-13-1-2). Veini Vehvilainen made 22 saves.
Kevin Lankinen made 27 saves in his first loss in three outings for Rockford (17-11-0-1), which had its win streak end at three games and is now 8-3 in its last 11 games.
Cramarossa scored 29 seconds into the game for a 1-0 Rockford lead. Philipp Kurashev recorded an assist on the goal to give him five points (two goals, three assists) in his past four games.
Brett Gallant redirected Clendening’s wrist shot from the point to tie it 1-1 at 4:03 of the second period.
Nathan Gerbe gave Cleveland a 2-1 lead at 13:15 with a wrist shot from the left circle on the power play.
Matteau picked off Kurashev’s pass at the blue line then raced the other way and blasted a shot from the right circle off the crossbar and into the net for a 3-1 lead at 15:13.
Philip Holm sent a backhand cross-ice pass from the right face-off circle to Cramarossa, who made it 3-2 on the power play at 7:58 of the third period.
The IceHogs have been outscored 15-3 in three regulation losses to the Monsters this season. The two teams meet again Feb. 15 in Rockford.
What’s next
The IceHogs are off until Dec. 27 when they close out a three-game homestand against the Iowa Wild.