Kyrou tallies first hat trick, Rampage roll past Wild

SAN ANTONIO – The Rampage wanted another shot at the Wild.

This time, they made it count.

After surrendering a two-goal lead in a 3-2 loss to Iowa on Sunday, San Antonio rebounded with an offensive eruption Wednesday afternoon and closed their home stand on a positive note, defeating the Wild 5-1.

Center Jordan Kyrou stole the show, tallying goals in the first and second periods en route to his first career hat trick. It’s also the first hat trick scored by a Rampage player since Sammy Blais’ three-goal performance on March 11, 2018.

“I think it was just having a mentality to get my shots off quicker," Kyrou said. "I was tending to hold the puck a bit longer, pick my corners. It’s definitely a big confidence boost.”

“He’s one of the guys we need to see more from," said head coach Drew Bannister. "He was really good tonight. His compete level was up where we need it to be. He was stronger on the puck defensively, he utilized his speed and I think he’s starting to feel a little better about himself. It was nice to see him find the back of the net tonight.”

Kyrou opened the scoring in the first minute, deflecting a shot from Niko Mikkola past the goaltender. After the Wild evened the score early in the second period, Kyrou struck again, notching back-to-back goals to put San Antonio up 3-1. Evan Polei and Derrick Pouliot each scored goals in the third period to cement the victory. Defenseman Joey LaLeggia and Jake Walman each recorded two assists. Meanwhile, Ville Husso was a stonewall in net, saving 27 of the 28 shots he faced.

“I thought Ville played really well for us today." Bannister said. "He made some great saves to keep the game close. As a group, we were much better. Our top players came to play, and obviously the power plays gave us some breathing room.”

With 24 games in the books, the Rampage still currently sit in third place in the Central Division standings with 27 points, just one point behind the Wild and 10 behind the Milwaukee Admirals. Next up, San Antonio travels to Toronto to face the North Division-leading Marlies for a pair of games on Saturday and Sunday. Puck drop for both games is at 3 p.m.