Dec 30, 2025

Game Report 

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Wild overpowered the Texas Stars in a 4-1 victory at Casey’s Center on Tuesday night. Riley Mercer turned aside 28 shots to win his third consecutive start to begin his AHL career. 

Texas outshot Iowa 11-7 in the first period. 

Gerry Mayhew broke through to open the scoring on the power play 8:15 into the middle frame. After Hunter Haight sent a pass down to the goal line, Mayhew stepped to the top of the crease and chipped a shot through Arno Tiefensee (17 saves). Dylan Gambrell picked up the first of his three assists on Mayhew’s goal. 

The Wild outshot the Stars 18-17 through 40 minutes of play. 

Bradley Marek scored the eventual game-winner 1:54 into the third period when he collected Caedan Bankier’s centering feed and whipped a shot inside the right post. 

Artem Shlaine pulled Texas back within a goal on the man advantage at 4:45.  

Iowa picked up a crucial insurance goal on the power play 2:57 later when Haight blasted a rebound opportunity off Ben Jones and into the back of the net. 

Ryan Sandelin scored on the empty net with 1:04 remaining to seal the win. 

Iowa outshot Texas 30-29. The Wild finished 2-for-3 with the man advantage while the Stars went 1-for-2 on the power play. 

Iowa and Texas square off again on Wednesday, Dec. 31 for New Year’s Eve Bash, presented by Greater Des Moines Partnership, Pizza Hut & 93.3 KIOA.  

Iowa Wild hockey is presented by Kwik Star. For more information on Iowa Wild hockey, please visit www.iowawild.com. Season tickets for 2026-27 are on sale now. Fans can purchase season tickets for the upcoming season at https://www.iowawild.com/wild-365.   

Visit http://www.iowawild.com/pressbox for the latest news and information from the team including press releases, game notes, multimedia content, and daily statistics.    

Iowa Wild home games are played at Casey’s Center. Iowa Wild games are now streaming on AHLTV on FloHockey. Fans can visit FloHockey.tv now to create a free account, purchase subscriptions for the 2025-26 season, and watch all Iowa Wild games online.  Â