
Anderson Stars In 4-3 Walleye Win Over Heartlanders
December 15, 2023 - ECHL (ECHL)
Toledo Walleye News Release
CORALVILLE, IA - The Toledo Walleye defeated the Iowa Heartlanders 4-3 on Friday night at Xtream Arena.
What Happened:
The Toledo Walleye hit the road for a weekend series in Iowa with the Iowa Heartlanders.
John Lethemon would be between the pipes for the Walleye. Riley McCourt and Matt Anderson would staff the defence, while Brandon Hawkins, Trenton Bliss and Mitch Lewandowski would lead the Toledo attack.
Peyton Jones would defend the home net for the Heartlanders. Robbie Stucker and Ben Brinkman would fill the defence, while Casey Dornbach, Davis Koch and Louis Boudon would be on the attack for Iowa.
Iowa would start the scoring at 7:12 as Koch found the net to give the Heartlanders a 1-0 lead. Dornbach and Boudon collected the assists on the icebreaker.
That would wrap the action in a quiet first period with the Heartlanders leading the Walleye 1-0. The Walleye were outshot by the Heartlanders 5-12 in the period. Neither team had a power play in the period.
The Walleye got the second period action underway by knotting the score at 1-1 when Conlan Keenan put the puck behind Jones with Anderson tabbing the solo assist.
Toledo would get the first power play chance of the game at 4:34 when Boudon was sent to the Iowa penalty box for Cross-Checking. Iowa would kill off the power play.
The Heartlanders would get their first man-advantage at 7:00 when Chase Gresock was sent to the Walleye penalty box for Interference. The Walleye would kill off the power play.
Toledo would find themselves in front after Anderson would find the net unassisted and shorthanded to give the Fish a 2-1 lead.
The Walleye would extend the lead to 3-1 when Brandon Kruse lit the lamp, continuing a red hot December. Orrin Centazzo and Anderson were the helping-hands on the score. The assist was Anderson's second assist and third point of the night.
The Heartlanders would get their next power play chance at 14:10 when Adrien Beraldo was sent to the Toledo box for Cross-Checking. The Walleye would fend off the power play.
The Fish would tack on another score at 17:18, this time Lewandowski finding paydirt to make it 4-1 Fish. Hawkins and McCourt would assist the score.
The Heartlanders would get one back at 19:02 when Maxim Cajkovic put one behind Lethemon. Odeen Tufto added the solo assist to make it 4-2 Fish.
That would wrap the second frame with the Walleye leading the Heartlanders 4-2. The Walleye outshot the Heartlanders 17-10 in the period, with the two teams shooting even at 22-22 after two periods. Toledo was 0/1 on the power play in the period while Iowa was 0/2.
The third period action began with a Walleye power play at 1:14 as Boudon was assessed a Delay of Game penalty. The Heartlanders would kill off the man-advantage.
Iowa would start another power play at 8:51 when Centazzo was assessed a Tripping minor, but it was lowered to four-on-four hockey when Iowa was called for Too Many Men, which would be served by Cajkovic.
Iowa would score in the four-on-four when Koch found the net a second time at 10:21. Stucker netted the solo assist to bring the game to 4-3 in favor of the Walleye.
The horns would sound, signaling a 4-3 Walleye win over the Heartlanders.
The two teams shot even at 9-9 in the period and 31-31 overall. Toledo was 0/2 on the power play in the period and 0/3 overall, while Iowa was 0/1 in the period and 0/3 overall.
Three Stars Sponsored by Local 245:
Matt Anderson (1G, 2A) - TOL
Davis Koch (2G) - IA
Maxim Cajkovic (1G) - IA
What's Next:
The Toledo Walleye will remain in Coralville, IA for game two of the three-game series against the Iowa Heartlanders, tomorrow, Saturday, December 16, 2023, at Xtream Arena with puck drop coming at 6:05 pm CT (7:05 pm ET).
• Discuss this story on the ECHL message board...
ECHL Stories from December 15, 2023
- Sellar Nets First Pro Hat-Trick, Royals Steamroll Railers, 5-2 - Reading Royals
- Jared Moe Tremendous in Net as Steelheads Defeat Rush 4-1 - Idaho Steelheads
- Rush Fall to Steelheads 4-1 - Rapid City Rush
- McAuley's Hat Trick Leads Americans Over KC - Allen Americans
- Grizzlies Fall 5-2 at Fort Wayne - Utah Grizzlies
- Stingrays Defeat Swamp Rabbits 2-1 - South Carolina Stingrays
- Railers Drop First Trip to Reading 5-2 - Worcester Railers HC
- K-Wings Fall Against Cyclones - Kalamazoo Wings
- Admirals Continue Having the Lions' Number - Trois-Rivieres Lions
- Heartlanders' Late Rally Not Enough in 4-3 Loss to Walleye - Iowa Heartlanders
- Fuel Fall to Wheeling on Friday - Indy Fuel
- Anderson Stars In 4-3 Walleye Win Over Heartlanders - Toledo Walleye
- Nailers Enjoy Home Cooking In 4-1 Win Over Fuel - Wheeling Nailers
- Norfolk Defeat Trois-Rivières; Overtake First Place in ECHL North Division - Norfolk Admirals
- Cyclones Blow Out the K-Wings - Cincinnati Cyclones
- Ashbrook Scores Twice In 5-3 Win Over Growlers - Adirondack Thunder
- Growlers Fall 5-3 to Thunder - Newfoundland Growlers
- Swamp Rabbits Remain in First Despite Late Loss to Stingrays - Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Steelheads Sign Defenseman Cooper Jones to an ECHL Contract - Idaho Steelheads
- ECHL Transactions - December 15 - ECHL
- Romanov Reassigned from Cuda to Thunder - Wichita Thunder
- Swamp Rabbits Announce Fan Experiences Ahead of NASCAR Night Presented by Alloy Employer Services - Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Reign Recall Max Martin from Greenville - Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Game Notes: December 15 - Rush at Idaho Steelheads - Rapid City Rush
- Millman Reassigned by Philadelphia from Lehigh Valley to Reading, Brown Loaned to Reading by Lehigh Valley - Reading Royals
- Grizzlies Gameday: Utah Begins 3 Game Weekend Set at Fort Wayne - Utah Grizzlies
- After Historic Game on Wednesday, Mavericks Back at Home for Two this Weekend - Kansas City Mavericks
- Game Preview: Swamp Rabbits at South Carolina Stingrays (7:05pm) - Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Game Preview: Swamp Rabbits at South Carolina Stingrays (7:05pm) - Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Brown & Lodermeier Score Twice as Icemen Rally Past Ghost Pirates - Jacksonville Icemen
- Another New Face in the Lineup Tonight vs. KC, 7:35 PM CST - Allen Americans
- Royals Welcome Railers & Swifties to Town on Taylor's Night (Royals Version) Friday Face-Off - Reading Royals
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
Other Recent Toledo Walleye Stories
- Bliss Scores in Game 2 Loss to Fort Wayne
- Spezia Has Two-Point Night in Game 1 Win Against Fort Wayne
- Toledo Walleye Weekly No. 28: April 28, 2025
- Walleye Advance to Central Division Finals with Game 4 Win at Indy
- Hawkins Has Four-Point Night in Game 3 Win at Indy

