ECHL Cincinnati Cyclones

Cyclones Game Preview - Cincinnati vs. Florida

December 14, 2012 - ECHL (ECHL)
Cincinnati Cyclones News Release


CINCINNATI CYCLONES (14-7-2-0)

vs.

FLORIDA EVERBLADES (11-8-1-4)

DATE: Friday, December 14, 2012

TIME: 7:30pm ET

SITE: U.S. Bank Arena - Cincinnati, OH

WEBCAST: CyclonesHockey.com (America One)

NHL AFFILIATES

Cincinnati Cyclones: Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators

Florida Everblades: Carolina Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning

NEXT HOME GAME (After Tonight)

Friday, December 21 vs. South Carolina Stingrays - 7:30pm

END OF THE WORLD PARTY

TONIGHT'S MATCHUP: After dropping a close 4-3 decision to Florida on Wednesday, tonight the Cyclones will look for revenge as the same two teams meet for the second time in 48 hours at U.S. Bank Arena. The all-time series remains close, with Cincinnati owning a 9-8-0 record over the Everblades. At U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati has won five of the 11 meetings with their Sunshine State foes.

TONIGHT'S PROMOTION: CYCLONES SNOWGLOBE NIGHT - The first 2,000 fans through the gates will receive a Cyclones SnowGlobe featuring Twister courtesy of Beacon Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.

SCOUTING THE EVERBLADES: Greg Poss' club has been one of the top scoring teams in the ECHL, but they've also been one of the league's most futile defenses. Florida is averaging 3.92 goals per game, which is tied for third most in the league; however they are allowing an average of 4.04 goals per game - the second most among all 23 teams. Matthew Roy is atop the Everblades scoring list by posting 27 points (9 goals, 18 assists) in 23 games. His totals rank sixth-most in the ECHL. Matt Marquardt has also been a dangerous offensive weapon this year, compiling 24 points (9 goals, 15 assists) in 22 games. Another one of Florida's strengths this season has been its power play; they currently rank fourth in the ECHL with a 22.3% conversion rate - however, the Clones killed off all five man-advantages they had on Wednesday night. With the NHL Lockout still going on, the "˜Blades have recently added some top-level talent. Colorado Avalanche rear guard Ryan O'Byrne and Boston Bruins defenseman Mark Stuart have both bolstered Florida's back-end unit. Both players earned points on Wednesday night.

About Wednesday Night vs. Florida: The Cyclones comeback bid was denied in the finals seconds as the Everblades held on to win by a final score of 4-3 in front of a crowd of 2,345 at U.S. Bank Arena. Josh Birkholz, Mike Embach, and Mike Pelech all found the net for Cincinnati - who had its four-game home winning streak snapped.

Natural Born Killers: Cincinnati's penalty kill unit has been lights out of late. They have extinguished 23 of the last 25 power plays they have defended. At U.S. Bank Arena this season, they have been equally strong - denying their opponents a power play goal 88.5 percent of the time which ranks third best in the ECHL.

No Need For Nail Clippers: Although there have been a couple lopsided-scoring games of late, the Clones have played the majority of their contests very closely. All but three of their games have been decided by two goals or less - the most of any team in the ECHL.

Early Lead=Win: When the Cyclones can grab an advantage in the opening 20 minutes, they have been deadly. They are 11-3-1 when scoring the games first goal and 6-1 when leading at the first intermission.

SEASON SERIES (5 TOTAL, 4 REMAINING)

Dec. 12 Florida 4 at Cincinnati 3 Final

Dec. 14 Florida at Cincinnati 7:30pm EST

Mar. 6 Florida at Cincinnati 7:30pm EST

Mar. 22 Cincinnati at Florida 7:30pm EDT

Mar. 23 Cincinnati at Florida 7:00pm EDT

Check out the Cincinnati Cyclones Statistics



ECHL Stories from December 14, 2012


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