ECHL Cincinnati Cyclones

Cyclones' Improbable Rally Sinks the Komets, 5-4 in a Shootout

October 26, 2013 - ECHL (ECHL)
Cincinnati Cyclones News Release


FORT WAYNE, Indiana - The Cincinnati Cyclones (3-0-0-0) erased a three-goal deficit and prevailed in a shootout over the Fort Wayne Komets (0-0-0-2) by a 5-4 final score in front of 8,484 at Memorial Coliseum on Saturday night.

The Komets jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when Tristan King caught a pass from behind the net and notched his first goal of the season at 1:54 of the opening frame. Then, after killing off three Cincinnati power plays, Fort Wayne struck again; after a puck rang off the Cyclones post, Brandon Marino banged home the rebound to give his team a 2-0 edge at the first intermission.

Fort Wayne added some more breathing room midway through the middle stanza; at 10:27, Kaleigh Schrock's wrist shot from the high slot barely beat Rob Madore (W, 34 saves, 2-0-0-0) through the pads to make it 3-0. But then the Cyclones began to spark a rally; just 30 seconds later, Anthony Luciani raced up ice on a breakaway and angled home his third goal of the season to pull his team within two. It would remain a 3-1 contest after 40 minutes of play.

The third period was in a word - improbable. Just six minutes into the third, John McFarland blasted a slap shot over Cody Reichard (SOL, 33 saves, 0-0-0-1) right off of a face-off to make it 3-2. Then, at 15:08, Brett Wysopal lit the lamp with a blast from inside the left circle to knot the game at three. The momentum would temporarily swing back to Fort Wayne's side at 16:48 when Marino's turnaround backhanded shot from between the circles beat Madore over the shoulder to thrust his team back in the lead at 4-3. Not to be outdone, Barry Almeida stole the puck away from his defender just inside the Komets blue line and snapped home another game-tying lamp lighter at 17:23. Regulation ended tied at four.

Despite having a man-advantage in overtime, the Cyclones were unable to end the game and the teams were forced into a shootout. After a Fort Wayne miss in round 1, Almeida struck with a high wrist shot to give the Cyclones the lead. Then, after three straight misses by the Komets, Paul Crowder found the net with a shot through Reichard's legs to seal the 5-4 Cincinnati win.

Cincinnati continues its five-game road trip on Wednesday, October 30 when they visit the Toledo Walleye for a special morning game - with the opening face-off dropping at 10:35am. Fans can hear the action from the Huntington Center on the Cyclones Radio Network (CyclonesHockey.com, America One, Cyclones Mobile App) beginning at 10:05am.

The Cyclones will return to the ice at U.S. Bank Arena on Saturday, November 9 when they play host to the Fort Wayne Komets at 7:30pm. The game will also be the first Kids Eat FREE night of the year, with fans ages 2-12 receiving a FREE meal courtesy of John Morrell. Tickets are on sale now! Call 513.421.PUCK or visit CyclonesHockey.com to secure your seats. Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook and Twitter (@CincyCyclones).

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ECHL Stories from October 26, 2013


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