K-Wings Downed by Fuel in Shootout Sunday at Home
ECHL Kalamazoo Wings

K-Wings Downed by Fuel in Shootout Sunday at Home

Published on January 4, 2026 under ECHL (ECHL)
Kalamazoo Wings News Release


KALAMAZOO, MI - The Kalamazoo Wings (10-13-2-2), proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks, fell to the Indy Fuel (14-11-3-1) in a shootout Sunday at Wings Event Center, 3-2.

Jonathan Lemieux (2-4-1-1) was brilliant between the pipes, making a season high 41 saves (51 including shootout) and defended home ice for 12 rounds into the longest shootout of the K-Wings' season.

Zach Okabe (7) celebrated his 25th birthday with a top-shelf power-play goal to get the scoring started for Kalamazoo at the 18:40 mark of the first period. On the setup, Jayden Lee (9) sent the puck from the blue line to Quinn Preston (14) in the left circle, who crossed to Okabe for the first power-play goal of 2026.

Colin Bilek (6) carried the momentum into the second period with a breakaway top-shelf snipe to bring the lead to two at the 8:06 mark. On the play, the Fuel fired a shot off of Hunter Strand (7) that deflected to Nolan Walker (12) in the defensive left circle and launched the pass to Bilek.

Unfortunately, Indy responded with a pair of goals, one at the 12:01 mark and another 13 minutes into the third period to knot the game at two and send the game to overtime. After a scoreless overtime period the game went to a shootout.

Kalamazoo had it's best penalty kill performance of the season, going a perfect 6-for-6.

Next up, the K-Wings hit the road for a midweek clash against the Bloomington Bison (14-11-2-2) on Wednesday, January 7, at 8 p.m. EST at Grossinger Motors Arena.

The K-Wings return home for Canucks Night as we honor our NHL affiliate, the Vancouver Canucks, on Saturday, January 10 presented by Bell's! Puck drop is at 4:30 p.m., presented by Discover Kalamazoo! The K-Wings will hit the ice in Canucks-inspired specialty jerseys, then auction them off post-game with proceeds benefiting the South County Firefighters Association. A night of hockey, hometown pride, and a touch of the Pacific Northwest!

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