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IHL 2 Kalamazoo Wings

K-Wings Week in Review

March 26, 2007 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Kalamazoo Wings News Release


Three games in three nights for the K-Wings began Friday (3/23) with the first of two straight road games against the Elmira Jackals. Kalamazoo opened up the scoring at 15:28 into the game with a shorthanded goal from Tyler Willis (8). Coming out of the penalty box, Jackal forward Frank Littlejohn (36) received a pass from Glenn Detulleo to a create breakaway which he would convert to tie the contest at 1-1. Controlling the second period, Kalamazoo scored three unanswered goals, including two from forward Kory Karlander (39,40). Karlander's tallies were bookends, as Jason Lawmaster registered his eighth goal of the season. Neither team was able to penetrate the net the final period, as the K-Wings skated to a 4-1 victory. Goaltender Tom Askey was brilliant stopping 29 of 30 shots, which included a second period penalty shot from Littlejohn.

On Saturday (3/24), Kalamazoo and Elmira faced-off again at the First Arena. In his first game as a pro, Doug Conley (1) scored on the power-play 3:21 into first period to give Kalamazoo a 1-0 lead. Elmira pulled even with Kalamazoo 10:45 into the second, with a wrist shot from Detulleo (15). Fifteen seconds after the Jackals tied the contest, the K-Wings regained the lead with a lamp lighter from Lucas Drake (14). In the third, Mike Oliveria's first goal of the season proved to be huge tying the game at 2-2. Seventeen seconds after Oliveria tied the game, Lawmaster (9) pushed the K-Wings ahead for good at 6:14. Karlander (41) added some insurance scoring at 11:44 to give the K-Wings a 4-2 lead. Askey would shut the door on the Jackals stopping 30 shots in the game, including seven in the final 20 minutes to earn his 25th victory of the season.

Kalamazoo finished out the week on Sunday (3/25) at Wings Stadium versus the Port Huron Flags. Not even an 11-hour overnight bus trip could stop the K-Wings offense, as Adam Elzinga (10) scored 3:38 into the game to give Kalamazoo a 1-0 lead. After no scoring in the second period, Kalamazoo put the game away with 1:38 remaining in the contest with an empty net goal from Lawmaster (10) to give the K-Wings a 2-0 victory. Goaltender Ryan Nie turned aside all 27 shots he faced to record his 7th shutout of the season and the 4th against Port Huron.

Fast Forward

With four games on the slate, Kalamazoo will begin the week on Wednesday (3/28) with a 7 p.m. face-off at Wings Stadium versus the Elmira Jackals. The K-Wings are 7-1-0 against the Jackals this season, which includes back to back victories last week in Elmira. The Jackals are fifth place in the Eastern Conference and riding a six-game losing streak.

Kalamazoo will begin their last road swing of a season, a four-game jaunt that will commence this Friday (3/30) against the Quad City Mallards. This season, the K-Wings are 3-1-1 against the Mallards, which includes a record of 2-0-1 at The MARK. The Mallards are in third place in the Western Conference and have secured a birth in the Colonial Cup playoffs.

On Saturday, the K-Wings will head to Muskegon to battle the Fury. Kalamazoo is 5-5-1 against Muskegon this year and has won three of their last four against the top team in the league. Muskegon leads the K-Wings by 10 points for both the top spot in the Eastern Conference and the league.

The K-Wings will conclude the week on Sunday (4/1) in Port Huron against the Flags. Kalamazoo has won five straight against Port Huron and on the season hold a 9-2-1 record against their division rivals. Port Huron currently sits in fourth place in the Eastern Conference and are six points away from clinching a spot in the postseason.

Five Alive

Kalamazoo heads into Wednesday's game on a five-game winning streak. The five-game streak is ties the K-Wings' season high set on two other occasions (December 29th-January 6th and February 23rd-March 3rd).

On a Roll

Forward Kory Karlander has recorded points in four straight games. Besides the four-game points streak, Karlander is also two-goals shy of tying the K-Wings' all-time UHL franchise record for goals in a season of 43 set by Jim Duhart (1999-00).

Tickling the Twine

Jason Lawmaster has been on a goal scoring tare. Lawmaster, who has 10 goals on the year, has lit the lamp in three straight games.

De-NIE

Goaltender Ryan Nie turned aside 27 shots on Sunday to earn his league leading 7th shutout. Besides leading the league in shutouts, Nie also leads the UHL in goals against average (2.02) and save percentage (0.930).

The Obscure Stat of the Week

Forward Justin Cross is tied with Quad City's Brett Pilkington and Chicago's Todd Grant for the league lead for goals by rookie 25. Ironically, besides being tied for the league lead, all three players have something else in common; they all played for the K-Wings. Pilkington played for Kalamazoo this season, while Grant dressed in 21 games last year.

Tickets, Get Your Tickets!!

Tickets for all K-Wings home games are now on sale. Catch all the action as your K-Wings play the very best the UHL has to offer. Tickets are on sale now by calling the Wings Stadium Ticket Office at (269) 345-5101.

Get On-Line

This season, the best way to keep track of the K-Wings is to log onto www.kwings.com. The site has player profiles, photos, information about Wings Stadium events, and much, much more. Fans of myspace can befriend the official site of Wings Stadium and the Kalamazoo Wings at www.myspace.com/wingsstadium.

Drake and Rycroft on the Radio

Come see special guests Lucas Drake and Jesse Rycroft, as they join Head Coach Mark Reeds and the Voice of the K-Wings, Mike Modugno on "K-Wings Live". The show is on Sports Radio AM 1660 Mondays from 6-7 PM at The Cabana Bar and Grille inside the Holiday Inn Kalamazoo on South 11th Street.

K-Wings on Radio

Catch all the K-Wings games home and away on the K-Wings Radio Network (WLKM 95.9 FM and Sports Radio AM 1660). Join the Voice of the K-Wings, Mike Modugno for all 76 regular season games plus the playoffs. Pre-game coverage begins with the Digital Highway Pre-Game Show 15 minutes prior to face-off. For the most complete coverage of the K-Wings from the Opening Face-Off to the Final Buzzer, keep your radio tuned this season to the K-Wings Radio Network.

Upcoming Games

Wednesday, March 28th Vs Elmira 7:00 PM

Friday, March 30th @ Quad City 7:00 PM (CST)

Saturday, March 31st @ Muskegon 7:30 PM

Sunday, April 1st @ Port Huron 5:00 PM

Check out the Kalamazoo Wings Statistics

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International Hockey League 2 Stories from March 26, 2007


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