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ECHL Kalamazoo Wings

K-Wings Weekly

March 12, 2012 - ECHL (ECHL)
Kalamazoo Wings News Release


Kalamazoo, MI- A season-high crowd of 5,093, mainly filled with students representing 24 area schools received a lesson in perseverance, as the Kalamazoo score four unanswered goals en route to a trilling come-from-behind 6-5 overtime victory over the Cincinnati Cyclones on Education Day, presented by Bronson Orthopedic Sports Medicine, Edison Electric, McDonald's, Meijer and Rx Optical.

Bringing the kids to their feet, Kory Karlander scored on the K-Wings first power-play attempt of the afternoon knocking in a rebound 6:54 into the opening period. Nick Sirota, who assisted on the goal, extended his point streak to seven games.

Less than three minutes later, one of the biggest nemeses for the K-Wings this season continued to be a thorn to Kalamazoo's side, as Mathieu Aubin (24th) earned his 10th goal against the K-Wings.

Aubin struck again to give Cincinnati a 2-1 advantage 1:30 later, by lifting a backhander over the shoulder of Maxime Clermont.

Combining for three goals in the second period, all the tallies in the period occurred in a span of 1:27 apart of one another. In his return from the AHL, Darren Archibald (10th) tied the game at 2-2 midway in the stanza with a wrist shot from the slot.

Not remaining tied for long; Michael Pelech regained the lead for the Cyclones 13 seconds later by notching his 15th goal of the season.

Mathew Sisca (21st) grew Cincinnati's lead to two goals 1:14 later with a right circle slap shot.

Cincinnati's largest lead of the afternoon would occur 2:33 into the third period with a marker from David Leaderer (6th).

An innocent play from Cincinnati's Brian Foster sparked the K-Wings comeback two minutes later. After the goaltender misplayed the puck behind his net own net, Kalamazoo's Bryan Haczyk (15th) stole the puck from the side of the net and pushed it over the goal line. Eight of Haczyk's 15 goals this season have come against the Cyclones.

Creeping closer into the game midway in the period, Elgin Reid (6th) sent a slap shot past Foster to bring the K-Wings back to within a single goal.

With only 2.4 seconds remaining in regulation and with an extra-man, Eric Kattelus (8th) stayed patient with the puck and ripped the equalizer through the screen in front the Cyclones net to force overtime.

Making the comeback complete, Sam Ftorek (11th) recorded his second overtime game-winner 1:17 into the extra session.

The schools attending the second education day were Comstock East Elementary, Galesburg Augusta, Gobles Elementary, Pathfinder Center, Lewis Cass ISD, Lewis Cass ISD, Lawrence Elementary, Hopkins Elementary, L.E. White Middle School, Pine Trails Elementary, Hoppin Elementary, Countryside Academy, Community Based Transition Center, Oakland Academy, South Walnut Elementary, Sycamore Elementary, JMJ Homeschoolers, Challenger Elementary, Cummings Elementary, Lake Area Christian, St. Mary's, Kalamazoo Homeschoolers, Parchment Middle School and Sunset Lake Elementary.

Friday, March 9th Vs Chicago (Kalamazoo 5-Chicago 2)

Kalamazoo, MI- Dwight Helminen (2 goals, 1 assist) and Trent Daavettila (3 assists) kept it all in the family, as the cousins combined for six points to help the Kalamazoo Wings defeat the Chicago Express 5-2 Friday night at Wings Stadium during Old Burdick's Night.

An overaggressive Kalamazoo power-play led to a Chicago shorthanded tally midway in the first period. Sending a loose puck around a pinching K-Wings defenseman, Aaron Marvin found a streaking Mike Embach up the right boards, who finished an odd man rush scoring five-hole on Maxime Clermont.

While the power-play wasn't effective in the first period, that would change in the middle stanza for Kalamazoo, as the K-Wings scored twice with a man-advantage.

Earning his team-leading eighth power-play goal of the season, Mike Matczak (11th) utilized a screen to beat Rob Madore, who was making his professional debut for the Express.

Kalamazoo's special teams put the K-Wings ahead 2-1 less than three minutes later, as Dwight Helminen (1st) lifted a power-play backhander past Madore 8:07 into the period.

A slap shot from Eric Kattelus (9th) late in the second period pushed the K-Wings lead to two goals. With an assist, Nick Sirota extended his point streak to eight games, one game shy of tying Darryl Bootland, Bryan Haczyk and Daavettila for the team's season-high.

Chicago tried to mount a comeback early in the third period, as Danick Paquette (7th) threw a centering pass that bounced off the back of Clermont and into the net 5:08 into the third period.

Forging ahead midway in the period, Kalamazoo put the contest out-of-reach with goals from Helminen (2nd) and Steven Anthony (8th).

Clermont picked up his 12th victory of the season by stopping 28 of the 30 shots that the Express sent his way, while the rookie Madore took a loss in his first professional contest, while posting an impressive 41 saves.

Saturday, March 10th Vs Chicago (Chicago 2-Kalamazoo 0)

Kalamazoo, MI- The top scoring team in the ECHL was held scoreless for the first-time since March 23, 2011, as the Kalamazoo Wings were shutout 2-0 Saturday night by the Chicago Express

After no scoring in the opening period, the Express earned the second period's lone goal on a rebound marker from Danick Paquette (8th) 11:43 into the period. Setup by a Pierre-Luc Faubert wrist shot that was saved by Brad Fogal, who was making his K-Wings debut, Paquette was left alone to the left of the net for the tally.

Adding insurance in the third period, Jonathan Zion (8th) jammed in a Taylor Ellington shot the kissed off the post midway in the third period to conclude the game's scoring.

In his second professional contest, Rob Madore, who established an Express record for saves in a single-game the night before with 41 saves, earned his first pro victory and shutout stopping 26 shots.

Fogal made 19 saves in his K-Wings debut.

Fast Forward

The K-Wings will begin a four-game week this Wednesday, March 14th, as they host the Toledo Walleye at 7 p.m. in game four of a six-game home stand during Pack the House Night. All tickets for the K-Wings-Walleye clash will be $6! Wednesday will also be another "Cocktails at the Cube", a FREE social and business mixer presented by WKMI.

On Friday, March 16th, the K-Wings will host the Trenton Titans at 7:30 p.m. during Noodles & Company Night, Frugal Fan Friday, featuring $1 Beer, $1 Hot Dogs and $1 Pepsi and Disco Fever Night, presented by COOL 101. Fans are encouraged to dress in their favorite Disco outfit for a chance to win $100. On the season, the K-Wings are 3-1-0-0 versus the Titans, who start the week in fourth place in the Atlantic Division.

A tradition will continue on Saturday, March 17th, as the K-Wings host the Walleye at 7:30 p.m. during the 31st Annual "World Famous" St. Patrick's Day Green Ice Game, presented by Fifth-Third Bank, WWMT and WRKR.

Kalamazoo and Toledo will conclude the week on Sunday, March 18th with a 4 p.m. encounter at the Huntington Center in Toledo Ohio. The K-Wings are 6-3-0-0 against the Walleye, who start the week in fourth place in the North Division.

Team Leaders: Kalamazoo Wings

Goals: Darryl Bootland (24 Goals)

Assists: Trent Daavettila (52 Assists)

Points: Trent Daavettila (67 Points)

+/-: Darren Archibald (+13)

Penalty Minutes: Darryl Bootland (149 Minutes)

Power Play Goals: Mike Matczak (8 Goals)

Short Handed Goals: Seven Players Tied (1 Goal)

Game Winning Goals: Brandon Svendsen (5 GW)

Shots: Darryl Bootland (195 Shots)

Shooting Percentage: Dean Strong (27.5%)

Overtime Goals: Sam Ftorek (2 Goals)

Shootout Goals: Justin Taylor (5 Goals)

Shootout Percentage: Dwight Helminen, Nick Sirota, Dean Strong, Justin Taylor (66.7%) Goals Against Average: Brad Fogal (2.78 )

Save Percentage: Riley Gill (0.902)

It's Been Awhile

On Saturday, the K-Wings were shutout for the first during the 2011-12 season. Before Saturday, the last time that Kalamazoo was held scoreless was March 23, 2011 against the Cincinnati Cyclones.

Powering Up

Defenseman Mike Matczak leads all members of the K-Wings with eight power-play goals. The eight power-play markers is also good enough to give Matczak the ECHL lead among all rookies and defensemen.

Remember the Titans

Friday's encounter against the Trenton Titans will the final regular season encounter for the K-Wings against any team outside of the North Division. On the season, Kalamazoo is 7-5-0-1 versus teams from the Atlantic Division and 14-10-0-4 outside of the North Division.

Green with Envy

A tradition will continue this Saturday for the K-Wings, as they host the Toledo Walleye during the 31st Annual St. Patrick's Day "World Famous" St. Patrick's Day Green Ice, presented by Fifth-Third Bank, WWMT and WRKR. All-time, the K-Wings are 18-9-0-3 in the yearly classic and 0-2-0-0 since joining the ECHL.

The Obscure Stat of the Week

The K-Wings need 17 more points to clinch the North Division and 14 more points to wrap-up a post-season berth in the Kelly Cup Playoffs. The points can be a combination of Kalamazoo victories and/or losses by the Cincinnati Cyclones (divisional title), Chicago Express (overall berth) or Reading Royals (overall berth).

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 ECHL 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, information about Wings Stadium events, and much, much more.

Daavettila and Ftorek on the Radio

Join special guests Trent Daavettila and Sam Ftorek as they join Head Coach Nick Bootland and the "Voice of the K-Wings" Mike Modugno this Monday on "K-Wings Live". The show is on The Classic Hits Station WLKM (95.9 FM) and online through www.kwings.com from 6-7 p.m. at Old Burdick's Wings West.

K-Wings on Radio

Catch all the K-Wings games, home and away, on the K-Wings Radio Network (95.9 FM WLKM & on kwings.com). Join the "Voice of the K-Wings" Mike Modugno for all 72 regular season games plus the playoffs. Pre-game coverage begins with the Kalsee Credit Union 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 14th Vs Toledo 7:00 PM (Pack the House Night & "Cocktails in the Cube"

Friday, March 16th Vs Trenton 7:30 PM (Noodles & Company & Disco Fever Night, Presented by COOL 101, Frugal Fan Friday)

Saturday, March 17th Vs Toledo 7:00 PM (31st Annual "World Famous" St. Patrick's Day Green Ice Game, Presented by Fifth-Third Bank, WWMT and WRKR)

Sunday, March 18th @ Toledo 4:00 PM

Check out the Kalamazoo Wings Statistics



ECHL Stories from March 12, 2012


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