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Mallards Game Day

February 25, 2017 - ECHL (ECHL)
Quad City Mallards News Release


MALLARDS GAME DAY

QUAD CITY MALLARDS VS. KALAMAZOO WINGS

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 6:00 CT

WINGS EVENT CENTER

QUAD CITY

30-21-2, 62 points

3rd place, Central Division

Coach: Phil Axtell

KALAMAZOO

25-24-5, 54 points

5th place, Central Division

Coach: Nick Bootland

WATCH: ECHL.TV

LISTEN: Fox Sports Radio 1230

MALLARDS NOTES

Last Night

Dajon Mingo scored twice and Nick Riopel made 29 saves as the Wings defeated the host Mallards 4-2. After falling behind 2-0, the Mallards twice battled back within one with goals from Josh MacDonald and Chris Francis, but could not complete the comeback.

Central

With last night's loss, the third-place Mallards fell seven points behind the second-place Fort Wayne Komets- who defeated the Indy Fuel last night- in the Central Division standings. The Mallards tonight play the third of six straight games against Central Division opposition.

Home-and-Home

The Mallards and Wings tonight complete a home-and-home series. The Mallards will meet Kalamazoo for the third time in four games Wednesday night at the iWireless Center.

Axtell

The Mallards have gone 11-5-0 in 16 games since Phil Axtell took over as head coach on January 20.

Tight

Tyler Biggs' insurance goal late in the third period last night ended the Mallards' run of six straight one-goal games (4-2-0). The Mallards, who have gone 19-8-2 in one-goal contests this season, lead the ECHL in one-goal victories and are tied for the league lead in one-goal games played.

Busy

Tonight's game is the second of three in 48 hours and the third of four in five days for the Mallards. The Mallards will complete a stretch of ten games in 17 days when they host Wichita tomorrow.

Three

The Mallards are in the midst of their sixth stretch of three games in three nights this season. They will play three times in as many days for the final time March 17, 18 and 19.

Short

The Mallards dressed a full complement of 16 skaters last night after going with fewer than 16 in their prior four games due to injuries, illness and call-ups.

Shots

The Wings last night slowed the Mallards' comeback bid by allowing just four shots on goal in the third period after the Mallards had produced 17 shots in the second period.

On the Road

Wednesday's 3-2 shootout win in Fort Wayne was the Mallards' fifth victory in their last six road games.

Home Sweet Home

The Mallards have lost back-to-back home games after winning their prior five on home ice. Their five-game home winning streak was the Mallards' longest since they rolled to eight consecutive iWireless Center victories between November 6 and November 29, 2015.

Red Light District

The Mallards have scored a total of just six (non-shootout) goals over their last four games. The Mallards surrendered four goals last night after allowing only two goals in each of their prior four games. The Mallards are tied for eighth in the ECHL in goals allowed (3.0 per game) and rank nineteenth in goals scored per game (3.1).

Mac Attack

MacDonald last night scored his third goal in two games. He has now scored four goals and added four assists in eight games since being joining the Mallards earlier this month in a trade with Rapid City.

Welcome Back

Dylan Labbe last night picked up his first ECHL assist in his first game since returning to the Mallards from the American Hockey League's Iowa Wild Thursday. Labbe scored three goals in a dozen games with the Mallards earlier this season and has notched two assists in 11 games with Iowa.

Double Down

Adam Gilmour last night picked up his second assist in as many games since being reassigned to the Mallards by Iowa Tuesday.

Captain

Francis held on to the Mallard team lead in points (42) by scoring in the third period last night.

Warning Sign

Sam Warning last night took over the Mallard team lead in assists (25) by assisting on MacDonald's second period goal.

Debut

Chase Lang last night made his ECHL debut. Lang was reassigned to the Mallards by Iowa Thursday after injury had limited him to just a single game with the Wild this season.

Parks and Wreck

Michael Parks, who had an assist last night, leads the Mallards and ranks fourth among ECHL rookies in goals (21).

On the Plus Side

Kevin Gibson ranks third in the ECHL in plus/minus rating (plus-29).

Between the Pipes

Adam Vay made 24 saves while suffering the loss in goal last night. C.J. Motte ranks third in the ECHL in save percentage (.920), ranks fourth in goals against average (2.48) and is tied for tenth in wins (16).

Milestones

Brady Brassart has played 199 career games...Mike Wilson has 198 career regular season assists...Chris Francis has scored 95 career ECHL goals.

Power Play

Francis last night ended the Mallards' 0-for-18 power play drought. The Mallards, who went 1-for-5 against the Wings, are now tied with Kalamazoo for twenty-fifth in the ECHL on the power play (12.6 percent).

Penalty Kill

The Mallards went 3-for-3 on the penalty kill last night and have now survived their opponents' last ten power plays. The Mallards rank eighteenth in the league in penalty killing (81.0 percent).

Head-to-Head

Tonight's game is the sixth of eight between the Mallards and Wings this season. The Mallards have gone 3-1-1 against Kalamazoo this year and have won each of their prior two games at Wings Event Center. The Mallards have gone 5-3-1 overall against Kalamazoo and 2-1-0 on the road against the Wings since the two clubs renewed their rivalry last season. Prior to last year, the Mallards had not faced Kalamazoo since 2007. The Mallards and Wings competed against each other in the United Hockey League between 2000 and 2007. The Mallards went 24-19-7 in 50 meetings with the Wings over those seven seasons. They went 14-9-5 at home against Kalamazoo.

Ins and Outs

Forward Nolan LaPorte returned to the Mallards' lineup last night after missing Wednesday's game at Fort Wayne (illness)... Forward Justin Kovacs returned to the Mallards' lineup last night after missing two games (upper body injury)...Forward Brady Brassart missed last night's game (upper body injury)...Forward Pavel Jenys has missed the Mallards' last eight games (upper body injury)...Forward/defenseman Nick Grasso was released by the Mallards Thursday...Defenseman Dylan Labbe was reassigned to the Mallards by Iowa (AHL) Thursday...Forward Chase Lang was reassigned to the Mallards by Iowa (AHL) Thursday...Forward Adam Gilmour was reassigned to the Mallards by Iowa (AHL) Tuesday.

- ## Quad City Mallards ##-



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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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