
Mallards Game Day
February 14, 2018 - ECHL (ECHL)
Quad City Mallards News Release
QUAD CITY MALLARDS VS. KALAMAZOO WINGS
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 6:00 P.M. CT
WINGS EVENT CENTER
QUAD CITY
16-27-4, 36 points
7th place, Central Division
Phil Axtell
KALAMAZOO
26-18-4, 56 points
tied 3rd place, Central Division
Nick Bootland
WATCH: ECHL.TV
LISTEN: ECHL.TV
MALLARDS NOTES
Last Game
C.J. Motte set a Quad City Mallard record for saves in an ECHL game by stopping 60 Fort Wayne Komet shots and Tristan King scored two goals- including the game tier late in regulation- to set the stage for Jamie Tardif's shootout winner as the Mallards defeated the host Komets 4-3 in the shootout Sunday.
Home-and-Home
Tonight's game is the opener of a two-game home-and-home series between the Mallards and Wings, who will meet again Friday in Moline.
Upswing
The Mallards have gone 5-2-0 in their last seven games and 7-4-1 in their last 12.
Busy
Tonight's game is the first of four in five days for the Mallards, who are also in the midst of a run of seven games in ten days. Over the longer haul, the Mallards are seven games into a stretch that will see them hit the ice 14 times in 24 days and play their final 32 games over 67 days.
Three in Three
By winning Sunday the Mallards improved to 2-2-1 when playing for the third time in as many days.
Shootouts
Each of the Mallards' last two wins have come in the shootout. A 4-3 shootout win over Tulsa last Tuesday preceded Sunday's conquest of the Komets. The Mallards have won their last three shootouts and have gone 5-1 in shootouts this season. They are tied for the league lead in shootout wins and have the best shootout winning percentage among teams who have gone to the shootout on at least three occasions. The Mallards are 7-4 in games decided after the end of regulation.
Fort Wayne
The Mallards defeated the Komets Sunday- and ended Fort Wayne's six-game winning streak- after going 0-5-1 over the first six games of the season series. Dating back to last season, Sunday's Mallard win halted an eight game regular season winless streak (0-7-1) against the Komets. Sunday's victory was the Mallards' first over the Komets since they sank Fort Wayne 4-3 in overtime on March 24, 2017. Sunday's triumph also ended the Mallards' four-game road losing streak against the Komets. It was the Mallards' first win in Fort Wayne in just under a year since they defeated the Komets 3-2 at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum on February 22, 2017.
You Again
Tonight's game is the third of five straight the Mallards will play against either Fort Wayne (three) or Kalamazoo (two).
Division
Tonight's game is the fourth of ten straight the Mallards will play against Central Division opponents.
On the Road
The Mallards have gone 3-2-0 in their last five away games after going just 2-14-0 in their first 16 road outings.
Home Cooking
The Mallards went 4-2-0 on a six-game homestand- their longest of the season- that ended with last Saturday's 5-1 loss to Fort Wayne.
Muzzled
The Mallards held the Komets to just three goals Sunday after Fort Wayne had scored at least five times in each of its prior six games and 11 of its previous 12. The Mallards have won the last seven times they have kept foes under four goals.
Fire Power
The Mallards have scored at least four goals in each of their last five victories.
Red Light District
The Mallards rank twenty-seventh in the ECHL in goals per game (2.6) and goals allowed per contest (4.0).
Shooting Gallery
The Mallards set a team record for most shots allowed in an ECHL game and a league season high by surrendering 63 Fort Wayne shots Sunday. The Komets matched an ECHL season high by taking 29 shots in the second period. The Mallards conceded a total of 106 Fort Wayne shots over Saturday's loss and Sunday's win combined. The Mallards have failed to outshoot the opposition in nine of their last ten games and 19 of their last 21 outings.
Outside the Box
The Mallards are the second least penalized team in the ECHL. They average 9.7 minutes in the box per game.
Between the Pipes
Motte set not only a Mallard ECHL record and but also a league season high by making 60 saves Sunday. He eclipsed the old team record of 57 saves set by Ivan Kulbakov on October 27 in a 3-2 shootout win over Idaho. Motte Sunday won his first shootout of the season by stopping all three Komet shooters.
Milestones
King scored his one hundredth career goal when he tied Sunday's game with 2:39 left in the third period. King has scored 98 ECHL goals and two American Hockey League goals.
Helping Hand
Willie Raskob ranks third among ECHL rookies and fifth among defensemen in assists (27).
Special Teams
The Mallards went 7-for-7 on the penalty kill against the Komets over their last two games and have survived 21 of their foes' last 22 power plays. The Mallards rank thirteenth in the ECHL on the power play (17.2 percent) and twenty-fourth in penalty killing (78.6 percent).
Head to Head
The Mallards have gone 2-3-0 against Kalamazoo, who they will face eight times this season. The Mallards are 1-2-0 on the road against the Wings. The Mallards have gone 7-7-3 overall against the Wings (4-3-3 at home and 3-4-0 on the road) since the two clubs renewed their rivalry in 2015-16. Prior to that, 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 and 10-10-2 on the road against Kalamazoo.
Ins and Outs
Goaltender Ivan Kulbakov was recalled by Cleveland (AHL) yesterday.
ECHL Stories from February 14, 2018
- Eagles Score Four Unanswered to Rally for 4-2 Win over Idaho - Colorado Eagles
- Quick-Strike Komets Take Down Fuel in Fort Wayne - Indy Fuel
- Wings Come up Short on Pink Ice - Kalamazoo Wings
- Jacksonville Tops Admirals in Valentine's Day Showdown - Norfolk Admirals
- Mallards Rally to Win in Kalamazoo - Quad City Mallards
- IceMen Dominate Admirals in Norfolk - Jacksonville Icemen
- Eagles Make Series of Roster Moves - Colorado Eagles
- Mallards Game Day - Quad City Mallards
- Friday's Mallards Game to Air on Facebook Live - Quad City Mallards
- Game Day Storylines- vs Colorado - Idaho Steelheads
- Laberge Assigned to Steelheads - Idaho Steelheads
- ECHL Transactions - February 14 - ECHL
- ECHL Announces Fines, Suspensions - ECHL
- Game Day: Admirals Host IceMen on Valentine's Day - Norfolk Admirals
- Nailers Loan Cam Brown to Springfield Thunderbirds - Wheeling Nailers
- IceMen Look for Continued Success in Norfolk - Jacksonville Lizard Kings
- Mariners to Announce Head Coach at Saturday's Alumni Game - Maine Mariners
- Stanley Cup to Appear at K-Wings Game on March 9 - Kalamazoo Wings
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.
Other Recent Quad City Mallards Stories
- Mallards Clearance Sale this Week
- Motte, Osipov Head to AHL
- Mallards Rally to Win Finale
- Mallards Game Day
- Mallards Battle from Behind for 5-4 Shootout Victory over Wings

