ECHL Kalamazoo Wings

Opportunistic Wings Tame Royals on Road

Published on March 23, 2016 under ECHL (ECHL)
Kalamazoo Wings News Release


Kalamazoo Wings Forward Justin Taylor
Kalamazoo Wings Forward Justin Taylor
(Kalamazoo Wings)

READING, PA - The Kalamazoo Wings were led by stellar goaltending for the second consecutive night, as Clay Witt propelled the visiting Wings to a 3-2 victory over the Reading Royals on Wednesday at Santander Arena.

After Clay Witt made a series of scrambling saves, the Wings were able to lift the puck out of their zone and ahead to Curtis Valk, who used the stretch-feed to carry in on a breakaway towards Royals' goalie Adam Morrisson. Valk used a subtle head fake to open up a stick-side gap to deposit the first tally of the night.

Just 24 seconds passed before Kalamazoo tacked on to their first-period lead, courtesy of Justin Taylor. After fielding a drop pass from Lane Scheidl, Taylor blasted a one-timer from the top of the left circle that blew past Morrison, giving the Wings a 2-0 lead.

Maintaining the pressure into the second period, the Wings continued to pepper Morrison, and results were yielded. Evan McEneny wrapped around to the right wing side and flung the puck towards the goal where Lane Schiedl was waiting to deflect the try into the corner of the net, establishing a 3-0 lead.

Reading came alive early in the third after Yannick Tifu led the Royals' attack. The forward carried the puck from the wall to the high slot in front of Witt aused a screen in front of the Kalamazoo net and snapped a wrister into the back of the goal, pulling the Royals to within a pair.

The Royals continued their pace of play in the ensuing minute and were able to draw within a goal after Brandon Alderson chipped the puck past Witt. The play was initially ruled as "no goal," but a discussion at the next whistle flipped the decision, making it a one-goal game.

Even while shorthanded for five of the last six minutes, the Wings kept all of the Reading chances away and were able to acquire the two points.

Next: Kalamazoo vs. Wheeling- Friday, March 25, 7:00 p.m., Wings Event Center.

Notes: Tonight marked the one and only meeting between the Wings and Royals. Valk's point streak was increased to seven games, one shy of Alex Mallet's season-high streak set from December 19-January 10. Witt and Joel Martin combined for a shutout streak of 119:13 over the course of three separate games. Kalamazoo ended the season with a 4-5-2-0 record against East Division teams.

Stats: http://echl.com/stats/official-game-report.php?game_id=13536

The Kalamazoo Wings return home on Friday, March 25 and Saturday, March 26, as the Wheeling Nailers visit Wings Event Center for a two-game weekend set. Friday's game is Lego Night, which will feature Lego prizes for the most creative builders, and the Fur Circus will be making their Wings Event Center debut during the first intermission. Saturday's game is Geocaching Night, presented by Binder Park Zoo. Fans will be able track down great prizes using their geocaching skills around Wings Event Center. Saturday's game will also feature a post-game jersey auction for the "futuristic" themed Hockey Heritage jerseys.

Listen to all 72 regular season and post season games on AM 1660 The Fan in Kalamazoo, or online at www.1660thefan.com/listen-live. Live coverage begins fifteen minutes before puck drop with the Flame Tamer Pregame Show.

Single-game tickets are now on sale! Tickets can be purchased at kwings.com or at the Wings Event Center box office. Box office hours are Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. A $2 discount is applied on all tickets purchased before the date of the game. Any student that shows a valid ID can get tickets for just $10.

Check out the Kalamazoo Wings Statistics

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Kalamazoo Wings Forward Justin Taylor
Kalamazoo Wings Forward Justin Taylor
   



ECHL Stories from March 23, 2016


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