Walleye Score Late to Take Down Iowa, 4-3, in Friday Night Tilt
ECHL Toledo Walleye

Walleye Score Late to Take Down Iowa, 4-3, in Friday Night Tilt

Published on January 16, 2026 under ECHL (ECHL)
Toledo Walleye News Release


Coralville, IA - The Toledo Walleye defeated the Iowa Heartlanders tonight by a score of 4-3 at Xtream Arena. Brandon Hawkins scored two goals, his second of which would end up being the game winner late in the third period. Hawkins had an additional assist to bring his point total up to three, and Tanner Dickinson had three assists on the night, and Carter Gylander stopped 31 of the 34 shots he faced.

How it Happened:

Nate Roy got the scoring started off quickly with a goal 1:10 into the game, his 7th goal of the season on a rebound off the pad of William Rousseau. Brandon Hawkins and Tanner Dickinson got the assists on the goal that put the Walleye up 1-0.

Dylan Moulton took a low hit from Ryan McGuire, who quickly found himself fighting Colin Swoyer. McGuire and Swoyer each got five-minute fighting majors just past the halfway point of the first period, but no other penalties came out of the incident as the game would continue 5-on-5. The score held steady at 1-0 at the end of the first period, as Toledo outshot Iowa 14-8 heading into the second period.

Brandon Hawkins scored his 19th goal of the season to put the Walleye up 2-0 4:39 into the second period. Tanner Dickinson got the lone assist on the goal that would cause Iowa to switch goaltenders, putting Dante Giannuzzi in the game in place of William Rousseau.

Iowa got on the board with a goal from Max Patterson at the 9:46 mark of the second, bringing the Heartlanders within one.

Rasmus Kumpalainen tied the game at 2-2 for the Heartlanders with 2:50 to go in the second period, his 4th goal in the ECHL this season. Although the game was knotted at two, Iowa outshot Toledo 16-8 in the second period, taking a 24-21 advantage throughout the game.

Jordan Ernst found the back of the net to put the Walleye up 3-2 early in the third period, his 9th goal of the season. Darby Llewellyn and Jacob Truscott got the assists on the go-ahead goal at the 2:51 mark of the third. Yuki Miura wasted no time to tie the game again at 3-3, scoring his 4th goal of the season exactly 2 minutes later.

Toledo took a crucial penalty with 6:31 to go, giving Iowa their first chance at the power play late in the tie game. The Walleye cleared the puck a couple of times and killed off the penalty. With 3:35 to go, Brandon Hawkins ripped a shot past Dante Giannuzzi to put the Walleye up 4-3 late for his second goal of the game and 20th of the season. Tanner Dickinson and Jed Pietila got the assists on the goal.

Before Iowa got a chance to bring on the extra attacker, Steve Leskovar took a roughing minor to give Toledo a power play with only 2:26 to go in regulation. Iowa pulled Giannuzzi for the extra attacker with a minute to go 5-on-5 for the remaining 34 seconds of the power play but came back in as the following faceoff was just outside the Heartlanders' zone. Toledo won the faceoff and maintained control until the end of the power play. Giannuzzi went to the bench with 20 seconds left, but Iowa's final push was unsuccessful as Toledo held onto the 4-3 lead. Toledo outshot Iowa 38-34 throughout the game (16-10 in the third period) as both teams went 0-for-1 on their only power plays of the day.

Three Stars:

1 - F Brandon Hawkins, TOL (2 G, 1 A)

2 - F Rasmus Kumpalainen, IA (1 G, 1 A)

3 - F Tanner Dickinson, TOL (3 A)

What's Next:

The Walleye will stay in Coralville overnight and face off against the Heartlanders again tomorrow, looking to follow up tonight's win with another. Puck drop for the contest is set for 6:00 PM.

Check out the Toledo Walleye Statistics

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ECHL Stories from January 16, 2026


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