GAME DAY: WEEK LONG ROAD TRIP CONCLUDES IN KC

Game #53

Kalamazoo (27-22-1-2) at Kansas City (27-20-3-1)

8:05 pm

Watch: ECHL.TV,

Listen: 1660 the Fan

Last Time Out:

Cincinnati scored three times in the first 12 minutes of regulation and didn't look back as the Cyclones topped Kalamazoo 5-1 on Wednesday night in Cincinnati. Goals from Jesse Schultz, Myles Powell, and Mitch Marnell ended Matiss Kivlenieks night after surrendering three goals on the first ten shots faced and giving the Cyclones the early lead. The K-Wings limited the Cylone offense to only a goal in each of the final two periods, but Kalamazoo was only able to muster a single goal of their own. Michael Houser took a shutout bid into the final six minutes of regulation before Jagger Dirk got the K-Wings on the board with a power play tally at 14:28 of the final period. Cincinnati added a goal in the final 1:30 to add insult to injury as they skated away with a 5-1 victory, their eighth over the K-Wings this season. Jake Hildebrand, who appeared in relief, stopped 21 of 23 shots for the K-Wings, while Houser stopped 19 of 20. Matiss Kivlenieks was credited with the loss after stopping seven of ten in the opening period. The K-Wings were nearly held to a season low shots on goal, only mustering 20 shots on net.

Called Up:

Fresh off the heels of a15-game point streak Kyle Thomas earned his first call-up of the season on Thursday as the forward was recalled to the Utica Comets. Thomas, 29, ranked fourth on the team in points at the time of his recall, notching 38 points. During his 15-game point-streak, the second longest in the ECHL this season, Thomas netted 22 points. During his career Thomas has appeared in 19 AHL games netting four points. He appeared in seven games last season with San Diego.

Last for a While:

Saturday marks the last game against a non-division foe for the K-Wings until the final three games of the season. After facing the Mavericks, Kalamazoo will play 16 straight games against division opponents. Kalamazoo has faired well against the Mountain Division this season, posting a record of 4-0-1-0. Kansas City is the lone Mountain Division team to top Kalamazoo. The K-Wings conclude the season with three straight against the Mountain (Wichita-1, Tulsa-2).

Head to Head:

Saturday night wraps up a two game season series between the Wings and Mavericks, with both games coming at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena in Independence. Kansas City won the first game of the series in OT on February 9 by a final of 4-3. Darian Dziurzynski led all skaters with a pair of goals, while Reid Gardiner led Kalamazoo with two points (1g, 1a). Brendan Bradley and Michael Neal added on the goals for the K-Wings in the Feb. 9 matchup. Cliff Watson and Jared VanWormer added multipoint games for the Mavericks in the first meeting as well. The teams have met six times in franchise history, with the K-Wings winning a pair of games, put claiming a point in four of the six meetings. Kalamazoo is 2-2-1-1 all-time against Kansas City. The K-Wings have a single victory in four attempts at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena however.

Blaney on the Board:

An assist on Wednesday continued Kyle Blaney's current five-game point streak. The Burlington, ON native has notched eight points (3g, 5a) during the five-game stretch. Since January 16 Blaney has tallied at least a point in  14 of 16 games for the K-Wings, including four multi-point games. Blaney is currently fifth on the team in scoring with 32 points (10g, 22a). Last season the forward finished with 45 points in 63 games for the K-Wings.