K-WINGS EXPLODE FOR 3 IN THIRD, STUN CYCLONES IN OT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 21, 2022

K-WINGS EXPLODE FOR 3 IN THIRD, STUN CYCLONES IN OT

Kalamazoo storms back from down 3-0 entering the third, outshoots Cincinnati 14-2, earns fourth overtime win.

BOX SCORE

KALAMAZOO, MI – The Kalamazoo Wings (12-10-2-0), proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Columbus Blue Jackets, overcame a three-goal deficit with a trio in 9:53 in the third period and beat the Cincinnati Cyclones (15-4-3-2) 4-3 in overtime Wednesday at Wings Event Center.

Max Humitz (7) scored the game-winning goal at the 2:15 mark of overtime. On the play, Brandon Saigeon (15) carried the puck in and snapped a pass from the top of the right circle to Humitz who pumped it top-shelf from the left side of the crease for the win. Collin Saccoman (3) notched the secondary assist on the goal.

The game seemed destined to go Cincinnati’s way, as the Cyclones netted three first-period goals to take a commanding lead in this one. But Kalamazoo showed its resilience and bore down the rest of the way out, refusing to give in to the pressure.

After surrendering a power play goal in the first, the K-Wings fought through three more shorthanded situations in the second and kept the Cyclones off the board in the middle frame. The K-Wings finished the contest 6/7 on the kill.

And the special teams, along with outshooting Cincinnati 14-2 in the third, is where the K-Wings would start the charge all the way back to the win column.

At the 6:41 mark of the third, with the K-Wings on a power play, Matheson Iacopelli (6) scored his fourth power play goal of the season in his first game back after missing 11 games. Iacopelli received a great backhand feed from Humitz (8) and rifled in a shot from the right circle. Chad Nychuk (12) earned the secondary assist on the goal.

Less than five minutes later, at the 11:33 mark, Anthony Collins lit the lamp after blasting a shot inside the left post from the slot. Saigeon (14) created a turnover underneath and sent the puck from below the cage to Darby Llewellyn (3) in the right circle, and he tapped it to Collins to draw Kalamazoo to within one.

Then Saigeon, who finished serving a minor penalty just 37 seconds before, rushed the puck into the Cyclones’ zone and got just enough on the puck for it to trickle into the net after the initial save to tie the game at the 16:34 mark. Saigeon took the game-tying feed from Tyler Irvine (3) in the neutral zone and beat the Cyclones’ defense up the right side.

Hunter Vorva (4-1-1-0) made 23 saves on 26 shot attempts, including stopping all 12 of Cincinnati’s shots after the first period.

The win hits the books as the largest comeback of the season for Kalamazoo thus far and marked Cincinnati’s first loss when leading after two periods this year (12-0-1-0). The K-Wings now have points in three consecutive games and in six of their last nine.

Kalamazoo immediately heads to Fort Wayne (10-8-3-2) for the two’s first matchup of the 2022-23 season. Puck drop is set for Thursday at 7:00 p.m. EST at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.

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The Kalamazoo Wings are a professional hockey team located in southwest Michigan that has been a staple in the Kalamazoo, MI professional sports landscape since 1974. The K-Wings compete in the ECHL and are the AA affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Columbus Blue Jackets and the American Hockey League’s Cleveland Monsters. Kalamazoo plays their 36 regular season home games at Wings Event Center from October through April.

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