K-WINGS HEAT UP WITH 5 POINT WEEKEND, OFF TO IOWA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 20, 2023

K-WINGS HEAT UP WITH 5 POINT WEEKEND, OFF TO IOWA

 Kalamazoo travels to Iowa for two games week, looking to surge after clipping top teams.

OVERALL RECORD:  20-25-4-0

LAST WEEK:  2-1-1-0

KALAMAZOO, MI - The Kalamazoo Wings, proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Columbus Blue Jackets, play two contests this week, both coming on the road against the Iowa Heartlanders on Friday and Saturday in Coralville, Iowa.

Last week, the K-Wings went 2-1-1-0 (1-2, 3-2, 3-2, 5-6 OT).

All four games this week were one-goal affairs, in which the Wings averaged almost a goal more per contest (3.25) than in previous weeks.

Kalamazoo started the week in Cincinnati, falling to the Cyclones by a score of 2-1. It was a defensive slugfest in which all three goals were scored on the power play. The K-Wings started the scoring with Luke Morgan notching his first goal in Kalamazoo since arriving trade on Feb. 8. Cincinnati struck back late in the first to tie the game at one. Another power play goal by the Cyclones in the second period went as the game-winning goal, as neither team scored for the final 30 minutes, despite the K-Wings dominating road performance.  

Then, on Friday, the K-Wings hosted the Indy Fuel for the team’s ‘Black Heritage Celebration’ and won, 3-2. The Fuel scored first and had an 11-1 shot advantage in the first 11 minutes, but Kalamazoo turned the tide with physicality and transition play from there. Late in the second, Matheson Iacopelli’s hard work earned a power play attempt and score to tie the game heading to the third. In the opening minute of the final frame, Justin Taylor gave Kalamazoo the lead, but Indy was able to tie the score 6:30 later. Justin Murray then tallied the five-hole game-winning goal at the 12:37 mark, and Hunter Vorva dominated at times with 30 saves in the victory.

On Saturday, the K-Wings beat the Fuel 3-2 again in front of over 4,500 fans for the ‘Wizards, Wands and Wings’ game at Wings Event Center. Vorva was even better in this one, making 36 stops on 38 shots faced. Raymond Brice got Kalamazoo on the board first, Indy tied the game just 21 seconds later, and Ryan Cook scored to retake the lead before the first intermission. The Fuel retied the game with a power play goal in the second period, but Coale Norris sent the home crowd home delighted with his magic wand, banging in a rebound baseball-style as the puck fluttered in the air for the game-winner in the third.

Finally, on Sunday, the K-Wings played their highest-scoring affair of the season at Fort Wayne, falling 6-5 to the Komets in overtime. Kalamazoo scored first off the stick of Matheson Iacopelli, but Fort Wayne scored twice to take a 2-1 lead after the first period. The second period was back-and-forth and the K-Wings pulled even twice with six total goals scored. First, Franco Sproviero scored his first professional goal to tie the game at two. After the Komets made it 3-2, Coale Norris scored to tie the game again, but two more Fort Wayne goals made it 5-3. Norris struck again later for his first professional multi-goal game, and Ryan Cook scored for the second consecutive game to even the game at five in the third. Evan Cormier stopped all 13 shots in the third period to force overtime, but Fort Wayne netted the game-winner in the extra frame. 

UPCOMING EVENTS IN DETAIL

The K-Wings play two games this week with both on the road. Next weekend, the K-Wings have three consecutive home games.

First, on Friday, Mar. 3 at 7:00 p.m. EST, the K-Wings host the Tulsa Oilers for ‘First Responders Night’ at Wings Event Center. Join us as we celebrate Kalamazoo’s finest, honoring our local police officers, firefighters and EMTs. It’s also a $3 Friday, presented by Bud Light, so enjoy beers, sodas and hot dogs for just $3.

Then the K-Wings and Oilers meet again on Saturday, Mar. 4 for ‘Pucks N’ Paws’ and ‘Scooby Doo’ night at 7:00 p.m. EST at Wings Event Center. Grab your Scooby Snacks, because there’s a 100%  chance you (and your dogs) will have a great time watching the coolest game on earth. Your furbabies get into the game for just a $5 donation to SPCA. Don’t miss the pup race across the ice during the first intermission, and the Scooby Doo jersey auction after the game!

Finally, on Sunday, Mar. 5, the K-Wings and Oilers wrap up the weekend with ‘Kids Day’ at Wings Event Center at 3:00 p.m. EST. It’s time to celebrate the kids after a long winter with a matinee tilt packed with fun. The first 1,000 kids will receive a white K-Wings jersey, and stick around after the game to skate the ice with the players!

RESULTS

Wednesday, Feb. 15 – Kalamazoo 1, Cincinnati 2 (Heritage Bank Center - Cincinnati, OH) | Box Score

>>  The Kalamazoo Wings (18-25-3-0) went wire-to-wire with the Cincinnati Cyclones (28-12-5-2) on Wednesday, scoring first but falling by a final score of 2-1 at Heritage Bank Center. All three goals in the game were scored on the power play in this one with the Kalamazoo and Cincinnati trading blows all evening. Hunter Vorva (8-7-1-0) stopped several grade-A opportunities for the Cyclones to keep the game within reach, finishing with 22 saves on 24 shots faced. The K-Wings opened the game’s scoring with a power play goal at the 14:22 mark of the first period. Luke Morgan (4) scored his first goal as a Kalamazoo Wing with a rip from the high slot to make it 1-0. Cincinnati responded with a goal on the power play at the 17:10 mark of the opening frame, and the teams went to the first intermission tied 1-1. The Cyclones then netted another power play strike at the 9:24 mark of the second period. The K-Wings outshot the Cyclones 26-24 in the loss.

Friday, Feb. 17 – Indy 2, Kalamazoo 3 (Wings Event Center - Kalamazoo, MI) | Box Score

>>  The Kalamazoo Wings (19-25-3-0) withstood an early push from the Indy Fuel (31-16-2-0) and won the final two frames with a 27-15 shot advantage in a 3-2 victory Friday at Wings Event Center. Justin Murray (3) scored the game-winning goal at the 12:37 mark of the third period as he crashed the crease and went five-hole. Both Murray (1g, 1a) and Matheson Iacopelli (1g, 1a) finished the game with two points on the evening. The Fuel opened the scoring at the 4:25 mark of the first period and held an 11-1 shot advantage 11 minutes into the game, but the K-Wings rallied from that point and took over the momentum. Kalamazoo got its first power play opportunity at the 18:47 mark as Iacopelli’s hard work paid off in the offensive zone. Then, Iacopelli (13) sent a one-time blast from the top of the right circle at the 19:47 mark of the second. In the opening minute of the third period, Justin Taylor (11) battled through heavy defensive pressure in front of Indy’s net to give the K-Wings the lead. Indy retied the game at the 7:08 mark, but Hunter Vorva (9-7-1-0) kept everything out of the net the rest of the way, finishing with 30 saves on 32 shots in the win.

Saturday, Feb. 18 – Indy 2, Kalamazoo 3 (Wings Event Center - Kalamazoo, MI) | Box Score

>>   The Kalamazoo Wings (20-25-3-0) pulled away three times on the Indy Fuel (31-17-2-0) Saturday and held on for the 3-2 victory in front of over 4,500 fans for the ‘Wizards, Wands and Wings’ game at Wings Event Center. The K-Wings took advantage of a three-shot flurry finished off by Coale Norris (6) hitting the puck baseball-style into the net at the 9:20 mark of the third period for the game-winning goal. Raymond Brice (10) opened the scoring at the 7:34 mark of the first period. Indy scored to tie the game just 21 seconds later, but Kalamazoo restored the lead later in the first. The K-Wings’ second goal came from the stick of Ryan Cook (2) after skating down and up the right circle, followed by a five-hole snipe for the lead. Indy retied the game at the 16:00 mark of the second period and dominated the shot total 18-7 in the frame, but Hunter Vorva (10-7-1) was stellar again tonight in net, including making a handful of saves in the final two minutes with the Fuel net empty. Vorva finished with 36 saves on 38 shots faced in the victory.

Sunday, Feb. 19 – Kalamazoo 5, Fort Wayne 6 (OT) (Allen County War Memorial Coliseum - Fort Wayne, IN) | Box Score

>>   The Kalamazoo Wings (20-25-4-0) matched the Fort Wayne Komets (25-16-4-2) in a high-scoring affair on Sunday, before Fort Wayne scored in overtime for the 6-5 victory at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Matheson Iacopelli (14) was the first to find the back of the net in this game, scoring off of a Komets defensive zone turnover at the 6:36 mark of the first. Fort Wayne responded with a goal at the 9:54 mark on the power play, then scored again at the 17:51 mark to take a 2-1 lead into the first intermission. The K-Wings then pulled even on the first professional goal by Franco Sproviero (1) at the 2:08 mark of the second frame. Just 2:39 later, Fort Wayne scored again to regain the lead, 3-2. Then, at the 7:18 mark, Coale Norris (7) fired a one-time blast from the slot to retie the game. The game wouldn’t stay tied for long, however, as the Komets found the back of the net just 27 seconds later. Fort Wayne then pushed the lead to 5-3 with another tally at the 12:55 mark. Kalamazoo refused to go away quietly, though. Norris (8) struck again at the 14:03 mark to climb back within one. In the third period, the K-Wings kept applying pressure and Ryan Cook (3) made it 5-5 at the 11:47 mark. Evan Cormier (5-15-3-0) stood on his head the rest of regulation, but Fort Wayne notched the game-winner at the 1:06 mark of overtime.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Friday, Feb. 24 – Kalamazoo at Iowa, 8:05 p.m. EST – Xtream Arena (Coralville, IA)

Saturday, Feb. 25 – Kalamazoo at Iowa, 8:05 p.m. EST – Xtream Arena (Coralville, IA)

ON THE MOVE

Feb. 13 - Defenseman Kurt Gosselin was acquired from Toledo in exchange for the ECHL playing rights of Brenden Miller

Feb. 17 - Forward Franco Sproviero was signed to a standard player contract by Kalamazoo

Feb. 18 - Forward Nick Lappin, forward James McEwan and future considerations were acquired from Florida in exchange for the Abbottsford Canucks (AHL) recall of Carson Focht

FAST FACTS

·           Veteran forward Justin Taylor moved into sole possession of No. 4 all-time in ECHL games played (772) 

·           Rookie forward Coale Norris had points on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the first three-game point streak of his career, and had two goals on Sunday for his first multi-goal game

·           Forward Franco Sproviero scored his first professional goal Sunday in his second career game

TEAM TRENDS

·       19-2-3-0 when scoring 3+ goals

·       10-1-0-0 when leading after the 2nd Period   

·       8-2-3-0 when tied after the 2nd Period

STATISTICAL LEADERS

POINTS:               29 – Brandon Saigeon

GOALS:                 14 – Matheson Iacopelli

ASSISTS:              21 – Brandon Saigeon

PLUS/MINUS:    +10 – Leif Mattson 

PIMS:                     75 – Justin Murray

PP GOALS:             6 – Matheson Iacopelli

PP ASSISTS:        12 –  Justin Murray

SH GOALS:             2 – Raymond Brice

GW GOALS:            3 – Raymond Brice, Max Humitz

SHOTS:                 135 – Justin Taylor

WINS:                      10 – Hunter Vorva

GAA:                    2.48 – Hunter Vorva

SAVE %:             .922 – Hunter Vorva

* Currently with Cleveland (AHL)

** Currently with Columbus (NHL) 

SPECIAL TEAMS

POWER PLAY:     Last Week – 2/12 (16.7%)

                               This Season – 31/179 (17.3%) – No. 22 in the ECHL                         

PENALTY KILL:   Last Week – 8/12 (66.7%)

                               This Season – 142/182 (78.0%) – No. 19 in the ECHL

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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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