K-WINGS STRIKE OIL LAST WEEKEND, PLAY TWO THIS WEEK

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 6, 2023

K-WINGS STRIKE OIL LAST WEEKEND, PLAY TWO THIS WEEK

 Kalamazoo hosts Toledo Friday, heads to Iowa Saturday.

OVERALL RECORD:  23-28-4-0

LAST WEEK:  2-2-0-0

KALAMAZOO, MI - The Kalamazoo Wings, proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Columbus Blue Jackets, play two contests this week with one at Wings Event Center. First, the K-Wings square off with the Toledo Walleye on Friday at home. Then, it’s immediately to Iowa for a tilt with the Heartlanders Saturday on the road.

Last week, the K-Wings went 2-2-0-0 (1-2, 1-4, 3-2, 3-1).

Kalamazoo started the week off in Indianapolis for an Education Day matchup with the Indy Fuel and fell 2-1. Darby Llewellyn scored the first goal of the game at the 8:56 mark of the first period. Strong defense from both sides kept the score 1-0, despite a 13-8 shot advantage for the K-Wings in the second frame. Indy struck back with a goal at the 3:38 mark of the third and netted the game-winner at the 12:57 mark.

On Friday, Kalamazoo was back home for the first of three in a row against the Tulsa Oilers and fell 4-1. After a scoreless first period, the Oilers struck first at the 5:21 mark of the second. Less than two minutes later, Tulsa scored again on the power play. But that’s when the K-Wings would explode in the shot department. At the 13:30 mark, Max Humitz scored to get the K-Wings on the board. It was still 2-1 Oilers into the final three minutes of the game, but Tulsa scored once on the power play and again with an empty-net goal to finish the scoring. Kalamazoo amassed a season-high 48 shots in the contest.

Then, on Saturday, the K-Wings rebounded with a 3-2 victory over the Oilers. Kalamazoo exploded out of the gate with three goals in the first period. Coale Norris opened the scoring at the 4:28 mark, Mason McCarty notched the second goal at 14:31 in the period, and Matheson Iacopelli scored the game-winning goal with 34 seconds left in the opening frame. Evan Cormier ensured the K-Wings hung on from there, by not allowing a goal until the 16:16 mark of the second period. Tulsa scored again on the power play at the 7:00 mark of the third, but Cormier slammed the door from there, finishing with 33 saves.

Finally, on Sunday, Kalamazoo won the rubber match with Tulsa, 3-1. The K-Wings scored the first goal again, as Raymond Brice found the back of the net 3:32 into the game. Tulsa tied the game at the 13:30 mark of the first, and the score stayed 1-1 until there was less than seven minutes left in the game. Ole Julian Bjørgvik-Holm scored his first ECHL goal at the 13:44 mark of the third to break the tie, and Justin Taylor added an empty-netter in the final minute to seal the victory. Evan Cormier was phenomenal again, making 44 saves on 45 shots including stopping all 23 attempts from the Oilers in the third period.

Goaltender Evan Cormier returned to form this week as well, making 108 saves and allowing just five goals over three starts with a 2-1 record.  

UPCOMING EVENTS IN DETAIL

The K-Wings play two games this week, with one at home on Friday at Wings Event Center.

On Friday, Mar. 10 at 7:00 p.m. EST the K-Wings host the Toledo Walleye for $3 Friday at Wings Event Center. What better way to spend a Friday night than enjoying $3 beers, sodas & hot dogs. Join us for the highly-anticipated matchup and cheer on the K-Wings to victory!

The 39th edition of ‘Green Ice’ at 7:00 p.m. on March 17 at Wings Event Center is less than two weeks away! The game is nearing standing-room only, so click the link above to witness professional hockey’s original painted ice surface!

RESULTS

Tuesday, Feb. 28 – Kalamazoo 1, Indy 2 (Indiana Farmers Coliseum - Indianapolis, IN) | Box Score

>>  The Kalamazoo Wings (21-27-4-0) held the Indy Fuel (33-19-2-0) scoreless through the first two periods but ultimately fell, 2-1, on Tuesday at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The K-Wings struck first with a goal by Darby Llewellyn (6) at the 8:56 mark of the first period. Llewellyn received the puck from Collin Saccoman (9) in the neutral zone and took it himself down the left side, ripping in a shot as he dangled into the slot from the left circle. Kalamazoo earned four power play opportunities in the second frame, and outshot Indy 13-8 in the period, but was unable to increase the lead. In the third period, the Fuel scored at the 3:38 and 12:57 marks to take the 2-1 lead, and that finished the scoring in the game. Evan Cormier (6-16-3-0) was strong in net, stopping 30 of 32 shots faced in defeat.

Friday, Mar. 3 – Tulsa 4, Kalamazoo 1 (Wings Event Center - Kalamazoo, MI) | Box Score

>>  The Kalamazoo Wings (21-28-4-0) threw the kitchen sink at the Tulsa Oilers (19-25-7-1) Friday night at Wings Event Center, but fell by a final score of 4-1. There was no score in the first period and Kalamazoo headed to the locker room with a 9-4 advantage in shots. Tulsa got on the board first at the 5:21 mark of the second and scored again on the power play at the 7:08 mark. But the K-Wings went on a shooting frenzy throughout the period, recording a season-high 26 shots in the frame, and  Max Humitz (13) scored on a 5-on-3 power play at the 13:30 mark. Another power play opportunity resulted in the Oilers’ third goal at the 17:18 mark of the third, and Tulsa scored an empty-netter with 26 seconds remaining. Hunter Vorva (10-9-1-0) made 21 saves on 24 shots in defeat, while his counterpart Riley Morris (2-1-0-0) was strong in his Oilers debut with 47 stops on Kalamazoo’s season-high 48 shots.

Saturday, Mar. 4 – Tulsa 2, Kalamazoo 3 (Wings Event Center - Kalamazoo, MI) | Box Score

>>   The Kalamazoo Wings (22-28-4-0) snatched the lead over the Tulsa Oilers (19-26-7-1) in a hurry and held on for a 3-2 victory Saturday in front of over 4,700 fans at Wings Event Center. The K-Wings jumped out of the gate with three goals in the first period, and Evan Cormier (7-16-3-0) helped Kalamazoo hang on for the win with several outstanding stops including some clutch glove work with six seconds remaining to prevent a game-tying goal with an extra attacker on the ice. Cormier finished with 33 saves in the contest. Coale Norris (9) opened the scoring after he collected a rebound and scooted in a shot at the 4:28 mark of the game. Then, it was Mason McCarty (13) finishing off a rebound opportunity to make it 2-0 K-Wings at the 14:31 mark. Finally, Matheson Iacopelli (16) did what he does best, blasting a shot from the left circle just inside the far post for the score with 34 seconds left in the opening frame. Tulsa battled back with a goal at the 16:16 mark of the second period, and scored again on the power play at 7:00 in the third, but Kalamazoo slammed the door shut in its defensive end during the final minutes.

Sunday, Mar. 5 – Tulsa 1, Kalamazoo 3 (Wings Event Center - Kalamazoo, MI) | Box Score

>>  The Kalamazoo Wings (23-28-4-0) withstood a third-period shot barrage from the Tulsa Oilers (19-27-7-1) and scored twice late to earn a 3-1 victory Sunday at Wings Event Center. Evan Cormier (8-16-3-0) was a brick wall in net - handling everything the Oilers had to offer - even making saves with a skater’s stick (23/23 in the third period) - and stopping 44 of 45 shots in the victory. Kalamazoo scored the first goal of the game off the stick of Raymond Brice (11) at the 3:32 mark of the first period. The Oilers responded with a goal at the 13:30 mark, owning an 11-5 shot advantage through that point. But the K-Wings fired back steadily from then through the end of the second, taking a 26-22 edge in the shot department heading into the third period with the score still 1-1. Then, it was Ole Julian Bjørgvik-Holm (1) scoring his second professional goal and first in the ECHL to regain the lead at the 13:44 mark of the third. Justin Taylor (13) found the empty net at the 19:20 mark after a Brice-created turnover just inside the K-Wings blue line to wrap up the win for Kalamazoo. The goal goes in the books as No. 250 in a K-Wings uniform for Taylor.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Friday, Mar. 10 – Toledo at Kalamazoo, 7:00 p.m. EST – Wings Event Center (Kalamazoo, MI)

Saturday, Mar. 11 – Kalamazoo at Iowa, 8:05 p.m. EST – Xtream Arena (Coralville, IA)

ON THE MOVE

No roster moves were made this week by Kalamazoo

FAST FACTS

·           Forward Brandon Saigeon recorded two assists in Saturday’s victory, reaching the 30-point mark for the first time in his career. The K-Wings are now 4-0 when Saigeon scores multiple points

·           Defenseman Ole Julian Bjørgvik-Holm scored his first ECHL goal on Sunday, with the tally going in the books as the game-winning goal

·           Rookie forward Mason McCarty scored three points (1g, 2a) combined in Saturday and Sunday’s wins and now has 24 points (13g, 11a) on the season 

TEAM TRENDS

·       22-2-3-0 when scoring 3+ goals

·       12-9-4-0 in one-goal games  

·       9-2-3-0 when tied after the 2nd Period

STATISTICAL LEADERS

POINTS:              31 – Brandon Saigeon

GOALS:               16 – Matheson Iacopelli

ASSISTS:            23 – Brandon Saigeon

PLUS/MINUS:    +9 – Leif Mattson 

PIMS:                   89 – Justin Murray

PP GOALS:           6 – Max Humitz, Matheson Iacopelli

PP ASSISTS:       12 –  Justin Murray

SH GOALS:          2 – Raymond Brice, Justin Taylor

GW GOALS:         3 – Raymond Brice, Max Humitz

SHOTS:               155 – Justin Taylor

WINS:                  10 – Hunter Vorva

GAA:                   2.58 – Hunter Vorva

SAVE %:             .918 – Hunter Vorva

* Currently with Cleveland (AHL)

** Currently with Columbus (NHL) 

SPECIAL TEAMS

POWER PLAY:   Last Week – 1/15 (6.7%)

                           This Season – 32/198 (16.2%) – No. 23 in the ECHL                         

PENALTY KILL:   Last Week – 9/12 (75.0%)

                            This Season – 156/201 (77.6%) – 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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