KALAMAZOO SCORES 10 PIECE VERSUS IOWA AT HOME

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

December 8, 2023

KALAMAZOO SCORES 10 PIECE VERSUS IOWA AT HOME

Glover and Sorenson notch hat tricks in K-Wings' largest offensive explosion since 2019.  

BOX SCORE

KALAMAZOO, MI – The Kalamazoo Wings (9-11-0-0), proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Vancouver Canucks, scored double-digit goals for the first time since 2019, sent hats flying twice, enjoyed three tallies in the opening minute of the second period, and defeated the Iowa Heartlanders (9-8-2-1) 10-3 at Wings Event Center on Friday.

Forwards Ty Glover and Tanner Sorenson led the way in the goal-scoring department with the hat tricks in the big victory.

Glover (8) opened the scoring at the 2:50 mark of the first by squeezing the puck past the netminder on a rush that was set up by a Collin Saccoman (2) blocked shot. Saccoman deflected the puck into the middle towards Erik Bradford (13), who recorded his first of four assists on the night by moving it up to a streaking Glover.

Iowa answered at the 4:36 mark of the period.

Sorenson (1) then scored his first goal at the 11:37 mark by tapping in a pretty pass from Glover (9) on the right side of the crease. Derek Daschke (4) picked up the secondary assist on the goal. 

Glover (9) put the K-Wings up 3-1 with a shot from above the left circle at the 13:28 mark of the first. Chaz Reddekopp (1) and Bradford (14) assisted Glover’s long-range snipe.

Kalamazoo then exploded with three goals in the first 43 seconds of the middle frame. Going in the books as the fastest three goals scored to open a period by any ECHL team this season.

First, Ayden MacDonald (1) scored 16 seconds into the period on the power play courtesy of Kurt Gosselin's (4) initial shot and set up by Robert Calisti (6).

Then, Sorenson (2) scored unassisted 22 seconds later, streaking in all alone.

Five seconds later, Ted Nichol (1) picked a corner from the left side to make it 6-1. Jordan Seyfert (1) chipped the puck after Cooper Walker’s (7) center-ice faceoff win on Nichol’s first goal as a K-Wing.

Glover (10) made the hats fly at 10:20 of the middle frame by crashing the crease to put away a rebound generated by Bradford (15) and Connor Walters (2).

Iowa then scored at the 15:59 mark to make it 7-2 on the power play.

David Keefer (4) scored Kalamazoo’s eighth goal of the game, picking off a Heartlander clearing attempt above the slot and finished at the 6:20 mark of the third period.

Daschke (2) joined the scoring party at the 10:07 mark with a nifty move to storm down the right dot lane for the goal. Bradford (16) and Sorenson (3) picked up their respective fourth and third points of the contest with helpers.

Iowa found the back of the net for the final time at the 11:44 mark to make it 9-3.

Sorenson (3) capped off the game’s scoring in Kalamazoo’s first ten-goal effort since 2019 (Jan. 16 at FW, 10-8) by corralling a loose puck and finishing from the bottom of the left circle with 2:32 left in regulation. Keefer (8) and Josh Passolt (3) assisted Sorenson’s hat trick-clinching goal.

Goaltender Jonathan Lemieux (7-7-0-0) was fantastic when called upon, making 27 saves in the win. 

In all, 14 of Kalamazoo’s 17 skaters recorded at least one point in the win, five of whom registered multiple points. Also, five K-Wings finished the game plus-4 or better on the evening (Daschke +4, Walters +4, Bradford +6, Glover +6, Sorenson +6).

Kalamazoo finished the game 1-for-1 on the power play and 4-for-5 on the penalty kill. The K-Wings took the final shot total, 33-30.

The K-Wings will be back in action Saturday at 7:00 p.m. EST for a rematch versus Iowa on Super Slappy Night at Wings Event Center. The first 1,000 fans receive a limited edition Slappy Christmas Ornament. Tickets to the game can be purchased HERE.

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Saturday, December 9, is Super Slappy Night versus the Iowa Heartlanders at Wings Event Center. Get ready to have some serious fun as we honor Slappy’s love for video games and the holiday season with the first 1,000 fans receiving a limited edition Slappy Ornament. Tap HERE to secure your tickets now. 

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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 Vancouver Canucks and the American Hockey League’s Abbotsford Canucks. Kalamazoo plays their 36 regular season home games at Wings Event Center from October through April.

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