K-WINGS CLOSE PRESEASON, WALLEYE COME OUT ON TOP

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

October 12, 2024 

K-WINGS CLOSE PRESEASON, WALLEYE COME OUT ON TOP

Kalamazoo finishes preseason evaluations in its final exhibition ahead of Home Opener on Oct. 19.

BOX SCORE

TOLEDO, OH – The Kalamazoo Wings (1-1 preseason), proud ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Vancouver Canucks, lost to the Toledo Walleye (1-1) in their final preseason game at Huntington Center Saturday, 5-4.

Five combined goals were scored in the first period with the Walleye heading to the intermission with a 3-2 advantage.

Wings forward Ben Berard (2) notched his second preseason tally from Jaden Shields (1) at the 2:16 mark to knot the game up at one, but Toledo scored two goals in the following seven minutes to retake control. Ian Mackey (1) then notched his first of the preseason from Adam Tisdale (1) and Lordanthony Grissom (1) for Kalamazoo at the 18:50 mark. 

Toledo scored the first two goals of the second period (5:48 & 9:41) to make the score 5-2 ahead of Shields’ (1) bottom of the right circle snipe into the top left corner from Mark Cheremeta (1) and Zach Okabe (1) at the 11:58 mark.

Kalamazoo tightened up in the third period, holding Toledo scoreless, and scored an extra attacker goal at the 19:46 mark of the third to make it a one-goal game. Forward Ryan Cox (1) deposited the puck into the back of the net for the Wings with Quinn Preston (2) and Shields (2) assisting on the goal.

K-Wings rookie netminder Chad Veltri started the game in net for Kalamazoo, making 12 of 16 saves in 28:28 of action. Rookie goaltender Brent Moran stopped 19 of 20 in 31:13 of relief for Kalamazoo. 

The K-Wings did not have a power play attempt and went 3 for 5 on the penalty kill. Toledo took the shot total, 36-22.

Kalamazoo’s ‘Home Opener’ kicks off the 2024-25 regular season on Saturday, October 19 versus the Cincinnati Cyclones at 7:00 p.m. EST at Wings Event Center. Kalamazoo is also looking to set another Guinness World Record during the Home Opener on Oct. 19. CLICK HERE to be a part of history.

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Kalamazoo Wings Group Specials, 5-Pack, Half-Season Ticket Packages, Season Ticket Packages and Business Insider Season Tickets are on sale now. More details, benefits and pricing are available by calling (269) 345-1125.

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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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