Game
Rewind
Friday, February 22nd vs. Bloomington (Kalamazoo 6-Bloomington 3)
Kalamazoo, MI – The bus problems for Bloomington that delayed the start of the contest between the Kalamazoo Wings and the PrairieThunder for an hour were just the start of the trouble Bloomington faced in their 6-3 loss to Kalamazoo Friday night at Wings Stadium.
The Thunder’s major road block was the K-Wings line of Glenn Detulleo, Justin Cross and Ryan Markham which combined for 13 points in the victory.
Scoring 1:34 into the game, Kory Karlander (28th) struck on the power-play to give the K-Wings a 1-0 lead. Kalamazoo extended their advantage ten minutes later with a red line blast from Cross (10th) that went over the glove hand of Bloomington’s Derek Dolson.
Cross (11th) tickled the twine for the second time in the game 16 seconds into the second, which upped the K-Wings lead to 3-0.
Following Kalamazoo’s three goals, Bloomington stormed back with three of their own. Jeremy Cornish (2nd) placed the Thunder on the scoreboard with a wrist shot from the slot. Assisting on the tally was Jon Booras, who extended his point streak to six games with the helper.
Just over a minute later, Leo Thomas (9th) also lengthened his point streak to six games by deflecting a Rob Guinn shot at the 4:39 mark.
Late in the second, Adam Edinger blast from the blue line recoiled off of Jeff Reynaert to knot the game at 3-3.
Putting the game away in the third, Kalamazoo scored three unanswered goals to secure the 6-3 victory. Ryan Markham (3rd) slid the puck past Dolsen 3:05 into the final period for the eventual game-winner, while Cross (12th) and Detulleo (13th) capped off K-Wings season-high five-point nights. Detulleo finished the game with four assists, which ties the forward for both the K-Wings and IHL season-highs.
Saturday, February 23rd @ Muskegon (Muskegon 3-Kalamazoo 0)
Muskegon, MI – Looking to snap a two-game losing streak, Muskegon didn’t have to hold Beach Night; they just needed to go to the Pool, Clayton Pool, as the goaltender denied all 34 shots he faced to earn a 3-0 shutout over Kalamazoo.
Dominating a majority of the opening period, Kalamazoo was able to generate scoring chances, out shooting Muskegon 18-10. Unfortunately for the K-Wings, the only successfully executed scoring opportunity came from the Fury.
With Robin Bouchard receiving a five minute major for cross checking and a game misconduct, it was Shea Hamilton (4th) tipping the puck past Ron Vogel for a shorthanded marker. Three of Hamilton’s goals this season have come shorthanded.
In a flip-flop of the first period, Muskegon gained a greater part of the scoring chances in the second, out shooting Kalamazoo 11-7. Just like in the opening stanza it was special teams that led to a Fury goal.
While on the power-play, Dan Riedel (16th) knocked in a rebound 3:24 into the second, which gave the Fury a 2-0 lead.
Rafal Martynowski (10th) tacked on an empty-netter with 15 seconds remaining in the contest to give the Fury the 3-0 victory.
Sunday, February 24th vs. Fort Wayne (Fort Wayne 4-Kalamazoo 2)
Kalamazoo, MI – Down 2-0 in the second period, the Fort Wayne Komets battled back with four unanswered goals to defeat the Kalamazoo Wings 4-2.
A physical contest that resembled an atmosphere suitable for the playoffs was highlighted by a goaltending duel in the first period. Kalamazoo’s Jeff Reynaert stood on his head turning aside 13 shots, while Fort Wayne’s Nick Boucher did his part stopping eight shots in the period.
Special teams played a vital role in the second, as the teams combined for four goals, three of which were recorded with a man-advantage.
Off a face-off deep in the Komets zone, Dan Carey (1st), on the lone even-strength goal of the period, floated a wrist shot over the shoulder of Bouchard to give the K-Wings 1-0 lead.
Capitalizing on a 5-on-3 power-play three minutes later, Kory Karlander (29th) one-timed a blast from the right circle to extend the K-Wings lead.
The league’s top road power-play unit (18.2%) and second overall (19.5%) brought the Komets back into the game. Mathieu Curadeau (25th) lifted a wrister past Reynaert to bring the Komets deficit to a single goal.
Five minutes later at 16:53, Luciano Aquino struck on a 5-on-3 power-play for his team-leading 26th of the season to knot the contest at 2-2.
Early in the third after a Tyler Willis penalty expired, Curadeau (26th) snipped a rocket from the slot, which proved to be the game-winner.
David Hukalo (12th) added some insurance in the form of an empty-netter to secure the victory for the Komets.
Fast Forward
Playing four games in five days, the Kalamazoo Wings will start the week at Wings Stadium on Wednesday, February 27th with a 10:30 a.m. face-off versus the Flint Generals on Education Day presented by Culver’s. Wednesday’s encounter will be the first of three straight against the Generals. Kalamazoo will also tangle with Flint this Friday, February 29th with a 7:30 p.m. at the Perani Hockey World & Event Center. Both teams return to Wings Stadium on Saturday, March 1st for a 7:30 p.m. clash on Trading Card Night presented by The Maurer Group, WKFR & WRKR. The first 1,000 fans into the building will receive a FREE set of 2007-08 K-Wings trading cards. On the season, Kalamazoo is 5-3-0-0 versus Flint, who starts the week in second place.
Finishing the week on Sunday (3/2), the K-Wings will hit the road for a 4 p.m. (CDT) to battle the Bloomington PrairieThunder. With a record of 6-3-0-1, the K-Wings currently lead the series against the PrairieThunder, who enters the week in sixth place.
Nearing 600
Forward Kory Karlander is nearing a personal milestone. Karlander is one point shy of reaching 600 in his career. The 700 Club
K-Wings captain Nick Bootland is closing in on a personal milestone. Bootland is only four games shy of 700 in his career.
Apple Pickers
Kalamazoo’s Glenn Detulleo and Kory Karlander have collected their share of assists. Detulleo leads the league with 38 helpers, while Karlander is second with 37 apples.
Feeling Special
Forward Nick Bootland is a specialist when it comes to special teams. Bootland shares the league lead for both power-play goals with 13 and shorthanded tallies with three.
The Obscure Stat of the Week
All-time the K-Wings are 5-3-0-1 in games played in the morning, including 3-3-0-1 at Wings Stadium. Kalamazoo is 1-1-0-0 versus Flint in Education Games, winning 8-2 on February 1, 2006 at the Perani Hockey World & Event Center and losing 4-2 later the same year on March 2nd at Wings Stadium.
Tickets! Get Your Tickets!!
Tickets for all K-Wings home games are now on sale. Catch all the action as your K-Wings play the very best the IHL has to offer. Tickets are on sale now by calling the Wings Stadium Ticket Office at (269) 345-5101.
Get On-Line
This season, the best way to keep track of the K-Wings is to log onto www.kwings.com. The site has player profiles, information about Wings Stadium events, and much, much more.
Cross and Vogel on the Radio
Join special guests Justin Cross and Ron Vogel as they join Head Coach Brian Curran and the “Voice of the K-Wings” Mike Modugno on “K-Wings Live”. The show is on The Classic Hits Station WLKM (95.9 FM) and online through the B-2 Networks through www.kwings.com from 7-8 p.m. at Old Burdick’s Bar and Grill inside the Holiday Inn Kalamazoo on South 11th Street.
K-Wings on Radio
Catch all the K-Wings games, home and away, on the K-Wings Radio Network (95.9 FM WLKM & B-2 Networks on kwings.com). Join the “Voice of the K-Wings” Mike Modugno for all 76 regular season games plus the playoffs. Pre-game coverage begins with the Digital Highway Pre-Game Show 15 minutes prior to face-off. For the most complete coverage of the K-Wings from the opening face-off to the final buzzer, keep your radio tuned this season to the K-Wings Radio Network.
Upcoming Games
Wednesday, February 27th Vs Flint 10:30 AM (Education Day Presented by Culver’s)
Friday, February 29th @ Flint 7:30 PM
Saturday, March 1st Vs Flint 7:30 PM (Trading Card Night Presented by The Maurer Group, WKFR and WRKR)
Sunday, March 2nd @ Bloomington 4:00 PM (CDT)
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