Game
Rewind
Monday, March 17th Vs Fort Wayne (Kalamazoo 5-Fort Wayne 4-Shootout)
Kalamazoo, MI– In the 27th Annual Fifth-Third Bank “World Famous” St. Patrick’s Day Green Ice Game, it was the Kalamazoo Wings that left the Fort Wayne Komets green with envy, as Kalamazoo defeated Fort Wayne 5-4 in a shootout in front of a crowd of 5,096 at Wings Stadium.
Mark Versteeg-Lytwyn (13th) gave Kalamazoo an early 1-0 lead scoring on a rebound 2:15 into the period off a wrist shot from the slot.
Fort Wayne answered later in the period with a pair of goals from Evgeny Saidachev (9th) and P.C. Druoin (20th) 16 seconds apart.
Remaining 2-1 in favor of Fort Wayne for a majority of the second period, Kalamazoo found the equalizer 18:40 in the stanza with a power-play blast from Travis Granbois (8th).
Special teams helped the K-Wings produce their first lead of the night, as Granbois (9th) collected his second of game midway through the third period.
Over a minute later at 11:54, a Brent Henley turnover proved costly for the Komets, as Glenn Detulleo found Lucas Drake (16th) upping the K-Wings lead to 4-2.
Always resilient, Fort Wayne chipped away at Kalamazoo’s two-goal advantage by adding markers from Luciano Aquino (31st) and Konstantin Shafranov (18th) to force overtime.
After no scoring in the overtime, the contest headed into a shootout. Kalamazoo’s Ryan Markham, who was the K-Wings first shooter, buried the lone goal in the extra session to seal the 5-4 victory.
Wednesday, March 19th @ Port Huron (Port Huron 3-Kalamazoo 2)
Port Huron, MI– With a chance to gain ground in the IHL standings, the Kalamazoo Wings allowed Port Huron to score twice in the second and lost to the Icehawks 3-2.
Snapping a 124:39 scoreless streak against Kalamazoo, Port Huron went up 1-0 with a power-play rebound tally from Jamie Lovell (7th) just 4:30 into the contest.
Special teams continued to play a role in scoring in the second. Jamie Vanderveeken (12th) capitalized on a 5-on-3 power-play with a blast to knot the game at 1-1. The goal was Vanderveeken’s 7th man-advantage strike, which leads all IHL defensemen.
Killing off a penalty five minutes later, Nick Bootland forced a Port Huron turnover and quickly sent it to the tape of Mike Manley (12th), who scored shorthanded giving the K-Wings a 2-1 lead.
Port Huron roared back with two quick goals. Jeff Zehr (28th) scored the equalizer from the right circle at 12:23. Just over a minute later, Kris Vernarsky (16th) answered shorthanded to regain a 3-2 advantage midway into the second.
Neither team could score in the final 20 minutes of play, which gave Port Huron a four-game winning streak and upped their lead to six points over Kalamazoo for second place.
Friday, March 21st @ Flint (Flint 2-Kalamazoo 1)
Flint, MI– Special teams proved to the be the difference Friday night in Flint, as the Generals went 2 for 8 on the power-play, while Kalamazoo struggled going 0 for 5 in a 2-1 loss.
Travel problems due to bad weather caused a 15-minute delay to the opening face-off. While Flint out shot Kalamazoo 10-8 in the first, neither team benefited from the delay, as the teams finished the period scoreless.
Registering on the scoreboard first, John Miller (3rd) gave Kalamazoo a 1-0 lead, scoring on a slap shot from the slot 8:05 into the second period.
Four minutes later, Flint knotted the contest at 1-1, as Jordan Fox (21st) capitalized on a 5-on-3 power-play marker.
The league’s top power-play unit struck again moments later; this time it was Jason Cirone (17th) lighting the lamp on the man-advantage to give the Generals a 2-1 lead.
Just like the opening period, neither team was able to score in the third giving Flint a 2-1 victory.
Saturday, March 22nd Vs Bloomington (Kalamazoo 4-Bloomington 2)
Kalamazoo, MI– Keeping pace in the IHL playoff race, the Kalamazoo Wings defeated the Bloomington PrairieThunder and, in the process, extended their season-high home winning streak to six games.
Exploding from the start, Ryan Markham (8th) deflected a Jamie Vanderveeken blast 21 seconds in to give the K-Wing a 1-0 lead.
Bloomington pulled even five minutes later scoring on a power-play tally from Brett Holmberg (8th), who was celebrating his 22nd birthday.
Regaining the lead at the 7:48 mark, Nick Bootland rung up his league-leading 38th goal of the season off a back hander from the slot.
The Thunder once again knotted the score with a power-play tally; this time it was Adam Edinger (6th) knocking in a rebound.
A physical second period produced no scoring for either team, which kept the game tied heading into the third.
Kalamazoo took the lead for good midway through the period when Mark Nebus’ (1st) slap shot ricocheted off of Rod Aldoff and past Loic Lacasse.
Earning some breathing room late in regulation, Jamie Vanderveeken registered his league-leading 8th power-play tally among defensemen and his 13th lamp lighter overall to provide Kalamazoo a 4-2 victory over Bloomington.
Fast Forward
Kalamazoo will start a three-game road trip this Friday, March 28th with an 8 p.m. face-off against the Fort Wayne Komets. Clinching the Huber Trophy for best record in the regular season, Fort Wayne will be chasing history this Friday. The Komets have won 22 straight at Memorial Coliseum, which ties them with the 1965-66 Muskegon Lumberjacks for the IHL record for consecutive home wins. Kalamazoo is 3-9-0-2 versus Fort Wayne this season with their last two meetings being decided in a shootout.
On Saturday (3/29), the K-Wings will travel to the U.S. Cellular Coliseum to battle the Bloomington PrairieThunder at 7 p.m. (CST). The Thunder are currently in sixth place; however, they are just nine points behind the Flint Generals for the final playoff spot. On the season, Kalamazoo is 8-4-0-1 versus Bloomington.
The K-Wings will conclude the week with a 2 p.m. face-off against the Muskegon Fury. Muskegon starts the week in third place in the IHL and are two points ahead of the K-Wings. On the season, Kalamazoo is 6-7-0-2 against their intra-state rival.
There’s No Place Like Home
Kalamazoo has been heating up at Wings Stadium. The K-Wings are riding a season-high six-game home winning streak and have earned victories in eight of their last ten on home ice.
Firing Squad
Forward Nick Bootland leads in the IHL in shots on goal with 305. Bootland also leads the league in goals (38) and power-play tallies (16).
Scoring Shorthanded
On the season, the K-Wings have scored 11 shorthanded goals. Seven of Kalamazoo’s shorties have come on the road, which leads the league.
Snapping a Streak
Kalamazoo enters the week looking to snap a five-game road winless streak. The K-Wings are 0-4-0-1 during the current streak.
The Obscure Stat of the Week
On the road, when the K-Wings lead after the first they usually are victorious. The K-Wings are 8-0-0-1 when leading their opposition after 20 minutes of play.
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.
Karlander and Kindret on the Radio
Join special guests Wade Welsh, Kory Karlander and Ryan Kindret as they join the “Voice of the K-Wings” Mike Modugno on “K-Wings Live” on March 24th. 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
Friday, March 28th @ Fort Wayne 8:00 PM
Saturday, March 29th @ Bloomington 7:00 PM (CST)
Sunday, March 30th @ Muskegon 2:00 PM
Friday, April 4th Vs Flint 7:30 PM (Team Poster Night presented by The Maurer Group and WRKR)
Saturday, April 5th Vs Port Huron 7:30 PM (Qdoba Night)
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