Game
Rewind
Friday, March 28th @ Fort Wayne (Fort Wayne 4-Kalamazoo 3)
Fort Wayne, IN– An apparent last second goal from Kory Karlander at the horn was waived off letting the Fort Wayne Komets escape Memorial Coliseum with a 4-3 victory over Kalamazoo and make IHL history for the most consecutive home games wins with 23.
Despite being outplayed for much of the opening 20 minutes of action, Fort Wayne gained the lead late in the period with a power-play strike from Luciano Aquino (35th).
Jamie Vanderveeken (14th) scored the equalizer 5:02 into the second with blast from the left point.
Kalamazoo’s power-play generated the next two tallies. Nick Bootland snuck in front and flipped the puck past Komet goaltender Nick Boucher at the 10:57 mark to give the K-Wings a 2-1 lead.
With 46 seconds remaining in the stanza, Travis Granbois (10th) tickled the twine with a wrist shot to make the score 3-1 in favor of Kalamazoo.
Fort Wayne answered back with three unanswered power-play goals, including the game-winner from Aquino (37th) who ended the night with a hat trick.
The K-Wings were without Head Coach Brian Curran, who was injured during the team’s morning skate. General Manager Wade Welsh, along with injured forward Glenn Detulleo, served as bench bosses for Kalamazoo.
Saturday, March 29th @ Bloomington (Kalamazoo 3-Bloomington 1)
Bloomington, IL– Entering Saturday night with a record of 3-9-2-1 when trailing after two periods, Kalamazoo erased a 1-0 deficit with three goals in the third en route to a 3-1 victory over the Bloomington PrairieThunder.
Despite not scoring in the opening period, the K-Wings created offensive opportunities. Kalamazoo went 0 for 4 on the power-play and out shot Bloomington 7-6.
Turning the tables on the K-Wings in the second, the PrairieThunder generated more scoring chances including Don Parson’s (31st) spinning slap shot from the left circle 4:01 into the period to give Bloomington a 1-0 lead.
Kalamazoo’s top highlight in the period was from goaltender Jeff Reynaert, who stopped a Leo Thomas penalty shot with 10.7 seconds remaining. The penalty shot was the fifth allowed this season by the K-Wings and the third Kalamazoo has faced from Bloomington. Kalamazoo has denied only two penalty shots this season, both from Thomas.
Showing determination, Kalamazoo dominated the third period, scoring three times. Tyler Willis (5th) knocked in the equalizer at the 8:35 mark. The goal was Willis’ first since January 4th, also against the Thunder.
Justin Cross (16th) gave the K-Wings the lead for good sliding in a rebound past Derrick Dolson.
Nick Bootland added some insurance, notching his league-leading 40th of the season on a empty-netter.
Kalamazoo’s victory, coupled with a Muskegon loss to Fort Wayne, tied the K-Wings with the Fury for fourth place in the IHL.
Sunday, March 30th @ Muskegon (Muskegon 3-Kalamazoo 2-Overtime)
Muskegon, MI– With sole possession of fourth place on the line, the Muskegon Fury defended their home ice with a 3-2 overtime victory against the Kalamazoo Wings and in the process gained a one point lead over the K-Wings for the final playoff spot in the IHL.
Muskegon jumped ahead 1-0 midway through the first period with a power-play marker from Robin Bouchard (28th).
For the second straight night, Justin Cross (17th) found his way on the scoring ledger. Cross deflected a Dan Carney blast from the point 1:06 into the second period to knot the game at 1-1.
Kalamazoo took their first lead of the contest 16:49 into the third period with a breakaway goal from Nick Bootland (41st).
Just 26 seconds after the K-Wings gained the lead, the Fury answered back with a goal from Billy Collins (32nd) to tie the game at 2-2 and force overtime.
In the extra session, Muskegon capitalized on a Kalamazoo turnover, as Collins (33rd) struck again scoring the game-winner to secure the 3-2 victory for the Fury.
Fast Forward
Starting the month of April at home, Kalamazoo will host the Flint Generals this Friday, April 4th at 7:30 p.m. on Team Poster Night presented by The Maurer Group, Fed-Ex Kinko’s and WRKR. Kalamazoo is currently four points behind the Flint Generals for third place in the IHL. On the season, the K-Wings are 8-5-0-0 versus the Generals.
On Saturday (4/5), the K-Wings will remain at Wings Stadium to entertain the Port Huron Icehawks at 7:30 p.m. on Qdoba Night. Following the game, Kalamazoo will auction off their blue jerseys. With 77 points, Port Huron is in second place in the IHL. On the season, the K-Wings are 5-5-2-0 versus the Icehawks.
The K-Wings will finish the week on Sunday, April 6th with a visit to the U.S. Cellular Coliseum to battle the Bloomington PrairieThunder at 4 p.m. (CST). The Thunder are currently in sixth place; however, they are just eight points behind the Muskegon Fury for the final playoff spot. On the season, Kalamazoo is 9-4-0-1 versus Bloomington.
Captain Clutch
Forward Nick Bootland enters the week on a four-game point and goal streak. Besides the four-game streaks, Bootland has earned points in seven of his last eight games.
Streaking Along
Forwards Kory Karlander and Justin Cross have been finding ways to score. Karlander is on a four-game point streak, while Cross has earned at least one point in each of his last three contests.
There’s No Place Like Home
Kalamazoo will begin a two-game home stand this Friday versus Flint. The K-Wings, who will finish the regular season with four of their final six games at Wings Stadium, are riding a season-high six-game home winning streak and have earned victories in eight of their last ten on home ice.
Lighting the Lamp
Defenseman Jamie Vanderveeken shares the IHL league-lead for goals scored by a defenseman with 14. Vanderveeken also leads all IHL defensemen in power-play goals with eight.
The Obscure Stat of the Week
The penalty shot Kalamazoo defended last Saturday versus Bloomington’s Leo Thomas was the fifth allowed this season by the K-Wings and the third the K-Wings have faced against the Thunder. Kalamazoo has denied only two penalty shots this season, both from Thomas.
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.
Detulleo and Koverko on the Radio
Join special guests Glenn Detulleo and Trevor Koverko 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
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)
Sunday, April 6th @ Bloomington 4:05 PM (CST)
Wednesday, April 9th Vs Flint 7:00 PM (Group Appreciation Night)
Friday, April 11th @ Port Huron 7:30 PM
Saturday, April 12th Vs Port Huron 7:30 PM (Fan Appreciation Night presented by WKFR)
-End of the Regular Season-
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