CINCINNATI, Ohio – The Cyclones have recently had a home win streak that ended in a 6 – 2 thrashing at Quad City, followed by an impressive 5 – 3 road win the next night. Road wins are a premium this time of the season. Netminder Andy Iles #1 has shouldered the load admirably allowing few rebound opportunities.
The ‘Clones Garrett Noonan was named Sher-Wood Hockey ECHL Player Of The Week for February 8-14. Noonan was drafted in the fourth round by the Nashville Predators in 2011. He has played in 59 games with the Cyclones, as well as 54 contests as a Milwaukee Admiral in the AHL. He has 26 points in 36 games as a Cyclone this season and garnered seven points last week, as the Cyclones went 4-0-0 to climb into second place in the Midwest Division.
Brett Wysopal anchors a consistent defense corps that has had occasional lapses, as in the most recent loss at Quad City. The contests have all been spirited affairs worthy of the price of admission for the fans in either arena. At home the Cyclones are finding ways to win either by comeback or straight out of the gate, taking a lead and not looking back.
Offensively the ‘Clones Jack Downing scored goals number 24 and 25 over the weekend on the road to tally his 100th Pro goal. Tommy Mele is also a force to be reckoned with when he has the puck in scoring range, making him dangerous around the opposition net. These numbers should improve with a four-game home stand coming up in the week ahead.
While second place in the division sounds nice, it doesn’t yet translate to a high seed in the Western Conference. Battling with Tulsa for sixth place in the Western Conference, and a more secure post-season future, it is getting to crunch time here in this campaign. Points are critical and giving up ties in regulation or overtime losses will not help your cause down the stretch. This is the time of year where a teams’ character rises to the top. Coaching can only take you so far, after that it is the players who correctly execute the game plan and players who are the difference in the outcome of the season. The Cyclones coaches emphasize fundamentals and that playing your system consistently leads to success.
Text and photos by Rob Huelsman, Pro Hockey News Rob.Huelsman@prohockeynews.com
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