With the Christmas break having come and gone, all 14 Western Conference teams returned to the ice last week and we return to our ECHL Western Conference weekly recap. No movement occurred last week at the top of the three divisions, as Quad City, Missouri and Utah continue to lead their division rivals. Now, let’s take a closer look at what happened with each team in week 11.
QUAD CITY MALLARDS (15-12-1-2, 33 Points)
The Mallards hold onto a three point lead in the Midwest Division after dropping both games last weekend, extending their current losing streak to three in-a-row. Matt Carey scored the lone Quad City goal in Saturday’s home contest with the Indy Fuel, but it would not be enough as the Mallards allowed three third period goals to fall 4-1. The Mallards, skating shorthanded, were out-shot 42-21 on the night. Olivier Archambault scored in the first period at Indy the following night, cutting the Mallards deficit in half, but Quad City could not find the equalizer and fell 2-1.
The week ahead: Wed. home vs. Evansville, Thur. at Evansville, Sat. home vs. Allen.
CINCINNATI CYCLONES (13-9-2-2, 30 Points)
The Cyclones fell in their only game of the week, dropping a 4-2 decision at Evansville Saturday night. Andrew Yogan and Mike Hammond scored for the Cyclones, giving them a 2-0 lead early in the middle period. Neil Conway was solid in net, stopping 47 shots while the IceMen out-shot the Cyclones 51-19. Cincinnati sits three points behind Quad City for the division lead with four games on tap this week.The Cyclones are 3-6-0-1 in their last 10 games.
The week ahead: Tue. home vs. Indy, Thur. home vs. Toledo, Sat. & Sun. at South Carolina.
FORT WAYNE KOMETS (14-10-1-0, 29 Points)
The Komets pulled within four points of first place after claiming a win in their only game to extend their winning streak to three games. Mike Embach, Alex Belzile, Shawn Szydlowski and Garrett Thompson all chipped in a goal and assist each and Kyle Thomas added a goal in Fort Wayne’s 5-2 home win over Kalamazoo on Saturday night. The Komets offense peppered K-Wings goalie Joel Martin with 42 shots as Fort Wayne broke open a 2-2 tie with three unanswered third period goals.
The week ahead: Tue. home vs. Brampton, Thur. home vs. Indy, Fri. at Indy, Sat. at Toledo.
INDY FUEL (13-15-2-0, 28 Points)
The Fuel made the most of it’s home-and-home series with Quad City over the weekend, winning both games to pull within five points of the Mallards for the division lead. Peter Schneider netted two goals and Zach Miskovic added a goal and assist at Quad City on Saturday as Indy pulled away on three third period goals to defeat the Mallards 4-1. Indy doubled Quad City in the shot department, out-shooting the Mallards 42-21. Matt White scored three minutes into Sunday’s home contest with Quad City, and Ben Marshall added a goal three minutes later as the Fuel went on to claim a 2-1 win over the Mallards to close out the weekend.
The week ahead: Tue. at Cincinnati, Thur. at Fort Wayne, Fri. home vs. Fort Wayne, Sat. home vs. Wichita.
EVANSVILLE ICEMEN (11-14-2-0, 24 Points)
The IceMen turned back the Cincinnati Cyclones in their only game last week, keeping them very much alive in the playoff race. Evansville, winners of five of it’s last eight games, pulled off a 4-2 come-from-behind win over the Cyclones at home on Saturday, out-shooting Cincinnati 51-19. Daultan Leveille, Matthew Zay, Mike Duco and Jordan Sims all contributed goals for Evansville. Goaltender Matt Zenzola stopped 17 shots in the win. Evansville is now preparing for a full slate of four games this week.
The week ahead: Wed. at Quad City, Thur. home vs. Quad City, Sat. home vs. Missouri, Sun. home vs. Wichita.
MISSOURI MAVERICKS (23-3-0-1, 47 Points)
The Mavericks remain in first place in the Central Division, holding a 12 point lead over second place Allen. Missouri made the most of a light schedule following the Christmas break, claiming a 3-1 win at Allen on Saturday night. The Mavericks were out-shot 33-23 in the game that saw a delay due to tornadic storms in the area, but came out on top thanks to a pair of Sebastien Sylvestre goals. Tanner Fritz opened the scoring for Missouri, giving them a 1-0 lead just 2:43 into the game. Josh Robinson made 32 saves in his 14th win of the season.
The week ahead: Thur. home vs. Wichita, Fri. home vs. Allen, Sat. at Evansville.
ALLEN AMERICANS (17-12-1-0, 35 Points)
The Americans picked up two points out of a possible four, falling to Missouri at home on Saturday before claiming an overtime win at Wichita on Sunday. The Americans found themselves down early against the Mavericks, before Jonathan Parker scored to tie at 5:30 of the first period. From there they allowed a pair of Missouri goals and fell 3-1, despite out-shooting the Mavericks 33-23. Eric Roy scored twice at Wichita, inlcuding the overtime game winner after the Americans surrendered the tying goal mid-way through the third period. Gary Steffes netted his eighth goal of the season and Riley Gill turned back 32 shots in the 3-2 win.
The week ahead: Wed. at Wichita, Fri. at Missouri, Sat. at Quad City.
TULSA OILERS (13-10-2-1, 29 Points)
The Oilers picked up a win in their only game of the week, extending their winning streak to three games. In a goaltending dual, Tulsa’s Dennis Brown put the Oilers on top late in the opening period with his second goal of the season. The lead stood for 21-minutes before Wichita tied the game late in the second. After a scoreless third period and three-on-three overtime, the two squads went to a shootout where the Oilers prevailed on goals by Brandon Wong and Adam Pleskach. Kevin Carr posted 37 saves in his 14th straight start to give Tulsa a 2-1 win.
The week ahead: Thur. & Sat. at Rapid City.
WICHITA THUNDER (7-18-1-3, 18 Points)
The woes continue for the Thunder as they dropped a pair of home games over the weekend to extend their latest losing streak to four in-a-row. Wichita did manage to pick up two points, however, as both one-goal losses came in overtime and a shootout, respectively. Down 1-0 entering the second period on Saturday, Michael Neal scored late in the middle frame, ultimately sending their game with Tulsa into a shootout. The Thunder came up short though, with only one of three shooters finding the net in a 2-1 loss. Sunday’s game with Allen saw Wichita battle back from a two-goal deficit, forcing overtime on goals from Mason Baptista and Eric Springer. Unfortunately, the Thunder allowed the Americans to net the game winner 3:33 into the extra frame in the 3-2 loss. Wichita has now lost nine games by a one-goal deficit.
The week ahead: Wed. home vs. Allen, Thur. at Missouri, Sat. at Indy, Sun. at Evanville.
UTAH GRIZZLIES (16-10-2-0, 34 Points)
The Grizzlies gave up some ground, losing both outings last weekend to the Idaho Steelheads, but still lead the division by three points. Phil Pietroniro and Roberts Lipsbergs scored goals at Idaho on Saturday night, but it would not be enough as they allowed three power play goals to fall 5-2. Utah returned home on Monday, this time falling 4-1 to the Steelheads. Lipsbergs tallied his seventh goal of the season for Utah, netting a power play goal to tie the game in the late second period. From there, they went on to allow three more Idaho goals in the loss.
The week ahead: Thursday, Friday & Saturday at Alaska.
IDAHO STEELHEADS (13-14-4-1, 31 Points)
The Steelheads are continuing to roll, picking up a pair of wins over Utah to knock on the door of the division lead. Idaho has picked up points in it’s last seven games and has won seven of it’s last eight games. Zach Yuen scored twice and added an assist at home on Saturday and Rob Linsmayer contributed three assists in a 5-2 win over Utah. Emil Molin netted two goals, while Kyle Jean and Jefferson Dahl added two assists each at Utah on Monday night. Philippe Desrosiers made 24 saves while picking up his eighth win of the season in the 4-1 decision.
The week ahead: Wednesday, Friday & Saturday home vs. Colorado.
COLORADO EAGLES (14-14-2-0, 30 Points)
The Eagles continue to climb the division rankings after picking up a pair of wins in a weekend home-and-home series with the Rapid City Rush. Trent Daavettila netted a goal and two assists, while Kyle Kraemer added a goal and assist at home on Saturday in a 4-3 overtime win. Adrian Veideman scored the game winner on the power play 1:50 into the extra frame as the Eagles out-shot the Rush 35-21. Jesse Mychan scored twice and Collin Bowman added a goal and assist at Rapid City on Sunday, but the hero of the game was goaltender Eric Levine who stopped 26 shots to pitch a 3-0 shutout win.
The week ahead: Wednesday, Friday & Saturday at Idaho.
RAPID CITY RUSH (13-11-2-1, 29 Points)
The Rush had a rough go of things last week, dropping a home-and-home series with the Colorado Eagles. Winston Day Chief and Cody Ferriero each had a goal and assist at Colorado on Saturday and Taylor Doherty scored the game-tying goal late in the third period to set up overtime. Unfortunately, the Rush allowed a poer play goal in overtime and fell 4-3 to the Eagles. Sunday was no better for the Rush in their return to Rapid City. Danny Battochio made 25 saves, but he failed to get any goal support as Colorado handed Rapid City a 3-0 shutout loss.
The week ahead: Thursday & Saturday home vs. Tulsa.
ALASKA ACES (10-16-1-2, 23 Points)
The Aces were idle last weekend, following a three game home set with the Rapid City Rush the previous week. In that series Alaska managed to win two of the three to pick up four points in the standings. Despite their sub-500 record, the Aces still have plenty of time and are not far off the division pace, sitting 11 points back from the division leader. They could cut into that lead this week when they play host to the West Division leading Utah Grizzlies in a three game series beginning Thursday.
The week ahead: Thursday, Friday & Saturday home vs. Utah.
Contact the writer: john.hall@prohockeynews.com
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