April 28, 2012 - Mike Modugno
Director of Public Relations and Broadcaster
Game Preview
The Eastern Conference Finals will continue tonight at Wings Stadium, as the Kalamazoo Wings and Florida Everblades will meet in game two of the best-of-seven series. Florida defeated Kalamazoo last night 2-0 to take a one game to none lead in the conference finals.
The K-Wings come in to game two looking to regroup and even up the series before the conference finals shift down south to the Germain Arena next week. Kalamazoo is led by Trent Daavettila and Nick Sirota, who are tied for the league-lead in playoff scoring with Florida’s Cedric Lalonde-McNicoll with 11 points.
With 34 saves in game one, goaltender Pat Nagle continued his stellar play between the pipes. Nagle, who leads all ECHL goaltenders with two shutouts, enters tonight with a miniscule goals-against-average of 1.07 and a save percentage of 0.957.
TEAM LEADERS
|
|
Kalamazoo Wings |
Florida Everblades |
|
Goals
|
Nick Sirota
(7 Goals)
|
Matt Beca, Trevor Bruess
(4 Goals) |
|
Assists
|
Trent Daavettila
(8 Assists) |
Cedric Lalonde-McNicoll
(8 Assists)
|
|
Points
|
Trent Daavettila, Nick Sirota
(11 Points)
|
Cedric Lalonde-McNicoll
(11 Points) |
|
+/-
|
Dustin Cloutier
(+5)
|
Cedrick Lalonde-McNicoll
(+9) |
|
Penalty Minutes
|
Darren Archibald
(15 Minutes) |
Sebastien Piche
(26 Minutes) |
|
Power Play Goals
|
Sam Ftorek
(3 Goals)
|
Leigh Salters
(2 Goals)
|
|
Short Handed Goals
|
Entire Team
(0 Goals)
|
Entire Team
(0 Goals) |
|
Game Winning Goals
|
Dwight Helminen
(3 GW)
|
Eight Players Tied
(1 GW)
|
|
Shots
|
Dwight Helminen
(33 Shots) |
Brayden Irwin
(37 Shots) |
|
Shooting %
|
Nick Sirota
(29.2%) |
Leigh Salters
(33.3%) |
|
Overtime Goals
|
Entire Team
(0 Goal)
|
David Fischer
(1 Goal) |
|
Goals Against Average
|
Riley Gill
(1.91) |
Pat Nagle
(1.07) |
|
Save Percentage
|
Riley Gill
(0.939) |
Pat Nagle
(0.957) |
ALL-TIME / SEASON SERIES
All-Time Playoff Series: K-Wings Lead All-Time Series: 3-2
Best of Seven Series: K-Wings Trail Best-of-Series One Game to None
Last Meeting: K-Wings Lost 2-0 on April 27th @ Wings Stadium in Kalamazoo, Michigan
Next Meeting: Wednesday, May 2nd @ Germain Arena in Estero, Florida (Game Three)
Doesn’t Happen Often
Being held without a goal last night in game one marked the second-time in the K-Wings three-year ECHL playoff history that they have been shutout. The last time Kalamazoo was shutout was May 14, 2011, when the K-Wings lost 5-0 to the Alaska Aces in game one of the Kelly Cup Finals.
Déjà Vu?
Over the course of the last two seasons, game one of the Eastern Conference Finals has not served the K-Wings well. Besides losing last night, Kalamazoo dropped game one of the conference finals 3-2 last season to the Wheeling Nailers; the K-Wings eventually went on to win the series four games to two.
Power Surge
A reason for the K-Wings success in the playoffs has been their power-play. Kalamazoo, who is ninth in home power-play percentage at 12.5%, ranks first in road power-play percentage at 44.4% and first overall in the league at 30.3%.
Blue Line Presence
No defenseman in the ECHL has been better in generating offense than Kalamazoo’s Sam Ftorek. With eight points (3 goals, 5 assists), Ftorek leads all defensemen in playoff scoring in the playoffs.
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 ECHL 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.
Daavettila and Helminen
Join special guests Trent Daavettila and Dwight Helminen as they join Head Coach Nick Bootland and the “Voice of the K-Wings” Mike Modugno this Monday on “K-Wings Live”. The show is on The Classic Hits Station WLKM (95.9 FM) and online through www.kwings.com from 6-7 p.m. at Old Burdick’s Wings West.
K-Wings on Radio
Catch all the K-Wings games, home and away, on the K-Wings Radio Network (95.9 FM WLKM & on kwings.com). Join the “Voice of the K-Wings” Mike Modugno for all 72 regular season games plus the playoffs. Pre-game coverage begins with the Kalsee Credit Union 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, May 2nd @ Florida 7:30 PM (Eastern Conference Finals, Game Three)
Thursday, May 3rd @ Florida 7:30 PM (Eastern Conference Finals, Game Four)
*Saturday, May 5th @ Florida 7:00 PM (Eastern Conference Finals, Game Five)
*Tuesday, May 8th Vs Florida 7:00 PM (Eastern Conference Finals, Game Six)
*Wednesday, May 9th Vs Florida 7:00 PM (Eastern Conference Finals, Game Seven)
(* Denotes Games that Will Only Be Played If Necessary)
|
