Cyclones Rally for 4-3 OT Win in Evansville

Cyclones Rally for 4-3 OT Win in Evansville

EVANSVILLE, Indiana – Geoff Irwin's goal at 2:19 of overtime capped off another late rally for the Cincinnati Cyclones (18-14-0-4), who defeated the Evansville IceMen (11-22-3-2) by a 4-3 final score in front of 2,910 at Ford Center on Monday night.

After a more than half of the first period going scoreless, the Cyclones exploded for a pair of goals in 24 seconds to shift momentum in a big way. First, at 13:49, Christiaan Minella slammed in a rebound past Scott Greenham (OTL, 32 saves, 1-3-1) after a point shot from MacKenzie Weegar bounced loose. Geoff Irwin followed with his eighth goal of the season, sending a laser from the left circle to the back of the net, making it 2-0 Cincinnati. At the other end of the ice, Sam Brittain (W, 27 saves, 10-6-0-1) stopped all five shots that came his way in the opening frame as the visitors carried the two-goal edge into the first intermission.

The IceMen rallied back to make it a one-goal hockey game at 8:59 of the middle period when Patrick Kennedy swept home a loose puck during an IceMen power play. Then, at 17:08, Evansville knotted the score as Jarret Lukin cut to the mid slot and sniped home his eighth goal of the season, making it a 2-2 game. The teams would remain deadlocked after 40 minutes.

Evansville grabbed their first and only lead of the night when Zack Currie blasted in a shot from the right circle past a diving Brittain, making it a 3-2 game. However, as they did on Saturday night, the Cyclones would answer back late; at 17:17, Joe Basaraba fed a puck from the right wing wall directly to Stephan Vigier in the slot - who proceeded to bury the equalizer to pull his team even at 3-3. Cincinnati outshot the IceMen 22-11 in the final frame as the teams skated into overtime all square. Just 2:19 in the extra session, a strong shot from the outside rebounded right to the stick of Geoff Irwin, who promptly lit the lamp for his second game-winner of the season - sending the Cyclones to a 4-3 victory.

The Cyclones will be back on the ice at U.S. Bank Arena on Friday, January 23 when they play host to the Evansville IceMen! The Cyclones will honor Jimmy Buffett as the first 2,000 fans will receive a Cyclones beach towel. Plus, the Cyclones will wear specialty jerseys that night and auction them off after the game!! Call 513.421.PUCK to secure your seats and for more details. Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook, Twitter (@CincyCyclones), and Instagram!

Click here for tonight's box score