Cyclones Game Preview - Cincinnati at Fort Wayne

Cyclones Game Preview - Cincinnati at Fort Wayne

CYCLONES GAME PREVIEW

Cincinnati Cyclones (31-30-2-8)
vs.
Fort Wayne Komets (47-18-2-4)


Click here for tonight's game note packet

DATE: Saturday, April 11, 2015
TIME: 7:30pm ET
SITE: Memorial Coliseum - Fort Wayne, IN
BROADCAST: Cyclones Radio Network, ECHL.TV

NHL AFFILIATES
Cincinnati Cyclones: Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators
Fort Wayne Komets: Colorado Avalanche

NEXT HOME GAME
TBD
2015 KELLY CUP PLAYOFFS

Tonight's Matchup: The Cyclones’ hope for a Kelly Cup Playoff spot has come down to the last game of the regular season as they need a win against the Fort Wayne Komets to stay alive. If tonight is anything like the previous six meetings, it will be an intense battle; four of the match-ups have been decided in overtime or a shootout and all of them have been decided by two goals or less.

Scouting the Komets: Gary Graham’s club got trounced by Kalamazoo 6-0 last night and, as a result, are now locked into the second seed of the North Division playoffs. Coincidentally, those two teams will face-off in the first round next week. Shawn Szydlowski, who was named to the All-ECHL First Team this Wednesday, leads the Komets in scoring with 78 points (38g, 35a) in 57 games this season. Mike Embach, who has been the leading point-getter against Cincinnati, ranks second on the club overall with 70 tallies (24g, 46a) in 68 contests. While last night was rough for them, Fort Wayne has enjoyed solid goaltending all year long as well with Pat Nagle and Roman Will sharing the workload. Nagle has amassed an 23-7-1-1 with an 2.48 goals-against average. Will, who earned the win on Wednesday night against the Clones, is 16-8-1-3 on the season with a 2.43 GAA.

Last Time Out: A three-goal third period lifted the Walleye over the Cyclones by a 5-2 final score in front of 6,109 at Huntington Center on Friday night. The victory also gave Toledo its first North Division title. Jack Downing and David MacDonald each potted goals in a losing effort.

Busy Between the Pipes: Since Sam Brittain was recalled in early March, it has been the Rob Madore show between the Cincinnati pipes. He’s rocketed up to fifth on the ECHL’s minutes-played charts (2,709) this season and recently became the club’s third-winningest goaltender. All time for the Cyclones, Madore is 33-31-10. Tonight is expected to be his 21st consecutive start.

Grab the Early Lead: Cincinnati’s best ingredient for success this season is early offense. When they score the game’s opening goal, they have earned a 24-9-2-2. On night’s where they score the first two or more goals, they’re undefeated.

Season Series at a Glance (7 games - 4 home, 3 away - 1 remaining):
Cincinnati's 2014-15 Record vs. Fort Wayne: 1-1-1-3

Nov 15 Fort Wayne 5 at Cincinnati 4 Final SO
Dec 5 Fort Wayne 3 at Cincinnati 2 Final SO
Mar 14 Fort Wayne 1 at Cincinnati 3 Final
Mar 15 Cincinnati 2 at Fort Wayne 3 Final
Mar 28 Fort Wayne 4 at Cincinnati 3 Final OT
Apr 8 Cincinnati 2 at Fort Wayne 3 Final SO
Apr 11 Cincinnati at Fort Wayne 7:30pm EDT