GAME NOTES: 12/29 vs Quad City

GAME NOTES: 12/29 vs Quad City

For Immediate Release: December 29, 2017

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Game 29 (Road Game 15)

Vs. Quad City Mallards (8-17-2-0, 18 pts)

Friday, December 29, 2017 - 8:05pm ET

TaxSlayer Center - Moline, IL

 

FULL GAME NOTES

VIDEO PREVIEW

 

Overview: Cincinnati hits the road for the final time in 2017 this weekend, starting Friday in Moline against the Quad City Mallards. Cincinnati is coming off a 5-3 win over the Ft. Wayne Komets on Wednesday night, and have now won five of their last six games.

Wednesday Night Recap: The Cincinnati Cyclones (17-10-1-0) defeated the Ft. Wayne Komets, 5-3 on Wednesday night, in front of close to 7,500 fans at U.S. Bank Arena. Forward Justin Vaive led the way with a pair of goals, while defenseman Eric Knodel along with forwards Dominic Zombo and Jesse Schultz added lone tallies for the Cyclones. The Cyclones outshot the Komets, 33-22, with goaltender Anthony Peters stopping 19 in the win.

Saturday Night Recap:  The Cincinnati Cyclones (16-10-1-0) fell to the Indy Fuel, 7-4, on Saturday night. Defenseman Arvin Atwal, along with forwards Justin Danforth, Jesse Schultz, and Shawn O’Donnell scored the goals for Cincinnati, who see their four-game winning streak halted. The Cyclones outshot the Fuel, 44-38, with goaltenders Jason Kasdorf and Anthony Peters combining to stop 31 in the loss.

Last Friday Night Recap: The Cincinnati Cyclones (16-9-1-0) collected a 7-4 win over the Quad City Mallards on Friday night. Forward Justin Vaive led the way with a first period hat trick, while forwards Winston Day Chief, Rob De Fulviis, Justin Danforth and Jesse Schultz added lone tallies for the Cyclones. The Cyclones were outshot, 38-32 on the night, with goaltender Anthony Peters stopping 34 in the win.

Previewing Quad City:  The Mallards head into Friday’s matchup having dropped eight in a row and nine of their last 10, and are coming off a 7-0 loss to the Ft. Wayne Komets last Saturday night. Teams have been doing the most damage against the Mallards in the first and third periods, outscoring Quad City 39-18 in the first and 30-15 in the second. As a result, the Mallards are last in the League with an average of 2.26 goals scored per game. They are led offensively by forward Sam Warning, who has accounted for and team-leading 12 goals along with nine assists through 28 games. He is followed by a pair of 18-point scorers in forward Josh MacDonald (10g, 8a) and rookie defenseman Willie Raskob (1g, 17a) who round out the top three. In goal, recently acquired Matt O’Connor has an 0-6-1-0 record  along with a 4.32 goals-against average and a .877 save percentage. One bright spot for Quad City has been their team discipline, as they have a League-low 8.81 penalty minutes per game. 

Inside the Series: Friday will be the fifth meeting of the season between Cincinnati and Quad City, with the Cyclones winning each game by a combined score of 21-8. The teams are scheduled to play four more times this season. 

Next Game Preview: The Cyclones head to Indy on Saturday night, in their final road game for the 2017 calendar year. The Fuel took game one of the 10-game season series last Saturday, 7-4. 

 

NEED-TO-KNOW

Peters Receives Second AHL Call: Cyclones goaltender Anthony Peters has been called up the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League (AHL). This marks Peters’ second AHL assignment of the season, as the Penguins also pulled him up for three games from December 1-6.  The Blyth, ON, native has posted a 10-4-1-0 record with the Cyclones this season, and currently ranks fourth in the ECHL with a 2.34 goal-against average, and is tied for fifth with a .925 save percentage. He has won six of his last seven starts, allowing two goals or fewer in four of those contests, and has stopped 24 or more shots in 11 of his 16 games played this season.

Streaky Behavior: Forward Jesse Schultz extended his point streak to 13 games with a goal and two assists in Wednesday’s 5-3 win over the Ft. Wayne Komets. He has nine goals and 14 assists in that time, including six multi-point outings, and his 31 points (11g, 20a) place him in a tie for third in the League in scoring. He has points in all but six games played this season.

Feeling the VAIVE-be: Cyclones forward Justin Vaive had a pair of goals Wednesday’s 5-3 win over the Ft. Wayne Komets. He also recorded his second career ECHL hat trick in  the first period of last Friday’s 7-4 win over the Quad City Mallards,  and is currently riding a six-game point streak, having totaled seven goals and four assists in that span, along with a plus-6 on-ice rating. He’s the fourth Cyclone to record a hat trick for Cincinnati this season, joining forward Justin Danforth and Winston Day Chief, and defenseman Eric Knodel

Lending a Helping Hand: Forward Shawn O’Donnell dished out a season-high four assists in Wednesday’s 5-3 win over the Ft. Wayne Komets. He is enjoying a 10-game point streak, amassing four goals and 12 assists in that time, and his 30 points (10g, 20) have him 14th in ECHL scoring. 

We Are, We Are....The Youth of the Nation: Despite seeing his 11-game point streak snapped in a 6-1 win over the Quad City Mallards on December 15, rookie forward Justin Danforth has picked up right where he left off, accounting for a four goals and three assists in his last four games. He sits atop of the ECHL’s rookie leaderboard, and is tied for third in overall scoring with 35 points (17g, 18a), and has 11 goals and 12 assists over his last 16 games. 

Second Line Prowess: The line of Brandon McNally, Daniel Muzito-Bagenda, and Winston Day Chief have led the Cyclones offensively over the last seven games, totaling seven goals and 14 assists in that span. 

Secondary Scoring: Cincinnati’s second and third lines, along with the defensive corps, have made major contributions offensively in recent games, accounting for 24 goals and 36 assists over the last 14 outings. 

Limited Opportunity: Cincinnati is sixth in the ECHL with 2.86 goals against per game. The Cyclones have allowed three or fewer goals in 12 of their last 16 games, and have given up more than four goals on just six occasions. 

Finishing What They Started: The Cyclones have a 13-1-0-0 record when leading through two periods this season. This is a continuing trend from last season, when the Cyclones were 23-1-3-1 when leading after one, and 26-1-2-0 when leading after 40 minutes. 

New Affiliation: This offseason, the Cyclones, in conjunction with the National Hockey League’s (NHL) Buffalo Sabres, announced a new affiliation agreement. For Cincinnati, the move comes following a 10-year partnership with the Nashville Predators, while the Sabres recently concluded a two-year relationship with the now-defunct Elmira Jackals. This affiliation will be a reunion of sorts for the cities of Cincinnati and Buffalo, as the Sabres’ American Hockey League (AHL) Affiliate from 1971-1974 was the Cincinnati Swords. The Rochester Americans will serve as Cincinnati’s new AHL affiliate, and have been the AHL affiliate of the Sabres since 2011. This is not the first time Cincinnati and Rochester have been affiliated, as the two clubs teamed up in 2010-11 when the Americans were affiliated with the Florida Panthers.

Stay Connected!: Follow the latest news on Twitter (@CincyCyclones), Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and more! Also, for all of the latest news and notes, head over to www.cycloneshockey.com.

 

The 2017-18 season is underway, and the Cincinnati Cyclones want YOU along for the ride! Call (513) 421-PUCK for information regarding Cyclones single game tickets, ticket packages, and Season and Group Tickets! Also, stay on top of the latest team updates on Facebook, Twitter (@CincyCyclones), and Instagram, along with our website, www.cycloneshockey.com