CINCINNATI, Ohio – The Toledo Walleye (9-12-1-1) were able to add a pair of empty-net goals in the final minutes to prevent a Cincinnati Cyclones (10-9-5-1) comeback, winning by a final score of 5-2 in front of 4,453 at U.S. Bank Arena on Friday night.
The Walleye were able to bulge the twine first, as a Zack Torquato shot was redirected past Cyclones goalie Marc Cheverie (L, 30 saves, 9-5-2-1) at the 14:42 mark for a 1-0 lead. However, with just 55 seconds left in the opening frame, Christiaan Minella wristed home his sixth of the season in the slot during a Cyclones power play to knot things at one through 20 minutes.
Both teams traded chances throughout the second period but it was the Walleye that cashed in on a late goal when, at 18:20, Scooter Smith batted a puck from mid-air into the net for a 2-1 Toledo lead.
Luckily, just 35 seconds into the third, Cincinnati was able to claw back again when Dustin Sproat caught a perfect Minella pass in the slot and buried it past Walleye netminder Jordan Pearce (W, 31 saves, 3-3-0-0) for the game-tying goal. Unfortunately, the Walleye answered with the go-ahead tally at 14:55 as Adam Keefe found a loose puck underneath Cheverie and poked it home for the eventual game-winning goal. Down by one in the late stages, Cincinnati pulled the goalie in hopes of spawning another comeback; unfortunately, though, the Walleye were able to score a pair of empty net goals – one by Andy Bombach at 18:43 and another by Dominic Osman at 19:32 to seal a 5-2 victory.
The Cyclones Radio Network Three Stars of the Game are as follows:
1. Adam Keefe (Game-winning goal for Toledo)
2. Christiaan Minella (Goal and assist for Cincinnati)
3. Mathieu Aubin (1 assist for Cincinnati)
The defending Kelly Cup Champions have the rest of the weekend off before returning to the ice at U.S. Bank Arena on Wednesday, December 15 when they’ll face-off against the Reading Royals at 7:30pm. It’s another Wet Wednesday, meaning fans can purchase $1 PBR and Miller High Life all night long. Discounted ticket packages and single game tickets for the 2010-2011 season are available now. For more information, call 513.421.PUCK (7825) or visit CyclonesHockey.com.
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