For Immediate Release: February 13, 2019
Game 48 (Home Game 23)
Vs. Indy Fuel (23-23-2-1, 49 pts)
Wednesday, February 13, 2019 – 7:35pm ET
U.S. Bank Arena – Cincinnati, OH
Overview: The Cyclones are back on home ice following a four-game road trip on Wednesday night, as they welcome in the Indy Fuel. Cincinnati went 3-1-0-0 on the northeast swing, and still maintain a five-point lead on both the Toledo Walleye and Utah Grizzlies for the top spot in the ECHL’s Western Conference. They trail the Florida Everblades by one point for first place in the ECHL overall.
Sunday Afternoon Recap: The Cincinnati Cyclones (32-9-3-3) upended the Worcester Railers, 4-3 in overtime, on Sunday afternoon. Forwards Vas Glotov and Myles Powell, along with defenseman Mitch Jones recorded the goals in regulation while forward Brady Vail tallied the game-winner in overtime for the Cyclones, who finish their four-game road trip 3-1-0-0. Cincinnati outshot the Railers, 34-24 on the afternoon, with goaltender Jonas Johansson steering aside 21 in the win.
Last Night Recap: The Cincinnati Cyclones (31-9-3-3) dropped a 4-3 decision to the Manchester Monarchs on Saturday night. Forwards Myles Powell and Alex Wideman, along with defenseman Eric Knodel scored the goals for the Cyclones, who see their four-game winning streak snapped. The Cyclones outshot the Monarchs, 37-33 on the evening, with goaltender Michael House rstopping 29 in the loss.
Friday Night Recap: The Cincinnati Cyclones (31-8-3-3) collected an 8-1 win over the Maine Mariners on Friday night. Forward Brady Vail had a hat trick in the first period, while forward Pascal Aquin recorded a goal and four assists, and Judd Peterson accounted for a goal and three helpers. Additionally, forward Myles Powell along with defenseman DeVante Stephens netted lone goals for the Cyclones. Cincinnati outshot the Mariners, 33-26, with goaltender Jonas Johansson stopping 25 in the win.
Previewing Indy: The Fuel enter Wednesday night having dropped four straight and five of their last six, and are coming off a 4-1 loss to the Toledo Walleye on Sunday afternoon. Indy is currently in fifth in the ECHL’s Central Division, two points back of the Kalamazoo Wings for the fourth and final playoff spot. The Fuel possess one of the top special teams units in the League, ranking second on the penalty kill at 86.4% (178/206) and eighth on the power play with a 19.1% conversion percentage (39/204). They are led offensively by forward Ryan Rupert who has accounted for 14 goals and 28 assists through 49 games, and he leads the team with four goals and three assists against the Cyclones this season. Team-goals leader Josh Shalla is second with 20 goals and 21 assists, followed by forwards Kevin Dufour (19g, 15a) and Matt Rupert (18g, 16a) who round out the top three with 34 points each. In goal, Matt Tomkins has appeared in 37 games, amassing a record of 19-14-2-1, along with a 3.06 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage.
Inside the Series: This is the ninth of 12 meetings this season between the Cyclones and Fuel, with Cincinnati holding a 4-3-0-1 record in the first eight meetings. The teams are slated to meet four more times, with three of those contests coming in Indianapolis.
Next Game Preview: The Cyclones begin a home-and-home series with the Toledo Walleye on Friday night at U.S. Bank Arena. Cincinnati is 2-1-1-0 in the first four games of the nine-game season series, and have outscored the Walleye 12-9.
Powell Recalled: Cincinnati Cyclones forward Myles Powell has been recalled by the Rochester Americans, Cincinnati’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate. He has appeared in five games this season with the Americans this season, however has not recorded a point. A native of Comox, BC, Powell currently ranks fifth on the Cyclones in scoring with 19 goals and 20 assists through 37 games played this season. He is currently riding a six-game point streak, totaling five goals and five assists in that span. He is also tied for second in the ECHL with plus-37 on-ice rating. Powell is currently in his first full pro season, after appearing in seven games in 2017-18 between the Cyclones and Americans. He accounted for a goal and two assists in those contests, along with a pair of assists in four playoff games for Cincinnati. Prior to turning pro, Powell spent four seasons at the Rochester Institute of Technology (R.I.T.), where he accounted for 45 goals and 60 assists in 149 career games.
Point Men: Forwards Myles Powell (G) and Alex Wideman (A) pushed their point streaks to six games in Sunday’s 4-3 overtime win over the Worcester Railers. Powell has five goals and five assists on his current streak, and ranks fourth on the team in scoring (19g, 20a), while Wideman has four goals and two assists in the time and is second with 17 goals and 29 assists. Additionally, forward Pascal Aquin has points in seven of his last eight games, accounting for three goals and nine helpers, while forward Brady Vail has points in nine of his last 13 contests (5g, 8a).
Record-Setting Performance: With seven first period goals in Friday’s 8-1 win over the Maine Mariners, the Cyclones set a franchise record for goals in a single period, and it now stands as the fifth-most for a single period in ECHL history. Additionally, with four goals in the opening 7:29, forwards Brady Vail (2), Judd Peterson and Myles Powell set a Cyclones record for the earliest four goals in Cyclones history, and with defenseman Devante Stephens goal at 17:45, and Vail’s hat trick goal at 18:18, Friday also saw new records set for the earliest five and six goals scored in Cyclones team history.
Power Surge: After snapping an 0-19 stretch on the power play, the Cyclones are now six for their last 25 on the man advantage. Cincinnati is now 25thin the ECHL with a 13.1% conversion rate on the power play (27/206).
On the Plus Side: Cincinnati currently boasts three of the top five and eight of the top 19 on-ice ratings in the ECHL entering Friday night. Forward Myles Powell is second in the ECHL with a plus-37 rating, while forward Alex Wideman and defenseman Arvin Atwal (plus-35 each) are tied for third in the ECHL. Forward Jesse Schultz (plus-28) is in sixth, while defenseman Devante Stephens comes in in ninth with a plus-26, and defensemen Eric Knodel (plus-24) places 11th. Defenseman Mitch Jones and forwards Pascal Aquin and Tobie Bisson rank 18th, 19th, and 20thwith a plus-19 rating.
He’s a Brick….HOUSE!: Goaltender Michael Houser is 10-2-1-1 in his last 14 games, allowing two or fewer goals in nine of them. He was named the Warrior Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Month for December after a perfect 6-0-0-0 record along with a 1.17 goals against average and a .950 save percentage during the month. Overall, Houser has a record of 16-3-2-1 and leads the ECHL with a 2.00 GAA and a .929 SV%, and he has allowed more than two goals just eight times this season.
Fanning the Flames: Forward Jesse Schultz has points in 24 of his last 31 games, accounting for 12 goals and 27 assists in that time. He is tied for second in ECHL scoring with 52 points (13g, 39a).
Good in All Areas: The Cyclones once again boast the League’s top offense, averaging 3.91 goals per game, and are second in the ECHL team defense, having allowed a miniscule 2.43 goals per 60 minutes, outscoring teams, 184-11. Starting and finishing games have been a specialty for Cincinnati, as they have a League-leading 71 first period goals while only allowing 34, and have allowed 27 goals in the third period. Cincinnati is outscoring the opposition, 57-29, in the final 20 minutes of play, and are 24-1-0-2. when leading through two periods. They have given up more than three goals in regulation just six times this season.
Packed Schedule:The Cyclones are in the midst of a stretch of 29 games in 59 days. Cincinnati will play three games in three days on four separate occasions during that time, a pair of four-game-in-five-days stretches, two stretches of seven-games in 10 days, and one of 10 games in 17 days.
Welcome Matt Thomas: The Cyclones enter the 2018-19 season with a new head coach. In early August, Cincinnati hired Matt Thomas as the team’s new bench boss. He replaced Matt Macdonald who was named assistant coach of the Grand Rapids Griffins; American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings. A native of Maple Ridge, BC, Thomas has extensive head coaching experience in the ECHL, spanning 11 seasons with the Atlantic Boardwalk Bullies, Fresno Falcons, and Stockton Thunder from 2002-2013. Thomas served two seasons as an assistant coach with Atlantic City, including helping the Boardwalk Bullies to a Kelly Cup Championship in 2003, before assuming the role of head coach and Director of Hockey Operations with the team prior to 2004-2005. He compiled a 42-22-8 mark in his lone season as Atlantic City’s bench boss, and served as the head coach for the 2005 ECHL All-Star Game. He then moved on to Fresno prior to the 2005-06 campaign, leading the Falcons to a 43-15-14 mark along with a trip to the Western Conference Finals. Over the next two seasons in Fresno, Thomas compiled a 76-41-17 record, with trips to the second round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs on both occasions. He coached the Falcons during the first half of 2008-09, leading the team to an 18-10-2 mark before the team ceased operations midseason. Thomas was not out of work for long however, as he was named head coach of Stockton shortly after, and finished the year with a record of 22-16-3, and a trip to the second round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs. Thomas went on to coach the Thunder for four more seasons, amassing a mark of 141-111-36, reaching the post season each year, including a trip to the 2013 Kelly Cup Finals. He enters the 2018-19 campaign as the ECHL’s sixth-winningest coach with a career record of 342-225-80, just one win back of fifth place all time. He is also the all-time leader in playoff games coached with 97, and ranks third with 49 playoff wins.
The 2018-19 season is HERE, and the Cincinnati Cyclones want YOU along for the ride! Single game, Group, and Season Tickets are on sale NOW by calling (513) 421-PUCK! Stay on top of all the latest team updates and information on Facebook, Twitter (@CincyCyclones), and Instagram, along with our website, www.cycloneshockey.com!
