Patrick Polino and Josh Burnside scored for the Cyclones, but special teams played a role in Kalamazoo's 5-2 win Sunday afternoon at Wings Event Center.
Cincinnati's four game point streak comes to an end, though they remain in second place in the Central Division with a 24-12-5-2 record (55 points). Kalamazoo ends a six game losing streak to pick up their 18th win of the season (18-22-3, 39 points).
- A too many men on the ice penalty cost the Cyclones the opening goal. With Justin Vaive serving the penalty, Mason McCarty got a rebound from a slot shot taken from Olivier LeBlanc, beating Mark Sinclair to get Kalamazoo on the board 2:42 into the contest.
- Cincinnati's retaliation came just 2:03 later, when Yushiroh Hirano dished a cross-ice pass through center, sending Patrick Polino (9) on a breakaway. Pavel Cajan made the initial stop, but a second whack from Polino crossed the line to even the score.
- Wings Captain Justin Murray corralled a puck in the left wing circle during four-on-four to regain the lead for Kalamazoo midway through the first.
- Brandon Saigeon pounced on a turnover during a Cyclones power play early in the second, streaking down the middle of the ice to score a shorthanded breakaway goal. The Wings added to their lead 7:30 into the middle period when Matheson Iacopelli worked to win a puck battle behind the Cyclones goal, then forced it out in front of Sinclair and collected a rebound from a Max Humitz shot, giving the Wings a 4-1 lead.
- Iacopelli scored again on a two-on-one with Justin Taylor 7:49 into the third, making it 5-1 before Josh Burnside registered his first goal of the season 9:14 into the frame. The second-year defenseman stepped in-between the circles to rip a wrist shot past Cajan, getting Burnside his first goal in 55 games. The game also marked the 100th of Burnside's professional career.
- Cajan registered the win with a 36-save performance, while Sinclair made 22 stops for the Cyclones.
- The Cyclones drive back to Cincinnati for some rest ahead of next week's South Division road trip, where they'll face Savannah Friday before dueling the Gladiators Saturday and Sunday.
