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Max Humitz scores his first of two goals on the night during Saturdays game against the Indy Fuel.
The Kalamazoo Wings (5-3-0-0) put together a pair of victories this past weekend. On Saturday, the K-Wings blasted the visiting Indy Fuel (2-6-0-1) by a score of 7-2.
On the back of four power play goals and suburb goal tending by Jet Greaves, the K-Wings came out of the gate flying and never looked back at Wings Event Center on Military Appreciation Night.
Max Humitz put the K-Wings on the board at the 8:38 mark of the first period with his fourth goal of the year. Four minutes later, Justin Taylor deflected a shot by Brenden Miller into the net while on the power play to give the K-Wings a 2-0 lead. The K-Wings out shot the Fuel 15-4 in the first period.
The K-Wings made it a 4-0 game midway through the second period on a pair of power play goals by Jake Slaker and Humitz. Indy hit the scoreboard minutes later on a goal by Spencer Watson.
Indy out shot the K-Wings 12-11 in the period but also racked up six offenses for 15 penalty minutes.
The K-Wings applied more pressure in the third period by adding three more goals to take a 7-1 lead.
Taylor added his second power play goal of the night early in the period. Erik Bradford added a short-handed goal and Tanner Sorensen capped off the night by scoring an even-strength goal later in the period. Former K-Wing Seamus Malone scored late in the period to make it a 7-2 score.
Greaves turned away 28 of the 30 shots he faced in the win. Following the game on Saturday, the K-Wings boarded the bus and headed to Coralville, Iowa for their first-ever meeting with the Iowa Heartlanders, one of the new teams in the ECHL this season.
Unlike the night before, the K-Wings and Iowa Heartlanders (2-6-2-0) played a close game, with the K-Wings taking the eventual 3-2 win in overtime.
For the third game in a row, the K-Wings scored first on a goal by Brenden Miller.
Iowa’s Kria Bennet was able to score a goal while on the power play, sneaking the puck past K-Wing net minder Trevor Gorsuch to knot the game 1-1.
A one-timer by Raymond Brice gave the K-Wings a 2-1 lead but the Heartlanders tied it up later in the period on a goal by Jake Linhart.
In the overtime stanza, the Heartlander’s coughed up the puck at their blue line. Tanner Sorensen was able to tuck the puck under the pads of goaltender Hunter Jones to give the K-Wings the 3-2 win. Gorsuch stopped 36 of the 38 shots he faced.
Gorsuch said that whether the games are close or not, he tries to keep the game plan the same.
“Yea I would definitely say that back and forth games definitely keep me on my toes,” he said. “But I try to stay on that same level of focus even in games where we are dominating.”
Gorsuch said the win wasn’t perfect, but a win is a win.
“It wasn’t the prettiest win we’ve had this year but those wins are just as important as those blowouts,” he said. “Road games are always hard to win and even harder when you have less than a 12 hour turnaround.”
As for the K-Wings first experience in Coralville, Gorsuch gives it a thumbs up.
“I thought it was a good trip, the accommodations were very nice. The hotel is connected to the arena so that made getting to the rink and preparing very easy,” Gorsuch said.
“And as for the arena, it was the perfect size and a good atmosphere. I think Iowa is a much better team than their record shows, with call ups and injuries ravaging their lineup during the early days of the season.”
The K-Wings continue their three-game road trip this weekend with a pair of games against the Fort Wayne Komets and Indy Fuel.
K-Wings News and Notes
Heading to Texas: The K-Wings are looking for a new radio broadcaster. John Peterson, who came to the K-Wings at the start of the 2019-20 season, has accepted the position of Manager of Broadcasting and Media Relations for the Texas Stars, the AHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Dallas Stars.
ECHL Hall of Fame: Former K-Wing goaltender and current assistant coach, Joel Martin, is headed to the ECHL Hall of Fame. Martin will be inducted into the hall with three others during the 2022 Warrior Hockey/ECHL All-Star Classic in Jacksonville, Florida on Monday, Jan. 17, 2022. Martin is the K-Wings franchise record holder for games played (422), wins (229) and shutouts (21), played parts of 10 seasons in the ECHL with the K-Wings, Columbus, Trenton, Augusta and Elmira. He ranks second in league history with 22,962 minutes played, third with 394 appearances and fourth with 199 ECHL wins. Martin is also the only goaltender in league history to record at least three seasons of 30 or more victories.
By: Mark C. McGlothlen
