Overall Record: 20-7-2-2, 1st Central Division, Current Streak: 1 Win 

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Friday, January 9 vs. Iowa (2-1 L) 

Saturday, January 10 vs. Fort Wayne (3-2 L) 

Sunday, January 11 at Fort Wayne (3-1 W) 

THIS WEEK’S GAMES (All Times Eastern)

Friday, January 16 at Iowa (8 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, BCSN, FloSports) 

Saturday, January 17 at Iowa (7 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, BCSN, FloSports) 

Sunday, January 18 at Bloomington (5 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, BCSN, FloSports) 

Walleye Notes

Bounce Back Sunday: The Toledo Walleye dropped both of their games at home this week to the Iowa Heartlanders and the Fort Wayne Komets but took the win in Fort Wayne on Sunday. The win reclaimed the division lead over the Komets after the teams had 42 points each following Saturday’s game. The Walleye dropped Friday’s game to Iowa 2-1 as Denis Smirnov scored the team’s only goal. Saturday’s game against Fort Wayne came down to the wire, with the game-winning goal being scored on the power-play with 3:18 to go in regulation by the Komets. Brandon Hawkins scored two goals in Sunday’s game, but Smirnov was credited with the game’s winning goal in the 3-1 win over the Komets at the Memorial Coliseum.  

Record After Record: As the season goes along, Brandon Hawkins continues his chase towards Shane Berschbach’s franchise points record (393). Hawkins stands at 372 points in a Walleye uniform after a 3-point weekend, needing just 22 points to pass Berschbach’s record. Hawkins is currently on pace to post 105 points this season, which would break his own single-season points record on the franchise leaderboard (93, 2023-24). Hawkins also played his 400th professional game on Friday against Iowa (his 288th with Toledo), closing in on Berschbach’s record for most games played as a Walleye (376). Hawkins tied another one of Berschbach’s records on Sunday against Fort Wayne, recording his 140th point on the power play with a goal. 

(Juru)Sik in the Net: Since coming over from the KHL, goaltender Matt Jurusik has been nothing short of dominant for Toledo. After posting a .920 save percentage and 3.03 GAA in the KHL between 2022 and 2025, Jurusik has played three games for Toledo and held opponents to only four goals. He’s a perfect 3-0-0-0 with a .959 save percentage and a 1.33 GAA. Jurusik’s professional record stands at 40-56-10 with a .918 save percentage and a 2.90 GAA in 125 games between the AHL, ECHL, and KHL. 

Road Warriors: With Sunday’s win over Fort Wayne, the Walleye extended their winning streak on the road to 6 games dating back to 12/12 in Iowa, which ties for the league’s longest such streak this season (Kansas City, 10/24-11/22). Toledo has outscored opponents 27-8 in that span (+19) as Brandon Hawkins has led the charge with nine points (5 goals, 4 assists). Denis Smirnov has consistently reached the score sheet in each game of the road win streak, recording 5 goals and 3 assists to total 8 points. Carter Gylander and Matt Jurusik have each played two games during the streak, as Gylander recorded his first shutout of the season on January 2nd in Cincinnati and Jurusik held opponents to only one goal in both appearances on the road.  

Showing Out: Walleye fans have packed the Huntington Center night-in and night-out as the team approaches 100 consecutive sellouts, bringing the team’s franchise-record sellout streak to 94 games with Sunday’s game against Bloomington. The Walleye welcomed a total of 128,598 fans into the Huntington Center this season. Toledo’s average attendance ranks second in the ECHL, drawing around 8,037 fans per game (Jacksonville is the only team averaging higher, at 8,982 fans per game). The all-time ECHL record for consecutive sellouts currently stands at 140 games, reached by Colorado from 2011 to 2015. 

Walleye Player of the Week:

Denis Smirnov (2 G, 1 A, 3 Pts, +1)  

Walleye Goaltender of the Week:

Matt Jurusik (W, 31 SVS, .969 SV%)