Toledo, OH – The Toledo Walleye dropped tonight’s game at the Huntington Center by a score of 3-2 to the Fort Wayne Komets. Will Hillman and Sam Craggs each scored for Toledo with four different players recording assists, and Nolan Lalonde stopped 34 of 37 shots he faced.
How it Happened:
The score sheet was clean for most of the first period, until Toledo took a tripping penalty as time expired. Fort Wayne started the second on the power play, outshooting the Walleye 14-9. Toledo started the second period with a successful penalty kill. The Komets got on the board a minute later though on a goal from Austin Magera.
Will Hillman put the Walleye on the board, blasting a shot past Samuel Jonsson at the 8:33 mark of the second period to tie the game 1-1, Hillman’s 6th goal of the season. Conlan Keenan and Darby Llewellyn got the assist on the goal, which was Llewellyn’s 100th assist in the ECHL.
Kirill Tyutyayev took a hooking call for Fort Wayne, leading to Toledo’s first power play chance of the day at the 12:09 mark of the second period, though it was unsuccessful. Anthony Petruzzelli added another goal for Fort Wayne, his third of the season at the 15:42 mark of the second period to give the Komets the lead back.
Sam Craggs quickly tied the game on a deflection at the 17:37 mark of the second, his third goal of the season. Assists on the goal came from Brandon Hawkins and Nate Roy to tie the game at two goals each. Fort Wayne continued to outshoot Toledo at the end of the second period 26-16.
Fort Wayne took a holding the stick penalty 1:41 into the third period, giving the Walleye their second power play chance early into the final frame that they would end up not converting on.
The score sheet remained clean and the game was tied 2-2 until Toledo took a tripping call with 5:18 to go in regulation. Alex Aleardi scored on that power play to take the lead, his 12th goal of the season and what would end up being the game winner. Toledo opted for the extra attacker with two minutes to go but could not score the equalizer.
The 3-2 score held until the end of regulation, as Fort Wayne outshot Toledo 37-22. Toledo was 1-for-2 on the penalty kill, and the power play was 0-for-2 on the night.
Local 245 Three Stars:
1 – F Alex Aleardi, FW (GWG)
2 – F Sam Craggs, TOL (1 G)
3 – F Austin Magera, FW (1 G, 1 A)
What’s Next:
The Walleye will head out to Fort Wayne tomorrow for a rematch against the Komets, looking to bounce back from tonight’s loss. Puck drop for the game at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum is set for 5:05 PM.
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