Overall Record: 33-13-4-4, 1st Central Division, Current Streak: 5 Wins 

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Friday, March 6 vs. Cincinnati (3-2 W) 

Sunday, March 8 vs. Wichita (5-1 W) 

THIS WEEK’S GAMES (All Times Eastern)

Thursday, March 12 at Savannah (7 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, FloSports) 

Friday, March 13 at South Carolina (7:05 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, FloSports) 

Saturday, March 14 at South Carolina (6:05 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, FloSports) 

Monday, March 16 at Savannah (7 p.m., Fox Sports Radio 1230, FloSports) 

Walleye Notes

Wins on Wins: The Toledo Walleye swept their second consecutive weekend series at the Huntington Center, building up a five-game winning streak in the process. They faced off against the Cincinnati Cyclones on Friday, defeating them 3-2. The Walleye gave up a goal just 44 seconds into the game but fired back with three goals of their own from Ryland Mosley, Tanner Kelly (on the power play), and Sam Craggs to take the win. The offense exploded for a 5-1 win on Sunday against the Wichita Thunder, as the Walleye posted a single game franchise record of 58 shots (including a season-high 24 shots in the second period). Mosley scored the first two goals of that game, followed by Tanner Dickinson’s 17th of the season, Brandon Kruse’s first goal of the season in a four-point performance, and another goal from Kelly. With Fort Wayne off this weekend, the Walleye gained all four possible points (74 total) and took back first place in the Central Division. 

Block Party: Goaltenders Carter Gylander and Nolan Lalonde have been stellar throughout the team’s five-game win streak, both recording a shutout and neither allowing more than two goals in any of the five games since February 27th. Lalonde’s shutout on March 1st was his first as a pro, stopping all 21 shots he faced. He followed the performance up with a win on March 8th, stopping 19 of 20 shots (saving 40 of his last 41 total shots against). Gylander is unbeaten in regulation in each of his last 6, and 9 of his last 12 starts, and his shutout on February 28th was his third of the season (two with Toledo and one with Grand Rapids), stopping all 45 shots he faced. Both Lalonde and Gylander have been two of the top goaltenders in the league in the duration of the team’s win streak, as Lalonde leads the league in GAA (0.50), and Gylander is close behind in 4th at 1.33 GAA since February 27th (min. 120 mins). 

B1G Boys: The Walleye roster features several Big-10 Conference alums making significant contributions to the team’s success. Former Michigan State Spartan Tanner Kelly currently rides a five-game goal streak (six total), the team’s longest such streak this season. He’s scored the third-most goals in the ECHL since the beginning of February with eleven. Additionally, Kelly places second among rookies in goals with 22 (trailing Kansas City’s Jackson Jutting (24) for the lead) and sits seventh among rookies in points (39). Another Michigan State Spartan, Mitch Lewandowski, leads the Walleye with 16 points since February 1st (4 goals, 12 assists). University of Wisconsin alum Ryland Mosley scored three times this past weekend, bringing his point total up to five (4 goals, 1 assist) since his Walleye debut on February 14th. Garrett Van Wyhe, a Big-10 conference champion in 2022 with the University of Michigan, has posted four points (1 goal, 3 assists) in five games since being traded to Toledo from Jacksonville on February 22nd. Denis Smirnov, a Penn State alum, places third on the team with 16 points on the power play (8 goals, 8 assists), trailing Brandon Hawkins (24) and Riley McCourt (26). 

Success against Cincy: Out of Toledo’s 30 wins against Central Division teams this season, almost a third of them have come against the Cincinnati Cyclones. The Walleye hold a 9-3-1-0 record against the divisional opponent with a power play that has converted on 15 of 36 opportunities (41.7%), the best mark for the Walleye against any opponent this season. Tanner Dickinson leads Walleye skaters with 16 points in 13 games against the Cyclones this season (4 goals, 12 assists), including a goal on the power play. Brandon Hawkins and Riley McCourt each have 14 points in 13 games against the Cyclones, Hawkins with 4 goals and 10 assists and McCourt with 2 goals and 12 assists. Denis Smirnov leads the charge on the power play, scoring five of Toledo’s 15 power play goals against the Cyclones. Carter Gylander, in five games played against Cincinnati, holds a 5-0-0-0 record with a .944 SV%, 1.59 GAA, and a shutout this season against the Cyclones.  

One Point Closer: As the season goes along, Brandon Hawkins continues his chase for the Walleye franchise all-time scoring record. Hawkins needs 6 more points to tie current Walleye leader Shane Berschbach and 7 more points to pass. His next target will be to pass Toledo Storm legend Rick Judson’s Toledo ECHL record of 441 career points, needing only 54 more points to tie that record. Hawkins is currently second in the ECHL in points with 58 (25 goals, 35 assists), trailing Kansas City defenseman Marcus Crawford (69 pts).  

Walleye Fans Give Back: At the end of Friday’s game, Walleye fans took part in a jersey auction that raised funds to support the Walleye Wishing Well and Flag City Honor Flight, a volunteer‑run nonprofit that honors local veterans with trips to Washington, D.C., to visit their war memorials. A special thank‑you to our presenting sponsor, A‑Gas, for supporting this effort.

Spring Breakin’: The Walleye head down south next week to play four games between Savannah and South Carolina. Thursday’s contest in Savannah will be the first-ever meetings between the two clubs. Savannah, in their fourth season in the ECHL, currently place fourth in the South Division standings with a 28-23-3-1 record. The Walleye face off against South Carolina on Friday and Saturday, looking to take down a good Stingrays team that boasts a 37-18-1-0 record, good for second in the South Division. Toledo has a 6-21-2 record all-time against the Stingrays in 29 total matchups as they’ve proven to be tough competition. After a day off on Sunday, the Walleye go back to Savannah to face off against the Ghost Pirates again on Monday night before returning home to Toledo.  

Walleye Player of the Week: 

Sam Craggs (1 G, 3 A, 4 Pts, +4) 

Walleye Goaltender of the Week: 

Carter Gylander (W, 33 SVS, .942 SV%)