Dispatches from the Kalamazoo Wings: December 21

KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Wings continue to be a force to be reckoned with, splitting the win column this week, but earning points in three of four games. It’s been a week of adjustments, as Michael Garteig, Danny Moynihan, and Mackenze Stewart were reassigned from Utica throughout the week.

On home ice, they first took on the Atlanta Gladiators, the Boston Bruins’ ECHL affiliate and a team the Wings haven’t played against since December 2015. The Wings set the tone early, dominating the first period. Five minutes in, defenseman Kyle Bushee shot from the blueline and forward Tyler Heinonen tipped the puck in past Gladiators’ goaltender Matt O’Connor. Less than five minutes later, Tyler Biggs was set up for his ninth goal of the year, coming around the back of the net and taking a pass from Ben Wilson and sinking it top-corner. Taking a very early 3-0 lead, Lane Scheidl scored his first of the night just 35 seconds later.

The Gladiators didn’t leave the first period empty-handed, as Cody Carlson scored a late power play goal after the Wings were called for having too many men on the ice. They were also the only scorers in the second period, bringing the game within one goal thanks to Brady Vail diving to the ice to slide the puck past Joel Martin. Phil Lane scored on a one-timer early in the third, tying the game.

That was all she wrote for the Gladiators’ offence. Jimmy Mullin scored his fourth goal of the year, giving the Wings their lead back, but they weren’t finished. Lane Scheidl beat O’Connor once more, widening the gap to two. With just over two minutes left in the game, Justin Taylor was called for tripping. The Gladiators pulled their goaltender to give them a six-on-four advantage, but once again, Lane Scheidl was able to find their net, forcing a turnover and ending the game with a short-handed empty-net goal, a hat trick, and a 6-3 victory for the Wings.

The next night, the Brampton Beast made a visit to Kalamazoo. The Wings took the first two games against Brampton earlier this year, but those wins weren’t easy.

“They play a frustrating game,” explained Scheidl. “They try to slow it down and bore you to death, almost. It gets you frustrated, so you try to force things…That’s the kind of team they are.”

Rookie forward Jimmy Mullin added, “They play that neutral zone trap against us sometimes. I feel if we’re playing the way Coach draws it up, we can break that, but sometimes we get a little overzealous, and they capitalize on opportunities.”

Forcing mistakes and capitalizing on opportunities is exactly what led to the Wings playing the entire game against Brampton trailing or tied. A four-goal first period saw goals from Brandon Marino and Brandon MacLean for Brampton and two-tying goals for the Wings, both coming from Justin Taylor.

Once again in the second, Brampton opened the scoring with a goal from Paul Cianfrini putting them atop the Wings. Jimmy Mullin hopped off the bench and onto the ice to tie things up just a few minutes later. The two teams exchanged penalties before a controversial call was made against the Wings. Mullin went to play the puck as he was coming onto the ice for a shift change near the Wings’ bench while another player was stepping off and out of play and for the second time in two nights, the Wings were called for too many men.

“The refs saw something that we didn’t think happened,” said Mullin. “But that’s why they get paid to make those calls.”

While Brampton didn’t capitalize on the power play, they used that momentum to score a minute and a half after the penalty expired, giving MacLean his second goal of the night. In the final minutes of the period, while on a power play, Lane Scheidl was called for slashing and the frustrations with officiating boiled over. He was given a ten-minute misconduct for arguing with the officials, leaving the Wings without his services for half of the third period.

Eric Kattelus was among the players who were visibly frustrated as the game went on. “Playing from behind is never easy. It’s a defeated attitude that can creep in pretty quickly on the bench, so you just have to stay as positive as you can, know in your head and know that your teammates are out there giving it their best and they’re gonna fight for that next one.”

Down by one, the Wings made a solid push, despite continuing to be called for penalties and the officials stopping play. After a series of calls the players were unhappy with, Tyler Heinonen was able to wrist one past Andrew D’Agostini and tie the game.

“Officiating is never going to be 100 percent, just like you’re never going to be 100 percent,” said Kattelus, who assisted on Heinonen’s goal. “You’re going to make mistakes on the ice as a player, just like the referees are. They’re trying their best. In the heat of the moment, it might look like you’re pretty upset, but you use it as motivation to carry yourself and carry your team and just limit your mistakes and create positive plays out there.”

In overtime, the Beast took advantage of a sloppy play in the neutral zone, allowing David Vallorani to take possession of the puck and beat Joel Martin on a breakaway.

Scheidl had no illusions about how the game went for the Wings. “We dug deep and got that extra point. It was a pretty sloppy game all around. It was good to get that big point and keep our points streak alive here. When it goes into overtime, it’s kind of a crapshoot and can go either way.”

“It was a hard-fought game,” said Mullin. “It was tough. It was back-and-forth the whole game, but I feel like getting a point out of the game was a good thing.”

The Wings went to Toledo the next night to take on another rival, facing the Walleye. Though Michigan State University alum J.T. Stenglein opened the game with his first professional goal, the Wings found themselves playing another close game tied and trailing. Despite goals from Scheidl, hot rookie Brendan Bradley, and leading-scorer Justin Taylor, the Wings dropped this one to the Walleye, 5-4.

After a few days of rest, Michael Garteig made his return to the crease when the Wings travelled to Indianapolis to see the Fuel. Garteig made 37 saves and allowed only one goal, earning him the first star of the game and leading the Wings to a 2-1 win.

Garteig wasn’t the only Utica player to make an impact on this game, as Mackenze Stewart scored the second goal of the night for the Wings, and his first of the year, in his first game back from Utica. Danny Moynihan has struggled to find his footing this week. After leading the Wings in scoring early in the season, he’s been quiet in his games since returning from the AHL. With Josh Pitt looking to make his return to the line-up soon, the forward lines may see some movement, and that might spark some offence from Moynihan.