For Immediate Release: February 2, 2018
CYCLONES SNAP SKID WITH OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
Danforth’s First Period Pair Paces Cincinnati
Independence, MO- The Cincinnati Cyclones (23-18-2-0) earned a 5-1 over the Kansas City Mavericks on Friday night. Forward Justin Danforth led the way with a pair of goals, while forwards Alex Kile and Justin Vaive, along with defenseman Jake Flegel, added lone tallies for the Cyclones, who snap their four-game skid.
Cincinnati struck first with a little more than six minutes remaining in the first, when Danforth raced up the middle of the ice on a partial breakaway and slipped a shot five-hole on Mavericks goaltender Chris Nell to give the Cyclones a 1-0 lead.
That lead became 2-0 with four seconds to go when Danforth found some space on the left wing and turned the corner on a defender, and he lifted the puck in past Nell to give the ‘Clones a two-goal edge after 20 minutes.
The second saw the offense continue to produce for the Cyclones, as 6:41 in, a shot from forward Brandon McNally was turned aside by Nell, but Kile was there to slam the rebound in on the back door to give Cincinnati a 3-0 lead.
That lead became 4-0 two minutes later when a point shot from defenseman Eric Knodel was deflected in by Vaive for his 15th goal of the season.
The Mavericks responded with a power play tally of their own from forward Mark Cooper to put Kansas City on the board, and trim their deficit to 4-1 after two periods.
Cincinnati put the game out of reach for good late in the third when Flegel took the puck at the right blueline and hammered a drive in to send the ‘Clones to a 5-1 win.
Cincinnati was outshot, 35-27 on the night, with goaltender Jonas Johansson steering aside 34 in the win. The Cyclones and Mavericks wrap up the weekend on Saturday night, with the face-off slated for 8:05pm ET.
The 2017-18 season is underway, and the Cincinnati Cyclones want YOU along for the ride! Call (513) 421-PUCK for information regarding Cyclones single game tickets, ticket packages, and Season and Group Tickets! Also, stay on top of the latest team updates on Facebook, Twitter (@CincyCyclones), and Instagram, along with our website, www.cycloneshockey.com!
