“We are very excited to have Doug join the Fuel organization,” team owner Jim Hallett said in a press release. “We were overwhelmed by the number of applicants during our extensive search for the next head coach. The top qualities we looked at were leadership, experience and the ability to recruit top talent. With Doug’s experience both as a winning coach in Manchester and his ability to build relationships with players while serving as Director of Recruitment for the USHL, we are confident he will build a victorious tradition in Indy and serve as a pillar in the community.”

Christiansen was the head coach of the now defunct Manchester Monarchs last season, going 39-29-4 and making it to the second round of the ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs. The Monarchs were eliminated by the eventual Kelly Cup Champion Newfoundland Growlers in six games. Fuel fans will recall that key scorer Kevin Dufour was traded to Manchester in the latter half of last season. It will be interesting to see if Christiansen lures Dufour back to Indy.

“I am thrilled to join the Indy Fuel and Chicago Blackhawks organization,” Christiansen said in a press release. “The Fuel have a tremendous foundation from which to grow. Jim Hallett and the front office are committed to bringing a winner to Indy and I am thankful for the opportunity to coach the Fuel.  I am looking forward to building a winning culture that will bring exciting hockey to the Indiana Farmers Coliseum.”

Prior to joining Manchester, Christiansen coached for four years in the U.K. with the EIHL. While there, he was a two-time EIHL Coach of the Year, won a league championship in 2012 with the Belfast Giants, and won a conference championship with the Giants the following year.

Season-ending rosters are due to the ECHL league office on June 15 at 3 pm ET. The opening day of the ECHL free agency period is June 16, which is when Christiansen will begin his tenure.

The post Doug Christiansen named third head coach in Indy Fuel history appeared first on The Rink.

Brown joined the Fuel in a trade that sent former Fuel forward Quentin Shore to the Wichita Thunder for his ECHL rights. At the time, the 25-year-old defenseman was under contract with the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage, the AHL affiliate of the Thunder.

The Winnipeg native appeared in just one game with the Rampage in the 2018-19 season, while spending the majority of his time in the ECHL with the Thunder. Brown then appeared in 29 games with the Wichita club, tallying ten goals and 19 points in that span.

A power-play specialist, Brown joined the Fuel defensive corps in the latter half of the season, recording 13 points in 17 games. Out of his 32 total points in the season, 18 of them came on the power-play, including nine goals.

Many questioned the trade that sent Shore to the Thunder and brought Brown to Indy, as Shore was a quality point-producer for Indy, racking up close to a point-per-game, but was unable to appear in many games due to injury.

Although Brown only appeared in a short stint with Indy, he was able to silence doubters as he made his presence know with the Fuel. His offensive prowess was crucial and something the Fuel have lacked since the days of Mathieu Brisebois.

Not only was he effective on the attack, but his defense was solid as well, finishing his time with the Fuel with a +1 rating. Brown also had an edge to his game that sparked the team in key moments, especially with enforcer Anthony Collins out at the end of the year due to suspension. He was the league’s top defenseman on the man advantage and scored many key goals, including Indy’s only two goals in a 2-1 win at the end of the season against the Kalamazoo Wings, a division rival.

The post JUST IN: Indy Fuel Defenseman Travis Brown Headed to Denmark appeared first on The Rink.

7:35 PM Eastern

Indiana Farmers Coliseum

Watch Live: ECHL.TV

Team Statistics:

Power Play

Indy (16.9%, 15th)

Fort Wayne (15.1%, 22nd)

Penalty Kill

Indy (86.2%, T-1^st)

Fort Wayne (82.7%, T-14^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game

Indy (28.46, 26^th – 32.56, 18^th)

Fort Wayne (30.93, 20^th – 30.18, 8^th)

Shooting%

Indy (11.2%, 5^th)

Fort Wayne (10.3%, 13^th)

Avg. Height/Weight

Indy – 6’1”, 193 lbs

Fort Wayne – 6’1”, 199 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are returning to Indiana Farmers Coliseum following a 4-2 loss to the Cincinnati Cyclones at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati.

Josh Shalla recorded the only two tallies for the Fuel in the game, scoring twice on the man advantage. Logan Nelson, Kevin Dufour, Mathew Thompson, and Quentin Shore also recorded assists on both Shalla goals.

Forward Olivier Labelle is expected to miss his 12^th straight game with a neck injury, while defenseman Miles Liberati is also projected to miss his seventh straight game with an undisclosed injury.

The Fort Wayne Komets are entering tonight’s matchup on a four-game losing streak. Their most recent game was a shootout loss at the hands of the Toledo Walleye at the Huntington Center in Toledo. The Komets’ goal scoring came from J.C. Campagna and Marco Roy. Roy recorded a goal and an assist, while forward Brady Shaw added two assists.

The Fuel are 2-4-1 against Fort Wayne this season. Indy most recently defeated the Komets 3-2 in overtime in Fort Wayne on Jan. 18. Matt Rupert tallied the overtime winner for the Fuel, while also adding two assists. All three goals came from the Matt Rupert, Ryan Rupert, and Nelson line, with all three striking for Indy.

Fort Wayne’s leading point scorer Justin Hodgman was placed on Injured Reserve yesterday, retroactive to Jan. 12. Hodgman recently skated in the 2019 ECHL All-Star Game as the captain of the Western Conference All-Stars on Jan. 21. The 30-year-old forward is also the Komets’ leading scorer against the Fuel this season with seven points in six games.

Players To Watch

Indy: Matt Rupert, Ryan Rupert, and Logan Nelson

Matt Rupert has tallied six points in his last four games. His line consisting of himself, Ryan Rupert, and Nelson has 17 points and 34 shots on goal in those four games. Nelson is also on a five-game point streak with four goals and two assists in that span. The Minnesota native tallied a goal in four of those five games. Ryan Rupert has two goals and three assists in his last four games.

Fort Wayne: Marco Roy

Roy is tied for the Komets’ lead in points (5) against the Fuel with Hodgman out of the lineup. He is also on a five-game point streak. In that span, he has registered two goals and five assists. It will be interesting to see if the Komets’ offense can continue its firepower it has shown this season without its leading point scorer and All-Star out of the lineup.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Fort Wayne Komets (01/25/19) appeared first on The Rink.

The Fuel check into the halfway point with a 20-18-2-1 record, totaling 43 points and achieving fourth place in the Central Division. The top four teams in each division will move on to the Kelly Cup Playoffs, which means that the Fuel currently hold a postseason berth.

This berth is not guaranteed, though, as third through fifth place is separated by a mere three points. Those three teams include the Fort Wayne Komets in third, the Fuel in fourth, and the Wheeling Nailers in fifth.

There has been a lot of rotation of the defensive front, with leading defensive point scorer Neil Manning now playing for the EC Kassel Huskies in the DEL2 league in Germany.

On the positive end, defensive points leader Alex Brooks just appeared in his first ECHL All-Star game in Toledo. Brooks registered an empty-net goal and two assists to Kansas City Mavericks forward Jared VanWormer at the event.

Defenseman Miles Liberati has been battling plenty of injuries lately and has been out the past six games. The 23-year-old defenseman has missed 14 of 34 games since the Indy club acquired him on Oct. 30.

As a replacement, the Fuel have recently acquired defenseman Brandon Rumble. They received Rumble from the Pensacola Ice Flyers of the SPHL, but he never appeared in a game for them. He did appear in 13 games with the Norfolk Admirals of the ECHL. In those 13 game, the 26-year-old defenseman recorded a goal, an assist, five penalty minutes, and a -7 rating.

Also on the injury report is forward and assistant captain Olivier Labelle. Labelle has been out since December 31 with a neck injury. The 33-year-old veteran injured his neck on Dec. 27 in a game against the Nailers. Labelle complained of dizziness and seeing stars after he took a check and snapped his head back while falling. Labelle battled through the injury the next two games but re-aggravated it on Dec. 29 against the Brampton Beast. He traveled with the team to Kalamzoo on New Years’ Eve but was unable to participate in the matchup.

The Fuel just recently acquired goaltender Gordon Defiel in a trade with the South Carolina Stingrays. Defiel will replace Jason Pawloski as Matt Tomkins’ backup in goal. The 25-year-old goaltender was very serviceable for the Stingrays, posting a 6-6-0 record with a 2.77 goals-against-average and a .913 save percentage.

Head coach Bernie John made the decision that Pawloski was not a suitable backup in goal for Indy, as the former Indiana Ice netminder backstopped the Fuel to a miserable 0-5-0 record alongside a 4.65 goals-against-average and an .840 save percentage.

In an interview following a 5-2 loss to the Beast on Dec. 29, John said this about Pawloski, “He doesn’t get to play a lot and he’s just been buying his time. For the time being, what he’s been doing, he’s been doing fine. He’s just got to make sure to keep practicing hard the way he does and keep doing the things he has to do and keep himself ready. It’s hard when you’re not playing to do that and just really practicing.”

The Fuel can gain an all-important two points tomorrow at Indiana Farmers Coliseum against the third-place Fort Wayne Komets. The game will be the first game back against the Fuel for Komets’ forward Taylor Crunk, who was suspended four games for sucker punching Radovan Bondra. We can also expect the return of forward Justin Hodgman from his hand injury from punching Zach Miskovic.

We’ll see if the Fuel can make the same second half push they made last season to clinch a postseason berth.

The post Indy Fuel 2019 Mid-Season Roundup appeared first on The Rink.

Matt Tomkins got the starting call for the Fuel. Tomkins entered the matchup with a 16-11-2 record along with a 3.08 goals-against-average and a .907 save percentage.

At the other end, Michael Houser got the start for the Cyclones. Houser stepped onto the Indiana Farmers Coliseum ice with a 13-2-3 record alongside an astounding 1.78 goals-against-average and a .936 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Radovan Bondra-Quentin Shore-Kevin Dufour

Robert Powers-Alex Brooks

Matt Tomkins

An eventful first period got started with a Cyclones goal by former Fuel forward Alex Wideman. He wired one past Tomkins on the first shot of the game to give Cincinnati an early 1-0 lead.

A mere 34 seconds later, Matt Rupert tipped home his team-leading 17^th of the season on the power play.

A minute and a half after the Matt Rupert goal, Justin Vaive roofed a shot in close on Tomkins on Cincinnati’s second shot of the game. His 15^th of the season re-took a one-goal lead for the Cyclones.

Spencer Dorowicz was the next goal scorer for the Cincinnati club. His fifth of the season put the Cyclones up 3-1 in the first period.

Logan Nelson continued a four-game goal streak with a puck that deflected off his torso and into the net for the Fuel’s second power play goal of the night. That was the lone strike of the second period.

Ryan Rupert tied the game for the Fuel in the third period, scoring while sliding into the net. Matt Rupert and Nelson got the assists on the tying tally.

The game wasn’t solved in 65 minutes, so it was taken to a shootout, where Mike Marnell scored for Cincinnati. All three Fuel shooters were stopped, and the Cyclones won 4-3 in Indy.

Quotebook

Matt Rupert on his line clicking: “I think it’s a little bit of luck. A lot of hard work in practice. A little bit of both, really. We work hard every game and sometimes the puck doesn’t come to us but this whole weekend it showed. The puck’s been coming our way and we’ve been getting good bounces.”

Bernie John on coming back from 3-1 down: “I thought we played well the whole game. Maybe we deserved a little bit better. Overall, it was a good performance. This is the top team in the league. They’ve got 12 guys under [AHL] contracts. Our guys battled. A bit of injuries and we’ve got some SPHL guys but they’re all playing the right way. We’re getting pucks north and putting some pressure on them and we’ve got to find a way to go win more.”

By The Numbers

17 – Number of goals for Matt Rupert and Kevin Dufour (team-lead)

3 – Number of overtime games in the past five games

Injury Report

Forward Olivier Labelle is expected to be out for an extended period with a neck injury suffered on Dec. 27 against Wheeling. He is continuing to be evaluated by doctors.

I have not yet received word on defenseman Miles Liberati.

The post Recap: Fuel Fall in Shootout to Central Division-Leading Cyclones appeared first on The Rink.

7:35 PM Eastern

Indiana Farmers Coliseum

Watch Live: ECHL.TV

Team Statistics:

Power Play

Indy (15.6%, T-20th)

Cincinnati (12.7%, T-25th)

Penalty Kill

Indy (85.4%, T-6^th)

Cincinnati (86.4%, 1^st)

Shots For/Against Per Game

Indy (28.36, 26^th – 32.56, 18^th)

Cincinnati (30.66, 21^st – 28.26, 4^th)

Shooting%

Indy (11.4%, 5^th)

Cincinnati (12.4%, 2^nd)

Avg. Height/Weight

Indy – 6’1”, 194 lbs

Cincinnati – 6’0”, 191 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are riding into Indiana Farmers Coliseum with a 3-2 overtime win over the Fort Wayne Komets last night.

The line of Matt Rupert, Ryan Rupert, and Logan Nelson accounted for all three Indy goals last night. All three forwards put the puck in the back of the net last night, with Matt Rupert netting the game winner in overtime.

The Cincinnati Cyclones are on a five-game point streak, including a 4-1 win over the Kalamazoo Wings last night. Forwards Mike Marnell and Justin Vaive each recorded a goal and an assist in the Cyclones’ victory.

The Fuel are 3-2 this season against the second-place Cyclones. All three wins for the Fuel against Cincinnati this season have come at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The lone home loss for the Fuel against the Cyclones was a 3-0 shutout loss on Nov. 23.

Players To Watch

Indy: Logan Nelson

Nelson is currently on a three-game goal streak, tallying his sixth, seventh, and eighth goals of the season during his streak. Nelson has three assists in four games against Cincinnati this season.

Cincinnati: Myles Powell

Powell has six points in his last five games and eight points in his last eight games. In four games against the Fuel, Powell has three goals and a +2 rating.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Cincinnati Cyclones (01/19/19) appeared first on The Rink.

3:05 PM Eastern

WesBanco Arena

Watch Live: ECHL.TV

Team Statistics:

Power Play

Indy (16.0%, 18th)

Wheeling (20.4%, 4th)

Penalty Kill

Indy (85.5%, 6^th)

Wheeling (83.7%, 14^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game

Indy (28.05, 26^th – 32.46, 17^th)

Wheeling (32.22, 11^th – 28.44, 5^th)

Shooting%

Indy (11.6%, 5^th)

Wheeling (10.9%, 6^th)

Avg. Height/Weight

Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs

Wheeling – 6’1”, 194 lbs

Analysis:

This is the second game of a back-to-back at WesBanco Arena between the Indy Fuel and the Wheeling Nailers. The Fuel fell to Wheeling last night 3-2 in a tightly contested battle. Brett Welychka and Logan Nelson scored for Indy, but both were followed up no more than 30 seconds later by Nailers goals.

The Fuel and Nailers are even at three wins a piece for the season series. Defenseman Alex Brooks is the leading point scorer for the Fuel against Wheeling with seven points in six games.

Players To Watch

Indy: Brett Welychka

Welychka looks to stay on fire, as he has collected four goals and an assist in his last five games. In four games against the Nailers this season, he has netted two goals.

Wheeling: Zac Lynch

Lynch added a goal to the scoresheet for the Nailers last night for his ninth point (1G, 8A) in six games. The 26-year-old is Wheeling’s leading point getter against Indy with seven points in six games.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Wheeling Nailers appeared first on The Rink.

To protect this winning record against Wheeling, Jason Pawloski backstopped the Fuel in net. Pawloski entered the game with an 0-3-0 record along with a 5.57 goals-against-average and an .806 save percentage.

At the home team’s end, Matt O’Connor was in the starter’s crease. O’Connor entered with a 7-4-1 record alongside a 2.93 goals-against-average and a .903 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Kevin Dufour-Mathew Thompson-Brett Welychka

Alex Brooks-Robert Powers

Jason Pawloski

The Fuel and Nailers ended a bland first period scoreless. That was the second night in a row the Fuel finished a first period with no score.

Brett Welychka tipped in a point shot from Robert Powers just 17 seconds into the second period for his eighth of the season. With the goal, Welychka now has points in his last five games.

Just 30 seconds later, Zac Lynch buried his tenth of the season on an international goal with assists by Renars Krastenbergs and Yushiroh Hirano.

With two minutes remaining in the middle frame, in his first professional game, Alec Butcher tallied his first pro goal to give the Nailers their first lead of the game at 2-1.

Logan Nelson tied the game up at 2 for the Fuel 6:39 into the third period with his sixth of the season.

Again, 22 seconds later, Craig Skudalski answered for Wheeling with just his second of the year. That turned out to be the game winner, as the Nailers hung on for a 3-2 victory.

By The Numbers

5 – Number of points for Welychka in as many games

16 – Number of shots the Fuel allowed in the second period

30 – Longest amount of time that the Fuel had the lead (in seconds)

The post RECAP: Fuel Unable to Maintain Lead, Fall in Wheeling 3-2 appeared first on The Rink.

7:05 PM Eastern

WesBanco Arena

Watch Live: ECHL.TV

Team Statistics:

Power Play

Indy (16.5%, 14th)

Wheeling (20.9%, 4th)

Penalty Kill

Indy (85.2%, 7^th)

Wheeling (83.2%, 15^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game

Indy (28.19, 26^th – 32.58, 17^th)

Wheeling (32.34, 10^th – 28.60 – 5^th)

Shooting%

Indy (11.6%, 4^th)

Wheeling (10.9%, 7^th)

Avg. Height/Weight

Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs

Wheeling – 6’1”, 194 lbs    `

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are traveling to Wheeling following a 3-2 overtime loss in a bloodbath match against the Fort Wayne Komets.

Zach Miskovic was sucker punched multiple times by Komets forward Justin Hodgman and had to be taken off for eight stitches to his forehead. Radovan Bondra was also sucker punched at the bottom of a doggy pile by Komets forward Taylor Crunk.

Crunk was suspended four games and fined, along with Hodgman, who was also fined an undisclosed amount.

The Wheeling Nailers are coming off a 3-0 loss to the Utah Grizzlies at WesBanco Arena the night prior. Don’t sleep on this team though. In their last divisional game against the powerhouse Toledo Walleye, the Nailers beat the Walleye at Huntington Center in Toledo 8-2.

The Fuel are 3-2 this season against the Nailers. In Indy’s last game against Wheeling on Jan. 4, they defeated the Nailers 3-2 at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. Fuel defenseman Alex Brooks recorded a goal and an assist, while Ryan Rupert tallied two assists.

Wheeling’s leading point scorer against the Fuel, Nick Saracino, is still in the AHL with the Binghamton Devils. Saracino has recorded three goals and four assists in three games against Indy this season.

Players To Watch

Indy: Alex Brooks

The defenseman is Indy’s leading point scorer against the Nailers this year, with three goals and three assists in five games this season against Wheeling. Brooks was paired with Robert Powers last night against the Komets, amidst a depleted Indy defensive corp.

Wheeling: Renars Krastenbergs

This rookie has had a great season, thus far. Krastenbergs has five points in four games against Indy, and 21 points in 28 games overall, this season. We’ll see if Brooks and the Indy defense can stop this Wheeling offense.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Wheeling Nailers appeared first on The Rink.

7:35 PM Eastern

Indiana Farmers Coliseum

Watch Live: ECHL.TV

Team Statistics:

Power Play

Indy (15.8%, T-17th)

Fort Wayne (15.7%, T-19th)

Penalty Kill

Indy (84.8%, 10^th)

Fort Wayne (85.5%, 7^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game

Indy (27.94, 27^th – 32.71, 17^th)

Fort Wayne (30.15, 21^st – 28.76, T-5^th)

Shooting%

Indy (11.9%, T-3^rd)

Fort Wayne (10.0%, 16^th)

Avg. Height/Weight

Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs

Fort Wayne – 6’1”, 200 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are entering Friday’s game coming off a 4-2 win over the Kansas City Mavericks on Tuesday. Fuel goaltender Matt Tomkins was riding a shutout until the 17:41 mark of the third period. Kansas City added another goal with 11 seconds remaining in the game, when afterwards, Tomkins broke his stick on the crossbar.

Radovan Bondra was one of three multi-point performers in Tuesday’s game. Bondra tallied three assists, while Quentin Shore recorded a goal and two assists and Josh Shalla added a goal and an assist. Mathew Thompson and Brett Welychka also netted a goal each to round out the scoring for Indy.

The Komets ousted the Fuel in their last matchup 3-2 in Fort Wayne on Jan. 5. This also happened to be the last game the Komets have participated in. The Fuel are 1-4 this season against the Komets and 12-26-3-4 all-time.

Players To Watch

Indy: Matheson Iacopelli

Iacopelli has returned to the Fuel, after being sent down to Indy from the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs on Wednesday. The winger appeared in ten games with the Fuel last season, recording nine goals and an assist in that span. In 25 games this season with the IceHogs, the 24-year-old has tallied two goals and two assists.

Fort Wayne: Justin Hodgman

Hodgman is Fort Wayne’s leading scorer against the Fuel this year. In five games, he has recorded three goals and four assists, along with a +5 rating. The Fuel have had defensemen Neil Manning and Josh McArdle called up to Rockford recently, so we will see if this temporarily assembled defensive corps can stymie a potent Komets offense led by Hodgman.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Fort Wayne Komets appeared first on The Rink.

Matt Tomkins was the man in net to backstop the Fuel. Tomkins entered with a 13-10-0-0 record along with a 3.19 goals-against-average and a .906 save percentage.

At the other end, Jordan Ruby got the call for Wheeling. Ruby entered with a 3-1-1 record along a 2.77 goals-against-average and a .903 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Avery Peterson-Ryan Rupert-Logan Nelson

Miles Liberati-Zach Miskovic

Matt Tomkins

Kevin Dufour got the Fuel on the board first, just 4:13 in. A pass from Mathew Thompson put Dufour in all alone on Ruby, as he backhanded it home. That was Dufour’s 17^th of the season, which is tied for second in the ECHL.

Just 19 seconds into a Fuel power play, Alex Brooks wristed one past Ruby for the defenseman’s third goal in six games.

Renars Krastenbergs’ ninth of the season cut the Indy lead in half as he buried his second goal in as many games. His goal came from a sharp angle that just beat Tomkins on the short side after skating around the zone a while by himself.

Brett Welychka’s short side snipe on Ruby doubled the lead for the Fuel at 3-1. That was his fifth of the season.

Nailers forward Mark Petaccio made it 3-2 with five seconds left as they tried to mount a literal last-second comeback.

Quotebook

Welychka on the success of the special teams: “Special teams was a huge part of our success tonight. For us to put two in the back of the net on the power play is a huge confidence booster for us, especially going into Fort Wayne tomorrow. Obviously, a divisional rival and a tough rink to play in. You know that we’re going to get power plays [and] opportunities tomorrow. For us to capitalize tonight, [we’re] glad we did it but we’re looking forward to tomorrow and hopefully we can do the same.”

Head coach Bernie John on holding Wheeling to only three shots in the second period: “I think even the first period, I know they got nine or ten shots, but I don’t think they generated much. They might’ve been tired from…driving all day. But we took advantage of it, and we’re supposed to, and I think we were better than we were last night. Now, our whole goal is to win every week, so we’ve got an opportunity to go 3-1 for the week this week and put ourselves in a good spot after the week.”

By The Numbers

3 – Number of shots on goal for Wheeling in the second period

2 – Number of points for Brooks tonight. He has three goals in his last six games.

The post RECAP: Fuel Dominate Nailers in Huge 3-2 Victory appeared first on The Rink.

Team Statistics:

Power Play
Indy (15.2%, T-19th)
Wheeling (22.2%, 3rd)

Penalty Kill
Indy (83.3%, 17^th)
Wheeling (83.6%, T-13^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game
Indy (27.91, 26^th)
Wheeling (32.94, 6^th)

Shooting%
Indy (12.0%, 3^rd)
Wheeling (10.7%, 8^th)

Avg. Height/Weight
Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs
Wheeling – 6’1”, 195 lbs

Analysis:

The Fuel are coming off a 4-1 loss at the hands of their in-state rivals, the Fort Wayne Komets.

Matt Rupert and Miles Liberati both left the game with injuries. Both players had a bad limp after the game. It remains to be seen if there will be any roster moves made by head coach Bernie John ahead of tonight’s game.

The Nailers fell to the Toledo Walleye last night 6-2. Renars Krastenbergs and Troy Josephs got the lone goals for Wheeling.

The Fuel have split the season series with the Nailers so far, going 2-2 against the Wheeling club. The Fuel took the previous game against Wheeling, winning 5-2 at Indiana Farmers Coliseum on Dec. 27.

Wheeling’s top three point scorers (Nick Saracino, Cam Brown, and Kevin Spinozzi) are currently employed by AHL clubs.

Players To Watch

Indy: Josh Shalla

Shalla is Indy’s leading scorer against Wheeling this year and the team’s leading point-getter. Five of Shalla’s 29 points this season have come against the Nailers. The 27-year-old has only played in three of the Fuel’s four games against Wheeling this year.

Wheeling: Renars Krastenbergs

Krastenbergs is on a four-game point streak, tallying five points (1G, 4A) in that span. The 20-year-old rookie has a goal and three assists in three games against Indy so far this season.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Wheeling Nailers appeared first on The Rink.

Matt Tomkins got the starting call in net for Indy. The second-year pro was just named ECHL Goaltender of the Week for the second time this season and was named an ECHL Goaltender of the Month runner-up. Tomkins entered the matchup with a 13-9-0-0 record alongside a 3.16 goals-against-average and a .906 save percentage.

At the other end, Zachary Fucale got the start for the Komets. Fucale entered the game with an 8-5-0-1 along with a 2.99 goals-against-average and an .896 save percentage. Fucale just returned from a stint with Team Canada in the Spengler Cup.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Josh Shalla-Quentin Shore-Radovan Bondra

Robert Powers-Dmitry Osipov

Matt Tomkins

Justin Hodgman got the scoring started early for Fort Wayne as he roofed one over the shoulder of Tomkins. This gave the Komets an early 1-0 lead.

Former Komets forward Logan Nelson potted his fifth of the season just 1:32 into the second period. He picked up his own rebound after the initial shot was blocked by a Komets defender and ripped the puck five-hole on Fucale.

A pair of J.C. Campagna goals gave the Komets a two-goal lead as he netted his 15^th and 16^th of the season, one of which coming on the man advantage. Hodgman picked up primary assists on both Campagna goals.

Mason Baptista sealed the victory for the Komets on a breakaway, as his fourth of the season led the Komets to a 4-1 victory.

Quotebook

Nelson on the offense getting more shots on net lately: “It’s definitely something that we notice in the [locker] room. We talk about getting the puck on the net more and being heavy in the shot department. It creates offense and offensive zone faceoffs, which could lead to a penalty and a power play, you never know. It’s something that we talk about in the [locker] room and that we try to bring to our game.”

By The Numbers

40 – Number of shots on goal for the Komets

2 – Number of players that left with injures for the Fuel (Miles Liberati and Matt Rupert)

The post RECAP: Fuel fall 4-1 to Komets in big Central Division matchup appeared first on The Rink.

Team Statistics:

Power Play
Indy (15.6%, 18th)
Fort Wayne (16.1%, T-14th)

Penalty Kill
Indy (83.8%, 15^th)
Fort Wayne (84.3%, 12^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game
Indy (27.71, 27^th)
Fort Wayne (30.23, 22^nd)

Shooting%
Indy (12.3%, T-1^st)
Fort Wayne (10.0%, T-15^th)

Avg. Height/Weight
Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs
Fort Wayne – 6’1”, 201 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are coming off a 6-2 win over a Central Division opponent, the Kalamazoo Wings, on New Years’ Eve.

The Fuel exploded for four goals in the second period, collecting goals from four different players. Forward Ryan Rupert recorded a four-point outing and brother Matt Rupert netted two goals in the Monday matinee.

The Fort Wayne Komets are entering Thursday’s game with a 4-3 loss to the Brampton Beast on their minds. The Komets were trailing the Beast 4-0 going into the third period and attempted a third period comeback but fell just short.

The Fuel defeated the Komets 5-2 in Fort Wayne in their last outing to improve their head-to-head record to 1-2 this season. The last time the Komets visited Indiana Farmers Coliseum, they defeated the Fuel 3-1 in Indy’s home opener.

The Komets’ top three scorers against the Fuel are not currently on their roster. Forwards Phelix Martineau and Marc-Olivier Roy are employed by AHL teams while forward Garrett Ladd was traded to the Jacksonville IceMen.

It’s also worth noting that the Fuel’s most penalized game was their home opener against the Komets, in which they totaled 32 penalty minutes and a season-high two major penalties.

Players To Watch

Indy: Radovan Bondra

The 21-year-old has many places to improve in, but he has been showing his potential as of lately. Bondra has six points in his last five games, including two assists in the Fuel’s last game in Kalamazoo. We’ll see how he fares against Indy’s top rival tonight.

Fort Wayne: Justin Hodgman

Hodgman played in his first game following a two-game suspension on New Years’ Eve after he took a baseball swing at a Kalamazoo player on Dec. 27. The veteran is the top scorer in active players for the Komets against the Fuel this year with three points in three games.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Fort Wayne Komets appeared first on The Rink.

Matt Tomkins was back in the starter’s net Monday after resting in Saturday’s 5-2 loss to the Brampton Beast. Tomkins entered the matchup with a 12-9-0 record with a 3.21 goals-against-average and a .904 save percentage.

At the other end, former Fuel goaltender Jake Hildebrand backstopped the Wings club. Hildebrand had an 8-12-0 record along side a 3.66 goals-against-average and an .885 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Matt Rupert-Ryan Rupert-Logan Nelson

Alex Brooks-Neil Manning

Matt Tomkins

Kalamazoo got the scoring started first, as Chris Collins sniped Matt Tomkins from a sharp angle for his 13^th of the season.

Logan Nelson tied it for Indy as he snapped the puck past Hildebrand from the slot on the power play for his fourth of the season.

Reid Gardiner’s red-hot play scorched the Fuel as the defenseman collected his 15^th goal of the season 12:08 into the opening frame.

The second period was where the Fuel’s engine started to rev. Josh Shalla scored his 12^th of the season for Indy’s second power play goal of the afternoon.

The next three Indy goals came in less than five minutes, as Ryan Rupert, Matt Rupert and Avery Peterson all found the back of the net.

Ryan Rupert’s ninth of the season came on a feed from the corner by Josh Shalla, where he one-timed it past Hildebrand in the slot.

Matt Rupert was also unchecked in front of the net and was found by his brother Ryan less than four minutes later.

Avery Peterson picked up a rebound in front of the Kalamazoo net and buried his first professional goal to give the Fuel a 5-2 lead.

Tyler Biggs attempted to spark a late Kalamazoo comeback in the third period with a fight, but Dmitry Osipov was able to take him down.

Six minutes after the fight, Matt Rupert sealed the Fuel victory on a breakaway pass from his brother for his second goal of the night and Ryan Rupert’s fourth point.

To finish 2018, Avery Peterson squared up with Wings defenseman Ben Wilson and struck Wilson with an uppercut that dropped him to the ice.

By The Numbers

2 – Number of power play goals for the Fuel

4 – Number of points for Ryan Rupert in the afternoon

1 – Peterson scored his first professional goal and engaged in his first professional fight

The post RECAP: Ryan Rupert has four-point afternoon, Fuel romp Wings 6-2 appeared first on The Rink.

Team Statistics:

Power Play
Indy (15.0%, 21st)
Kalamazoo (15.6%, T-16th)

Penalty Kill
Indy (83.5%, 14^th)
Kalamazoo (83.2%, 15^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game
Indy (27.60, 27^th – 32.73, 17^th)
Kalamazoo (30.16, 22^nd – 33.48, 19^th)

Shooting%
Indy (12.1%, T-2^nd)
Kalamazoo (10.6%, 11^th)

Avg. Height/Weight
Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs
Kalamazoo – 6’1”. 193 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are coming off a tough 5-2 loss at the hands of the Brampton Beast. This loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Fuel.

The Beast went off for a four-goal third period, including two from forward Nathan Todd to snap their six-game losing streak

The Wings are coming off a 5-4 loss to the Toledo Walleye at home. Kalamazoo forward Chris Collins had a two-point night but it was not enough for the Wings, as newly acquired Walleye defenseman Connor Schmidt recorded two goals.

The Fuel are 3-1 against Kalamazoo this season, as they look to end 2018 with a win in Michigan. The last time out in Kalamazoo, Kevin Dufour recorded two goals as the Fuel defeated the Wings 5-4. Quentin Shore also added a goal and two assists.

In the same game, Fuel captain Zach Miskovic was boarded by Wings forward Zach Saar. Miskovic was taken off on a stretcher and treated at a local hospital. Miskovic rejoined his teammates at Wings Event Center later that night and thanked the medical staff for their help on Twitter. Miskovic remains out until he is cleared by doctors. Saar was issued a boarding major and a game misconduct on the play. He was also suspended one game and fined an undisclosed amount by the league.

Players To Watch

Indy: Olivier Labelle

Labelle was my player to watch in the last game, but for good reason. He now has nine points in his last seven games. The 33-year-old had two assists in the Fuel’s last game in Kalamazoo and has three goals and three assists in four games against the Wings this season. Look for him to have a solid game today in Kalamazoo.

Kalamazoo: Chris Collins

Collins is Kalamazoo’s leading scorer with 32 points in 31 games. He also happens to be their leading scorer against the Fuel with six points in four games. The 26-year-old has five points in his last four games. Collins is a rookie so it’s even more impressive given the season he has had so far. We’ll see if he can continue his great start to the season on New Years’ Eve.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Kalamazoo Wings appeared first on The Rink.

Jason Pawloski saw action for just the third time this season. Pawloski was off to a shaky start to the season coming into their game against the Beast. The rookie netminder was 0-2 with a 6.00 goals-against-average and a .778 save percentage.

Austin Lotz got the start in net for the Beast. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native entered with a 1-6-1 record alongside a 3.92 goals-against average and a .886 save percentage. Those eight games were split evenly between the Reading Royals and the Beast.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Olivier Labelle-Mathew Thompson-Kevin Dufour

Robert Powers-Dmitry Osipov

Jason Pawloski

Just 54 seconds in, Alex Brooks found the back of the net for the Fuel for his third of the season. Brooks’ shot went off Lotz’s pad and deflected in to give Indy the early lead. The assists on the goal were credited to Quentin Shore and Josh Shalla.

With 1:45 left in the opening frame, former Fuel forward Anthony Beauregard buried his sixth of the season on a cross-crease pass from Francois Beauchemin. Beuaregard’s late goal tied the game at one.

After a quiet second period, the Beast exploded with four goals in the third period. The Canadian club got two goals from Nathan Todd and one each from Matt Petgrave and Austin McEneny.

Mathew Thompson got one back for the Fuel with 1:18 remaining in the game. That made the defeat look a little less embarrassing at 5-2.

Quotebook

Fuel head coach Bernie John on Pawloski’s performance: “He was fine. He doesn’t get to play a lot and he’s just been buying his time. For the time being, what he’s been doing, he’s been doing fine. We’ll evaluate everybody, but he’s okay. He’s just got to make sure to keep practicing hard the way he does and keep doing the things he has to do and keep himself ready. It’s hard when you’re not playing to do that and just really practicing. Sometimes we’ve had three goalies here when [Kevin] Lankinen’s down and stuff like that. It’s a tough process for a goaltender but that’s the way this league is.”

By The Numbers

8 – Number of losses for the Fuel against Brampton all-time. That also happens to be the number of meetings the two teams have had.

1 – Number of games left for the Fuel in 2018. They face the Kalamazoo Wings on New Year’s Eve at Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

The post RECAP: Beast Score Four in Third Period, Rout Fuel 5-2 appeared first on The Rink.

Team Statistics:

Power Play
Indy (15.2%, 19th)
Brampton (15.4%, 18th)

Penalty Kill
Indy (83.2%, 16^th)
Brampton (82.8%, 20^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game
Indy (24.79, 26^th – 32.79, 17^th)
Brampton (33.74, 5^th – 32.97, 18^th)

Shooting%
Indy (12.2%, 2^nd)
Brampton (9.3%, 19^th)

Avg. Height/Weight
Indy – 6’1”, 195 lbs
Brampton – 6’0”, 193 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are coming off a couple of huge 5-2 wins over division rivals, including the ECHL-leading Cincinnati Cyclones.

Ryan Rupert struck twine twice for Indy in the third period to seal the three-goal victory. That was the fifth straight game in which the Fuel had scored five goals.

This is the first meeting between these two clubs this year. They have met seven times before and the Fuel have failed to win any of them, going 0-6-1-0.

The Beast are on a cold stretch right now, losing their last six games in regulation. Their most recent loss came at the hands of the Toledo Walleye at Huntington Center in Ohio. They attempted a comeback in the final period but came up short in a 7-4 loss.

Beast goaltender Jake Paterson was called up to the AHL’s Belleville Senators two days ago. Paterson went 4-9-1 with a 3.52 goals-against-average and an .896 save percentage.

Players To Watch

Indy: Olivier Labelle

Labelle is due for a breakout game. The 33-year-old has been the Fuel’s gritty goal-scorer all year but hasn’t had the show-stealing type game. I think he’s going to be very physical against Brampton and he’s going to try to knock their offensive-style game off-center. His veteran presence is going to be very crucial as Brampton is a very experienced team. With Zach Miskovic out, it is up to Labelle to rally the team against a very skilled Beast team.

Brampton: David Pacan

Pacan has been a thorn in many ECHL team’s sides over the years. He is doing it once again this year, with 16 goals and 15 assists in 31 games. The improved Fuel defense should have their hands full with Brampton’s offensive firepower, including Pacan and Brandon Marino. Pacan has scored twice in his last five games.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Brampton Beast appeared first on The Rink.

Jonas Johansson got the start at the other end for the Cyclones. Johansson came into the game red-hot, leading the Cincinnati club to points in his last six starts. He boasted a 10-3-1-2 record to go with two shutouts coming into Friday’s match. He also had a 2.53 goals-against-average and a .913 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Matt Rupert-Ryan Rupert-Logan Nelson

Neil Manning-Alex Brooks

Matt Tomkins

A fast-paced first period got started early as former Indy Fuel forward Alex Wideman got the scoring started for the Cyclones 8:30 in. He took a drop pass from defenseman Arvin Atwal and sniped it over Tomkins’ right shoulder to give Cincinnati an early 1-0 lead.

Less than four minutes later, Quentin Shore sniped one bar down on a pass from Brett Welychka to tie the game at one for Indy.

A minute and a half later, Radovan Bondra dangled around a Cincinnati defender and fed a pass to Matt Rupert where he shot his 12^th goal of the season over the shoulder of Johansson to give the Fuel a one-goal lead.

Just over two minutes in, Welychka was able to sneak past the Cyclones defense and slip the puck through Johansson’s pads on a breakaway to give the Fuel a two-goal lead.

Jesse Schultz’s ninth of the season came 7:05 into the period on a feed from Wideman to cut the Fuel lead back down to 3-2.

Ryan Rupert added two goals himself in the third period to seal a 5-2 victory for the Fuel over the league-leading Cyclones.

Quotebook

Welychka on the Fuel’s three-game winning streak and momentum moving forward: “Any time you put a couple wins together, it’s definitely huge, especially in the locker room. The mentality and morale in the room changes completely. Any individual and athlete will tell you that. I think our leaders and our core group do a good job of not letting us get too antsy and just try to keep humble and chip away at it.”

Fuel head coach Bernie John on trying to finish the homestand 3-0: “Obviously, it’s big. The crowds have been phenomenal the last two nights and I know it’s going to be phenomenal again tomorrow. It’d be nice to be able to give them some smiles to go home with. We know it’s going to be hard work. We know Brampton’s got a good offensive hockey team, they’ve got some skill and they’re going to be hungry. They suffered a loss in Toledo the other night, so they’re going to be ready to go. We’ve got to play the same way and not change anything. I liked our depth tonight. The Thompson line doesn’t score but then the Shore line scores a couple and Rupert’s line scored a couple. That’s how we’re going to win, everybody’s got to contribute.”

By The Numbers

5 – Number of consecutive five-goal outings for the Fuel

26 – Point totals of Kevin Dufour, Olivier Labelle, and Josh Shalla; all three are tied for the team lead in points

The post RECAP: Ryan Rupert scores two, Fuel defeat first-place Cyclones 5-2 appeared first on The Rink.

Team Statistics:
Power Play
Indy (14.6%, 21st)
Cincinnati (13.1%, 23rd)

Penalty Kill
Indy (82.8%, T-17^th)
Cincinnati (88.0%, 1^st)

Shots For/Against Per Game
Indy (27.96, 26th – 32.82, 17th)
Cincinnati (31.34, 18th – 28.93, 5th)

Shooting%
Indy (11.9%, T-3^rd)
Cincinnati (12.0%, 2^nd)

Avg. Height/Weight
Indy – 6’1”, 194 lbs
Cincinnati – 6’0”, 191 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are entering the second game of a three-game home stand with a 5-2 win over the red-hot Wheeling Nailers the night before. That was the club’s fourth straight five-goal outing.

Kevin Dufour recorded his third straight multi-goal game on Thursday with two goals, while Olivier Labelle, Alex Brooks, and Neil Manning added two points to their stat lines.

The Fuel are 2-2-0-0 against the Cyclones this year. This will be the third matchup between the two clubs in Indiana this year. Cincinnati has yet to win a game against the Fuel in Indy this season.

In their first meeting this year, the Fuel defeated Cincinnati 4-1 at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. Matt Tomkins made 39 saves in that matchup. The last time out against the Cyclones, goaltender Jonas Johansson shutout the Fuel 3-0 on Indy’s home ice. That was the Fuel’s first time being shutout in over two years.

The Fuel have another tough task on Friday as the Cyclones are currently leading the ECHL with a 20-5-2-2 record. Two of the five Cincinnati regulation losses have come from the hands of the Fuel, though.

This is the Cyclones’ first game since before the holiday break. In their last outing, they defeated the Allen Americans 4-3, led by a 48 save performance by Johansson.

Cyclones forward Vasili Glotov was called up by the AHL’s Rochester Americans on Wednesday. Glotov is one of the hottest rookies in the ECHL so far this season and one of Cincinnati’s leading scorers, with 21 points in 29 games. The 21-year-old Russian scored the game-winner for the Ohio club in their last game against the Americans. The center is also one of Cincinnati’s leading scorers against Indy this season, with four assists in four games against the Fuel.

Players To Watch

Indy: Kevin Dufour

The 26-year-old has been on fire lately, tallying nine points (7G, 2A) in his last five games. The Quebec native is also the Fuel’s leading scorer against the Cyclones this season, with a goal and three assists in three games.

Dufour is now tied with Labelle for the team-lead in points (26) and leads the team in goals (16). Dufour’s 16 goals is tied for fifth in the ECHL.

Cincinnati: Brady Vail

Vail is second on the Cyclones in points (27) and is tied with Justin Vaive for the team lead in goals (12). The four-year ECHL veteran is on a four-game point streak, tallying four points in that span.

The product of Hendersonville, North Carolina is Cincinnati’s leading scorer against the Fuel this season with three goals and two assists in four games.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Cincinnati Cyclones appeared first on The Rink.

At the other end for the Nailers, Matt O’Connor got the start. The 26-year-old netminder boasted a 7-2-1 record and a 2.48 goals-against-average and a .914 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Josh Shalla – Quentin Shore – Brett Welychka

Alex Brooks – Neil Manning

Matt Tomkins

Olivier Labelle got the goal-scoring started early, as he put home a bouncing puck 51 seconds in to give the Fuel an early 1-0 lead. That was Labelle’s 11^th of the season and the assists went to Shalla and Neil Manning.

And just like that Olivier Labelle makes it 1-0 Fuel on a bouncing puck in front. 51 seconds in.

— Evan Miller (@evanfmiller) December 28, 2018

Just over halfway through the opening frame, the Nailers tied it up at one. Josh Couturier buried his first professional goal on a cross-crease one-timer from Zac Lynch.

Defenseman Alex Brooks re-took the one-goal lead for the Fuel just over two minutes later, as he made his way down the wing to tally his second goal of the season. Manning recorded his second assist of the first period on the goal.

Alex Brooks re-takes the Fuel lead. 2-1.

— Evan Miller (@evanfmiller) December 28, 2018

Kevin Dufour continued to stay hot as he dangled his way past the Wheeling defense and stuck with the play by burying his own rebound while falling. Dufour’s team-leading 15^th goal of the season gave the Fuel a 3-1 lead.

3-1 Fuel. What. A. Goal. Kevin Dufour is filthy ladies and gentlemen.

— Evan Miller (@evanfmiller) December 28, 2018

The second period came and went as it began, as the Fuel were able to hang on to a 3-1 lead. A quick skirmish between Labelle and Mark Petaccio was the most action see in the middle frame.

The final frame started with yet another beautiful goal from Dufour to make it 4-1 Indy. Dufour’s 16^th of the year came on a goal where he blew around the Nailers’ defenseman and tucked it past O’Connor.

And another two-goal game for Kevin Dufour. Wow. Speed. 4-1 Fuel.

— Evan Miller (@evanfmiller) December 28, 2018

Yushiroh Hirano tipped in a Renars Krastenbergs shot from the left circle on the power play to cut the Fuel lead in half 13:33 into the third period.

An empty netter sealed the deal for the Fuel as Ryan Rupert shot home his sixth of the season to lead the Fuel to a 5-2 victory over the hottest team in the ECHL.

Ryan Rupert puts in an empty netter. 5-2 Fuel with 16.9 remaining.

— Evan Miller (@evanfmiller) December 28, 2018

Quotebook

Brooks on playing with five defensemen: “Going into it, we just tried stay simple, keep people in front of us, get pucks going north and just really not try to get running around too much. We simplified our game and I think it showed with a nice 5-2 win there.”

John on the consistency of the Labelle-Thompson-Dufour line: “It’s good. They’re playing at a high level right now. Dufour’s feeling it. He’s feeling confident. I think Thompson’s taken a big step here. He’s been playing the right way. Then, you’ve got a grinder like Labelle.  I think what we’ve done here, you look at our lines, we’ve got three lines that can contribute. We’ve got, I think, a guy on each line that has double-digit goals, if not more and they’re all doing the same thing. So, if we can keep that and that’s what we want to have, that balance because you want to be able to put one line out there and they can shut it down. We know if [the other team] puts their top line out there against the Dufour line, we’ll be all right with the other lines we’ve got. They can compete and score goals for us, so we’ve got to keep doing that.”

By The Numbers

3 – Number of consecutive multi-goal games for Dufour

16 – Number of goals for Dufour this year (T-5^th in the ECHL)

4 – Consecutive 5-goal outings for the Fuel

The post RECAP: Dufour continues multi-goal streak, Fuel defeat red-hot Nailers 5-2 appeared first on The Rink.

Team Statistics:

Power Play
Indy (15.1%, 21st)
Wheeling (20.7%, 3^rd)

Penalty Kill
Indy (83.1%, 20^th)
Wheeling (85.7%, 8^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game
Indy (28.0, 26^th – 32.7, 17^th)
Wheeling (32.8, 8th – 28.5, 4^th)

Shooting%
Indy (11.6%, T-3rd)
Wheeling (10.9%, T-8^th)

Avg. Height/Weight
Indy – 6’1”, 194 lbs
Wheeling – 6’1”, 195 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are looking to keep rolling following a 5-4 victory in Kalamazoo against their division rivals, the Kalamazoo Wings.

In that game, captain Zach Miskovic was taken off on a stretcher following a hit from behind that was delivered by Wings forward Zach Saar. Saar was suspended for one game and fined an undisclosed amount by the ECHL.

Miskovic was released from the hospital and rejoined his teammates at Wings Event Center after the game. The veteran defenseman thanked the trainers and medical staff on Twitter for their help that night.

Thank you to all the medical staff and hospital staff that took care of me this evening. https://t.co/ZNh80j2vdH

— Zach Miskovic (@ZachMiskovic) December 23, 2018

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The Fuel are 1-2 this season against the Wheeling club. In their first game in Wheeling, the Fuel spoiled their home opener with a five-goal second period which carried them to a 5-3 victory.

The last two meetings in West Virginia went in Wheeling’s favor as they defeated the Fuel by a four-goal margin both times.

The Wheeling Nailers continue to be one of the hottest teams in the ECHL. They are coming in to Indiana Farmers Coliseum riding an eight-game point streak and winning eight of their last nine. They are also on a three-game road winning streak which is going to make this an even bigger challenge for the Fuel.

If there is a silver lining in all this, it would be that Nailers forward Nick Saracino just got sent up to the Binghamton Devils of the AHL. Saracino is second in the league in points (37) and was just named ECHL Player of the Week for the second time in three weeks.

Players To Watch

Indy: Labelle-Thompson-Dufour line

There is more than one player that is feeling it right now for the Fuel. This whole line has been on fire and is responsible for Indy’s five-goal outings in their last two games.

The line was first put together two games ago when they faced the Toledo Walleye on Dec. 21. Forward Mathew Thompson had just returned from injury and replaced newly acquired forward Avery Peterson as center on the line.

The line has combined for 12 points in the last two games.

Forward Kevin Dufour has scored two goals in each of the last two games and has seven points (5G, 2A) in his past four games.

Thirty-three-year-old Olivier Labelle has showed no signs of slowing down this year. He has six points (2G, 4A) in four games.

To cap it off, Thompson had a four-point outing (2G, 2A) when the line was first formed by head coach Bernie John in their game against the Walleye.

Wheeling: Cam Brown

It’s hard to tell if Brown’s success has been because of Saracino’s presence on the ice. Nevertheless, Brown has been red-hot lately.

The 25-year-old is the active point leader on the Nailers with 32 points in 28 games. Brown has six straight multi-point games and at least one point in his last ten games. In three of those ten games, he has three or more points. In two of those three games, he has had four-point outings.

The Fuel’s defense, along with goaltender Matt Tomkins, is going to have to be sharp tonight in front of a blazing hot Nailers’ offense.

The post PREVIEW: Indy Fuel vs. Wheeling Nailers appeared first on The Rink.

Kaden Fulcher got the start in goal for the Walleye on Friday. It was the first time that the Fuel had faced the 20-year-old netminder. Fulcher came into the game with a 7-2-1 record with a 2.74 goals against average and a .908 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Matt Rupert – Ryan Rupert – Logan Nelson

Zach Miskovic – Josh McArdle

Matt Tomkins

The Walleye got off to a fast start in Indy as defenseman Ryan Obuchowski buried his second of the year on a nice feed from TJ Hensick. That goal came just 42 seconds after the opening puck drop.

Less than a minute later, Mathew Thompson got it right back for the Fuel for his fifth goal of the season. Defensemen Alex Brooks and Neil Manning got the helpers on Thompson’s first goal back from an injury.

The Rupert twins joined the first period goal scoring party next less than two minutes after the Thompson goal. Ryan Rupert ripped his fifth of the season home on a pass from his twin brother, Matt Rupert.

Kevin Dufour’s 11^th of the season came on a breakaway pass from Thompson. The puck squeezed through Fulcher’s pads to make it 3-1 8:49 into the game.

Greg Wolfe got one back for the Walleye as he tallied his eighth of the season on a one-timer from Hensick.

Kevin Tansey capitalized on a Fuel turnover and evened the game up for Toledo as the 25-year-old wired home his sixth of the season while falling to the ice.

The most impressive play of the night, though, was not recorded on the scoresheet. Fuel winger Kevin Dufour chased the puck down from the opposite blue line to beat out Kelly Cup winning defenseman Matt Register to negate a sure-fire icing call.

The Walleye caught fire late in the third period, however, as they scored three goals in a matter of 1:54, including a penalty shot from AJ Jenks and an empty netter by Hensick. Dufour answered back with 54 seconds to make it 6-5 Toledo but the last-minute comeback fell short as the Walleye took their first game in Indy in the 2018-19 season.

Quotebook

• Thompson on his return from a minor injury: “It was good. [We] got a lot of chances. [Olivier Labelle] and [Dufour] definitely helped me out. We were able to get a lot of offensive zone time, which makes the game easy. It was only two games, so I didn’t feel too rusty or anything. It was easy to bounce back.”
• Thompson on his line mate Dufour’s speed: “He’s got next-level speed. It makes the game easy for me. You can put the pucks in certain areas and certain spots and you know he’s going to win those races. It makes the game easier for everyone around him and certainly easier for himself. He utilizes it well and he definitely did tonight.”
• Fuel head coach Bernie John on Tomkins’ play and the lack of help he has had: “None of that is on Tomkins. It’s all on everybody else. We’re not playing well defensively and we’re not doing the right things. We’re just getting away from our game. We make ourselves defend so much. We have the puck and instead of getting it to our forwards and getting it out, we want to try to make an extra D-to-D pass and then there’s a fumble and something happens along the boards or a bad bounce and now we’re defending in our zone and now we have to play in our zone for another 30-40 seconds. That’s not the way we play. We play pucks north and we just got to get it through [the players’] minds that that’s the way we play.”

By The Numbers

• 4 – Number of points for Thompson on Friday against Toledo
• 12 – Shots on goal for the Fuel after two periods
• 2 – Number of goals for Dufour and Thompson

The post RECAP: Fuel’s Third Period Breakdown Leads to Devastating 6-5 Loss to Walleye appeared first on The Rink.

At the other end, John Muse got the start for the Wheeling Nailers. Muse had started in two games for Wheeling, prior to Saturday. Coming into the Nailers’ home opener on Saturday, the 30-year-old had posted a 1-1-0 record with a 2.89 goals-against-average and a .914 save percentage.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Matt Rupert-Ryan Rupert-Olivier Labelle

Alex Brooks-Neil Manning

Kevin Lankinen

The Fuel got out to yet another shaky start on Saturday. Wheeling got out to a 1-0 lead 16:48 into the opening frame on an unassisted tally by Troy Josephs.

About two minutes later, Zac Lynch ripped a shot over the shoulder of Lankinen as the Fuel found themselves in yet another first-period deficit.

On the ensuing faceoff after the Lynch goal, Anthony Collins and Brad Drobot had a much-anticipated heavyweight fight. This seemed to have spark Indy in the second period.

Fuel captain Zach Miskovic found himself in the box to start the middle frame as he was called for a slashing penalty at the end of the first.

This did not seem to faze the Fuel penalty kill. Connor Moynihan netted his second shorthanded goal of the season on a 2-on-1 rush with Mathew Thompson. This cut the Nailers’ lead in half early.

Kevin Dufour recorded his first of two goals in the game just 40 seconds after the Moynihan tally to tie the game up at two early in the second period. Josh Shalla tallied an assist on the goal which allowed him to continue a season-long point streak, which extends nine games.

A little over four minutes later, Dufour found the back of the net again for his third of the season on a feed from Brooks. This gave the Fuel a 3-2 lead, their first lead of the game.

The Fuel’s power play was the next unit to find the back of the net for Indy. Labelle was able to bury a cross-crease pass from Shalla for his team-leading fifth goal of the season to double the Fuel lead.

Next up on the goal queue was Shalla. Moynihan was able to feed him on the rush to extend the Fuel lead to 5-2.

This is the second time this season that the Fuel were able to net five goals in one period, which is the most goals in a period in the ECHL this season.

Josephs quickly responded to Shalla’s tally on the power play for Wheeling. This was his second goal of the game and it cut the Fuel lead to 5-3.

The chippiness picked up a bit more in the third period with scattered scuffles after whistles. The Fuel were still able to spoil the Nailers’ home opener with a 5-3 victory.

This was Wheeling’s first regulation home opener loss since 2010. They were 6-0-1 in their past seven home openers and 18-5-1 all-time in opening games at home.

By The Numbers

• 9 – The length of Shalla’s point streak. The 27-year-old has 14 points (4G, 10A) in nine games.
• 2 – The number of wins and games played for Lankinen. The netminder has played outstanding in his past two starts and the Finnish goaltender has a bright future.
• 5 – The number of goals Labelle has. The 13-year veteran took the team lead in goals on Saturday with a power-play goal. This turned out to be the game-winner.

The post RECAP: Fuel’s Second-Period Surge Leads to Impressive 5-3 Win appeared first on The Rink.

7:05 PM Eastern

WesBanco Arena

Watch Live: ECHL.TV

Team Statistics:

Power Play

Indy (19.4%, 8^th)

Wheeling (23.5%, 3^rd)

Penalty Kill

Indy (84.6%, 13^th)

Wheeling (81.3%, 19^th)

Shots For/Against Per Game

Indy (28.9, 24^th – 33.4, T-18^th)

Wheeling (37.5, 2^nd – 31.3, 16^th)

Shooting%

Indy (12.2%, 2^nd)

Wheeling (6.0%, 27^th)

Avg. Height/Weight

Indy – 6’1”, 192 lbs

Wheeling – 6’1”, 192 lbs

Analysis:

The Indy Fuel are looking to bounce back from a 5-2 loss at the hands of their in-state rivals, the Fort Wayne Komets. This is the Fuel’s third game in as many days and their fourth in five days.

The Fuel go into this game at .500 for the second time this season. The last time they were at .500 was on Thursday when they defeated the Utah Grizzlies 4-1.

The Wheeling Nailers are looking to recover from a 5-2 loss themselves to the Reading Royals.

The Nailers are playing in their home opener tonight, as they look to improve on a 1-3 record, which is good for last in the league. Their lone win came in a shootout against the Royals.

Players To Watch

Indy: Josh Shalla

Shalla is going to look to continue his season-long point streak, in which he has recorded 11 points (3G, 8A) in eight games. He is currently tied for ninth in the league in points.

Wheeling: Winston Day Chief

Day Chief has always had the Fuel’s number. The 30-year-old played with the Cincinnati Cyclones last season, which meant that he saw Indy quite a lot in Central Division matchups.

The forward has recorded a goal and an assist in three games with the Nailers so far this season. Last season with the Cyclones, Day Chief put up 22 goals and seven assists in 60 games.

The post Preview: Indy Fuel vs. Wheeling Nailers appeared first on The Rink.

Tomkins has led the Fuel to a 3-1 record so far this year, all over divisional opponents, including two this past weekend against the Cincinnati Cyclones and the Toledo Walleye.

SAVE OF THE WEEK (powered by @IPLPower) – The Goalie of the Week gave us plenty to choose from over the weekend, but how could you not pick a breakaway in overtime? pic.twitter.com/UiuhI4M4UU

— Indy Fuel (@IndyFuel) October 23, 2018

The 24-year-old from Edmonton, Alberta, finished the week with a 1.92 goals-against-average and a .947 save percentage.

In four games so far this year, Tomkins has recorded a 2.47 goals-against-average and a .926 save percentage while facing the 10th-most shots against per game (34.00).

Matt Tomkins with a big stop to keep @IndyFuel tied with @ToledoWalleye at 2 midway through the third period pic.twitter.com/YDuEh87sYo

— ECHL (@ECHL) October 21, 2018

The Fuel and IceHogs are in a bit of a logjam currently goaltender-wise. Check out Mario Tirabassi’s article on the goaltending situation here.

The post Fuel’s Matt Tomkins Named ECHL Goaltender of the Week appeared first on The Rink.

In those three games, the Fuel have averaged just over four goals per game. Despite averaging four goals per game, the Fuel are averaging only 24 shots per game.

“Even if you listen to the NHL guys, it’s not all about shots,” Indy Fuel Head Coach Bernie John said. “It’s about getting grade-A chances and we’re getting grade-A chances. Do we want more shots? Yes, we want more shots. We want to get pucks to the net, put pressure on goaltenders to make saves and on teams to defend but we like our chances when we get the right grade-A’s.”

It’s not just forwards that are scoring for the Fuel either. Rookie defenseman Robert Powers has four points in three games for Indy, which puts him tied for second in defenseman points and tied for third among rookie scorers in the ECHL. The offensive defenseman has found himself in on the rush while doing his job defensively to allow goaltender Matt Tomkins to play his game.

Tomkins has looked greatly improved since last season, most notably putting up a 39-save performance in their Friday night victory and earning the first star of the game. Tomkins wasn’t quite ready to take all the credit for his performance, though.

“Yeah, that was huge,” Tomkins said when asked about how his defense contributed to his performance. “Obviously, we were on our heels a little bit to start the game there but once we got rolling it was good.”

The first period has not been the Fuel’s friend to start the season. In their first three games, the club has been outscored 4-3 and outshot 32-22 in the opening frame.

“[It’s been] two games in a row where we’ve laid an egg a little bit in the first period and then we come back [in] the second and third and it’s more of an even game and it’s a little bit better,” John said.

The Fuel’s power play has been far from stellar as well, but their penalty kill has proved to be a key reason for their recent success. The power play has gone 3-for-15 (20.0%), with all three goals coming in their 8-4 rout over the Kalamazoo Wings. The penalty kill, on the other hand, has gone 17-for-19 (89.5), which is second behind many teams that have yet to allow a power-play goal.

The Fuel have even started to see an edge to their game that they haven’t seen in previous years. Big bodies, such as Anthony Collins, Connor Moynihan, and Dmitry Osipov were brought in to protect some of their young studs.

“We’ve got a couple of big boys, we got a lot of guys who like to stand up for the team, and that’s huge because it gives us other guys that are a little softer some extra space,” Fuel forward Josh Shalla said.

The Fuel take on the Toledo Walleye (1-1-0-0) Saturday night at Indiana Farmers Coliseum for another Central Division matchup at 7:35 PM.

The post What’s Been Clicking: Indy Fuel Continue Hot Start to Season appeared first on The Rink.

The 22-year-old netminder attended Minnesota State University, where he backstopped their team for three seasons. Most recently, as a junior in 2017-18, he boasted a 6-3 record with two shutouts, 2.57 goals against average, and a .895 save percentage.

Kyle Hayton got the starting call for the Fort Wayne Komets on Friday but ended up splitting time with two-time Kelly Cup Championship winner Lukas Hafner. Hayton came to Fort Wayne following a stellar college career at St. Lawrence University and the University of Wisconsin. The Denver, Colorado native was a Hobey Baker nominee and named the ECAC Goaltender of the Year in 2016-17.

Hafner’s ECHL career began in 2015-16 when he played five games with Alaska, coming straight out of Western Michigan University. The 26-year-old most recently won a Kelly Cup with the Colorado Eagles last year.

FUEL STARTING LINEUP

Josh Shalla–Quentin Shore–Radovan Bondra

Neil Manning–Alex Brooks

Pawloski

It is possible that Fuel head coach Bernie John told his players to come out of the gates swinging. Fuel forward Anthony Collins took that message to heart and started swinging his fists with Chase Stewart just three minutes into the period for the first fight of the Fuel’s season.

Shortly after a Komets penalty expired, the Fuel found the back of the net for the first time in the 2018-19 season just under 13 minutes into the game. 13-year veteran Olivier Labelle was able to bury a backdoor pass from Ryan McGrath to give the Fuel a 1-0 lead.

Less than three minutes later, the Fuel’s powerplay struck twine on a strike from Shalla. The 27-year-old winger is the Fuel’s all-time leading goal scorer, netting 50 goals in 90 games with the club.

The Komets quickly struck back, though, as Charley Graaskamp cleaned up a rebound from a Kevin Gibson point shot to cut the Fuel’s lead in half and end the first-period scoring.

The Komets struck first early in the middle frame, as Taylor Crunk buried one past Pawloski. The play was set up by defenseman Jeff King as he dangled past the Fuel defense to feed Crunk in the goalmouth.

The power play success did not bleed over into the second period. After a slashing penalty called on the Komets, the Fuel’s power-play unit saw themselves chasing the Komets’ penalty kill all over the ice until Shalla took a penalty of his own 50 seconds into the man advantage.

Back and forth play continued, with a bit of an aggressive edge occurring in the third period by both teams. Neither team was able to find the back of the net in regulation, though, to break the 2-2 tie. This tie commenced 3-on-3 overtime at Indiana Farmers Coliseum.

The best look of the overtime period came from Shalla who dangled between a Komet defender’s legs but was unable to corral the puck after. After some solid chances from both teams in the five-minute period, the final buzzer sounded to send the two teams to a shootout.

The Komets struck first in the shootout, as defenseman Ryan Lowney was able to put the puck through Pawloski’s five-hole to give the Komets a 1-0 shootout lead after the second round.

After a goal from Shore for the Fuel, Justin Hodgman ripped a slap shot past Pawloski to seal a 3-2 comeback victory for the Komets.

What We Learned

• Brett Welychka had a fantastic game after being sent down from Rockford. He has unlimited potential and could be a top AHL player or depth NHL player in the next couple of years with the right development.
• Pawloski had a great game, stopping 25 of 27 Fort Wayne shots. He will be a solid backup behind Matt Tomkins when he is here and can also be a great starter in the rotation or if Tomkins gets recalled to the IceHogs.
• Kevin Dufour was a great offseason acquisition from the Wichita Thunder. He is a solid second line winger who can create odd-man rushes.
• Robert Powers is still raw. It is just one preseason game, after all, but in the small sample size we have, Powers didn’t play up to potential. He missed a couple of passes and needs to work on his puck control but a lot of that has to do with the chemistry of the team right now. His development will come with time.
• Not sold just yet on Shore. The Fuel acquired him late in the offseason. He had his moments for sure, ending his first game with the club with an assist, five shots on goal, and the lone shootout goal for Indy. He still has room for growth, but something about his game just didn’t click. Like the situation with Powers, it is still a very small sample size, limited chemistry, and it was just the first game of the season.
• Labelle and Bondra bring an intensity to the game that the Fuel need. When Matt Rupert and Ryan Rupert enter the lineup, it will be interesting to see how they mold with the playing styles of Labelle and Bondra. Along with an aggressive behavior on the ice, all four are capable of scoring, with Bondra and the Ruperts putting a little more emphasis on defense.

The post RECAP: Fuel debut new-look roster, fall 3-2 to Komets appeared first on The Rink.

McInnis, 28, returns to the Fuel after joining the club last season in November. McInnis tallied 18 goals and 34 points in 57 games with Indy last season, playing on the third line alongside last season’s team MVP Ryan Rupert and Matt Rupert. The gritty forward was also the recipient of the Fuel’s 2017-18 Game Changer award. The award was selected by head coach Bernie John and assistant coach Ryan McGinnis. The Boston, MA native brings four seasons of ECHL experience to the Fuel, playing for five other teams around the league. McInnis played three seasons in Orlando, serving as the Solar Bears’ assistant captain in 2016-17 before being traded to the Utah Grizzlies just 13 games into the season.

McInnis brings a great two-way game to the Fuel for this coming season. One play that sticks out in my mind is when McInnis blocked two shots at the end of the last game of the regular season against the Kalamazoo Wings. Those two blocked shots saved the game and perhaps the season for Indy. Not only can he play on the defensive end, but he brings a gritty play to the offensive zone. He puts his body in front of the net to screen the goaltender for shots coming in from the point, something the Fuel have not done much of in the past.

Dufour, 25, will be coming to Indianapolis for the first time in his career, after playing for three other ECHL teams in the past. The Bowling Green State University alum is entering his second full season in the league, playing for the Wichita Thunder for most of the season last year. In 43 games with Wichita, the Quebec City native tallied 15 goals and 15 helpers to send the Thunder to the playoffs for the first time in five seasons.

I can imagine Dufour being a solid second-line winger alongside Thompson for next season. Dufour’s playmaking abilities will be a huge addition to the organization’s strong forward core already. Not only can Dufour find his teammates but he has no problem putting the puck in the back of the net. Dufour has a strong ability to put home rebounds and can clean up in the dirty areas, much like McInnis. Hopefully, both Dufour and Thompson will feed off each other’s playmaking abilities and will be the origin point for each other’s growth next season.

For more Indy Fuel news, updates, and analysis follow @evanfmiller on Twitter.

The post BREAKING: McInnis, Dufour Sign with Fuel for 2018-19 Season appeared first on The Rink.

According to an agreement between ECHL and all its parent clubs, teams must provide housing to all their players. The Indy Fuel have done just that with fully furnished apartments for members of the club. The apartments sit right next to the Fuel Tank at Fishers, an ice rink owned by an affiliate company of the team. Despite the recently renovated rink being feet away from the player’s housing, Fuel President Larry McQueary told The-Rink that practices would continue to take place at the home of the team, Indiana Farmers Coliseum.

When asked about how these apartments would attract players to Indy, McQueary replied, “They’re brand new. No one else has new housing right now in the league. They can walk directly next door to work out, do a little stick and puck, it’s all right there.”

Apparently, the apartments were attractive enough to bring back forwards Logan Nelson and Mathew Thompson for their second seasons with the Fuel.

Logan Nelson

Nelson came to the Fuel in a mid-season trade with the Fort Wayne Komets that saw defenseman Anthony Cortese get sent up the interstate from Indy to Fort Wayne. The Rogers, MN native played in 21 games with Indy, tallying seven goals and 19 points, but boasts a fantastic defensive game as well.

“We brought him in last year to be a two-way guy,” Fuel assistant coach Ryan McGinnis said, “He plays a 200-foot game and a brand of hockey that we like.”

Nelson brings three seasons of ECHL hockey to the Fuel, his seventh different team in that span. With that experience comes leadership and that is exactly Nelson brings.

“He brings a good component to the locker room, which the guys like, and that helps at this level tremendously. If you can bring in enough locker room character guys like himself, the rest will take care of itself.”

It’s also worth noting that Nelson left Game 1 of the first round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs in Toledo with an injury. The 24-year-old never returned to the playoff series. According to McGinnis, “he is rehabbing” and “taking care of himself.”

Mathew Thompson

Bernie John and his staff brought in some key components to the team this season, but none of them overshadowed the signing of Adrian College captain Mathew Thompson. The Fuel brought the rookie in to close out the regular season and he sure did stand out.

Thompson suited up in seven games with Indy and netted two goals and six points, while also enjoying a +4 rating. The 2017-18 NCAA Division III Player of the Year also played in all four playoff games with Indy, scoring the first home playoff goal in the team’s four-year history. Along with that goal, Thompson added an assist to his playoff stat line.

When asked how much he thinks Thompson is going to help the team this coming season, McGinnis replied, “I think he’s going to help tremendously. We were able to get a good look at him last year in his seven-game sample during the regular season and that was enough for us. We’re glad to have him and he’ll add some great depth to our team.”

The Goaltending Situation

As of right now, the Fuel have no goaltender for the upcoming season. Standout rookie goaltender Etienne Marcoux signed with the Laval Rocket of the AHL this offseason and Matt Tomkins signed an AHL contract with the Rockford IceHogs, Indy’s AHL affiliate. Tomkins is currently the frontrunner for the starting job with Indy, but the backup position is still up in the air.

“When you get contracted players like [Marcoux and Tomkins] who are affiliated with Rockford and Laval, first and foremost it runs through them,” McGinnis said. “If we see them, we don’t know that. It’s going to be up to Rockford and Laval and their situations. You usually get guys like that at the end of the summer.”

The Chicago Blackhawks, the Fuel’s NHL affiliate, just announced the signing of goaltender Cam Ward, which would then push someone down to the Fuel through Rockford, barring any more roster moves.

The post Catching up with the Indy Fuel: Housing and the Upcoming Season appeared first on The Rink.

First of all, According to the ECHL rulebook, a team may not have more than four veterans on its roster at any time during the season. The ECHL website states that “A veteran shall mean a player, other than a goaltender, who has played in at least 260 regular season games of professional hockey.”

The Fuel currently have five players that meet that veteran threshold on the active roster: captain Michael Neal, defenseman Zach Miskovic, and forwards Josh Shalla, Ryan Rupert, and Darian Dziurzynski. Of the five players, four of them finished in the top five on the team in points.

At 32 years old, Miskovic might have seen his last season with the Fuel. The ECHL veteran has played the most games in a Fuel sweater in club history (186). In those 186 games, he has registered 55 points. The point total is not bad for a defenseman, but he is not producing like the Fuel need.

Miskovic seems to be far past his prime and unable to keep up with the speed of today’s ECHL game. In the three seasons that Miskovic has played with the Fuel, he has also had a -32 rating. A reasonable progression for Miskovic to continue his association with the Fuel might be a move behind the bench as an assistant coach.

Strengthening the defensive core is also something the Fuel could concentrate on in their long offseason. Defense has always been a weakness of the team and bringing in a solid offensive defenseman would be great. One of the best defenseman in team history, Robin Press, will most likely see more time with Rockford than he does with Indy next season. That would leave the team with only Brandon Anselmini, which would be fine, but he’s not the type of player you build your defense around.

Bringing in a legitimate goal scorer is something the Fuel have yet to do in their four-year history. Former Adrian College captain Mathew Thompson might be a player who would be worth bringing back for next season. He showed great potential after being brought in at the tail end of this past season. Thompson’s speed, skill, and a hint of physicality comprise just the type of skill set Indy has missed. Playing him along side Shalla and Dziurzynski could be a lethal option for the Fuel next season—if they all return.

Goaltending will also be an issue for the Fuel going forward. Unexpected breakout Etienne Marcoux may end up in the AHL with a team like the Chicago Wolves next season.  Based on his outstanding performance between the pipes in Indy, teams will take a look at him as a potential backup. Matt Tomkins might be back for another season, but it should be a priority for the team to find a backup goaltender over the offseason.  The Fuel’s AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, have an abundance of goaltenders now with four on their active roster.

Something that differentiates the rest of the remaining teams in the playoffs from the Fuel are smart decisions in their own end, and not turning the puck over. In the defensive end, the Fuel seem to struggle with execution, such as making one simple pass to get it out of the zone or having the confidence skate the puck out past the blue line.

All too often, the defense either just ices the puck or blatantly turns it over in the slot. Focusing on these details early on in training camp and the preseason should help the Fuel get out to an early lead in the standings.

If the Fuel continue to make smart decisions in the front office and make the moves that will help the team in the long run, they could build on the playoffs this season make a deep run in the 2019 Kelly Cup Playoffs.

The post Armchair GM: Indy Fuel Offseason Edition appeared first on The Rink.

A Fantastic Rebound Season

This season’s campaign was quite a turnaround from the result the team had the previous year, though. Last season, the Fuel finished with an abysmal 23-42-7 record, which placed them third to last in the league. They also boasted a -94 goal differential in that season.

The Fuel enjoyed a great bounce-back year, setting franchise records in wins (36), points (77), and road wins (16) this season. The beginning of the year started off on the wrong foot, as the team won just two games in the month of October. One of those two wins came against the future Brabham Cup champion, Florida Everblades, however.  In that game, future Rockford Icehogs starting goaltender Collin Delia backstopped the Fuel with 36 saves in a 5-2 victory. Delia would go on later to eventually start in two games in Chicago with the Blackhawks, as well.

Player Analysis

The Fuel started to finally find their stride once they acquired power forwards Darian Dziurzynski and Logan Nelson, sniper Josh Shalla, two-way forward Johnny McInnis, playmaker Mathew Thompson, and shutdown defender Jaynen Rissling.

Dziurzynski turned out to be a crucial piece to the team’s Kelly Cup Playoff puzzle. Since joining the club from Rapid City, the power forward played in 47 games with the Fuel, recording 24 goals, five of which came on the man advantage. Along with his stellar goal scoring ability, It is also worth noting that Dziurzynski appeared in ten games with the Toledo Walleye, the Fuel’s first-round opponent in the playoffs. During his brief stint with the Walleye, Dziurzynski recorded three assists.

Logan Nelson has been anything but quiet during his brief time with the Fuel.  He was acquired in what was, arguably, the best trade in Indianapolis’ four-year history. The Fuel acquired Nelson in a trade with their in-state rival, the Fort Wayne Komets. Fuel Head coach and head of Hockey Operation Bernie John sent defenseman Anthony Cortese to Fort Wayne for Nelson. Cortese, coincidentally, did not make the Komets’ final playoff roster.

Nelson, however, has not been afraid to throw the body around and he seems to have great chemistry with teammates on the ice. He has 12 assists in the 21 games he has been in the lineup with the Fuel.  Along with his offensive production, Nelson has also shown terrific defensive ability. He has put pressure on the opposing forwards every time down the ice.

Fuel fan favorite Josh Shalla was fantastic, once again, this season. Shalla joined the team in a trade with the Wheeling Nailers last season and finished with 42 points in 48 games with the Fuel. Shalla later joined the EIHL but eventually returned to the Fuel this season. The sniper finished the 2017-18 season with the team lead in goals (28), despite re-joining the team after the New Year. Shalla earned himself the nickname “Komet Killer” after earning 26 points in 15 games against Fort Wayne  over the last two seasons. It seems that Shalla finds the back of the net in almost every game against the Komets.

Johnny McInnis could be the most underrated player on the Fuel this season.  The defensive-minded forward joined the team from the South Carolina Stingrays early in the seasonand has found a home on the wing alongside the pesky Rupert twins, Matt and Ryan.  McInnis has shown balanced scoring ability at times, posting 34 points in 56 games with Indy, including 18 goals.

McInnis’s defensive ability was in full force during the final seconds of the Fuel’s playoff-clinching victory over the Kalamazoo Wings, as he sprawled on the ice to block a couple of shots from the Wings’ defensemen. These blocked shots secured the 2-1 Fuel victory and their inaugural playoff berth.

Mathew Thompson is another brand new addition to the Fuel, hailing from division-III Adrian College. Thompson only appeared in seven games with the Fuel this season, but when he played, he had flashes of brilliance. He recorded six points and a +4 rating during those seven games. In every game the young playmaker has dressed, the Fuel have earned at least one point, which have proven to be very important down the stretch.

Jaynen Rissling has been a welcome addition to a less than stellar defensive unit this season. Rissling came to the Fuel in another trade with Wheeling, which sent defenseman Nolan Descoteaux and forward Stephen Collins to the nailers in return. There is certainly room for improvement in the big defenseman’s physical game.

Regardless, Rissling has done a lot for this team, and it shows in the +/- category. During his 21 games with Indy, Rissling had a +7 rating, good for second on the team. The shutdown defenseman showed that he could add some offense too, dishing out 11 assists and netting three goals.

The Fuel have generally had a sub-par defensive unit, but this year they have shown potential to build on. Obviously, there is still room for improvement, as primary goaltender Etienne Marcoux had to be leaned on heavily, making the ninth most saves in the league.

The Fuel’s best defensive pairing of Brandon Anselmini and Robin Press produced for the Fuel when they needed it most. Both have spent some time with the IceHogs and it has been apparent. Press was named ECHL Player of the Week and was the first defenseman to be named the award winner in 15 years.

Along with Press showing his silky smooth moves on the point, Anselmini played more of the pest role.  Together, Press and Anselmini also led the team with +8 and +6, respectively.

On to the ECHL Playoffs

The Fuel will be entering their inaugural playoff campaign with some positive momentum after their emotional 2-1 victory over the Kalamazoo Wings in the final game of the regular season, which clinched the playoff berth.

The Fuel are also riding hot goaltender Etienne Marcoux. The surprising rookie netminder finished the season 22-12-1 with a GAA of 2.94 (18th) and a save percentage of 0.918 (9th).  The 24-year-old seemingly had to stand on his head at times, making superb saves to either keep the Fuel in games or sustain a slim lead.  His strong play also earned him tryouts with Laval, Springfield and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the AHL.

Next Up

The Fuel begin  the 2018 Kelly Cup Playoffs on Friday, April 13 in Toledo against the Walleye. Puck drop for Game 1 is 7:35 PM EDT.

The post Indy Fuel Season Wrap-Up appeared first on The Rink.