Trenton, NJ - The Kalamazoo Wings won for the second time in as many days against the Trenton Devils Sunday afternoon, as goalie
Jeremy Duchesne made 25 saves in his twelfth career shutout, a 3-0 win at Sovereign Bank Arena. Several aspects of the game mirrored Saturday's 6-2 Kalamazoo victory, notably the Devils' power play shortcomings and a second period defensive let down. Despite the loss, Trenton goalie
Dave Caruso sparkled in the first 30-plus minutes of the game, making multiple saves with a quick right pad and cat-like pouncing with the glove on loose rebounds. However, the Wings finally broke the scoreless tie thanks to one of those rebounds Caruso could not snatch.
At 10:42 of the second period,
Myles Stoesz and
Darryl Bootland fell victim to heightened tempers, leading to a physical exchange that warranted roughing calls on each. Stoesz refused to back down even after the officials intervened, leading to an unsportsmanlike conduct minor. The Wings used the ensuing power play to further wear down the Devils' defense.
Andrew Fournier found himself near the crease as Caruso made a save on a shot from the right wing. The centerman muscled the puck under Caruso and across the goal line for the game's first score at 11:00.
Four and a half minutes later, the Devils seemed to regress to Saturday's type of effort, allowing winger Sean O'Connor to come down the right side, unabated, and fire a slap shot past Caruso on the long side to make it 2-0 Wings.
In the third period,
Jeremy Duchesne improved on his impressive day, adding flashy saves to his already strong and steady performance. Meanwhile, Kalamazoo added to its lead with another power play score at 10:14. A cross-checking minor on
Justin Coutu put his squad down a man, allowing
Anton Kharin to sneak up on Caruso from behind the goal and sweep home a loose puck after a shot from Devin Featherstone which increased the Wings margin of victory to three. Despite a stretch of four minutes with consistent offensive pressure from the Devils, including a five-on-three power play, Duchesne kept the scorers at bay and the Wings held on for a 3-0 win.
The Wings haven't been members of the ECHL for long, but their second match against Trenton in as many days showed bad blood brewing between the two clubs. Every stoppage seemed result in some sort of conflict, with the officials having to often intervene. Both teams racked up their share of roughing minutes - 14 for Trenton, eight for Kalamazoo, not to mention fighting majors to
Jeremy Akeson of the Devils and
Mitch Versteeg for the Wings. A total of 29 penalties were called, leading to 17 power plays. The Devils squandered eight man-up chances, while Wings were two-for-nine.
The Devils, now 0-2, have two days off before skating against the Johnstown Chiefs on Wednesday night at the Sovereign Bank Arena. The Kalamazoo Wings remain undefeated in their first ECHL season, improving to 3-0 with their third consecutive win.