Jackals Drop Shootout to Kalamazoo

ELMIRA, N.Y. - The Elmira Jackals found themselves in an offensive duel with the Kalamazoo Wings on Friday night at First Arena. The teams swapped the lead throughout regulation and overtime, but Kalamzoo eeked out a 6-5 shootout win and dropped the Jackals' record to 3-8-1.

Click here for tonight's box score.

Click here for tonight's post-game comments.

Kalamazoo defenseman Sam Ftorek ranks third all-time in games played in the ECHL with just over 700. He may not have had a better first period than Friday night in all his ECHL games. Ftorek scored two power play goals 2:57 apart to send the Wings out to a 2-0 lead. The goals were nearly identical one-timers from the left wing circle with assists to Yanni Gourde and Jeremie Blain. The Jackals began their rally not long after the Wings went up by a pair. Rob Bellamy started the play by carrying down the left wing and centering a pass to a streaking Danny Hobbs. Hobbs had the puck deflect in off of his skate for his third goal of the season at 15:43 of the first. Maxime Clermont made his second straight start for the Jackals and stopped nine of 11 shots in the first to keep the Jackals within one.

Elmira's offense roared to life in a big way in the second with a pair of rookies leading the way. In his first game with Elmira since October 25, Ludwig Karlsson netted the tying goal midway through the period. Matt Carter spotted Karlsson on the back door and hit the rookie with a crisp pass for the one-time goal. It turned out to be Elmira's first home power play goal of the season. Rookie defenseman Mathieu Gagnon tacked on his first pro goal 3:25 after Karlsson's strike to put the Jackals in the driver's seat for the first time. Kalamazoo's Eric Kattelus didn't allow the lead to remain for long as he potted the tying goal just 1:49 later. That furious rally left the score deadlocked at three and set the stage for an even more dramatic third period.

Just 2:32 in Kalamazoo defenseman Brett Ponich scored on a fortuitous bounce. His slapshot from the blue line hit the post, banked off of Clermont's back and across the goal line for his first goal of the season. The Wings clamped down defensively and limited Elmira to two shots until just over three minutes remained. The Jackals turned to a reliable source for the tying goal. Karlsson worked the puck from behind Kalamazoo's net to Artem Demkov on the doorstep and the third-year Jackals slammed home his team-leading ninth of the season. Kalamzoo looked to regain the lead with a late power play, but Elmira's Jakub Culek scored a shorthanded goal on Elmira's next shot with 1:50 left in regulation. Kalamazoo refused to lay down, though, and Yanni Gourde capped off a four point night on a goal with a half of a second left in regulation.

A scoreless overtime sent the game to a shootout where the Wings netted the only two goals. Justin Taylor and John Armstrong scored in the first and fourth rounds for Kalamazoo while Wings goalie Jordan Binnington stopped all four of Elmira's shooters.

Clermont stopped 28 of 33 in shouldering the loss while Binning turned away 32 of 37 to snare the win. Elmira ended the night 1-for-2 on the power play and 1-for-3 on the penalty kill.

Mark your calendars! The Jackals return are back on home ice Saturday, November 23, 2013 to battle the Kalamazoo Wings. Join us for a giant "Save Monterey Shock" rally. Anyone wearing orange "Save Monterey" t-shirts gets a speical $10 discounted ticket. A limited quantity of t-shirts will be available at the Main Street entrance to First Arena starting at 5:45 p.m. Don't forget that groups of 10 or more who book in advance receive discounts off the box office price and preferred seating based on availability. Call 607-734-7825 to get your group outing booked.

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UPCOMING FIRST ARENA EVENTS:

Saturday, November 23: Elmira Jackals vs. Kalamazoo, 7:05 p.m. Click here to order tickets.

Sunday, November 24: Elmira Jackals vs. Kalamazoo, 4:05 p.m. Click here to order tickets.  

Saturday, December 7: Lee Greenwood & Crystal Gayle Christmas Concert, 7:00 p.m. Click here to order tickets.