Bliss finds net in loss to Cyclones

CINCINNATI, OH – The Toledo Walleye fell to the Cincinnati Cyclones 5-1 on Friday night at the Heritage Bank Center.

What Happened:

The Toledo Walleye took a trip down I-75 to visit the Cincinnati Cyclones to begin the second half of the season.

John Lethemon started between the pipes for the Walleye. Grant Gabriele and Michael Prapavessis manned the defence while Conlan Keenan, Sam Craggs and Brandon Kruse led the Toledo attack.

Talyn Boyko defended the home net for the Cyclones. Jalen Smereck and Josh Burnside staffed the defence while Zack Andrusiak, Louie Caporusso and Justin Vaive filled out the Cincinnati attack.

The action began with a Walleye power play at :50 when Lee Lapid was sent to the Cyclones penalty box for Tripping.

The Cyclones scooted down the ice and find the net shorthanded at 1:25 to take the lead. Lincoln Griffin put the shortie in the net to continue his strong showing against the Walleye. Sahil Panwar and Smereck added assists to the icebreaker. The Cyclones tacked on by killing off the power play.

Cincinnati got their first power play chance at 10:33 when Keenan was sent to the Toledo penalty box for Holding.

The Cyclones needed just 18 seconds to find the net as they scored at 10:51 to stretch the gap to 2-0. Andrusiak hit twine from Smereck and Caporusso to stretch their lead.

That wrapped the first period action with the Walleye trailing the Cyclones 2-0.

The two teams shot even in the period at 9-9. Toledo was 0/1 on the power play in the period while Cincinnati was 1/1.

The second period action began with a Walleye power play at :30 when Caporusso was assessed a Hooking minor for the Cyclones. The Cyclones killed off the penalty.

Cincinnati added on another score at 3:48 when Andrusiak buried his second goal of the evening to make it 3-0. Caporusso and Vaive added assists to the score.

The Fish got their next man-advantage at 8:39 when Burnside was sent away for Tripping. The Cyclones killed off the man-advantage.

The Cyclones got their next power play chance at 11:52 when Keenan was sent to the Walleye penalty box for Tripping.

Cincinnati converted the power play at 11:57 when Patrick Polino hit twine from Andrusiak and Smereck to stretch it to 4-0 Cyclones.

The Cyclones got their next man-advantage at 12:32 when Riley McCourt was assessed a Tripping minor.

The Cyclones moved down the ice to tack on another score at 12:53, this time Caporusso finding the net. Smereck added his fourth assist of the evening to the score, the most points in a game by an opposing player against the Walleye this season.

The Walleye got their fourth power play chance at 14:22 when Lapid was hit with his second Tripping minor of the contest for the Cyclones. The Cyclones fended off the power play.

Toledo got yet another man advantage to close out the second and carry to the third period at 19:26 when Nick Isaacson was sent to the Cincinnati penalty box for Hooking.

That wrapped the second period action with the Walleye trailing the Cyclones 5-0.

The Walleye outshot the Cyclones 11-7 in the period and 20-16 cumulatively. Toledo was 0/3 on completed power plays in the period, while Cincinnati was 2/2.

The third period action began with the Cyclones killing off the remaining 1:26 on the fifth Walleye power play.

The Walleye broke into the score column at 2:26 when Trenton Bliss found the net to make it 5-1. Adrien Beraldo added the solo assist.

The Cyclones got their fourth power play chance of the evening at 2:42 when Matt Anderson was assessed a Hooking minor. The Walleye killed off the power play.

Cincinnati got their next man-advantage at 10:18 when Riley Sawchuk was assessed a Hooking minor. Toledo killed off the penalty yet again.

The Walleye got their next power play chance at 14:31 when Andrusiak was hit with a Tripping minor for the Cyclones.

The play evened to four-on-four at 15:22 when Bliss was given a Tripping minor of his own.

The Walleye tacked on one last man-advantage at 16:16 when Panwar was sent away for High-Sticking, dropping the game to four-on-three for 15 seconds, back to four-on-four for 1:06 and then a standard man-advantage for the remainder of the penalty. All penalties were killed off.

The horns sounded with the Walleye losing to the Cyclones 5-1.

The Walleye were outshot in the period 7-8 but outshot the Cyclones 27-24 overall. Toledo was 0/3 on power plays completed in the period and 0/7 overall, while Cincinnati was 0/3 in the period and 3/6 overall.

Three Stars Sponsored by Local 245:

1. Jalen Smereck (4A) – CIN
2. Zack Andrusiak (2G, 1A) – CIN
3. Talyn Boyko (W, 26/27 SV) – CIN

What’s Next:

The Toledo Walleye will head to Indianapolis for another matchup with the Indy Fuel, tomorrow, Saturday, January 20, 2024, at the Indiana Farmers Coliseum with puck drop at 7:00 pm ET.