Cyclones Fall to Express in Shootout, 3-2

Cyclones Fall to Express in Shootout, 3-2

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Illinois – The Chicago Express (19-17-5-2) erased a two-goal deficit and rallied to beat the Cincinnati Cyclones (18-14-0-6) in a shootout by a 3-2 final score in front of 2,131 at Sears Centre on Sunday night.

The Cyclones opened the scoring at the 8:26 mark when Mike Pelech dangled past Chicago goaltender Peter Mannino (W, 26 saves, 3-3-1-1) and buried his 10th goal of the season. Then, just before the intermission, Jonathan Hazen fed Matt Sisca in the slot who potted an insurance goal at 18:56 to give Cincinnati a 2-0 edge after 20 minutes of play.

Chicago pulled within a goal in the second period when Darcy Campbell came away with a loose puck in the slot after a mad scramble and backhanded a shot over Cincinnati net minder Brian Foster (SOL, 29 saves, 8-1-0-1) at the 11:52 mark. Campbell’s third lamplighter of the season made it 2-1 Cincinnati at the second intermission.

In a relatively penalty-free game, Chris Cahill was whistled for a hooking penalty at 10:51 of the third period, giving the Chicago power play their third chance to work. Chaz Johnson skated with the puck over the Cincinnati blue line and sent a wrist shot past Foster for the game-tying tally at 12:42, knotting things at two and sent the game into overtime.

Unlike on Wednesday, neither team was able to find the game-winner in the five-minute extra session, so a shootout was necessary to determine a winner. In the opening round, Pierre-Luc Faubert beat Foster with a low snap-shot to push Chicago ahead and it turned out to be the game-winner as none of the four Cyclones shooters could beat Mannino. In round five, Maxime Gratchev sealed the come-from-behind victory with a goal, giving the Express a 3-2 shootout win.

The Cyclones Radio Network Three Stars of the Game are as follows:

First Star: Pierre Luc Faubert (Game-winning goal in the shootout)
Second Star: Darcy Campbell (1 goal for Chicago)
Third Star: Kyle Ostrow (2 assists for Chicago)

The Cyclones will return to U.S. Bank Arena on Wednesday, February 1 as they welcome in the Toledo Walleye at 7:30pm. It will be another Wet Wednesday, where fans 21 and up can enjoy $1 PBR and Miller High Life! In addition, there will be another “Pucks N Pinot” pre game wine tasting event available for purchase. Secure your seats now by calling 513.421.PUCK or log on to CyclonesHockey.com. Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook and Twitter (@CincyCyclones).

Click here to view tonight's box score.  

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