Fuel go for second straight win over Toledo

GAME PREVIEW: FUEL VS. WALLEYE

SATURDAY, MARCH 17 - 7:35 P.M.

INDIANA FARMERS COLISEUM, INDIANAPOLIS

TICKETS: TICKETMASTER, INDIANA FARMERS COLISEUM BOX OFFICE

BROADCAST INFO: 1070THEFAN.COM, ECHL.TV

The Story: The Indy Fuel (30-29-2-1) try to recover from a tough loss Friday in Cincinnati as they return home to clash with the Toledo Walleye (44-15-3-2) Saturday night at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The Central Division foes are slated to skate on green ice as part of St. Patrick's Day in Indianapolis, with puck drop slated for 7:35 p.m. ET. Tickets are still available through the Indiana Farmers Coliseum box office or via Ticketmaster.

Indy saw a three-game winning streak come to an end Friday, dropping a 6-1 decision to the Cyclones at U.S. Bank Arena. Cincinnati built a 5-0 lead through after 40 minutes of play, before Josh Shalla got the Fuel on the scoreboard midway through the third period. Shawn O'Donnell and Daniel Muzito-Bagenda each scored twice for the Cyclones.

Despite the loss, the Fuel did not lose any ground in the heated race for fourth place in the Central Division standings. Indy remains just a single point back of Kalamazoo and Kansas City for possession of the final Kelly Cup Playoff berth in the division with 10 games to play, though Kalamazoo owns a game in hand over the Fuel and Mavericks by virtue of being idle on Friday night.

CENTRAL DIVISION STANDINGS

Rank

Team

Games Left

W

L

OTL

SOL

PTS

ROW

1

Toledo

8

44

15

3

2

93

43

2

Fort Wayne

10

42

16

3

1

88

41

3

Cincinnati

12

35

23

2

0

72

33

4

Kalamazoo

11

29

26

4

2

64

29

5

Kansas City

10

30

28

2

2

64

27

6

Indy

10

30

29

2

1

63

28

(Top four teams qualify for the 2018 Kelly Cup Playoffs)

Multi-Point Inspection: Rookie goaltender Edwin Minney made his professional debut in Friday's loss, stopping nine out of 10 shots in the third period in a relief appearance ... In five games against Toledo this season, defenseman Robin Press (9g, 27a) has one goal and six assists ... Indy's power play ranks atop the ECHL with a 21.8% success rate ... Defenseman Jaynen Rissling (7g, 20a) has two goals and four assists in his last five games.

Inside The Matchup: Indy is looking for its second victory over Toledo in under a week as the teams meet Saturday at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. Last Sunday at Huntington Center, the Fuel jumped out to a 4-0 lead en route to picking up their first win of the 2017-18 campaign over the Walleye.

Toledo has a 6-1 lead in the season series heading into the eighth of nine meetings this year, including wins in all four games in Indianapolis. The Fuel enter Saturday on a 10 game skid on home ice against the Walleye, dating back to the beginning of the 2015-16 season.

Scouting Report: Toledo is 33-2-2-1 this season when scoring the game's first goal ... Forward Tyler Barnes has points in five consecutive games, tallying five goals and four assists over the same span ... The Walleye are without defenseman Simon Denis, who earned his first AHL call-up Wednesday with the Hartford Wolf Pack ... Goaltender Pat Nagle has given up three or more goals just once in his last 10 appearances.

ECHL MEDIA KIT