The Toledo Walleye are set to face off against the Cincinnati Cyclones this Wednesday night at the Heritage Bank Center in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, with the game starting at 7:35 PM EST. This matchup will be the eighth of the season between these two Central Division rivals, with the Walleye currently leading the series 4-3, although there are still five more games to be played.
As of February 18th, the Cyclones hold a record of 18-25-7-0 (43 points) and find themselves just three points behind the final playoff spot in the Central Division, currently occupied by the Bloomington Bison and Indy Fuel, both at 46 points. In their last outing, Cincinnati struggled against the Indy Fuel, where Indy’s 1-2-2 defense stifled the Cyclones’ offense and resulted in a 20-save shutout for goaltender Ryan Kenny in his Fuel debut.
Toledo is entering this game with some momentum after a 5-2 victory over the Bloomington Bison. Tyler Spezia was the first star of the night, netting two goals and adding an assist, while goaltender Jan Bednar made 33 saves on 35 shots. The Walleye’s stellar record of 32-11-6-1 (71 points) puts them firmly in first place in the Central Division, a solid 10 points ahead of Iowa.
Inconsistent Offensively
Cincinnati’s offense has been a mixed bag lately, with some games seeing them light up the scoreboard while others have them struggling to score at all. Last weekend, for instance, they enjoyed a 5-2 win over the Bison, only to be blanked 2-0 by the Fuel the following day. Indy’s 1-2-2 defensive structure stifled the Cyclones’ rushing attack all game, not letting them enter the offensive zone, breaking up passes and clearing it out way too easily at their blue line.
In Sunday’s shutout loss, it’s easy to point to the main reason of the low 20 shots total against an SPHL goalie, but there is also another glaring reason, a lacking power play that went 0/3 that day. Cincinnati’s power play remains one of the least effective in the league at just 16.7% (28 goals on 168 attempts). If they want to make a playoff push, Cincinnati must improve in this department, especially since they tend to draw a good number of penalties, largely attributed to the young speed on the roster. For comparison, Toledo’s earned 158 power play opportunities and boasts a much higher conversion rate of 25.9%, scoring 41 times, even though Cincinnati’s drawn 10 more penalties on the season.
Another example of this was back on February 1st, where Cincinnati drew five penalties during the Teddy Bear Toss game against Toledo, eventually going 0/5 that day, later losing 2-1 in overtime.
Win the Special Teams Battle
When it comes to facing the Walleye, winning the special teams battle is huge. The Cyclones need to stay out of the box to avoid giving Toledo extra chances, given their potent power play numbers. However, in their last meeting, the Walleye went 0 for 3 on the power play, thanks to the Cyclones’ improved penalty kill, which is around league average at 80.6%.
In order to beat Toledo this time around, the Cyclones will need to continue drawing penalties but must find a way to cash in. This means getting more bodies in front of the net to create screens and traffic for Toledo’s goaltenders. Back when the power play had success in January, Chas Sharpe led the way with his wicked slap shot, something he must get back to.
Also, more movement without the puck will be needed by all five on the man advantage, along with crisper passing. If they can win the special teams battle, they’ll improve their chances of beating the Walleye, but a failure to capitalize could make their playoff aspirations much more challenging, especially with five more meetings against Toledo on the horizon.
Roster Update:
Tristan Ashbrook loaned to Belleville Senators – 2/18/25
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