The Toledo Walleye celebrated their annual Pink in the Rink Weekend to kick off hockey in the month of March. The pink ice proved to be a good luck charm for the Walleye as they had a weekend sweep of the Fort Wayne Komets and Iowa Heartlanders to start the month off 3-0.
On Friday night, the Walleye defeated the Fort Wayne Komets 6-3 to kick off the weekend homestand. John Lethemon defended the net for Toledo. Three Walleye scored all six goals in the game. Alexandre Doucet was able to get by Fort Wayne’s Ryan Fanti to find the back of the net twice. This marks his fourth and fifth goal in five games. Riley McCourt also found the back of the net twice.
Brandon Hawkins had two goals on the night. Hawkins’ second goal tied him with Evan Rankin for the second most points in Walleye history with 214 points. His next goal will be the 150th of his professional career. Hawkins also only needs three more points to reach the milestone of 300 points as a professional.
For the Komets, Ethan Keppen got the puck by Lethemon twice. Ture Linden also scored with an unassisted short-handed goal. Overall, the Walleye outshot the Komets 37-22.
Toledo welcomed the Iowa Heartlanders to the Huntington Center on Saturday and Sunday. They defeated the Heartlanders 4-1, with Lethemon defending the home net on Saturday and 3-0 on Sunday with Bednar between the pipes.
For Iowa, Yuki Miura was the only Heartlander able to get the puck in the net over the weekend. His goal came halfway through the third period on Saturday, but Iowa never gained momentum or the lead over Toledo.
Trenton Bliss scored two goals for Toledo on Saturday and two on Sunday. Brendon Kruse, Riley Sawchuck, and McCourt also found the back of the net during the weekend. Toledo outshot Iowa 29-27 overall on Saturday.
The Walleye outshot the Heartlanders 29-25 on Sunday. As the final horn sounded, Bednar tipped the net over, signifying his shutout victory as his teammates congratulated him. This was Bednar’s second shutout of the season.
Toledo outscored their opponents 13-4 over the nine periods at the Huntington Center this weekend.
The Toledo Walleye will be back on the ice for another homestand next Friday and Saturday. They welcome the Cincinnati Cyclones to the Huntington Center on Friday, March 8, 2024, for their Rock the Rink Weekend, kicking off with a John Lethemon bobblehead giveaway. The puck drops at 7:15 p.m.
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