CINCINNATI, Ohio – Rookie goaltender Michael Houser earned his second shutout of the season on Friday night as the Cincinnati Cyclones (39-17-5-2) defeated the Toledo Walleye (31-21-5-4) 3-0 in front of 4,604 at U.S. Bank Arena.
After a scoreless first period, the Cyclones finally found the back of the net 7:34 into the middle stanza. Taylor Aronson carried the puck across the blue line, stopped at the top of the left circle and fed a precision pass across the ice to Mathieu Aubin. The Cincinnati captain fired a wrist shot over the left leg pad of Toledo goaltender Kent Simpson (L, 14-12-5, 30 saves). The Cyclones defense only allowed five Walleye shots on net in the second period and held the 1-0 advantage heading to the intermission.
The home team continued their strong defensive effort in the final frame. Houser (W, 14-5-1, 24 saves) turned away all 10 Walleye shots on net to complete his perfect night. Mike Pelech and Josh Birkholz added two empty net goals in the last 1:02 to seal the victory for the Cyclones.
The Cyclones Radio Network Stars of the Game are as follows:
First Star: Michael Houser (Game winning goalie, 24 save shutout for Cincinnati)
Second Star: Kent Simpson (30 saves for Toledo)
Third Star: Mathieu Aubin (1 goal, game winning goal for Cincinnati)
The Cyclones will return to the ice at U.S. Bank Arena TOMORROW when they welcome in the Evansville IceMen at 7:30pm!
