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ECHL Central Division Preview: Toledo, Cincinnati Set To Lock Horns Again

ECHL Central Division Preview: Toledo, Cincinnati Set To Lock Horns Again

Will the rest of the Central keep up with the Cincinnati Cyclones and Toledo Walleye? Either way, the path to a division title likely goes through Ohio.

Oct 13, 2023
ECHL Central Division Preview: Toledo, Cincinnati Set To Lock Horns Again

There were mass changes in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where the Komets hired a new coach in Jesse Kallechy, after he helped the Florida Everblades to back-to-back Kelly Cups. In Toledo, Ohio, the Walleye also have a new coach, Pat Mikesch, who has never coached in the professional ranks, but he gets a roster that has offensive studs like Brandon Hawkins and Orrin Centazzo.

Meanwhile, the Central Division’s other consistent powerhouse, the Cincinnati Cyclones, stayed the course after winning the regular-season title and falling to Toledo in the second round of the playoffs. Jason Payne, who finished second by Idaho’s Everett Sheen in Coach of the Year voting last season, has a powerful nucleus that includes mainstays like Justin Vaive, Louie Caporusso and Zack Andrusiak, and dynamic defenseman Jalen Smereck. 

The Cyclones would therefore seem to be the preseason favorite in the Central Division, but the Indy Fuel has been on the upswing, the Wheeling Nailers brought back a solid nucleus of familiar offensive players and history has shown that Fort Wayne and Toledo know how to be successful in the Central Division.

ALSO READ: South Division Preview | North Division Preview | Mountain Division Preview

Here’s a team-by-team look at the Central as training camps open: 

2023 Wheeling Nailers vs Cincinnati Cyclones


Cincinnati Cyclones

Last season: 47-16-9, 1st in division, lost in division finals

Coach: Jason Payne, 3rd season

NHL affiliation: New York Rangers 

AHL affiliate: Hartford Wolf Pack

Of note: Most of last season, the Cyclones and Toledo Walleye jockeyed for first place in the division. The Cyclones won the regular season title, slipped by the Fort Wayne Komets in Game 7 and then fell to the Walleye in the second round of the playoffs … Zack Andrusiak, a forward, is back after he had 32 goals and 73 points (12th most in the league) in 63 games … The team also re-signed Louie Caporusso, who had 23 goals and 71 points in 68 games; Patrick Polino, who had 23 goals and 54 points in 72 games; and Luka Burzan, who had five goals and 17 points in 13 games after being acquired in a trade … Captain Justin Vaive, son of former NHL player Rick Vaive, is also back. He had 32 goals, 52 points and 89 penalty minutes in 72 games last season, making his living hunkering down in front of opposing nets … The blue line will again be led by Jalen Smereck, who had 11 goals and 50 points (fifth among ECHL defensemen) in 53 games. Smereck had four short-handed goals … Defenseman Matthew Cairns was plus-17 in 45 games last season … After six seasons as the ECHL affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres, an arrangement that yielded the Cyclones great goalies such as Michael Houser and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, the Rangers are now the parent club. 

Fort Wayne Komets

Last season: 34-31-7, 3rd in division, lost in divisional semifinals

Coach: Jesse Kallechy, 1st season

NHL affiliation: Edmonton Oilers

AHL affiliate: Bakersfield Condors

Of note: Last season ended in controversial fashion. A goaltender interference call negated an Oliver Cooper goal with 1:11 remaining in the third period of Game 7, which the Cincinnati Cyclones won 1-0 on home ice. What ensued was an overhaul for the Komets, who didn’t renew the contract of coach Ben Boudreau, who’s now an associate head coach in the OHL with Niagara. He led Fort Wayne to the 2021 Kelly Cup and then two first-round, Game 7 exits … Boudreau’s replacement, Kallechy, had success as a head coach in the Southern Professional Hockey League and was an assistant with the Florida Everblades when they won the last two Kelly Cups … The only players re-signed from last season are William Provost, Tristan Pelletier, Darien Kielb and Noah Ganske … However, the Komets brought back two members of the 2021 Cup team: forwards Morgan Adams-Moisan and Shawn Szydlowski, the 2017-18 ECHL leading scorer and MVP, who last season was with the Orlando Solar Bears … Goaltender François Brassard was Goaltender of the Year in 2021-22 with the Jacksonville Icemen and rookie Brett Brochu was the Ontario Hockey League’s Goaltender of the Year in 2021-22 … Big recent signings include forward Jack Dugan and defenseman Martin Haš … The Komets expect to get plenty of help from the Oilers and Condors, including potentially goalie Tyler Parks and forward Cameron Wright … Bakersfield’s coach, Colin Chaulk, captained the Komets to five championships in the United, International and Central Hockey Leagues. 

2023 Fort Wayne Komets vs Indy Fuel


Indy Fuel

Last season: 43-24-5, 3rd in division, lost in division semifinals

Coach: Duncan Dalmao, 3rd season

NHL affiliation: Chicago Blackhawks

AHL affiliate: Rockford IceHogs

Of note: The Fuel showed a ton of improvement in Dalmao’s second season; it set franchise records for victories, points (91) and winning percentage (.632), and made the playoffs for the second time since 2018 … The Fuel has re-signed goaltenders Zach Driscoll, who was 21-17-4 with a 3.03 goals-against average, a .899 save percentage and one shutout, and Cameron Gray, who was 7-2-1 with a 2.93 GAA and a .900 SP … Defenseman Kirill Chaika, who is 6-foot-6, 222 pounds, is back for a third season with the Fuel. He had two goals, 14 points, 79 penalty minutes and a plus-11 rating in 60 games last season … In 45 games last season, forward Chase Lang had nine goals and 20 points … As a rookie, forward Andrew Bellant had 15 goals and 27 points in 64 games … Josh Maniscalco, who was an elite defenseman for the division-rival Wheeling Nailers, signed a one-way AHL deal with Rockford but could be sent to Indy … Seamus Malone was in Rockford’s training camp; he had 23 goals and 49 points last season with the Fuel and could see time in Indianapolis again. 

Iowa Heartlanders

Last season: 22-36-14, 7th in division, missed playoffs

Coach: Derek Damon, 2nd season

NHL affiliation: Minnesota Wild

AHL affiliate: Iowa Wild

2023 Rapid City Rush vs Iowa Heartlanders


Of note: The Heartlanders have new ownership, led by Michael Devlin, who is majority owner of the United States Hockey League’s Des Moines Buccaneers … He hired Matt Getz as president. Among his credentials was working for the University of Iowa athletics department in event and project management …  In their first two seasons of existence, the Heartlanders went 51-59-24 … Yuki Miura has been one of the forwards to really stand out; he had 11 goals and 30 points in 71 games last season … Goaltender Peyton Jones excelled for the Utah Grizzlies from 2020 to 2022, also seeing AHL time, and last season he manned the net in the United Kingdom for Belfast and Nottingham. … Hunter Lellig, a defenseman, skated the last five seasons in college hockey – four for Minnesota-Duluth and one for Bowling Green. He had four assists last season for Bowling Green. He’s the first Iowa native to sign with the Heartlanders, a native of Waterloo … Left wing Tanner McMaster has spent most of his career in the AHL. Last season, after returning from an overseas stint, he had three goals and 11 points in 12 games with the Heartlanders.

Kalamazoo Wings

Last season: 29-37-6, 5th in division, missed playoffs

Coach: Joel Martin, 2nd season

NHL affiliation: Vancouver Canucks

AHL affiliate: Abbotsford Canucks

Of note: Justin Taylor is back for a 13th season with the Wings. He’s their franchise leader in games played (685), goals (257) and points (498). Last season, he led the Wings in goals (20) and points (41) … Goaltender Hunter Vorva, a native of Kalamazoo, looked good last season with a 13-9-3 record with a 2.61 goals-against average, a .919 save percentage and one shutout … Forward Erik Bradford, who was the team’s MVP in 2021-22 with 19 goals and 51 points, split time last season between the Wings and the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters … Defenseman Chaz Reddekopp was acquired from the South Carolina Stingrays and will bring leadership, physicality, and opportunistic offense. He had one goal, 14 points and 109 penalty minutes in 51 games last season for the Stingrays … Another big pickup was forward Collin Adams, an all-star last season with the Worcester Railers. He had 14 goals and 32 points in 30 games for the Railers … Goaltender Mariah Fujimagari was given a training camp tryout. Last season, she played in Sweden. Only two women have played regular season ECHL games – Manon Rheaume and Erin Witten, both in the 1990s … The Wings and Canucks got back together after three previous periods of affiliation: 1984-1987, 2011-2015 and 2017-2021. 

2023 Toledo Walleye vs Kalamazoo Wings


Toledo Walleye

Last season: 45-19-8, 2nd in division, lost in conference finals

Coach: Pat Mikesch, 1st season

NHL affiliation: Detroit Red Wings

AHL affiliate: Grand Rapids Griffins

Of note: Dan Watson, who coached the Walleye for six seasons and guided them to the Kelly Cup finals in 2019 and 2022, is now the head coach of Detroit’s AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins … Pat Mikesch, who is a disciple of Detroit Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde, has never before coached in the professional ranks, but was the head coach of the Green Bay Gamblers in the United States Hockey League for eight seasons before taking last year off … He’s sure to have plenty of help sent from the Red Wings, but the Walleye is also offensively charged regardless with players on ECHL contracts, namely Brandon Hawkins and Orrin Centazzo. Hawkins had 39 goals – tied for second in the ECHL last season behind Allen’s Hank Crone’s 49 – and 81 points in 66 games. Hawkins also has championship experience, helping Fort Wayne to the 2021 Kelly Cup. Centazzo was with the Newfoundland Growlers last season and totaled 21 goals and 46 points in 39 games, really stepping up in the playoffs amid teammates’ injuries … Conlan Keenan, Sam Craggs and Kirill Tyutyayev are also potent scorers … On defense, Riley McCourt is a dangerous two-way player who had six goals, 26 points and a plus-22 rating in 40 games last season … The Walleye was stocked at goalie last season with Sebastian Cossa, considered the Red Wings’ goalie of the future, and John Lethemon, who won ECHL Goaltender of the Year. It’s possible Lethemon is back and, perhaps, Jan Bednar, but the Walleye should be fine if they don’t make it from the AHL – Toledo signed Rylan Parenteau, who spent most of last season with Fort Wayne, on Oct. 6. 

Wheeling Nailers

Last season: 29-38-5, 6th in division, missed playoffs

Coach: Derek Army, 4th season

NHL affiliation: Pittsburgh Penguins

AHL affiliate: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

2023 Wheeling Nailers vs Kalamazoo Wings


Of note: Forward Cédric Desruisseaux is back after he led the Nailers in goals (30) and points (59) in 72 games last season … Forward Matthew Quercia missed all of last season because of an injury suffered in training camp. His goal in overtime of Game 7 on the road in 2022 finished a first-round upset of the Fort Wayne Komets … Physical forward Shaw Boomhower, who was on that Nailers team, is back, too. Last season, he skated only four games with the Kalamazoo Wings because of injury … Forward Cam Hausinger has shown he can be an impact player in the ECHL; he had 21 goals and 43 points with 102 penalty minutes in 64 games in 2021-22. Last season, he split time between the Nailers and the AHL … Goaltender David Tendeck was better than his numbers might suggest last season with the Atlanta Gladiators, going 12-12-5 with a 3.63 goals-against average, a .892 save percentage and two shutouts. He also played five AHL games with the Tucson Roadrunners … Veteran defenseman David Drake stood out last season for the Nailers with four goals, 19 points and a plus-12 rating in 72 games. He’s got AHL experience with three different teams.