News release
22 November 2013
ELMIRA, N.Y. - The Elmira Jackals and Kalamazoo Wings kick off this weekend's three-in-three at First Arena tonight with a 7:05 p.m. faceoff. It is the first of this season's six meetings between the clubs.
WHO: Elmira Jackals - Ottawa and New Jersey/NHL & Binghamton and Albany/AHL (3-8-0) vs. Kalamazoo Wings - Saint Louis and Vancouver/NHL & Chicago and Utica/AHL (4-4-1).
The Jackals are facing the Wings tonight for the first of six meetings this season and first of five at First Arena. The Jackals went 1-1-2 against the Wings last year with the lone win coming at Wings Stadium on January 16, 2013. Elmira is 6-9-5 in its ECHL history against Kalamazoo and that includes a 3-6-4 record at home. Elmira hasn't beaten Kalamazoo at home since a 3-2 shootout win here on November 19, 2011. The only current Jackals to participate in that win were Jordan Pietrus and Rob Bellamy. Former Jackals goalie Joel Martin was a major thorn in Elmira's side last year as he went 2-1-0 against his old team with a .956 save percentage and a 1.95 goals-against average.
Third year Jackal Artem Demkov is scoring goals at a blistering pace. With eight in 11 games he currently ranks fourth in the league and is just three behind league leader Matt Pistilli of Florida. If he maintains his current pace, Demkov would score 52 goals over a 72-game season. Since moving to the ECHL in 2007, the most goals a Jackal has scored in a season was 42 by Justin Donati in 2009-10. Donati and Frank Littlejohn (42 in 2006-07 for UHL Jackals) are the only players in team history to crack the 40-goal plateau. Demkov set a career high with 23 in 39 games last year.