Former Cincinnati Cyclone Cory Conacher scores goal in NHL debut

CINCINNATI – Former Cincinnati Cyclones forward Cory Conacher scored a goal and added an assist for the Tampa Bay Lightning in his NHL debut Saturday night.

Conacher, the 10th former Cyclones player to skate in an NHL game, helped lead the Lightning to a 6-3 over the Washington Capitals at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. The second-year pro earned the "third star" of the game for his multi-point performance.

“It was very awesome,” Conacher said. “I couldn’t have done it without these guys."

According to the Tampa Bay Lightning team website , Conacher became just the sixth player in team history to record his first career goal in his league debut, joining Alex Selivanov, Paul Mara, Jimmie Olvestad, Ryan Craig and Mike Angelidis.

The 23-year-old collected seven points (5 goals, 2 assists) in a three-game stint with the Cyclones during the 2010-11 season. Conacher also spent time with Rochester Americans and the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League during that season after spending four years at Canisius College (2007-11).

Conacher had an MVP season with the Norfolk Admirals (AHL) during the 2011-12 season, amassing 80 points (39 goals, 41 assists) in 75 games. He also helped his team capture the Calder Cup, the league championship.

Brian Foster (2011-Present), Ryan Russell (2007-08), Frederic St. Denis (2009), Chris Mueller (2009-10), Greg Stewart (2006-07), David Desharnais (2007-08), J.T. Wyman (2008-09), Mark Dekanich (2009-10) and Cedrick Desjardins (2006-08) are the other nine former Cyclones to lace up their skates for NHL teams, according to the Cycloneshockey.com .

For more information on the Cyclones, call 513-421-PUCK or visit CyclonesHockey.com . Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on the Cyclones’ Facebook page and via @CincyCyclones on Twitter.