It was a tough mountain for the Jacksonville Icemen to climb this week. The Icemen wrapped up a five-game Eastern Conference road trip in Atlanta on Friday before returning home for a Saturday night game against the South Carolina Stingrays. Jacksonville previously played in Savannah on Thursday, making it a streak of three games in three nights in three different cities.
Saturday’s bout with the Stingrays took place in front of a home crowd of 8,738, with the team celebrating the holiday season in their “ugly sweater” themed jerseys. It was the first of a three-game mid-December home stand for Jacksonville and, though still early into the season, was a game that came with points race implications. Heading into the game only two points behind the Stingrays in the division standings, the Icemen had a shot to bring themselves into a tie for second with a win.
The Rundown:
It was another slow start for the Jacksonville Icemen. South Carolina put 12 shots on Icemen netminder Michael Houser during the first period, while only five Icemen shots made it through to the Stingrays’ net. The Stingrays took to a quick start right out of the gate, scoring 1:07 into the action. Stingrays forward Austin Magera netted his 13th of the season on a drive in the slot, catching the Icemen defense turned around. Kameron Kielly added the 2-0 Stingrays goal with just 32 seconds remaining in the period.
The second period started with a solid response by the Icemen, getting plenty of pucks in on Stingrays’ goaltender Garin Bjorklund early. The Icemen got 18 shots on Bjorklund throughout the period after struggling to get pucks on net in the first. The team did well to create scoring chances, staying tough on the forecheck and creating turnovers.
It was a good second-period response from an Icemen team battling the fatigue of a heavy schedule. The Stingrays only put six shots on Michael Houser, but the quality of scoring was more important than the quantity in the second period for South Carolina. The Stingrays posted a third goal with 5:49 left to play from a shot from defenseman Michael Kim.
Jacksonville had excellent chances on the pair of powerplay opportunities that came in the first two periods of play, though they were unable to convert. The Icemen’s special teams play has continued to slowly improve, getting a healthy boost on the road trip. The team saw a 27.2% powerplay effectiveness while away from home.
Powerplays were hard to come by in Saturday night’s contest, with the Stingrays only taking three penalties the whole night. The persistent efforts of the special teams units paid off in the final period of play. Brendan Harris rifled one past Stingrays goalie Garin Bjorklund to make it a 3-1 game with 15:43 left to play. Harris’ goal, his 11th of the season, reinforced the resilient response of the Icemen.
Trailing by a pair, the Icemen stayed relentless, applying heavy pressure and making it difficult for the Stingrays to move the puck out of their own end. Jacksonville was dominant in the faceoff circle, winning a majority of the draws and setting the tempo. Opting for the extra man in the late minutes of the third period, Christopher Brown added the 3-2 goal to bring the Icemen within one with 2:20 left to play. Grade-A chances came in the final minutes of play for Jacksonville, but the late-period comeback attempt was ultimately thwarted.
Maximum Effort:
The Icemen finished the night outshooting the Stingrays, in spite of the lack of offense that came in the first twenty minutes of play. Jacksonville ended the night with 40 shots on goal, compared to the Stingrays’ 25. That late start may have been the difference maker, however.
On the road, the team found ways to win despite playing from behind. Undoubtedly, the on-slaught of hockey in recent days made a hot start a tougher challenge for the Icemen. Still, the Stingrays have been a thorn in the Icemen’s side this season, winning all three of the previous contests. The two games Jacksonville managed to kick into overtime were also 3-2 losses. Though a tough opponent, South Carolina has been within the Icemen’s grasp. Arguably, a more engaged defensive effort in the first period could have changed the overall shape of the game.
Now, with the powerplay starting to find a rhythm and the penalty kill defending well, Jacksonville is playing pretty solid end-to-end. Nevertheless, the team is still finding goofy ways to make the job harder for themselves. The task now is for them to find a way to sustain the kind of efforts that come in the final minutes for all 60 of them.
Click here to see the full game gallery by ITR Photographer Andrew Fielder.
