JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Friday was Wizard Night for the Jacksonville Icemen, who faced the visiting Orlando Solar Bears. The magic wasn’t on the side of Jacksonville, who lost 4-1 to Orlando, ending their 13-game point streak. Orlando netminder Ryan Fanti stopped 34 of 35 shots to earn himself the #1 star of the game.
Orlando opened up the scoring at 9:17 of the first period on a goal from Tyson Feist, from a snap shot from inside the left circle. This ended yet another streak for Jacksonville, who had scored first in their previous seven games.
Jacksonville’s Brody Crane tied it up at 7:51 of the second period after the referee reviewed the play to determine it was a good goal. A shot from Noah Laaouan went between the pads of Fanti, leaving the puck sitting about 12 inches in front of the blue line before being tucked in by Crane, who had four Orlando players surrounding him. A turnover in the defensive zone allowed Alex Frye to give Orlando a 2-1 lead with 52 seconds left in the period.
During the third period, Aaron Luchuk would score on a four-on-three powerplay, one-timing the puck past Matt Vernon. Down by two and with over four minutes left in the game, Jacksonville pulled their netminder for the extra attacker. Orlando would capitalize on the move, with Chris Harpur scoring an empty-net goal, cementing the win.
Both teams play Saturday, with the Icemen facing the Savannah Ghost Pirates in Jacksonville, and the Solar Bears facing the Florida Everblades in Orlando.
Check out this photo gallery from Inside The Rink’s Andrew Fielder, for highlights from the game.
Discover more from Inside The Rink
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
