SAVANNAH, Ga. — The Orlando Solar Bears took a short, one-game trip to Savannah, Georgia at Enmarket Arena on Saturday night where they took on the Savannah Ghost Pirates. The matchup between the two teams was filled with pandemonium, plenty of goals, and suspenseful moments that had everyone on their seats, with Orlando taking a 3-2 overtime victory.
Savannah held their affiliation weekend , honoring their NHL team affiliation with the 2024 Stanley Cup Champions, the Florida Panthers. The team wore specialty white/silver/green “Ghost Panthers” themed sweaters.
The first period ended scoreless, but it lacked suspense due to strong defensive and offensive play by both teams. In the second, Kai Schwindt scored a shorthanded goal for the Ghost Panthers, assisted by Keaton Pehrson.
Then, for the third frame, Kelly Bent tied it up with a primary assist by Alex Cohen. But Pito Walton broke the tie seconds later and gave the Ghost Panthers some breathing room. The Solar Bears trailed by a goal for several minutes, but pressure intensified close to the 18-minute mark. At 18:31, Anthony Bardaro tipped it in past Keith Kinkaid to tie it up and force overtime.
The Solar Bears capitalized on the forecheck with Bardaro scoring the game-winning goal at the 2:12 mark of the OT period, to take the win.
Click here to read an in-depth weekend recap of Savannah’s two game’s by ITR’s Sam Wismer.
Check out this photo gallery from Inside The Rink’s Jake Farmer for highlights of the game.
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