It was Teddy Bear toss night in both Orlando and Syracuse. Luckily, neither team was shut out. Mitchell Hoelscher provided the honors for the Solar Bears as his goal midway through the first period brought forth a flurry of flying fur. At roughly the same time but 1,200 miles north (give or take) Felix Robert scored for Syracuse and stuffed animals rained down from the rafters.
The Rest of the News
Lightning win in overtime (yes, you read that right) [Raw Charge]
Brandon Hagel had a heck of a game. Nikita Kucherov scored twice. Anthony Cirelli scored. Except for that whole “give up three goals in a row” part, it was a fun night.
Crunch Lose, 3-1 [Syracuse Crunch]
While it was fun to see the Teddy Bears fly, the Comets were the ones who emerged victorious.
Solar Bears win 4-0 [ECHL]
Colten Ellis made 21 saves as the Solar Bears were victorious
Evander Kane receives warning from the league about hit on Jonas Brodin [Oilers Nation]
Seems to me it’s a textbook boarding call (there was no penalty on the play). Not sure it rises to suspension level, though.
Boone Jenner out six weeks with broken jaw [1st Ohio Battery]
There will be no solid foods in Boone Jenner’s near future after he suffered a broken jaw when he was hit in the face with a puck on Friday.
Marc Johnstone, the longshot who made it to the NHL [PensBurgh]
As we often say, the path to the NHL isn’t always a straight line. Johnstone’s first game in the USHL came at age 19. He then spent four years at Sacred Heart, not necessarily a hockey powerhouse. His first attempt at pro hockey ended when he was cut from the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL. Still he stuck with it, eventually ending up with the Newfoundland Growlers. Last year he earned an AHL deal with the Toronto Marlies. He followed Kyle Dubas over to the Pittsburgh organization and last night finally made his NHL debut at the age of 27.
