On paper, it may have looked like an easy week for the Orlando Solar Bears, with just two games on the schedule. However, there was plenty of movement off the ice, with 10 player transactions shaking up the roster.
The result?
A 1-1 week as the calendar turns to November.
Tuesday, 10/29: Orlando 6, Jacksonville 2
A short week for the Solar Bears began with a rare Tuesday night matchup against the Icemen.
Tonight’s starting lineup: pic.twitter.com/TgUGcshFDh
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) October 29, 2019
The visitors took a 1-0 lead 12:40 into the opening period on a goal by forward Chase Lang. Orlando erased that deficit quickly to open the second, as a pair of rookies scored their first ECHL goals in a span of 1:27. Jimmy Huntington scored his first 20 seconds after puck drop, then Jake Jackson gave the Solar Bears a 2-1 lead 1:07 later. Jake Marchment extended the Orlando lead to 3-1 at the 4:33 mark with his first of the season. Finally, just as time was expiring, Ivan Kosorenkov scored his third for a three-goal cushion.
Jacksonville cut the lead to 4-2 1:06 into the third on Alexis D’Aoust’s second goal of the season. Alexey Lipanov then put the game out of the reach with a pair of power play goals 4:41 apart, his first two of the season.
Spencer Martin stopped 35 of 37 Jacksonville shots to pick up the win in net. Mike Monfredo added two assists. Twelve Orlando skaters had at least one point.
3 Stars:
3. Mike Monfredo (ORL) 2 assists
2. Jake Jackson (ORL) 1 goal
1. Alexey Lipanov (ORL) 2 goals
Big win tonight. Here’s how it happened in the @AdventHealth Postgame Report.#WeDemBears https://t.co/xFhrSHv1Ff
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) October 30, 2019
Midweek Transactions:
Before the lone weekend matchup, the roster received quite a shakeup:
-On Wednesday, Huntington and Oleg Sosunov were recalled to Syracuse, while rookie forward Artem Ivanyuzhenkov was loaned to the Solar Bears by San Jose. Additionally, forward Marcus Vela was recalled to the Barracuda, who then traded him to Grand Rapids for defenseman Marcus Crawford, who was subsequently reassigned to Orlando.
We’ve announced several moves as part of our latest @pizzahut Transaction Report: https://t.co/gM14eydJGi
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) October 30, 2019
-On Thursday, forward Brent Pedersen joined the Manitoba Moose on a PTO.
-Finally, Martin was recalled to Syracuse on Saturday, after the trade of Louis Domingue to New Jersey. In separate moves, rookie forwards Mikhail Shalagin and Peter Abbandonato were reassigned to the Solar Bears.
The @TBLightning have reassigned goaltender Spencer Martin to the @SyracuseCrunch, and Syracuse has loaned forwards Peter Abbandonato and Mikhail Shalagin to the Solar Bears in our latest @pizzahut Transaction Report: https://t.co/aF8TA1RUQC
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) November 2, 2019
-To fill in Martin’s roster spot, Clint Windsor was re-signed prior to Sunday’s game.
Sunday, 11/3: South Carolina 8, Orlando 2
Zachary Fucale got the start on Sunday afternoon, as the Solar Bears kicked off their November schedule with a visit from the Stingrays.
Here’s this afternoon’s starting lineup: pic.twitter.com/EVtmivKTmi
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) November 3, 2019
This game was all South Carolina from the beginning, as the Stingrays outshot Orlando 22-6 in the first 20 minutes and picked up two goals. Mitch Vanderlaan opened the scoring 1:47 in with his first of the season for a 1-0 lead. Cole Ully doubled the South Carolina lead just over 4 minutes later with his second of the year. Orlando cut the Stingray lead in half at the 9:47 mark, as Chris LeBlanc scored his third of the season.
How’s that for a Sunday fun day goal? #OSBvsSC pic.twitter.com/uOLW8jqzoG
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) November 3, 2019
The Stingrays blew the game open in the second. Andrew Cherniwchan scored his third goal of the season 1:22 into the period for a 3-1 lead. Ully added his second of the game at the 9:01 mark for a three-goal advantage for the visitors. Colby McAuley cut the lead to 4-2 with 4:39 remaining in the second with his first of the season on a power play.
McAuley gets in on the action with a power play goal for the Bears! #OSBvsSC pic.twitter.com/3x2n2LIAPU
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) November 3, 2019
With 2:34 remaining in the period, Max Novak scored his first of the season to give the Stingrays a 5-2 lead, ending Fucale’s night in net in favor of the just re-signed Windsor.
South Carolina did not let up on the gas going into the third, outshooting Orlando 18-5 and scoring three more times. Ed Wittchow and Novak scored 22 seconds apart early in the period to extend the lead to five. Mark Cooper finished off the scoring at the 8:22 mark with his third of the season for the final 8-2 margin.
The Solar Bears could only manage 17 shots against Stingrays goaltender Logan Thompson. South Carolina finished with 53 shots, the second highest total for a team in the ECHL so far this season. Fucale finished with 28 saves on 33 shots in just over 37 minutes, while Windsor stopped 17 of 20. Peter Abbandonato had an assist in his Solar Bears debut.
3 Stars:
3. Dylan Stenman (SC) 2 assists
2. Cole Ully (SC) 2 goals
1. Max Novak (SC) 2 goals, 2 assists
Today’s @AdventHealth Postgame Report: https://t.co/sPqlZovCii
— Orlando Solar Bears (@OrlandoHockey) November 4, 2019
This Week:
On Tuesday, Jacksonville returns to the Amway Center for a special 10:30 AM school day start time. The Solar Bears then head south to Estero to visit the Everblades on Wednesday and Friday.
