Solar Bears slay Beast 5-3 with three-goal third period

Faille records two goals, assist for Orlando

BRAMPTON, Ontario – The Orlando Solar Bears (32-23-6-3) scored three goals in the third period to erase a 3-2 deficit on their way to a 5-3 victory over the Brampton Beast (36-21-3-4) on Thursday night at the Powerade Centre. With the win, Orlando has jumped back into fourth place in the ECHL’s South Division.

Click here for the box score.

The Beast opened the scoring at 9:26 of the first period when David Vallorani received a broken pass from Brandon MacLean and elevated a shot past Ryan Massa.

Connor Crisp made it 2-0 for the Beast with a power-play goal at 11:45 when Brandon Marino threw a shot on goal from the right circle and Crisp knocked the rebound through the legs of Massa.

Denver Manderson got Orlando on the board late in the frame when Justin Buzzeo retrieved a rolling puck along the left half-wall and zipped a pass across the slot to Manderson at the bottom of the right circle, who immediately fired the puck past the glove of Zachary Fucale at 17:23.

Brenden Miller evened the score with a power-play goal at 4:37 of the second period, when Manderson passed the puck along to Eric Faille, who sent a pass into the high slot for Miller, who wristed the puck underneath the blocker of Fucale. For Manderson, the helper was his 78th with Orlando, moving him past Jacob Cepis for sole possession of the franchise lead.

The Beast pulled ahead again in the late stages of the period, as Marino teamed up with David Pacan for a give-and-go that ended in Marino burying a shot low blocker-side on Massa at 15:59.

Faille netted his own goal to even the score at 3-3 at 4:47 of the third period when he carried the puck into the offensive zone and drove wide left on Fucale before cutting across the crease and tucking the puck into the bottom right corner of the cage. Faille’s goal was his 61st point of the season, setting a new single-season club record for the most points by a player in a campaign, which Faille had previously established with a 60-point effort in 2015-16.

Joe Perry gave Orlando its first lead of the contest at 7:14 when he tipped Daniel Maggio’s shot from the right point past Fucale for his team-leading 32nd goal of the season, making the score 4-3 in favor of the visitors.

Faille then sealed the win with an unassisted empty-net tally at 19:32.

Massa earned the victory with 32 saves on 35 shots against; Fucale took the loss with 34 stops on 38 shots against for the Beast.

Three Stars:1) Eric Faille – ORL2) Brandon Marino – BRM3) David Vallorani - BRM

NEXT HOME GAMES:

• Solar Bears vs. Florida Everblades – Wednesday, April 5 – 7 p.m – Wawa Sunshine Cup Series game
• Solar Bears vs. Florida Everblades – Friday, April 7 – 7 p.m. – Fan Appreciation Night / Team Picture Giveaway Sponsored by Coors Light / Shirts Off Players Back Ceremony / Wawa Sunshine Cup Series game / Shot for $100,000

Club level game tickets can be as purchased for as low as $10 for all remaining regular season home games at orlandosolarbearshockey.com/MTG courtesy of Auto Justice Attorney Michael T. Gibson.

Single-game tickets are now on sale at the Amway Center box office and ticketmaster.com. Full and half-season ticket plans are now available by visiting OrlandoSolarBearsHockey.com.

The Solar Bears mobile app, presented by BB&T, gives Solar Bears fans everything they need right in their pocket. The app is also home to the brand-new Loyalty & Rewards Program, which provides Solar Bears fans with opportunities to accumulate points and redeem them for exclusive prizes. The app is FREE and available for both iOS and Android devices.

The Orlando Solar Bears are the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and AHL’s Toronto Marlies, and play all of their home games at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center, the 2012 Street and Smith’s Sports Business Journal Sports Facility of the Year.

Follow the Solar Bears at www.OrlandoSolarBearsHockey.com, Facebook, and Twitter (@OrlandoHockey) for all the latest news and updates. Stay in touch with Shades on Instagram by following SolarBearsHockey.

Season tickets, Corporate Flex vouchers, and Group tickets are a great way to entertain employees, co-workers, clients, friends and family. For more information on all of the Solar Bears ticket packages, call (407) 951-8200 or visit orlandosolarbearshockey.com/groups.

Officially licensed Orlando Solar Bears replica team jerseys, apparel, and headwear can be purchased online at orlandosolarbearshockey.com/shop.