Solar Bears drop preseason opener to Everblades

ESTERO, Fla. – Mike Vaskivuo scored the lone goal for Orlando as the Solar Bears (0-1-0-0) dropped their opening preseason match against the Florida Everblades (1-0-0-0) by a 4-1 score on Saturday night at Germain Arena.

Click here for the box score.

SCORING SUMMARY

Orlando: Mike Vaskivuo (Jeff King)

Goaltender: Matt Hackett: 29/33

Florida: Matt Finn (Nelson Armstrong, Brett Bulmer), Paul Russell (Kyle Neuber, Brett Bulmer), Mitchell Heard , M. Finn (N. Armstrong, Steven Lorentz)

Goaltender: Martin Ouellette: 23/24

ON THE SCORESHEET

• Mike Vaskivuo got Orlando on the board early in the second period when his snapshot from the left circle beat Martin Ouellette high to the glove side at 0:49.
• Michael Turner and Brandon Platt both dropped the gloves for Orlando, as Turner squared off against Kyle Neuber at 6:23 of the first, while Platt was forced into a skirmish with Josiah Didier after colliding with Matt Finn at 16:26 of the second period.
• Matt Hackett finished the night with 29 saves in his preseason debut for Orlando, including a lunging stick save on Mitchell Heard in the third period.

NOTABLES

• Orlando concludes its preseason play tomorrow with a 5 p.m. rematch against Florida.

THREE STARS1) Matt Finn – FLA2) Martin Ouellette – FLA3) Nelson Armstrong – FLA

The Orlando Solar Bears drop the puck on their 2017-18 home schedule on Saturday, Oct. 28 against the Atlanta Gladiators at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center. Single-game tickets for the 2017-18 season are now on sale at the Amway Center box office and ticketmaster.com.

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.

Full Season Ticket Memberships for the 2017-18 season are on sale now. Purchase an Orlando Solar Bears Full Season Ticket Membership for as little as $440 today! Click here or call (407) 951-8200 for more information.

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