Fejes, Heeter lead Solar Bears to 2-1 win over Admirals

ORLANDO, Fla. – Hunter Fejes broke a third period tie, while Cal Heeter made 38 saves to guide the Orlando Solar Bears (25-25-5-1) to a 2-1 win over the Norfolk Admirals (21-29-5-1) on Sunday afternoon at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center.

With the victory, the fourth-place Solar Bears (56 points) improved to within one point of third-place Atlanta with two games in hand; the Solar Bears have also extended their lead on fifth-place Norfolk by eight points – both teams have played the same number of games.

Click here for the box score.

SCORING SUMMARY

Orlando: Tayler Thompson (J.J. Piccinich, Alex Gudbranson), Hunter Fejes

Goaltender: Cal Heeter (30/31)

Norfolk: Brodie Dupont (T.J. Melancon, Christian Horn)

Goaltender: Jamie Murray (28/30)

ON THE SCORESHEET

• Tayler Thompson opened the scoring with his sixth of the season at the 1:21 mark of the second period.
• Hunter Fejes made the score 2-1 Orlando at 3:56 of the third period when he stole the puck at the Orlando blue line and raced up the ice before burying his 23rd of the season past Jamie Murray.
• J.J. Piccinich earned the primary assist on Thompson’s goal.
• Alex Gudbranson picked up the secondary helper on Thompson’s goal for the 50th point in his professional career (12g-38a).
• Cal Heeter earned his 15th victory of the season with 38 saves on 39 shots against. With the win, Heeter has passed Kasimir Kaskisuo (2016-17) for the fifth-most wins by a Solar Bears goaltender in a single season.

NOTABLES

• The win gives Orlando its first win streak since early January, when the Solar Bears prevailed in three straight against Jacksonville from Jan. 5-7.
• Orlando went 0-for-2 on the power play and a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. The Solar Bears have now not surrendered a power-play goal to the opposition for four consecutive games.
• Fejes led Orlando with seven shots on goal.
• The Solar Bears conclude their regular season series against the Norfolk Admirals at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center on Monday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. Single-game tickets for the 2017-18 season are now on sale at the Amway Center box office and ticketmaster.com.

THREE STARS1) Cal Heeter – ORL2) Hunter Fejes – ORL3) Tayler Thompson – ORL

About the Orlando Solar Bears:

The Orlando Solar Bears are in their sixth season of operation in the ECHL, the premier “AA” hockey league in North America, and are the proud affiliate of the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and the AHL’s Toronto Marlies. The Solar Bears are owned and operated by the Orlando Magic and the DeVos Family, and play at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center, the 2012 Street and Smith’s Sports Business Journal Sports Facility of the Year.

Fiesta Four Packs, presented by CenturyLink, are now available for purchase! Pick four games and get gift certificates to Sonny’s BBQ, Dick’s Sporting Goods, QDOBA Mexican Eats and a FREE center ice ticket to the our Noche Latina game, presented by Auto Justice Attorney Michael T. Gibson on Friday, March 23! Packs start as low as $64 and include $68 in FREE gifts! Click here or call (407) 951-8200 for more information.

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