Zimmerman scores, but Solar Bears stopped by Stingrays

ORLANDO, Fla. – Sean Zimmerman netted his first of the season, but the Orlando Solar Bears (31-28-6-3) dropped their Sunday afternoon tilt against the South Carolina Stingrays (43-15-6-1) by a 4-1 score at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center.

Click here for the box score.

SCORING SUMMARY

Orlando: Sean Zimmerman (Martins Dzierkals, Chris LeBlanc)

Goaltender: Mackenzie Skapski (25/29)

South Carolina: Paul Geiger (Steven Whitney, Jake Kamrass), J.C. Brassard (Whitney, Jonathan Charbonneau), Charbonneau (Brassard, Kelly Zajac), Charbonneau (Zajac, Brassard)

Goaltender: Parker Milner (19/20)

ON THE SCORESHEET

• Sean Zimmerman tallied his first of the season at 6:13 of the third period to get the Solar Bears on the board.
• Martins Dzierkals set up Zimmerman for his 19th assist of the season.
• Chris LeBlanc added the secondary assist on Zimmerman’s goal – LeBlanc (9g-11a) becomes the fourth Solar Bears rookie to reach the 20-point mark this season.
• Mackenzie Skapski took the loss with 25 stops on 29 shots against.

NOTABLES

• Orlando saw its season-high seven-game (4-0-1-2) unbeaten streak on home ice come to an end.
• The Solar Bears are 4-4-0-2 against the Stingrays this season; the regular season series concludes on Saturday, April 7 at South Carolina.
• Jean Dupuy, Alex Gudbranson and J.J. Piccinich led Orlando with three shots on goal.
• The Solar Bears battle the Jacksonville Icemen on Thursday, March 29, at the ARS.com Rink at Amway Center 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.
• The Solar Bears have clinched a spot in the 2018 Kelly Cup Playoffs and will compete in the postseason for the fourth time in their sixth season of ECHL play. Orlando (68 GP, 71 points) sits in third place in the South Division, with a four-point cushion on fourth-place Atlanta (68 GP, 67 points; idle today) – the magic number for the Solar Bears to lock up third place is five points.

THREE STARS1) J.C. Brassard – SC2) Jonathan Charbonneau – SC3) Parker Milner – SC

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.

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