LeBlanc leads Solar Bears to 7-4 win

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Orlando Solar Bears (20-16-3-0) raced out to a 3-0 lead within the opening five minutes of the first period and never looked back, while Chris LeBlanc had a career-high four-point performance in Orlando’s 7-4 win over the South Carolina Stingrays (21-17-2-0) on Saturday night at the North Charleston Coliseum.

Click here for the box score.

Dylan Fitze made it 1-0 when he received a lob pass from Kevin Lohan from the defensive zone and snapped a shot from the right circle past Angus Redmond just 1:31 into the opening frame for his sixth of the season.

Orlando got its second of the game just over a minute later when Myles McGurty’s centering attempt from the right corner glanced off a Stingrays defenseman and Colby McAuley batted the puck past Redmond at 2:41 for his sixth of the season.

Jonne Tammela made it 3-0 on the power play at 4:38 when Mike Monfredo’s slap shot at the left point pinballed off the end boards to Tammela at the right circle, and the Lightning prospect buried his ninth of the season.

Michael Brodzinski chased Redmond from the South Carolina net early in the second period when his wrist shot at the right point fluttered into the net just 1:49 into the frame for the defenseman’s sixth of the season, prompting the Stingrays to replace Redmond with Gordon Defiel.

The Solar Bears continued their scoring binge at 3:17 when Tammela fed Alex Schoenborn at the red line and the forward made his way into the offensive zone before flipping a pass across to Oleg Sosunov, who had joined the rush. The defenseman then snapped a shot past Defiel for his first career ECHL goal, making it 5-0 in favor of Orlando.

The Stingrays broke up Orlando’s run when Christian Horn backhanded a shot past Clint Windsor at 19:12 for a power-play goal.

Matt Pohlkamp netted South Carolina’s second of the game at 3:05 of the third period with a one-timer from the left circle during a 4-on-3 man advantage for the home team.

Grant Besse then struck at 4:44 to pull the Stingrays back to within two of the Solar Bears.

LeBlanc made it 6-3 when he stole the puck from Horn in the neutral zone before beating Defiel with a wrist shot from the left circle at 9:14 for his fifth of the season.

Tad Kozun buried a shot at the left side of the net at 12:22 to bring South Carolina back to within two goals of Orlando.

The Solar Bears capped the scoring when McAuley forced a turnover along the left wall of the offensive zone and backhanded a pass to an open Schoenborn in the slot who put the game away with his third of the season at 17:26.

Windsor picked up the win in his first career ECHL start on the strength of 36 saves on 40 shots against; Redmond made eight stops on 12 shots against before giving way to Defiel, who took the loss with 19 saves on 22 shots against.

THREE STARS1) Chris LeBlanc – ORL2) Jonne Tammela – ORL3) Cameron Askew – SC

NOTABLES

• The Solar Bears improved to 2-1-0-0 at the North Charleston Coliseum for the 2018-19 season and currently sit one point behind the Stingrays for third place in the South Division.
• LeBlanc finished the night with four points (1g-3a) for a new career-high in his pro career. He had set his previous career-high of three points (1g-2a) on Nov. 18 at Worcester.
• Tammela finished the night with three points (1g-2a).
• McAuley picked up a Gordie Howe Hat Trick with his first period tally, his fight 32 seconds into the third with Patrick Gaul and his assist on Schoenborn’s goal. McAuley’s goal also represented his fifth of the season against South Carolina – he leads Orlando with eight points (5g-3a) in seven games against the Stingrays.
• The second period was briefly delayed at the 13:39 mark when South Carolina’s Andrew Cherniwchan hit McGurty in the neutral zone with an illegal check to the head and was assessed a match penalty, while McGurty had to be helped from the ice and did not return.

NEXT GAMES: The Solar Bears complete their weekend set with the South Carolina Stingrays on Sunday, Jan. 20 at 3:05 p.m. at the North Charleston Coliseum. The Solar Bears return home to host the Jacksonville Icemen on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m. for a Wine Down Wednesday. Fans can take advantage of $5 wine specials during the game. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets for the game.

Fighting Four Packs presented by CenturyLink:

Gear up for the second half of the 2018-19 season with a Fighting Four Pack, presented by CenturyLink! Pick any four remaining home games and get $65 dollars in gift certificates to Dick’s Sporting Goods, First Watch, QDOBA Mexican Eats and a FREE center ice ticket to the Saturday, Feb. 23 game against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, part of Hockey Fights Cancer Weekend, presented by XYMOPrint. Packs start as low as $69.99 – CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE.

2018-19 Season Presented by XYMOPrint:

The Orlando Solar Bears are proud to have local digital printing experts XYMOPrint as the presenting sponsor of the 2018-19 season. As a special offer, fans who call XYMOPrint at (888) 223-9390 from now until June 15, 2019 and reference the Solar Bears will receive 30% off their first order of 500 business cards.

2018-19 Single-Game Tickets Now on Sale:

Single-game tickets for the Orlando Solar Bears 2018-19 regular season home schedule are now on sale. Fans can purchase single-game tickets for as little as $15 at the Amway Center box office, or online at Ticketmaster.com.

2018-19 Season Ticket Memberships:

Season Ticket Memberships for the seventh season of ECHL Orlando Solar Bears hockey are now on sale. Full and Half-Season memberships are both available, starting as low as $270. For more information, call (407) 951-8200 or visit orlandosolarbearshockey.com.

About the Orlando Solar Bears:

The Orlando Solar Bears are the proud affiliate of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning and members of the ECHL, the premier “AA” hockey league in North America. In six seasons of operation, the team has qualified for the Kelly Cup Playoffs four times. 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.