Fucale, Solar Bears blank Icemen in 3-0 victory

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Zachary Fucale made 25 saves and the  Orlando Solar Bears (4-7-1-1) tied a team record with three shorthanded goals to blank the Jacksonville Icemen (3-7-2-0) by a 3-0 score on Saturday night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena to pick up their first road victory of the season.

Box Score

After a scoreless first period, Alexey Lipanov put the Solar Bears on the board at 6:55 of the second frame when Jake Coughler’s shot redirected off of Cody Donaghey’s stick and rebounded off the pads of goaltender Michael McNiven, allowing Lipanov to poke the puck from several feet out into the net for his third goal of the season.

Hunter Fejes made it 2-0 when he pressured an Icemen skater into committing a turnover at the Orlando blue line and raced up the ice with the puck before firing a wrist shot that beat McNiven to the glove side at 18:43 for his fourth of the season.

Trevor Olson sealed the game with an empty-net tally at 18:43 of the third period. Olson got his second of the season when he grabbed a hold of the puck in the corner of the defensive zone and fired a shot down the length of the ice into the open net.

Fucale picked up the win – his first victory of the season – by stopping all 25 shots he faced, including nine in both the second and third frames; McNiven took the loss with 34 stops on 36 shots against.

THREE STARS:

1. Zachary Fucale – ORL
2. Alexey Lipanov – ORL
3. Michael McNiven – JAX  

NOTABLES:

• Orlando’s three shorthanded goals matched the club single-game record set on Dec. 28, 2012 vs. Florida (8-4 win)
• The Solar Bears went 6-for-6 on the penalty kill, pushing their streak of not surrendering a power-play goal to 10 games since Oct. 25; The Solar Bears have gone 39-for-39 with the PK over that span and lead the ECHL on the season with a PK rate of 93%
• The win improves Orlando’s record against Jacksonville this season to 3-0-0-0
• Fejes’ goal gives him a two-game goal-scoring streak (2g); the goal was his fifth career shorthanded goal with Orlando, moving him into a tie with Eric Baier and Brady Vail for the most in club history
• Fejes also led Orlando with six shots on goal  

NEXT GAMES:

The Solar Bears continue their road trip when they visit the Idaho Steelheads on Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 9:10 p.m. ET at CenturyLink Arena. The Solar Bears return home to host the Norfolk Admirals on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 7 p.m. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets for this game.

Purchase Single-Game Tickets:

Single-game tickets for all Solar Bears home games are now on sale at the Amway Center box office and Ticketmaster. CLICK HERE to download the calendar for the 2019-20 season.

Order New Jerseys:

The Orlando Solar Bears will wear new jerseys for the 2019-20 season. Replica jerseys are available for purchase online, with adult sizes available for $149.95 and youth sizes available for $109.95. Fans can visit bit.ly/OSBJerseys to place their order today.

2019-20 Season Ticket Memberships on Sale Now:

Upgrade to Solar Status and become a Season Ticket Member today. Season ticket memberships for the 2019-20 season are now on sale and start as little as $270 – CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.

2019-20 Season Presented by XYMOPrint:

The 2019-20 Orlando Solar Bears season is presented by XYMOPrint, Orlando’s digital printing experts. As a special offer, fans who call XYMOPrint at (888) 223-9390 from now until June 15, 2021 and reference the Solar Bears will receive 15% off their first order and a free Orlando Solar Bears poster!

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 seven seasons of operation, the team has qualified for the Kelly Cup Playoffs five times. The Solar Bears are owned and operated by the Orlando Magic and the DeVos Family, and play 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.