Boyd, Solar Bears outlast Mavericks in 7-5 win

ORLANDO, Fla. – Defenseman Rich Boyd enjoyed a career-high four-point (2g-2a) performance and broke a 5-5 tie in the third period to lift the Orlando Solar Bears (11-11-4-1) to an eventual 7-5 win over the Kansas City Mavericks (11-13-3-0) on Wednesday night at the Jewett Orthopaedic Rink at Amway Center.

Box Score

The Solar Bears took a 1-0 lead at 4:53 of the first period when Mikhail Shalagin teamed up with Jimmy Lodge on a 2-on-1 and took pass from Lodge before beating Tyler Parsons for his fifth of the season.

Tad Kozun tied the score for the Mavericks at 8:16 as he hammered a back-door pass from Ryan Galt past Clint Windsor for a shorthanded goal.

Johno May pulled Orlando ahead 2-1 at 11:40 when Trevor Olson sent a pass across the neutral zone to May, who sped into the offensive zone and beat Parsons with a wrist shot from the left circle for his seventh goal of the season and his third goal since joining the Solar Bears.

The Mavericks opted to replace Parsons with Nick Schneider in net to begin the second period.

May netted his second of the game on the power play in the middle frame when Alexey Lipanov fed May for a one-timer in the slot at 4:46.

Rocco Carzo answered for Kansas City at 6:44 with a power-play goal off the rush that struck the post and clanked into the net to pull the visitors back to within one.

Orlando restored the two-goal lead at 14:27 when Lipanov received a pass from Langan along the half-boards before he cut to the front of the Mavericks net and slid the puck underneath Schneider for his fifth of the season.

Ivan Kosorenkov extended the lead to three goals at 2:37 of the third period when he retrieved a loose puck at the side of the Kansas City net and stuffed his fourth of the season past Schneider.

The Mavericks were not finished, however, as Terrance Amorosa (5:46), Darian Dziurzynski (8:49) and Zach Osburn (11:24) scored to even the score at 5-5.

Boyd broke the tie score at 15:20 when his shot from the point struck the skates of a Kansas City defenseman and pinballed into the net for his second goal of the season.

Boyd sealed the game with an empty-net goal at 18:40 to cap the career night for the rookie defenseman.

Windsor picked up his fourth win of the season with 29 saves on 34 shots against; Schneider took the loss with 22 stops on 26 shots against after relieving Parsons.

THREE STARS:

1. Rich Boyd – ORL
2. Johno May – ORL
3. Kevin Lohan – ORL  

NOTABLES:

• Orlando’s seven goals marked a new season-high – the previous was a six on Oct. 29 vs. Jacksonville
• May now has six points (4g-2a) in four games for Orlando since his acquisition from Greenville last Friday
• Boyd’s four points also marked a new single-game season-high by a Solar Bears player, was the first four-point game by a Solar Bears defenseman since Nolan Valleau on Nov. 19, 2017 vs. Greenville (2g-2a) and matched Nikolas Brouillard (1g-3a; Nov. 1, 2016 at South Carolina) for the most points in a single game by a Solar Bears rookie blueliner
• Boyd and defensive partner Kevin Lohan led Orlando with a +4
• Alexey Lipanov (1g-1a) and Tristin Langan (2a) finished the night with two points; it was both rookie forwards’ second multi-point game of the season
• The Solar Bears are now 9-0-0-0 this season when scoring three or more goals
• Orlando has improved to 2-0-2-0 against non-divisional opponents this season; the Solar Bears’ next non-divisional opponent is Jan. 5 vs. Brampton  

NEXT GAMES:

The Solar Bears head out on the road to face the South Carolina Stingrays at the North Charleston Coliseum on Friday, Dec. 20 at 7:05 p.m. The Solar Bears return home to face the Jacksonville Icemen on Thursday, Dec. 26 at 7 p.m. for a Thirsty Thursday, presented by Coors Light; fans can take advantage of $5 domestic drafts during the game. 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.