ORLANDO, Fla. – Zachary Fucale made 34 saves for his second consecutive shutout and Johno May led the way with two points including a power-play goal as the Orlando Solar Bears (22-21-5-1) defeated the Norfolk Admirals (12-33-5-0) by a 4-0 score Friday night at the Jewett Orthopaedic Rink at Amway Center.
May’s shot at 8:50 of the first period was redirected by Alexander Kuqali to give the defenseman his first goal of the season and Orlando a 1-0 lead.
May then tallied his 14th of the season with the Solar Bears on the man advantage at 3:56 of the second period when Taylor Cammarata fed Tristin Langan at the goal line, who immediately sent a pass to May in the slot, who rifled a shot past Jake Theut.
Newcomer Zane Schartz scored in his first game with Orlando at 11:32 to extend the lead to 3-0 after intercepting an Admirals pass and blasted his first of the season past Theut.
Tayler Thompson dropped the gloves with Austin McEneny at center ice less than 30 seconds into the third period, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
Dylan Fitze capped the scoring with a highlight-reel goal after he skipped the puck through the legs of defenseman River Rymsha and deked to his backhand before stuffing his third of the season past Theut at 7:31.
Fucale earned his 10th win of the season for Orlando in the victory; Theut took the loss for Norfolk going 32-for-36.
THREE STARS:
- Zachary Fucale – ORL
- Tayler Thompson – ORL
- Dylan Fitze – ORL
OTHER NOTABLES:
- Fucale’s shutout was his fourth of the season; he has not allowed a goal in his last 125:42 of action dating back to Jan. 31 at Wheeling
- The shutout was Orlando’s eighth of the season, matching the previous single-season mark for the team set during the 2014-15 season
- Eric Drapluk picked up an assist on Fitze’s goal, and now has a three-game assist streak (3a)
NEXT GAME:
The Solar Bears host the Norfolk Admirals on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. for Military Appreciation Night, presented by Hunter Vision. CLICK HERE for tickets to this game. Saturday’s game will also air LIVE on WKMG-TV News 6.
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