Bear Bites: Week of March 14, 2022

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orlando Solar Bears continue a four-game road trip this week when they close out their regular season series with the first-place Atlanta Gladiators, before returning to the Sunshine State for a pair of weekend games against the Florida Everblades.

THIS WEEK’S GAMES:

• Tuesday, March 15 at Atlanta Gladiators – 10 a.m.
• Friday, March 18 at Florida Everblades – 7:30 p.m.
• Saturday, March 19 at Florida Everblades – 7 p.m.

PRACTICE SCHEDULE:

• Monday, March 14 at RDV Sportsplex Ice Den – 8 a.m. (travel day)
• Tuesday, March 15 at Gas South Arena – Gameday
• Wednesday, March 16 – Day off
• Thursday, March 17 at RDV Sportsplex Ice Den – 10 a.m.
• Friday, March 18 at RDV Sportsplex Ice Den – Morning skate/Gameday

All Solar Bears practices at the RDV Sportsplex Ice Den are open to the public. Practice times are subject to change.

The Orlando Solar Bears along with VyStar Credit Union, have announced the launch of a co-branded debit card, available now for all VyStar Credit Union members.

Fans can get a Solar Bears debit card when they open a VyStar account with a minimum balance of $5 at any branch location. They can also apply for membership online at apply.vystarcu.org but will need to visit a branch to get a Solar Bears card. Current members can request a co-branded card by visiting a branch, calling 800-445-6289 or speaking to a VyChat representative at www.vystarcu.org.

AT A GLANCE

SEASON RECORD: 29-24-4-0 (.544)LAST WEEK’S RECORD: 1-2-0-0RECORD IN LAST 10 GAMES: 4-5-1-0SOUTH DIVISION STANDINGS: 4th of 7

ACTIVE LEADERS

TOP SCORER: Tristin Langan – 37 pointsMOST GOALS: Tyler Bird & Luke Boka – 14MOST ASSISTS: Michael Brodzinski – 29 assistsPIM LEADER: Luke McInnis – 51 PIMPLUS-MINUS LEADER: Tyler Bird – +10LAST WEEK’S GAMES:

Wednesday, March 9 at Jacksonville Icemen: 4-2 WNolan Valleau scored a power-play goal for his first of the season and Maxim Cajkovic broke a 2-2 tie in the second period as the Solar Bears capped a five-game road trip with a victory over the Icemen.

Thursday, March 10 vs. Jacksonville Icemen: 3-0 LThe Solar Bears put 24 shots on net, but were unable to solved goaltender Francois Brassard, who blanked Orlando for his first ECHL shutout.

Saturday, March 13 at Florida Everblades: 6-5 LDylan Fitze and Maxim Cajkovic scored in the first period to help Orlando take a 2-1 lead, but the Everblades scored three power-play goals and Joe Pendenza recorded a hat trick to put Florida ahead 6-3. Orlando got two goals in the final minute of regulation to pull to within one, but time ran out before the Solar Bears could net the tying score.

BITES:

• Maxim Cajkovic led the Solar Bears in scoring last week with four points (2g-2a) in three games.
• Orlando is 2-3-0-0 against Atlanta, with Tuesday’s game serving as the final meeting of the regular season series.
• The Solar Bears are 5-6-0-0 against Florida, with four games remaining in the regular season series.
• Tristin Langan needs one more goal to pass Joe Perry (2016-18; 53) for sole possession of the most goals in club history.
• Orlando has a record of 20-3-2-0 when scoring first; Orlando’s point percentage of .840 when scoring first leads the Eastern Conference.
• Brad Barone leads the ECHL with 22 wins; his next victory will tie Clint Windsor (2020-21) for the most wins by a Solar Bears goaltender in a single season; he needs 25 saves to tie Ryan Massa (2016-17) for the most saves by a Solar Bears netminder in a single season.
• The Solar Bears lead the ECHL with 18 wins when tied after the first period.
• Michael Brodzinski leads all ECHL defensemen with four unassisted goals.
• Following this week, eight of Orlando’s remaining 11 games will be on home ice.

BEARS IN THE NHL:

Several former Solar Bears have appeared on NHL rosters during the 2021-22 season – here we will track their performance:

* Currently assigned to AHL

BEAR TRACKS PRESENTED BY PINK WHITNEY BY NEW AMSTERDAM VODKA:

On this week's episode of Bear Tracks, presented by Pink Whitney by New Amsterdam Vodka, we're joined by Orlando native Craig LeVasseur, who has been involved with the Solar Bears hockey operations staff for the past 10 seasons in various roles, and this season had a chance to dress as the team’s Emergency Backup Goaltender for two games.

BECOME A VYSTAR CREDIT UNION MEMBER! 

VyStar Credit Union is the official credit union of the Orlando Solar Bears – take advantage of member benefits including discounted tickets and more! 

CLICK TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BECOMING A VYSTAR CREDIT UNION MEMBER