Brodzinski dishes out four assists as Solar Bears edge Stingrays 4-3

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. – Michael Brodzinski dished out four assists, and Maxim Cajkovic broke a 3-3 tie midway through the third as the Orlando Solar Bears (27-21-4-0) edged the South Carolina Stingrays (17-29-6-0) by a 4-3 score on Friday night at the North Charleston Coliseum.

Brodzinski was a factor on every Solar Bears goal, and helped start the team’s rally from a 2-0 deficit when his shot was tipped by Luke Boka with the man advantage to get Orlando on the board midway through the second period. Brodzinski earned the secondary helper on Tristin Langan’s goal that evened the game late in the frame.

After Ryan Dmowski put South Carolina ahead 3-2 early in the third, it was Brodzinski’s low shot that was redirected by Shawn Element past Ryan Bednard to even things up at 3-3 halfway through the period. Nearly four and a half minutes later, Brodzinski was able to spring Cajkovic for a partial breakaway, and the rookie beat the goaltender with a wrist shot that gave Orlando its first lead of the night.

The Solar Bears shut the door the rest of the way, aided by Brad Barone with a little help from the goalposts, as Barone finished the night with 37 saves for his ECHL-leading 20th victory of the season.

BOX SCORE

1st PeriodSHOTS: ORL 17, SC 13

2nd PeriodSC GOAL: Jade Miller (10) at 2:39. Assisted by Carter Cowlthorp and Cam Strong.SC GOAL: Justin Florek (15) at 3:47. Assisted by Andrew Cherniwchan and Ryan Dmowski.ORL GOAL: Luke Boka (13) [PP] at 12:01. Assisted by Michael Brodzinski and Odeen Tufto.ORL GOAL: Tristin Langan (11) at 16:53. Assisted by Nolan Valleau and Michael Brodzinski.SHOTS: ORL 17, SC 13

3rd PeriodSC Goal: Ryan Dmowski (14) at 3:56.ORL Goal: Shawn Element (2) at 10:01. Assisted by Michael Brodzinski and Odeen Tufto.ORL Goal: Maxim Cajkovic (2) at 14:34. Assisted by Michael Brodzinski and Odeen Tufto.SHOTS: ORL 8, SC 14

GoaltendingORL: Brad Barone, 37-for-40SC: Ryan Bednard, 38-for-42

NOTABLES:

• Brodzinski’s four assists/points were a new season-high; Orlando is 6-0-0-0 when the defenseman has a multi-point game; he has leapfrogged Tristin Langan in career assists with the Solar Bears with 81, and now trails only Chris LeBlanc (82) for the most assists in franchise history.
• Orlando improved to 8-1-0-0 when tied after the second period.
• Element has scored goals for two consecutive games.
• The Solar Bears are now 16-4-4-0 in games decided by one goal.
• Odeen Tufto established a new career-high with three assists.
• Orlando leads the regular season series with South Carolina by a 4-1-0-0 record; the two teams next face each other again on Saturday.
• Barone has established a new single-season career-best for wins, passing his previous mark of 19 established in 2016-17 with Mississippi of the SPHL; he becomes the fourth goalie in team history to record a 20-win season, joining Clint Windsor (23, 2020-21), Ryan Massa (22, 2016-17) and Garret Sparks (21, 2014-15).  

NEXT GAMES: The Solar Bears remain in the Palmetto State when they play South Carolina Stingrays on Saturday, March 5 at 6:05 p.m. at the North Charleston Coliseum. The Solar Bears return home to host Jacksonville on Thursday, March 10 at 7 p.m. at the AdventHealth Rink at Amway Center for a Thirsty Thursday, featuring $5 domestic draft beers.