Icemen Take on the Stingrays on Sunday

The Jacksonville Icemen (10-21-3-2, 25 pts) look to complete another back-to-back-to-back stretch with a win against the South Carolina Stingrays (22-9-3-1, 48 pts) this afternoon at 3:05 p.m.

Similar to the Icemen, the Stingrays are also capping off a three-consecutive game streak on Sunday. On Saturday night, the Stingrays fell, 2-1, to the Orlando Solar Bears at home. Goalie Jeff Jakaitis has started the past two games, creating a strong possibility that backup goalie Parker Miller will get the nod against Jacksonville.

South Carolina has been one of the more dominant teams in the ECHL this season. The Stingrays are an impressive 11-4-3 at the North Charleston Coliseum and a +13 in goal differential. Much of that success is due to forward Joe Devin, who leads the team in scoring, posting 12 goals and 17 assists with a +8 rating. Another factor is a strong penalty kill that ranks first in the league.

Jacksonville lost the first two meetings against the Stingrays this season. On Nov. 14, the Icemen defeated the Stingrays for the first time in a dominant 5-2 win at home. Forward Elgin Pearce leads the active roster in scoring against the Stingrays with three assists in three games.

It'll be a battle of will this afternoon as both teams have tired legs. The Icemen have played solid hockey as of late, but have had trouble closing out games in the third period. That will need to be a focus if Jacksonville wants to head into the All-Star break with a win on the road.

Do you have your tickets for Faith and Family Weekend yet? Join the Icemen from Jan. 26-28 and don’t miss out on a live performance by Colton Dixon immediately after the Jan. 26 game against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits. Help us defeat cancer as we host Hockey Fights Cancer Weekend on Feb. 1-3. Find out more about this special weekend by visiting here.

Tune into ECHL TV at 3:05 p.m. as the Icemen and Stingrays drop the puck for the fourth time in the 2017-18 season, presented by Community First Credit Union.

Matchup Breakdown

Records:

Jacksonville Icemen: 10-21-3-2 (7th in South division)

South Carolina Stingrays: 22-9-3-1 (2nd in South division)

Power Play:

Icemen: 14/147 – 9.5% (27th in ECHL)

Stingrays: 21/133 – 15.8% (19th in ECHL)

Penalty Kill:

Icemen: 128/156 – 82.1% (18th in ECHL)

Stingrays: 133/147 – 90.5% (1st in ECHL)

Players to Watch:

#16 F Elgin Pearce (JAX)

12G, 16A – 28 Pts, -1 Rating

Pearce has two goals in the past three games. He also leads the active roster in points against South Carolina with three assists.

#8 F Joe Devin (SC)

12G, 17A – 29 Pts, +8 Rating

Devin is leading the Stingrays in scoring this season and has three points (2g-1a) against Jacksonville.