Fresh off a win last night against the Norfolk Admirals, the Jacksonville Icemen (19-28-4-3, 45 pts) face a big test tonight against the best team in the league, Florida Everblades (36-12-1-4, 77 pts). Jacksonville is searching for its first win against the dominant Florida team.
Just like the Icemen, the 'Blades played last night. However, Florida fell to Orlando in a 3-1 loss at home. It's a stretch to say the 'Blades are struggling, but the club has lost three of their last five games heading into tonight.
One reason for Florida's success this season has been their impressive goaltending depth. Outside of South Carolina and Toledo, the 'Blades have arguably the strongest goalie tandem in the league. Martin Ouellette is currently posting a 2.05 GAA, just right behind the league-leader Matej Machovsky of Toledo, whose played in eight fewer games. Callum Booth hasn't been too bad, either. The 2015 Carolina Hurricanes draft pick has recorded one shutout and posted a 2.51 GAA.
The last time these two teams played was back on Jan. 13 in Jacksonville. Since then, the Icemen have added some weapons to the roster. Recently acquired forward Cody Fowlie has five points in just three games, including a three-point game against Norfolk last night. Chad Thibodeau made his pro debut on Friday against the Admirals and brings depth to the blue line.
Catch all the action tonight on ECHL TV as the Icemen travel to Germain Arena to take on the Florida Everblades at 7:00 p.m.
Matchup Breakdown
Records:
Jacksonville Icemen: 19-28-4-3 (6th in South division)
Florida Everblades: 36-12-1-4 (1st in South division)
Power Play:
Icemen: 22/219 – 10.0% (27th in ECHL)
Everblades: 35/202 – 17.3% (12th in ECHL)
Penalty Kill:
Icemen: 196/238 – 82.4% (13th in ECHL)
Everblades: 205/239 – 85.8% (5th in ECHL)
Players to Watch:
#16 F Elgin Pearce (JAX)
15G, 24A – 39 Pts, -1 Rating
Pearce leads the Icemen in scoring against the ‘Blades with three goals and two assists this season.
#7 F Quentin Shore (FLA)
10G, 16A – 26 Pts, +16 Rating
No Florida player has more goals against the Icemen than Shore, whose recorded five this season.
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