Orlando’s Jimmy Huntington grabbed the game’s first goal after being in the right spot at the right time. Taylor Cammarata skated the puck to the slot and was defended by several Icemen players. In the ensuing battle for possession, the puck bounced perfectly to a wide-open Huntington at the low circle. Huntington wristed a shot on the shortside past Icemen goaltender Adam Carlson.
Jacksonville countered three minutes later following some aggressive pressure in the offensive zone. Craig Martin held an Orlando clearing attempt at the blue line and delivered a pass down low to Adam Dauda. Dauda instantly delivered a pass across the crease to Alexis D’Aoust who batted the puck into the net for his ninth goal of the season. The two teams took the 1-1 score into the first break.
Orlando reclaimed the lead just 1:38 into the middle frame when Johno May received a pass in the slot from Trevor Olson. May finished off the play with a shot over the shoulder of Carlson to put the Solar Bears in front 2-1.
Tyler Bird set up Orlando’s third goal at 9:17 of the second period. From the left-wing boards, Bird made a perfect flip pass to Jake Coughler at the top of the crease. Coughler angled the puck high into the net at point-blank range to put the game at 3-1.
Jacksonville responded just 17-seconds later on an Emerson Clark breakaway opportunity. Clark broke down the middle of the ice and snapped a shot high over the glove of Orlando netminder Zachary Fucale to pull the Icemen within one.
The Solar Bears entered shut down mode in the third period, limiting the Icemen to just three shots on net. Tyler Bird later tacked on a fourth Orlando goal to put the score at 4-2.
Trailing by two, and unable to generate much offense in the third period, the Icemen pulled the goaltender to allow for an extra attacker. However, the gamble did not pay off as Trevor Olson netted the empty-net tally to secure the 5-2 Orlando victory.
The Icemen will now travel to Estero to battle the Florida Everblades on Saturday. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m. The next opportunity for fans to catch the Icemen on home ice will be January 30 & 31 against Fort Wayne Komets. To purchase tickets to Icemen home games CLICK HERE
Flexible ticket packages and discounted group tickets are on sale now. Contact 904-602-7825 for more information.
The 2019-20 Jacksonville Icemen Season is Presented by Community First Credit Union
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