Written by Noah Epstein
ORLANDO, FL -- Similarly to the night prior, the Icemen trailed early on against the Solar Bears.
Justen Close was a brick wall, leading his unit to a comeback win.
But this time, overtime wasn’t needed, as Jacksonville held on for a 2-1 victory on Sunday afternoon at the Kia Center.
Close picked up his second win in as many days over Orlando, saving 28 out of 29 shots. The rookie goaltender entered the day ranking second in the ECHL in goals against average (2.09) and tied for fourth in the league in save percentage (.927). And he continued his successful campaign, making several tough saves in the second period to keep it 1-1 heading into the third.
The lone goal against Close was scored just over five minutes into action by former Icemen Ara Nazarian, assisted by Spencer Kersten and Hudson Thornton. Kersten extended his point streak to seven straight games with the assist, recording 10 points in that span.
Jacksonville struck back with just over two minutes remaining in the opening period, all stemming from a faceoff win in the attacking zone. Liam Coughlin won the draw and Ivan Chukarov set up Ty Cheveldayoff, who sent a slap shot right past Alexis Gravel from the high slot. Cheveldayoff’s fifth goal of the season tied the game at 1.
Cheveldayoff recorded his second point of the game at 4:48 of the third period, as he forced the puck into the zone and got tangled up with an Orlando skater while dropping a pass toward the left circle. Peter Tischke was waiting for the puck, and the defenseman wristed a shot in the back of the net to give the Icemen their first lead of the afternoon.
The rest of the way featured great defense by Jacksonville, clearing the puck out of its own end continuously, as well as perfect goaltending by Close. The Icemen goalie saved all 22 shots on net attempted by the Solar Bears in the second and third period combined.
The Icemen improved to 24-14-3 after taking the second game of the series against the Solar Bears, hanging on for the 2-1 win. They defeated Orlando for the second time in as many days, snapping the Solar Bears’ four-game winning streak at the Kia Center.
Jacksonville goes for the sweep on Tuesday, with puck drop at 7 p.m. in Orlando.
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