Written by Jasen Mata

Jacksonville Stampedes Bison in Overtime Nail-Biter
Final Score: [Jacksonville Icemen] [2] - [1] [Bloomington Bison] 
When: Tuesday, February 4^th , 2025 @ 10:30 A.M. EST
Where: [VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena] – [Jacksonville, Florida] 

1st Period: It was School Day today at VyStar Arena as The Jacksonville Icemen welcomed local schools and their students to enjoy some Icemen hockey. The Icemen looked to carry their momentum from last weekend’s two-game sweep of Savannah into this matchup against the Bloomington Bison. Early on, Jacksonville would get on the scoreboard after Davis Koch took advantage of a helpful rebound off of Bison Goalie Mark Sinclair. After going up 1-0 over the Bison, The Icemen continued to look sharp offensively but were unable to get into the scoring column for the rest of the period. There wasn’t much to report on the Bloomington side of the ice.

It wasn’t for a lack of effort, as the Bison also came out looking strong against Jacksonville. However, the exceptional play of Goalie Matt Vernon. It should come as no surprise that Matt Vernon was nothing short of excellent in front of the goal during this first period which helped the Icemen shut out The Bison 1-0 in the first.

Period Scoring Summary: 
End of 1^st Period Score: [Jacksonville Icemen] [1] – [0] [Bloomington Bison]
JAX: [Davis Koch] (Assist : [Christopher Brown]) – [1:26]
BLM: Did Not Score

2nd Period: The second period solidified this game as a defensive faceoff. There was little offensive action during this second period of play. Each side either struggled to gain any offensive momentum or said momentum was quickly snuffed out by great goalie play. Amidst their struggles, Bloomington was able to score on Matt Vernon. Max Neill sank a crossbar shot to tie the game in the final minutes of the second period.

Period Scoring Summary:
End of  2^nd Period Score: [Jacksonville Icemen] [1] – [1] [Bloomington Bison]
JAX: Did Not Score
BLM: [Max Neill] (Assist: [Linus Hemstrom]) – [16:07]

3rd Period: It was more of the same in the third period. There was little action during this period as both teams refused to give up a score. Both Matt Vernon and Mark Sinclair played out of their minds, saving shot after shot. This was just a highly defensive matchup but entertaining, nonetheless. Ultimately, not much would come after three periods of play and the game would be forced into overtime.

Period Scoring Summary: 
End of 3^rd Period Score: [Jacksonville Icemen] [1] – [1] [Bloomington Bison]
JAX: Did Not Score
BLM: Did Not Score

Overtime: As the game was tied at 1-1 after regulation, The Icemen and Bison were forced into an extra period of overtime play. After a quick Eddie Matsushima was called for Interference, the Icemen were given a prime opportunity to score on a power play. Noah Laaouan quickly tried to take advantage of this opportunity and deflected a shot off Mark Sinclair. Christopher Brown would clean up the deflection and score the winning goal. The Icemen would win after four periods 2-1 over The Bloomington Bison.

Period Scoring Summary:
End of  OT Period Score: [Jacksonville Icemen] [2] – [1] [Bloomington Bison]
JAX: [Christopher Brown] (Assist: [Noah Laaouan, Brendan Harris]) – [4:22]
BLM: Did Not Score

Next Game:
After a tough nail-biter against the visiting Bloomington Bison, the Icemen will get a few days’ rest before their next contest. Jacksonville will be back at home on Friday, February 7th, to take on the Trois-Rivières Lions. The Icemen will look to keep their playoff hopes alive as they take on a very skilled Lions team. This game kicks off a two-game series against the Lions and is a prime opportunity to keep the winning momentum on Jacksonville’s side.