JACKSONVILLE, FL – The Jacksonville Icemen sailed to a welcome overtime victory Tuesday afternoon against the Savannah Ghost Pirates on Education Day, then earned a point in their three-game series with the Florida Everblades this past Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. The Icemen remain in fourth place in the ECHL’s South Division and boast a 3-4-3 record through the opening 10 games of the campaign. Jacksonville will host Greenville and Savannah this coming Friday and Saturday night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena at 7:00 pm. All games can be streamed on FloHockey.com and Mixler.com.
THE WEEK THAT WAS
The week started Tuesday with the first of two Education Day games for the Jacksonville Icemen, as they hosted their rival Savannah Ghost Pirates for another edition of the Coastal Clash. Jacksonville started strong, scoring two goals in the first period by Bennett McArthur and SPHL call-up Joey Berkopec. Savannah fought back in the second and third periods to tie it 2-2 before Jacques Bouqout ended the contest in overtime with a snipe from the base of the right-wing circle after a nifty dish from teammate Colby Ambrosio.
Jacksonville and Florida clashed for the first time all season on Friday night with the Everblades getting on the board first thanks to a fortunate bounce in the first period. The Icemen gained momentum in the second and third periods with chances galore and a strong presence offensively. It took until the final minute of regulation, with the goaltender pulled, for Bennett McArthur to find the equalizer from a shot from the right-wing circle with just under 20 seconds remaining. With the game tied 1-1, the Icemen entered their fourth straight overtime contest. They showed their experience, earning several high-quality scoring chances, including a rebound that just hopped over an Icemen’s stick with a wide-open net. Unfortunately for Jacksonville, the Everblades capitalized on an odd-man rush to win Friday’s game 2-1.
Saturday started in Florida's favor, as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first 20 minutes. Jacksonville pulled within one in the second period thanks to a power-play goal by Adam McMaster from the slot. The goal marked McMaster’s first of the year and gave the Icemen life heading into the third in a familiar spot, down by a goal. Unlike Friday night, the Everblades refused to allow the Icemen any openings, netting a key insurance tally and then adding on an empty-net goal to take Saturday’s contest over Jacksonville 4-1.
Sunday offered the Icemen a chance to end the weekend on a high note, and Jacksonville started strong. Forward Timothy Heinke forced a turnover in the final minute of the first period and rifled home his third goal of the year to put the Icemen up 1-0. Leading for the first time this weekend, Jacksonville went into the second period with confidence. Still, Florida mounted a relentless offensive push and tied it 1-1 early in the second. Just like Saturday night, the third period belonged to the Everblades, who notched three third-period goals to put a stranglehold on the contest while not allowing the Icemen many chances to gain ground offensively. In the end, the Icemen were forced to settle for another 4-1 decision, their first back-to-back regulation losses of the season.
HARD WORKING HEINKE
Icemen forward Timothy Heinke was one of the most noticeable and hardest-working forwards for Jacksonville over the past three games. Heinke was a pest in the offensive zone, finishing checks, winning board battles, and making second-effort plays to help his teammates. Heinke finished the weekend with eight shots on net, one goal, and an even plus/minus rating.
LATEST ROSTER NEWS
The Icemen lost forward Blake Biondi back to a recall from the AHL’s Iowa Wild this past week before Friday night’s contest but got the services back of defenseman Taos Jordan. Jordan, who played his rookie season with the Icemen last year, returned to the ECHL after a brief stint with Sacred Heart University in NCAA Division I. Jordan had one assist, two shots, two penalty minutes, and an even plus/minus in his opening weekend with the Icemen.
SCOUTING THE SWAMP RABBITS
Jacksonville will host one of the hottest teams in the South Division, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, who currently are the only team to have beaten the Florida Everblades. The last time Jacksonville faced Greenville, the Icemen came back. They forced overtime thanks to Timothy Heinke’s first professional goal in the third period, before the Swamp Rabbits won the contest in the extra session. While the Icemen will have plenty of rest coming into Friday’s contest, the Swamp Rabbits will have played Tuesday afternoon and Thursday evening before they get to VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on Friday.
SCOUTING THE GHOST PIRATES
Jacksonville earned their first victory in the Coastal Clash last week against the Ghost Pirates. Savannah enters this week following a tough 6-3 loss to the Orlando Solar Bears. Savannah was 3-6-1 in their first 10 games to open the season, with most of those contests coming on home ice. Savannah will face off against the leaders of the North Division, the Trois-Rivières Lions, on Friday night before traveling to Jacksonville on Saturday.
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