ESTERO, Fla. – Taking to the ice for the first time in six days, the Florida Everblades found the offense hard to come by, dropping a 2-0 decision to the Orlando Solar Bears in front of 6,604 fans Friday night at Hertz Arena.
A tight first period saw Orlando get on the board quickly, as Darik Angeli opened the scoring just 4:58 into the contest. Despite the Everblades outshooting the visitors 8-7 in the opening frame, Angeli’s tally held up as the Solar Bears led 1-0 at the first break.
Orlando doubled its lead late in the second period as Anthony Bardaro registered a power-play goal at the 14:07 mark, scoring just six seconds into the Solar Bears’ third man-up opportunity of the game. While the Everblades claimed an edge in the shot department for the second-straight period, 9-8 over Orlando, the visitors took a 2-0 lead into the second intermission.
The teams combined for a scoreless third period, with Orlando posting an 11-8 advantage in shots on goal over the game’s final 20 minutes.
In goal, Will Cranley (2-1-0-0) made 23 saves for the Everblades and suffered a hard-luck loss for his first defeat of the season. Orlando netminder Michael Simpson (2-1-0-0) posted 25 saves and collected his first professional shutout.
Florida and Orlando will lock horns in the middle contest of a three-game set between the clubs Saturday evening at Hertz Arena, with the puck scheduled to drop at 7:00 p.m. The in-state rivals will also meet Monday in Central Florida at 7:00 p.m.
Saturday’s Military Night game will feature a military jersey giveaway courtesy of the National Coalition for Patriots (NCFP), while the Blades will don special military jerseys that will be auctioned with proceeds going to NCFP. Visit floridaeverblades.com for more information and to purchase tickets.
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