ORLANDO, FLA – The 2016 part of the ECHL schedule is quickly coming to an end. Last week, everyone in the eastern conference was trying to get on Santa’s nice list in hopes of being gifted a second half run to the playoffs.
Some were successful; others still found themselves on the naughty list.
Manchester Monarchs (19-8-1-1, 40 points)
The Monarchs maintained their lead in both the division and the conference, going 2-1 during the week.
It started on Tuesday with a trip to Wheeling to face the Nailers. Rick Pinkston, Jordan LaVallee-Smotherman and Gasper Kopitar each scored to give Manchester a lead but in the end the Monarchs fell 4-3.
Wednesday’s game in Reading against the Royals went much better for the Monarchs. Pinkston, Cory Ward, Teddy Doherty and Daniel Ciampini all lit the goal light and Jonah Imoo made 31 saves as Manchester won 4-2. Friday night in Elmira, Ciampini netted a hat trick including two goals in the third to lead the Monarchs to a 5-4 win over the Jackals. LaVallee-Smotherman and Kevin Morris picked up the other two goals for Manchester.
Next Up: Saturday – Norfolk
Brampton Beast (17-8-1-2, 37 points)
The Beast continued their climb up the standings, sweeping all three games on a trip through Indiana.
Tuesday in Indianapolis against the Indy Fuel, Brampton goalie Zach Fucale celebrated being named to Canada’s Spengler Cup team by making 22 saves in a 3-1 win. Chris Leveille, David Pacan and David Vallorani had the goals for the Beast. Two days later, Luke Pither recorded a hat trick but it was a goal by Pacan with three seconds left in regulation that gave Brampton a 5-4 victory over the Fuel. Chris Auger chipped in with a goal for the winners.
On Friday in Fort Wayne, Vallorani, Leveille and Brandon Marino each recorded a goal and an assist as the Beast grounded the Komets 6-1. Willie Corrin, Brandon MacLean and Auger each added a goal in the rout while goalie Andrew D’Agostini stopped 11 of the 12 shots he faced to post the win.
Next Up: Friday – at Toledo, Saturday – at Kalamazoo, Sunday – at Indy
Adirondack Thunder (15-7-2-3, 35 points)
The Thunder fell into third place behind Brampton despite splitting a pair of contests during the week.
Adirondack was supposed to host Reading on Tuesday at the Glens Falls Civic Center. The game was postponed due to a structural issue with the building.
Thursday night in Elmira, Peter MacArthur, Gunnar Hughes and Alexander Fedoseyev netted a goal each but it took Greg Wolfe’s tally with four seconds left in overtime for the Thunder to defeat the Jackals 5-4. On Friday in Reading, Jordan Henry and Brett Pollock both scored once but it was all the Thunder could get as Adirondack lost 5-2 to the Royals.
Next Up:Â Saturday – Reading
Reading Royals (15-11-1-1, 32 points)
The Royals were also supposed to have three games leading into the holiday break but the situation in Glens Falls left them with just a pair which they split.
Following the postponed game in Adirondack on Tuesday, Reading headed home to face Manchester. Matt Wilkins and Florian Iberer each posted a goal and netminder Mark Dekanich made 22 saves but the Royals lost to the Monarchs by a final of 4-2.
Adirondack followed Manchester into Santander Arena for a Friday night battle with the Royals. Justin Crandall was the star for Reading, picking up a hat trick and an assist to lead the Royals to a 5-2 victory. Tyrell Goulbourne and Chris McCarthy contributed a goal apiece while Drew Fielding backstopped the win with 33 saves between the pipes.
Next Up: Wednesday – Elmira, Friday – Wheeling, Saturday – at Adirondack
Wheeling Nailers (14-10-2-0, 30 points)
The Nailers hosted a pair of games before the holiday, picking up two hard fought wins.
On Tuesday, division leading Manchester paid a visit to Wheeling looking to play the role of the grinch. Wheeling had other ideas, coming away with a 4-3 victory when Jordan Kwas’s goal in the third period broke a 3-3 tie. Danny Fick, Nick Sorkin and Christian Hilbrich had the other goals in the contest for the Nailers.
Adam Krause and Derek Army each scored once on Thursday against Cincinnati and the Nailers hung on to down the Cyclones 2-1. Goalie Sean Maguire made 16 saves in net to give Wheeling the victory.
Next Up: Tuesday – at Toledo, Friday – at Reading, Saturday – Elmira
Elmira Jackals (6-15-5-0, 17 points)
The Jackals had hoped to find a holiday spark during their two games last week but all they got was coal as Elmira lost twice.
On Thursday against Adirondack, Elmira fell down by three goals but stormed back as Greg Betzold, Kyle Rankin and Greg Amlong all scored to even things up. Unfortunately for the Jackals, the Thunder got a score in the final seconds of overtime to win 4-3.
Elmira closed its pre-Christmas schedule on Friday at home against Manchester. Despite two goals from Kenton Miller and one each by Sebastien Sylvestre and Charlie Mosey, the Jackals came up on the short end of a 5-4 final. Elmira goalie Jason Kasdorf played very well despite the outcome, stopping 45 of the 50 shots he faced.
Next Up: Wednesday – at Reading, Friday – Norfolk, Saturday – at Wheeling
Orlando Solar Bears (17-9-3-0, 37 points)
The Solar Bears fell out of their first place tie with Florida and then jumped right back into the tie as Orlando and the Everblades split a pair of games.
Wednesday night in Estero, the Solar Bears put up a fight against the Everblades. Brett Findlay and Connor Gaarder both scored in the first period as Orlando came out of the frame tied. The two tallies would not be enough as Florida won 5-2.
Thursday’s rematch in the City Beautiful saw the Solar Bears score the first three and hold on for a 4-2 win. Joe Perry led the offense with two goals while Nik Brouillard and Eric Faille accounted for the other two. Goalie Ryan Massa set a new ECHL franchise record with 57 saves on 59 shots in the game.
Next Up: Tuesday – Florida, Friday – Greenville, Saturday – Greenville
Florida Everblades (17-6-1-2, 37 points)
The Everblades kept pace with Orlando by splitting their two Sunshine Cup meetings with the Solar Bears.
Playing at home on Wednesday, the Everblafes used a three goal third period to take down Orlando 5-2. Michael Kirkpatrick, Matt Berry, Brant Harris, Dalton Smith and Adam Brace each lit the goal light once in the contest while goalie Anthony Peters made 33 saves to earn the victory.
Thursday in Orlando, Harris notched a pair of goals and Peters stopped 34 of 37 shots but the Everblades came up short as Orlando won 4-2.
Next Up: Tuesday – at Florida, Thursday – at Atlanta, Friday – at Atlanta, Saturday – at South Carolina
Greenville Swamp Rabbits (15-11-2-0, 32 points)
The Swamp Rabbits had three games on the schedule last week. They struggled a bit, winning just one of the contests.
Tuesday in North Charleston, Greenville met South Carolina in a battle of Palmetto State rivals. Despite goals from Spiro Goulakos, Paul Zanette and Matt Prapavessis, the Swamp Rabbits came out on the short end of a 6-3 final.
Greenville then went back home to host Norfolk on Wednesday. The Swamp Rabbits fell down by two but rallied to take a 5-4 win. Goulakos led the way with two goals while Brandon Alderson, Trevor Gerling and Tommy Thompson had one each. Alderson scored two more on Friday in Duluth, Georgia and goalie Jeff Malcolm stopped 36 of 39 shots but the Swamp Rabbits lost to Atlanta 3-2.
Next Up: Wednesday – South Carolina, Friday – at Orlando, Saturday – at Orlando
South Carolina Stingrays (13-11-1-1, 28 points)
Last week was a mixed bag of results for the Stingrays. They split two games, winning one and losing one.
On Tuesday at home, John Parker led an offensive explosion with two goals as South Carolina defeated Greenville 6-3. Rob Flick, Alex Gacek, Patrick Gaul and Dylan Margonari each chipped in with a goal apiece for the Stingrays.
Friday night saw Norfolk head to North Charleston for the last game before the holiday break. Flick scored the lone Stingrays goal and netminder Parker Milner made 26 saves but South Carolina came up just short, falling to the Admirals 2-1.
Next Up: Tuesday – at Atlanta, Wednesday – at Greenville, Saturday – Florida
Atlanta Gladiators (12-13-3-1, 28 points)
Atlanta played just one game in the week before Christmas, winning a defensive battle over Greenville.
Friday night’s divisional battle saw the visiting Swamp Rabbits take a 2-0 lead into the final period before the Gladiators awoke. Dalton Reum, Tyler Shiplo and Shane Bakker all scored in the last 9:37 of regulation with Shiplo tying it at 18:25 and Bakker winning it at 19:25 as Atlanta prevailed 3-2. Goalie Kent Pattetson made 28 saves to earn the win.
Next Up: Tuesday – South Carolina, Thursday – Florida, Friday – Florida
Cincinnati Cyclones (11-11-4-0, 26 points)
Like Atlanta, Cincinnati had just one game on its schedule. The Cyclones headed out to Wheeling to take on the Nailers and lost in a one-goal affair.
Thursday’s battle was a true playoff-style game with both goalies taking center stage. Cyclones netminder Mark Visentin made 31 saves and Nick Huard scored the only goal for Cincinnati in the heart-breaking 2-1 loss.
Next Up: Tuesday – Kalamazoo, Thursday -at Fort Wayne, Friday – at Indy, Saturday – Indy
Norfolk Admirals (6-18-4-0, 16 points)
The Admirals spent the week on the road, playing divisional contests at Greenville and South Carolina. Although they did lose to the Swamp Rabbits, the Admirals did come up with a win over the Stingrays.
Norfolk established two goal leads on two different occasions on Wednesday against Greenville before the Swamp Rabbits went on a run and eventually won the game 5-4. Jaedon Descheneau led the Admirals with two goals and an assist while Dmitrii Sergeev and Frankie Simonelli netted the other two goals for the visitors.
Friday night in North Charleston, Norfolk goalie Brandon Anderson turned away 31 South Carolina shots to backstop a 2-1 Admirals victory over the Stingrays. Paul Rodrigues and Gabriel Verpaelst provided the offense with a goal apiece.
Next Up: Friday – at Elmira, Saturday – at Manchester
Contact the author at don.money@prohockeynews.com
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