ORLANDO, FLA – The start of the holiday season is just over two weeks away but the ECHL is getting into full gear. One month into the 2016-2017 regular season, the standings in the north and south divisions have gotten a little tighter as teams begin to find their stride.
Adirondack Thunder (6-1-1-1, 14 points)
Adirondack continues to be near or at the top of the division. Last week, the Thunder started the week with a loss but finished strong with a pair of wins.
On Tuesday night, Manchester visited the Thunder for the first of three meetings. Brian Ward and Dana Fraser provided a goal each and goalie Mason McDonald made 18 saves but it was not enough as the Monarchs pulled off a 3-2 victory.
The teams shifted to New Hampshire on Saturday and the fortunes of the Thunder changed as well. Matt Bailey, Phil Lane, Mathieu Brodeur and Ty Loney tallied a goal and an assist each and Mikkel Aagaard added another score as Adirondack won 5-3. Goalie Ken Appleby stopped 30 of 33 shots to earn the win. Sunday afternoon, Aagaard, Bailey and Alexander Fedoseyev did the scoring in a 3-1 win for the Thunder.
Next Up: Wednesday – at Idaho, Friday – at Idaho, Saturday – at Idaho
Reading Royals (6-2-0-1, 13 points)
The Royals have jumped up the standings in the last couple of weeks. Reading went 3-0 west of the Mississippi River last week.
Reading visited Colorado on Wednesday night and used a three-goal third period to down the Eagles 4-3. Robbie Czarnik, Mike Pereira, Steven Swavely and Chris McCarthy each lit the goal light once and netminder Mark Dekanich made 31 saves to secure the win.
The Royals moved on to Rapid City on Friday and doubled up on the Rush. Olivier Labelle scored twice while Swavely, Czarnik, Michael Pelech and Nick Luukko added one each in the 6-3 victory. In Saturday’s rematch, Kevin Sundher netted a pair of goals in the first period to lead the way in a 5-3 win. Pereira, Todd Perry and Ryan Penny also scored while Dekanich made another 31 saves.
Next Up: Wednesday – at Cincinnati, Friday – at Wheeling, Saturday – Manchester, Sunday – Atlanta
Manchester Monarchs (5-4-0-1, 11 points)
The Monarchs fell to third in the standings after going 1-2 in a trio of games against Adirondack.
On Tuesday, Gasper Kopitar, Alexx Privitera and Daniel Ciampini all scored once and goalie Sam Brittain made 18 saves to push the Monarchs to a 3-2 win. At home on Saturday, Manchester got a goal and an assist from Justin Gutierrez and scores from Derek Arnold and Ciampini but the Thunder evened the week’s series by a final of 5-3.
The Sunday rubber match saw the Monarchs get just a goal from Joe Diamond in a 3-1 loss. Brittain deserved a better fate, making 16 saves on 19 shots in the loss.
Next Up: Friday – at Norfolk, Saturday – at Reading
Wheeling Nailers (4-3-1-0, 9 points)
Wheeling continued its bounce back from a slow start to move into fourth. The Nailers went 2-1 during the week.
On Friday, the Nailers hosted Toledo and found the visitors less than friendly. Cody Wydo scored the lone Wheeling goal in a 6-1 loss. Saturday’s rematch in Toledo saw the Nailers go down by two before scoring five unanswered goals to take a 5-2 win. Jordan Kwas scored two goals and Josh Shalla and Nick Sorkin each tallied a goal and an assist to pace the offense. Gage Quinney had the other Nailers score and goalie Doug Carr made 23 saves to earn the victory.
The Nailers were back at home on Sunday to host Kalamazoo and goalie J.P. Anderson was the star, making 24 saves in a 3-0 shutout win. Sorking scored twice in the contest while Andrew Ammon netted the other goal.
Next Up: Friday – Reading, Sunday – at Brampton
Brampton Beast (3-1-1-2, 9 points)
The Beast split a pair of contests during last week, falling to Kalamazoo before coming up with a thrilling overtime win over Fort Wayne.
David Pacan and David Vallorani each posted a goal and an assist in Friday’s 5-3 loss to the K-Wings. Chris Leveille netted the final score for the Beast.
On Sunday, Chris Auger netted a pair of goals while Brandon Marino and Brandon MacLean had scores to get the Beast to overtime. In the extra period, Pacan played the hero by scoring the game-winner.
Next Up: Friday – at Elmira, Saturday – at Elmira, Sunday – Wheeling
Elmira Jackals (2-5-2-0, 6 points)
The Jackals had a tough week, losing all three games they played. There was a silver lining as two of the games went to overtime so Elmira did pick up a couple of points.
On Thursday, the Jackals visited South Carolina and fell to the Stingrays 2-1 in overtime. Colin Murray had the lone goal while goalie John Muse fended off 35 of 37 shots in suffering the loss. Friday’s trip to Duluth, Georgia to face the Atlanta Gladiators did not go any better as netminder Andy Iles made 29 saves in a 3-0 shutout loss to the Gladiators.
Elmira was back in South Carolina on Sunday and saw Sebastien Sylvestre and Kyle Rankin score goals against the Stingrays. South Carolina was able to tie the game in the dying seconds of regulation before sending the Jackals home with a 3-2 overtime loss. Muse was brilliant again, making 37 saves on 40 shots in the loss.
Next Up: Friday – Brampton, Saturday – Brampton
Florida Everblades (6-0-1-0)
The Everblades continued unbeaten in regulation time, sweeping a pair of weekend home games against Norfolk.
On Friday, Matt Berry led the offense with a goal and an assist in the 4-1 victory over the Admirals. John Wesley, Mike Ferrantino and Zack Kamrass each lit the goal light in the contest while Daniel Altshuller made 18 saves in the win.
It was more of the same the next night as John McCarron posted a goal and two assist while Berry had a score and a helper and Levko Koper netted a goal in a 3-1 win. Anthony Peters stopped 26 shots to pick up the win.
Next Up: Tuesday – at Atlanta, Friday – at Atlanta, Saturday – at Greenville, Sunday – at Greenville
Atlanta Gladiators (5-4-1-1, 12 points)
The Gladiators’ hectic early schedule slowed a bit with just two contests on the calendar. They split the pair with an easy win and an unsettling loss.
On Friday, Atlanta hosted Elmira and the visitors put up little resistance as the Gladiators won 3-0. Goalie Matt Ginn picked up the shutout by making 21 saves while Justin Buzzeo (1 goal, 1 assist), Eric Neiley (1 goal, 1 assist) and Derek Nesbitt provided the offense.
The next night, Orlando stopped in for a visit and the contest turned into one for the ages. Neiley scored twice while Trevor Mingoia, Thomas Frazee and Blake Kessel each tallied once to stake the home team to a 5-3 lead. Unfortunately for the Gladiators, the Solar Bears exploded for five unanswered goals in the back half of the third period to take an 8-5 win.
Next Up: Tuesday – Florida, Friday – Florida, Saturday – at Norfolk, Sunday – at Reading
Cincinnati Cyclones (5-5-0-0, 10 points)
The Cyclones jumped into third in the division thanks to a perfect 3-0 week against Western conference foes.
On Wednesday, Fort Wayne traveled to the Queen City and skated back home with a 4-3 loss at the hands of Cincinnati. Nick Huard had a goal and two assists to lead the Cyclones’ offense while Eric Knodel and Andrew Yogan each added a goal. The next night Quad City ventured in and suffered the same fate as the Komets. Yogan had two goals and an assist in the 4-1 Cincinnati victory while Shawn O’Donnell and Gabryel Boudreau chipped in with a lamp lighter each.
The Cyclones then headed to Quad City on Saturday and completed their perfect week with a 3-2 shootout victory. Knodel and Arvin Atwal scored the goals for Cincinnati in regulation while Peter Leblanc’s penalty shot score decided the contest. Goalie Mark Visentin was brilliant all week, winning all three games and making a total of 74 saves along the way.
Next Up: Wednesday – Reading, Friday – at Kalamazoo, Saturday – Toledo
Orlando Solar Bears (4-3-1-0, 9 points)
The Solar Bears went on their first road trip of the season and did very well. Orlando played four games and went 3-0-1-0 to grab seven of a possible eight points.
The week started on Tuesday in South Carolina against the Stingrays. Rookie defenseman Nikolas Brouillard led the offense with a goal and three assists in a solid 6-2 win. Brett Findlay, Denver Manderson, Eric Faille, Patrick Watling and Brenden Miller all had goals in support of goalie Ryan Massa who made 24 saves. On Thursday, the Solar Bears played a school day special morning game in Greenville, falling 2-1 in overtime to the Swamp Rabbits. Adam Brace had the lone Solar Bears goal while Massa made 44 saves.
Orlando’s rematch with Greenville on Friday also took extra time before the visitors came away with a 3-2 win. T.J. Foster and Faille had the regulation time goals for the Solar Bears before Manderson won the game in overtime. Goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo made 28 saves to earn his first ever ECHL victory. In Atlanta on Saturday, the Solar Bears exploded for seven goals in the third period to turn what could have been a loss into an 8-5 win over the Gladiators. Cason Hohmann led the way with a hat trick while rookie Tony Cameranesi netted two scores of his own. Faille, Findlay and Johnny McInnis also scored for the Solar Bears.
Next Up: Thursday – South Carolina, Saturday – South Carolina, Sunday South Carolina
Greenville Swamp Rabbits (3-2-1-0, 7 points)
Greenville had a relatively light week, playing just two games at home against Orlando. The Swamp Rabbits split the pair of contests.
On Thursday, the Swamp Rabbits hosted a 10:30 am Education Day game with almost 6,000 school children in attendance. Brandon Alderson had the lone goal for Greenville in regulation before Paul Zanette scored the game-winner in the final minute of overtime. Goalie Brandon Halverson backstopped the 2-1 victory with 36 saves.
The next night, Ahti Oksanen and Justin DaSilva lit the goal light for the Swamp Rabbits in regulation time. The game went to an extra period where Greenville came up on the short end of a 3-2 final. Goalie Jeff Malcolm was the tough luck loser, making 36 saves to give his team a chance to win.
Next Up: Saturday – Florida, Sunday – Florida
South Carolina Stingrays (3-4-1-0, 7 points)
The Stingrays got themselves on the winning track, taking two out of three games they played during the week.
On Tuesday, Marcus Perrier and Steven McParland each scored once but it was not near enough as visiting Orlando gave South Carolina a 6-2 loss. Elmira came in on Thursday and the Stingrays again had a tough time scoring as McParland netted the lone regulation goal before Kelly Zajac scored the game-winner for a 2-1 overtime victory. Goalie Parker Milner made 15 saves to earn the win.
Sunday’s rematch with Elmira was another nailbiter. Patrick Gaul scored early for the Stingrays but the Jackals held a 2-1 lead with less than a minute to go in regulation. Zajac stepped in again, tying the game with 11 seconds left to set up Joe Devin for a game-winner in the extra period. Milner was solid again in net, stopping 13 shots.
Next Up: Thursday – at Orlando, Saturday – at Orlando, Sunday – at Orlando
Norfolk Admirals (1-7-1-0, 3 points)
The Admirals ran aground in its two games during the week, falling twice to the host Florida Everblades.
Alexandre Ranger was the only Admiral to find the back of the net in Friday’s contest as Norfolk was on the short end of a 4-1 final. On Saturday night, goalie Connor Knapp made 39 saves on 42 shots faced but with only Jaedon Descheneau lighting the goal light as the Admirals fell 3-1.
Next Up: Friday – Manchester, Saturday – Atlanta
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