FORT WAYNE, IND. – Friday night, the Orlando Solar Bears headed into their 36th game of the season – the exact midpoint of the 2015-2016 campaign – running hot with a four game win streak in tow. If the streak was to move to five, it would have to be at the expense of a very tough Fort Wayne Komets team playing at home.
When all was said and done, the visitors never had a chance.
Led by Mike Embach and Alez Belzile who contributed a goal and two assists apiece, the host Komets (20-11-2-0, 42 points) ended Orlando’s run with a convincing 5-2 victory at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Rylan Schwartz was the lone bright spot for the Solar Bears (16-15-2-3, 37 points), scoring both of the team’s goals to raise his season total to seven since signing with Orlando.
Orlando was quick out of the gates to start the contest and some good forechecking paid dividends early. Just 3:16 in, some pressure by T.J. Foster led to a Fort Wayne turnover deep in its defensive zone. The puck ended up on the stick blade of Schwartz who buried it past the blocker glove of Komets netminder Pat Nagle.
Fort Wayne, which entered the game with a 10-5-2-0 record at home, answered back when a shot by Belzile was stopped by Solar Bears goalie Rob Madore but the rebound came loose. Garrett Meurs was in the right place to put the puck into the back of the net for his ninth goal of the year.
Meurs’ score was the beginning of the end for Orlando. Fort Wayne took over control of the play and began to pour shots on Madore. He made a great save on Brett Perlini during a Komets power play but had no answer for a nasty shot by Belzile from the high slot a few minutes later. Belzile’s fifth of the year at the 13-minute mark of the period put his team ahead for good.
Madore and Nagle kept things at 2-1 well into the second period as the pair matched save for save. That was until the midpoint of the frame when during a power play, Shawn Szydlowski found Perlini on the back side for a shot that beat a diving Madore. It was Perlini’s eighth of the season but more importantly it put the Komets up by two.
The lead grew to three a little over three minutes later when a bug that has plagued the Orlando power play several times this season reared its ugly head again. Twenty-six seconds into a man advantage, the Solar Bears had a puck handling mishap in their defensive end. It quickly came back to haunt them when Jamie Schaafsma took control and fed Nikita Kashirsky who netted his sixth of the season short handed.
On the brink of seeing the game get away from them, the young Solar Bears dug in. Brady Vail got himself into position for what could have been a score had it not been for Nagle who came away with the save. Orlando’s energy continued to flow and when Schwartz picked up his second of the night, the visitors were back within 4-2.
The Solar Bears thought they had some momentum heading into the third but two penalties derailed their efforts. The second one was especially damaging as the ensuing Komets power play saw Embach get space in front of Madore (34 saves) and roof a shot under the crossbar for his fifteenth tally of the year.
Embach’s goal put the Komets up by three for the second time and this time it held up. Nagle (26 saves) and his Fort Wayne teammates shut down Orlando’s offense, allowing the visitors just six shots in the final frame to seal the win.
With his two goals, Schwartz pushed his consecutive games with a point to five as did Vail, who was credited with an assist on the second Schwartz tally.
The Solar Bears, now 4-1 on their seven game road trip, will hit Indianapolis to take on the Indy Fuel Saturday night.
Contact the author at Don.money@prohockeynews.com
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