ORLANDO, FLA – A year ago, Orlando Solar Bears forward Aaron Luchuk was the top point getter in the ECHL, leading the league in scoring. So far this season, he hasn’t lost any of his touch. And even better, he’s got a new teammate who is proving to be just as proficient at haunting the league’s goaltenders.
Sunday afternoon at the Amway Center, Luchuk netted the first Orlando hat trick of the 2021-22 season and added an assist while Jake McGrew scored the game-winner in overtime as the Solar Bears (2-1-0-0) slipped past the Jacksonville Icemen (2-0-1-0) 5-4 in front of a Halloween crowd of 3,886. Kyle Topping chipped in with three assists and Nick Bligh got his first goal as a Solar Bear to help Orlando continue its win streak at home against their in-state rival. Jacksonville has never won in downtown O-Town, a run that extended to 21 games since the Icemen joined the ECHL.
Thanks to a late third period penalty to the Icemen, the Solar Bears had 32 seconds remaining on a man advantage to start the extra period. After some quick low-to-high passing, Luchuk threaded a pass to Topping along the goal line in the Jacksonville end. Topping in turn found a wide open McGrew in the slot. McGrew wasted little time in beating Icemen netminder Francois Brassard to the glove side to end the contest.
Through three games, Luchuk is in a tie for the top spot in points with four goals and four assists. McGrew is following close behind with three goals and three assists for six points. Both have scored in every Orlando game to this point.
The first period of the first of 14 meetings between the two in-state rivals was for the most part run of the mill as both teams were feeling each other out. Orlando opened the scoring at the 10:13 mark of the frame when Krystof Hrabik took a hit outside the Jacksonville blueline while trying to carry the puck in. Bligh took the feed from Hrabik and outskated a defender, getting enough space to get in and beat Brassard low to the glove side for his first of the season.
Just 27 seconds later, the Icemen responded when Chris Brown stole an errant Solar Bears pass and whipped a cross-ice pass to Abbott Girduckis on the back side of the play. Girduckis leaned into a snap shot that beat a diving Zach Emond for the Jacksonville forward’s first tally of the year.
The middle frame was not even close to replicating the opening period. Luchuk started his one-man show a mere 29 seconds in. As the Solar Bears worked the puck around up high, Luchuk skated to the net front. Eventually blueliner Montana Onyebuchi fired at the net where Luchuk got just enough of a deflection that it squeezed through Brassard’s pads and across the line for Luchuk’s second of the season.
Jacksonville started to turn the game around during a power play a few minutes later. Brandon Fortunato moved the puck to Girduckis who was at the top of the faceoff circle to Emond’s left. He found a lane and hit the stick of Ara Nazarian, redirecting the biscuit into the open side of the cage for Nazarian’s second goal of the season. Four minutes later, the Icemen charged into the Orlando end. Craig Martin dropped a pass to Jake Elmer who deked around a defender and fired a shot past Emond’s glove side for his third of the year and a 3-2 Jacksonville lead.
With his team down by one, Luchuk took over the game. Seconds after Elmer’s score, Jacksonville’s Austin McEneny put a big hit on Orlando’s McGrew. The hit drew a penalty and precipitated a fight between the two opponents. On the ensuing power play, Michael Brodzinski set up Luchuk in the circle to Brassard’s left. Using Hrabik as a partial screen, Luchuk let go with a wicked wrist shot that sailed into the net for the big forwad’s second of the game and third of the year.
Just shy of a minute later, Luchuk completed his hatty. Joe Garreffa made the key play by keeping the puck in the Jacksonville end and putting a shot toward the net. Luchuk got a piece of it, forcing Brassard to make a save. The rebound came back out where Luchuk shoveled it under the netminder and in for his third of the game and fourth of the season to put the Solar Bears back in front at 4-3.
The lead stayed in place until the final five minutes of the third period when Jacksonville evened things up. Zach Berzolla sent Nazarian and Girduckis away on a two-on-one break. Nazarian drew the defenseman to his side before saucering a pass to his teammate. Girduckis did the rest, whipping a wrister past Emond’s glove side for his second of the game and season.
Neither team was able to net a game-winner in the waning minutes of regulation but Orlando was handed a power play with 1:30 to go. Although they did not score, the Solar Bears carried 30 seconds of advantage time into the extra period where they used it to set up McGrew’s winner.
Emond finished the game with 19 saves while Brassard made 23 stops in the contest.
Orlando will fly up to Norfolk on Wednesday ahead of a two-game set with the Admirals on Thursday and Friday.
Notes: Final shots were 28-23 in favor of Orlando… Both teams went 1-for-3 on the power play… Luchuk’s three goals in 12:07 broke the previous team record of three goals in 12:35 set by Dan Gendur set on December 28, 2012… Due to callups (captain Kevin Lohan was signed to a PTO by Syracuse on Saturday) and defenseman Luke McInnis being banged up on Friday, Orlando had just four defensemen available on Sunday. Forward Steenn Pasichnuk was put back on the blueline as a fifth defenseman for the contest.
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