KALAMAZOO, MI – The way things are going for the Orlando Solar Bears these days, even when they do not find success on the ice, they are still able to make positive gains.
Saturday night at the Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo, Justin Taylor’s goal 4:13 into overtime gave the host Wings (10-15-0-2, 22 points) a 3-2 victory over the Solar Bears (16-7-3-0, 35 points) in front of an announced crowd of 1,511. With the point in the standings gained for playing the extra period, Orlando was able to pull into a first place tie in the South division with the Florida Everblades, who lost 3-2 at Atlanta. By virtue of having more non-shootout wins than the Everblades, the Solar Bears sit atop the printed standings.
There were other positives in the contest, such as Eric Faille and Brett Findlay each picking up a goal as they wage an individual battle for the top spot in the ECHL Solar Bears franchise record book for career goals. Goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo also played yet another strong game, making 35 saves – several of them of the spectacular variety – to give Orlando a shot at a fifth straight win. Still, it was the fact that the team did not wilt in the face of adversity and managed to make headway in the standings despite the loss that fans will remember.
Coming off Friday night’s convincing win over the Wings, the Solar Bears had visions of a weekend sweep and tried to run the hosts out of their own building early. They pounded Kalamazoo starting netminder Joel Martin with a barrage of pucks in the first half of the first period. Despite several golden opportunities to score, including Tony Cameranesi’s shot that rang off the crossbar five minutes in and two overlapping Wings penalties, the visitors failed to take advantage and it cost them.
Kalamazoo opened the scoring on just its fourth shot on net at the 13:53 mark of the frame. It came when Anthony Camara followed his own shot at Kaskisuo and popped the rebound past the netminder’s leg and blocker for his ninth goal of the season. The score was the only one of the opening stanza.
Playing from behind but buoyed by its strong push in the first, Orlando opened the middle frame with some of the same intensity and it paid off. Just as the period was reaching the five minute mark, defenseman Eric Baier sent the puck forward to Faille who sprinted along the wing into the Kalamazoo defensive end. He got to the top of the faceoff circle and unleashed a hard slap shot that eluded Martin’s glove hand for his twelfth of the season and 36th career score as a member of the Solar Bears, tying his teammate Findlay for the career mark.
Eleven minutes into the frame, the Solar Bears found themselves short handed when Brenden Miller went to the penalty box for tripping. The Wings took advantage of the power play, scoring just five seconds into the opportunity when Taylor set up Tanner Sorenson for a quick wrist shot from the hashmarks in the slot that found the back of the net. For Sorenson, it was his fifth tally of the year.
Challenged to respond once again, the Solar Bears went to Findlay for the spark. Denver Manderson sprung Findlay through center ice with a pass and the speedy forward turned on the jets. He got past a defender, got Martin to bite on a fake to the middle of the net and pulled puck back around the goalie and slid it home at the 14:50 mark for his ninth of the season and 37th career score for Orlando, pulling back in front of Faille by one.
Tied at 2-2 heading into the third period, Kaskisuo and Martin took over the contest in a one-on-one battle that was worthy of a playoff game in late May or early June. The two netminders were absolutely spectacular, making save after save as if they were trying to outdo the other. Kaskisuo was especially tough on Kalamazoo’s Peter Schneider, who was left shaking his head on a couple of occasions when the Orlando rookie committed grand theft on him from point blank range. Not to be outdone, Martin closed the door on Solar Bears sniper Patrick Watling, diving across the front of the net and denying Watling of what looked to be a sure goal. Kalamazoo ended up outshooting the Solar Bears 21-11 in the final frame and Orlando held a 44-34 edge through sixty minutes but because of the work of Martin (45 saves) and Kaskisuo (35 saves), the game went to overtime.
In the extra period, the teams traded opportunities and the contest looked like it was going to be decided in a shootout but Taylor had other ideas. With plenty of open ice in the three-on-three format, Sorenson sent the puck up to Taylor who drove the Orlando net. Taylor was able to get close enough to Kaskisuo before going to his backhand and putting the puck the goalie’s catching glove for his tenth of the season to end the game.
Notes: With their goals, both Findlay and Faille extended their point streaks, Faille to six games and Findlay to four. Manderson’s assist on Findlay’s score moved his point streak to five games… Orlando is now 5-2-1-0 on its ten-game road trip with a stop in Fort Wayne on Sunday afternoon at 5 p.m. before closing the trip where it began on Wednesday in Estero against the Everblades.
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