Fourth ranked Orlando Solar Bears took on the fifth ranked Savannah Ghost Pirates Saturday night at the KIA Center for their regular season opener, winning the game 2-1.
Solar Bear Hockey
Hockey fans both young and old came out to cheer on the Solar Bears – who are Orlando’s ECHL (East Coast Hockey League) AA minor league professional hockey team and affiliated with NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning.
The crowd’s excitement offset the chill in the arena starting when both teams came out of their respective VOM – short for vomitorium, the tunnels in which the teams enter and exit the ice – to warm up. There’s just something different about a minor league hockey game. The athletes seem to play harder and with more intensity. They need to; as they all dream of making to the NHL.
First Period
Solar Bear Tyler Bird, number 7, was not only the first to put a puck in the net in the game but the only player for the Bears to do so. Though Savannah dominated the ice during period one with 20 shots on goal verses Orlando’s 11, they were never able to bring one home. This is largely due to the big Bear guarding Orlando’s goal, #30 Ryan Fanti! Out of 38 shots on goal by the Ghost Pirates, Fanti stopped 37 of them.
Second Period
Though shots on goal for both teams slowed a bit, the pace never did. Both teams’ defenders dictated the second period. The Pirates took six pokes at the goal, while the Bears took four. Even then, Tyler Bird was able to slip another puck into the Savannah net. That second goal of the game was Bird’s fifth of this season and 77th in his Solar Bear career; making him the Solar Bear’s leading goal scorer!
Third Period
With Orlando looking to extend their lead and Savannah trying to just get on the scoreboard, both teams came out in period three like their coaches told them their respective owners were going to give them all Ferrai bonuses! However, it was Ghost Pirate #22, Logan Drevitch who found the back of the net. And though Savannah pulled goalie Keith Kinkaid to have six attackers, the Bears’ defense was impenetrable.
The win puts the Orlando Solar Bears standing at 2-1-1 (W-L-OTL) with five points. The Solar Bears’ next home game is November 2, 7:00 PM at the Orlando KIA Center. For tickets and a good time, visit the Orlando Solar Bears’ website!
