Game Story
Orlando, FL — The Worcester Railers closed out the first three-game series of their southern road trip with a 4-2 win over the Orlando Solar Bears on Monday afternoon.
John Muse made his second straight start with 25 saves and his tenth win of the season on Monday. The Railers put an end to Brandon Halverson’s three-game win streak, scoring three goals on Halverson and an empty net goal late in the third period. Anthony Callin, Artyom Kulakov, Keeghan Howdeshell, and Jack Quinlivan each scored for Worcester. Todd Goehring, Zsombar Garat, Jake Pivonka, and Ashton Calder also contributed to the scoresheet with assists. Luke Boka and Darik Angeli scored Orlando’s goals. Each team had a power play in the second period, and both teams had a single shot on goal during their respective advantages, with Christian Krygier and Brayden Low fighting early in the third period, and Brendan Robbins and Jimmy Mazza coming short of a fight later on in that period.
Anthony Callin gave the Railers the initial lead at 6:44 after stealing the puck from Orlando’s Tanner Dickinson. Callin had a nice shot glove-side from the right faceoff circle for his tenth goal of the season. Artyom Kulakov scored nearly ten minutes later on a shot that was deflected off a Solar Bears skater. A minute after Kulakov’s goal, Keeghan Howdeshell brought the game to 3-0, redirecting a shot from Jake Pivonka on the doorstep of Brandon Halverson.
Luke Boka redirected a shot from Ben Carroll at 2:54, beating John Muse glove side for the only goal of the second period. John Muse made a fantastic save late into the period to keep the game 3-1 as the Railers killed off Zach White’s Delay of Game penalty. Railers led 3-1, outshooting Orlando 20-14 after two periods.
Things got feisty early in the third period, Christian Krygier had his first professional fight against Brayden Low at 2:36. Krygier drew blood on Low’s face after a fairly lengthy scrap, seems like the the officials in the South do let fights go on more than they do up north. This was the third fight in as many games, I don’t recall seeing something like this in the six seasons of Railers hockey. Brandon Halverson would be pulled three times late into the third period when Darik Angeli scored off the faceoff to bring the game to 3-2. Halverson would be pulled again, and Jack Quinlivan scored on his empty net to regain the two-goal lead with under a minute left in the period. The Railers held on as he was pulled a third time after Quinlivan’s goal.
The three stars of the game were:
- Anthony Callin (Worcester) – 1 goal
- Luke Boka (Orlando) – 1 goal
- John Muse (Worcester) – 25 saves, win, 0.926 SV%
The Reading Royals beat the Newfoundland Growlers 2-1 in the only other North Division game taking place on Monday. The Railers have control of third in the division by a thread with a point percentage of .521 with three games in hand, while the Growlers have a point percentage of .520. The Railers are off until Wednesday, and Reading and Newfoundland also play against each other on Wednesday.
Next, the Railers head to Estero, Florida for the second half of their southern road trip, where they’ll face the Florida Everblades on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
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