HUNTERSVILLE, NC (November 21, 2024) – The SPHL has four days of hockey this week as we approach the Thanksgiving holiday. Catch all the action on FloHockey at www.sphltv.com.
Birmingham Bulls (5-2-2)
• Birmingham played a home-and-home against Knoxville, falling 4-3 in overtime on the road Friday before tallying a 7-4 win on Saturday
• Michael Gillespie tallied two power-play goals and assisted on a third to lead the Bulls on Friday
• Six different Birmingham players scored in Saturday’s win, as rookie brothers Arkhip and Filimon Ledziankou tallied their first professional goals
NEXT UP: Birmingham hosts Macon on Friday (7:05 p.m. CT) for their third meeting in November
Evansville Thunderbolts (4-5-2)
• Evansville dropped a pair of games against Peoria in a home-and-home series, falling 3-2 on the road Friday and 2-1 in overtime on Saturday
• Matthew Hobbs and Jordan Simoneau each scored their first goal of the season on Friday
• Goaltender Ty Taylor made 39 saves on Saturday, while Derek Contessa scored his first of the season just 27 seconds into the game
NEXT UP: Evansville travels to Quad City on Friday (7:10 p.m. CT) before heading home to face the Storm on Saturday (7:05 p.m. CT)
Fayetteville Marksmen (8-2-0)
• Fayetteville hosted Macon this past weekend, falling 5-2 on Friday before tallying a 6-2 win on Saturday as they maintained first place in the standings
• Mason Beaupit recorded his first win in his team debut with the Marksmen on Saturday, making 27 saves
• Austen Long scored two goals on Saturday as the Marksmen put 51 shots on goal
NEXT UP: Fayetteville is on the road this weekend as they travel to Knoxville on Friday (7:05 p.m. ET) and Macon on Saturday (6:00 p.m. ET)
Huntsville Havoc (7-2-1)
• Huntsville hosted Pensacola on Friday, tallying a 3-2 win before traveling to the Pensacola Bay Center and coming out with a 5-3 win on Saturday
• Jeremy Gervais scored twice on Friday, including the eventual game-winner in the second period.
• An impressive third period brought Huntsville back from a 3-1 deficit after two periods, as four different players scored in the 5-3 win
NEXT UP: Huntsville has just one game this weekend as the Havoc will host Roanoke on Friday (7:00 p.m. CT)
Knoxville Ice Bears (5-4-1)
• Knoxville met Birmingham in a home-and-home series this past weekend, winning 4-3 in overtime before the home crowd on Friday before falling 7-4 on Saturday
• Jimmy Soper scored in overtime on Friday, his third goal of the season
• After scoring his first of the season on Friday, Dawson McKinney netted his second goal just 49 seconds into the third period on Saturday
NEXT UP: Knoxville has back-to-back home games this week, hosting Roanoke on Thursday (7:05 p.m. ET) and Fayetteville on Friday (7:05 p.m. ET) before heading to Macon for a Sunday matinee (3:00 p.m. ET)
Macon Mayhem (3-5-1)
• Macon traveled to Fayetteville for a weekend series, tallying a 5-2 win on Friday before falling 6-2 on Saturday
• Dominic Dumas recorded his first SPHL goal on a feed from Zach Tyson, who scored two of Macon’s five goals on Friday
• Zach Tyson scored the first goal of the game on Saturday, his third consecutive period with a goal dating back to the second period on Friday
NEXT UP: Macon is back on the road Friday (7:05 p.m. CT), as they travel to Birmingham before heading home to host Fayetteville on Saturday (6:00 p.m. ET), and Knoxville on Sunday (3:00 p.m. ET)
Pensacola Ice Flyers (2-7-1)
• Pensacola faced Huntsville in a home-and-home series, falling 3-2 in Huntsville on Friday and 5-3 on Saturday
• Matt Weisner scored his fifth goal on Saturday, a shorthanded tally, to give the Ice Flyers a 2-0 lead early in the first period
• Rookie Greg Smith tallied two assists this past weekend, giving him eight assists in ten games, which is tied for the league lead among all first-year players
NEXT UP: Pensacola heads to Peoria to play a two-game series at the Peoria Civic Center on Friday and Saturday (7:15 p.m. CT)
Peoria Rivermen (5-2-2)
• Peoria swept Evansville in their home-and-home series, winning 3-2 at home on Friday and 2-1 in overtime on Saturday
• Zack Nazzarett scored a goal early in the first on Friday to give him five on the season, which ranks second amongst rookies
• Captain Alec Baer scored the game-winner in overtime on Saturday, netting his fifth goal of the season
NEXT UP: Peoria hosts Pensacola on Friday and Saturday (7:15 p.m. CT)
Quad City Storm (4-4-1)
• Quad City dropped a pair of games at Roanoke, losing 6-3 on Friday and 7-6 in overtime on Saturday
• Leif Mattson tallied a pair of goals in Saturday’s game, giving him seven on the season
• Tommy Tsicos scored three goals in the series, while Weiland Parrish added four assists
NEXT UP: Quad City hosts Evansville on Friday (7:10 p.m. CT) before heading to the Ford Center on Saturday (7:05 p.m. CT)
Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs (5-3-1)
• Roanoke took two games from Quad City at home this past weekend, winning 6-3 on Friday and 7-6 in overtime on Saturday, giving the Rail Yard Dawgs their first weekend sweep of the season
• Nick Ford and Joe Widmar combined for 19 points in the two games and earned Warrior Co-Player of the Week honors. Ford scored three goals and added seven assists while Widmar had three goals and six assists in his first games with Roanoke after starting the season with ECHL Rapid City.
• Rookie Gustav Muller recorded four points on the weekend, including the game-winning goal in overtime on Saturday, and leads all rookies in scoring with 11 points
• Joe Widmar and Nick Ford each set a new single-game franchise record for points with six during Saturday’s high-scoring game as Ford also matched the Dawgs’ single-game record by dishing out five assists
NEXT UP: Roanoke hits the road to face Knoxville on Thursday (7:05 p.m. ET) before heading to Huntsville on Friday (7:00 p.m. CT)
