Contact: awest@thesphl.com
HUNTERSVILLE, NC (November 3, 2023) – The SPHL continues its 20th season with five games tonight. You can follow all the action this season at https://flosports.link/SPHL
Pensacola @ Roanoke (7:05 p.m. EST, 6:05 p.m. CST)
Pensacola Ice Flyers (2-1-0, 4 pts, 5th)
• Brett Mercones is tied for second with five goals
• Ivan Bonderenko ranks tied for third in the league with four assists
• Stephen Mundinger ranks seventh among goaltenders with a 1.85 goals-against average
• Winger Garrett Milan returns for another season in an Ice Flyers sweater, looking to repeat his 2022-23, where he finished second in points (69), third in assists (43), and fourth in goals (26)
• Bondarenko returns after his 55-point season (15g, 40a)
• Mitch Adkins returns, following his career-best point season in which the Center tallied 46 points (9g, 37a)
• Pensacola was 4-1-0 against Roanoke last season
Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs (3-0-1, 7 pts, T-1st)
• Austyn Roudebush collected the first shutout in the 2023-24 season, stopping all 27 shots he faced on opening night
• Nick Ford ranks tied for third with five points (1g, 4a)
• Stephen Alvo ranks tied for third in the league with four points (1g, 3a)
• Alvo collected two points (1g, 1a) in their 4-0 win on opening night
• Hoisted their 2023 Presidents Cup banner in front of their home crowd for the first time in franchise history
• The Dawgs return their top three leading scorers from last season in Nick Ford (54p), Mac Jansen (49p), and CJ Stubbs (47p)
• Roudebush returns for his sixth season, fresh off his President’s Cup MVP award.
• Roanoke was 1-3-1 against Pensacola last season
Fayetteville @ Knoxville (7:35 p.m. EST, 6:35 p.m. CST)
Fayetteville Marksmen (2-1-1, 5 pts, 4th)
• Simon Bokoyo ranks tied for second among rookies with five points (2g, 3a)
• Brendon Michaelien ranks second among defensemen with three points (1g, 2a)
• Goaltender Conor O’Brien returned to the Marksmen and stopped 31 of 32 shots faced on Friday (.970 sv%)
• Home opener record 4,711 fans packed the Crown Coliseum
• Fayetteville was 1-2-1 against Knoxville last season
Knoxville Ice Bears (0-4-0, 0 pts, 10th)
• Justin Portillo leads the league with 33 penalty minutes in three games
• Finished with a 32-22-3 record last season, 6th seed in SPHL playoffs
• Brady Fleurent returns after finishing top five in shooting percentage last season (21.5%)
• Goaltender Zane Steeves comes to the Ice Bears after playing last season in Evansville where the netminder posted a 2.97 GAA and a .912 sv%
• Kristian Stead also returns after finishing top five in wins (20), minutes played (1,818.00), and saves (956)
• Knoxville was 3-1-0 against Fayetteville last season
Macon @ Evansville (8:00 p.m. EST, 7:00 p.m. CST)
Macon Mayhem (2-2-0, 4 Pts, 7th)
• Alex Laplante and Jake Goldowski are tied for the league lead with a +6 rating
• Joey Berkopic and Laplante are tied for the league lead in shooting percentage (50.0%)
• Goldowski ranks tied for second in the SPHL with six points (2g, 4a)
• Tommy Munichiello ranks tied for third in the SPHL with 17 shots
• Josh Boyko returns to the Mayhem alongside newcomer Jimmy Poreda as the tandem between the pipes
• CJ Hayes returns to Macon after collecting 28 points on 12 goals, and 16 assists in 27 games last season for the Mayhem
• Macon was 1-2-1 against Evansville last season
Evansville Thunderbolts (0-2-0, 0 pts, 9th)
• Evansville leads the SPHL with an average of 28 penalty minutes through two games
• Brandon Harrogate returns after posting a 42-point season (17g, 25a) last season for the Thunderbolts
• Goalies Hayden Lagvine and Sean Kuhn will be the tandem in net to start the season
• Evansville was 3-1-0 against Macon last season
Birmingham @ Huntsville (8:00 p.m. EST, 7:00 p.m. CST)
Birmingham Bulls (2-2-0, 4 pts, 6th)
• Kishaun Gervais leads the league with six goals *Gervais is currently on loan in the ECHL*
• Hayden Stewart leads the SPHL with two shutouts
• Gervais and Stewart were named SPHL Co-Players of the Week after Gervais’ five-goal weekend and Stewarts two shutouts
• Troy MacTavish is tied for the league lead with a +6 rating
• Drake Glover (2g, 4a), Carson Rose (1g, 5a), and Kishaun Gervais (6g) rank tied for second in points with six
• Rose and MacGregor Sinclair are tied for second with five assists
• Birmingham is 0-1-0 against Huntsville
Huntsville Havoc (3-0-1, 7 pts, T-1st)
• Brothers, Doug and Phil Elgstam both tallied goals against the Ice Flyers. With Doug netting a hat trick in their 5-2 victory on Friday night
• Doug Elgstam is tied for second with five goals, and also ranks tied for second with six points (5g, 1a)
• Dominick Procopio returns after posting the second highest +/- last season (+29)
• Brian Wilson (1.44 gaa) and Matt Peitzan (1.50 gaa) have combined to go 3-0 between the pipes, stopping 126 of 132 shots combined, placing both in the top five in goals against average.
• Huntsville is 1-0-0 against Birmingham
Quad City @ Peoria (8:15 p.m. EST, 7:15 p.m. CST)
Quad City Storm (1-3-0, 2 pts, 8th)
• Kevin Resop leads the league with 76 saves
• Defenseman John DeRoche is tied for second amongst all blue liners with three points (1g, 2a)
• Alex Pommerville ranks third in the SPHL with 20 penalty minutes
• Tommy Tsicos scored the only Storm goal in his 200th appearance for the franchise in a 4-1 defeat to the Rivermen
• Quad City is 0-2-0 against Roanoke
Peoria Rivermen (3-0-0, 6 pts, 3rd)
• Joseph Widmar leads the league with seven points (1g, 6a). His six assists are also a league-high. Six of those points came this past weekend
• Nick Latinovich is tied for the league lead in wins (2) and goals against average (1.00 gaa)
• Tristan Trudel leads all rookies with two power-play goals
• Cale List and Dale Deon are tied for the league lead for defensemen with +5 ratings
• Ryan Nolan (3g, 3a) and Mike Gelatt (2g, 4a) rank tied for second with six points. Their six points are also tied for the league lead among rookies
• Coach’s son Tristian Trudel suits up for the Rivermen this season, becoming the first-ever father-son coaching and playing duo in SPHL history
• First-teamer Zach Wilkie is back after posting a league-best +42 Plus-Minus last season
• Peoria is 2-0-0 against Quad City
