HUNTERSVILLE, NC (October 27, 2023) – The SPHL continues its 20th season with five games tonight. You can follow all the action this season at https://www.flohockey.tv/
Fayetteville @ Macon (7:00 p.m. EST, 6:00 p.m. CST)
Fayetteville Marksmen (0-1-1, 1 pts, 6th)
• Simon Bokoyo tallied three assists in Saturday’s OT loss to Roanoke
• Starting the season with nine rookies
• Goaltender Conor O’Brien returns after making 21 appearances in net last season, where he amassed a 2.70 GAA and a .917 sv%
• Home opener record 4,711 fans packed the Crown Coliseum
• Fayetteville was 6-2-1 against Macon last season
Macon Mayhem (2-0-0, 4 Pts, 1st)
• Alex Cohen notched a four-point night as he tallied two goals and two assists in the Mayhem’s 7-2 opening night trouncing of Knoxville
• Goldowski was named SPHL player of the week after his five-point opening night performance which saw him tally two goals and three assists
• Tommy Munichiello returns after leading the Mayhem in points (40) in 2022-23
• 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 3-6-0 against Fayetteville last season
Birmingham @ Knoxville (7:35 p.m. EST, 6:35 p.m. CST)
Knoxville Ice Bears (0-2-0, 0 pts, 8th)
• Justin Portillo leads the league with 18 penalty minutes in two 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 4-1-1 against Birmingham last season
Birmingham Bulls (0-2-0, 0 pts, 7th)
• Drake Glover ranks second in points with four (1g, 3a)
• Carson Rose ranks tied for third with three points (1g, 2a)
• Rose is back for his third season after collecting 30 points in 27 games last season (15g, 15a)
• Michael Gillespie returns after being named to the SPHL first team last season after notching 60 points (27g, 33a)
• The goaltending tandem of Austin Lotz and Hayden Stewart look to help lead the Bulls back to the Presidents Cup finals after falling to Roanoke last season
• Birmingham was 2-4-0 against Knoxville last season
Pensacola @ Huntsville (8:00 p.m. EST, 7:00 p.m. CST)
Pensacola Ice Flyers (1-0-0, 2 pts, 4th)
• Brett Mercones notched the first-ever opening night hat trick in Ice Flyers history and is tied for third with three points (3g)
• Ivan Bonderenko is also tied for third with three points (3a)
• 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 4-5-1 against Huntsville last season
Huntsville Havoc (2-0-0, 4 pts, 3rd)
• Held Birmingham and Evansville to one goal apiece in their two games last week
• Jamie Bucell picked up a goal and an assist as the Havoc narrowly edged out the Bulls 2-1 in the first battle of Alabama
• Dominick Procopio returns after posting the second highest +/- last season (+29)
• Tyler Piacentini makes the transition from the ice, to behind the bench, joining the Havoc as an assistant coach
• Defensemen Alex Kielczewski and Derek Perl return after being in the top 20 of scoring for blue-liners
• Huntsville was 6-2-2 against Pensacola last season
Roanoke @ Quad City (8:10 p.m. EST, 7:10 p.m. CST)
Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs (2-0-0, 4 pts, 2nd)
• Austyn Roudebush collected the first shutout in the 2023-24 season, stopping all 27 shots he faced on opening night
• Stephen Alvo ranks second 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)
• Goalie Austyn Roudebush returns for his sixth season, fresh off his President’s Cup MVP award.
• Roanoke was 2-2-0 against Quad City last season
Quad City Storm (0-1-0, 0 pts, 10th)
• Tommy Tsicos scored the only Storm goal in his 200th appearance for the franchise in a 4-1 defeat to the Rivermen
Winger Michael Moran returns after his 30-point season (18g, 12a)
• Cole Golka is back with the Storm after a career-high 31 points (16g, 15a)
• SPHL second-team goaltender Kevin Resop is back in the Quad Cities after his impressive 2022-23 campaign which saw him post a 2.69 GAA, and .916 sv% in 40 games
• Quad City was 2-2-0 against Roanoke last season
Peoria @ Evansville (8:10 p.m. EST, 7:10 p.m. CST)
Peoria Rivermen (1-0-0, 2 pts, 5th)
• Alec Baer notched two goals as the Rivermen started the season with a 4-1 victory over Quad City
• Alec Hagaman was set to be behind the bench this season as an assistant coach, but after a change of heart, will suit up for the Rivermen in his final season. He will look to guide the Rivermen to the playoffs yet again and build off his 62-point season in 2022-23 (24g, 38a)
• JM Piotrowski set career highs last season with 52 points and 32 assists. Also tallied 20 goals for the Rivermen
• Coach’s son Tristan 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
• Goaltender Nick Latinovich comes to the Rivermen after playing last season with the Huntsville Havoc and Macon Mayhem where he posted a combined 2.97 GAA, .914 sv%, and a 16-11-2 record.
• Peoria was 5-4-2 against Evansville last season
Evansville Thunderbolts (0-1-0, 0 pts, 9th)
• Riley MacRae tallied the only goal for Evansville in their 2-1 defeat to Huntsville
• 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 6-4-1 against Peoria last season
