RECAP : GROWLERS VERSUS ICEMEN JAN 5

Jacksonville Icemen (19-14-1-0) at Newfoundland Growlers (21-11-1-0)

Saturday, January 5th – Mile One Centre, St. John’s,NL

Game Story

The Newfoundland Growlers returned to the win column Saturday night, melting the Jacksonville Icemen 5-1 in a chippy affair at Mile One Centre.

Zach O’Brien kicked things off just two minutes in taking a nice feed from Kristians Rubins and capitalizing on his breakaway for an early 1-0 Growlers lead. O’Brien’s tally would hold up as the only goal in the opening frame. Eric Levine was perfect in his first 20 minutes between the pipes for the Growlers turning aside all nine shots faced.

Maxim Mizyurin extended the Growlers lead to 2-0 at 5:19 of the second period after taking a nice pass from Sam Babintsev for his first professional goal.

Maxime Fortier continued his hot weekend with 8:55 to play in the second period after cleaning up a big rebound making it a 2-1 game. Zach O’Brien restored the two-goal lead with 2:55 left in the period re-directing a Kristans Rubins point shot past Berdin for a 3-1 Growlers lead.

Zach O’Brien completed the hat trick with 10:11 left in the third period roofing it over Berdin’s blocker giving the Growlers a commanding 4-1 lead.

Marcus Power hit the empty net with 31 seconds left on the clock to give the Growlers a 5-1 lead which held up as the final score.

Quick Hits

• Eric Levine made 28 saves in his Growlers debut between the pipes

• Zach O’Brien recorded his second hat trick of the season

• The three stars were 3 – K. Rubins (NFL), 2 – E. Levine (NFL), and 1 – Z. O’Brien (NFL)

What’s Next?

The Newfoundland Growlers continue their six-game homestand Tuesday with a matchup against the Maine Mariners, ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers. Puck drop is 7 p.m. Tickets are available at mileonecentre.com.