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Ice Flyers Get Rewarding Win Against Macon Mayhem
December 27, 2024
by Bill Vilona, Ice Flyers correspondent
Houston, we have a winner.
After all that happened, the Ice Flyers had an ending they could savor.
Just 28 seconds into overtime, Houston Wilson broke free on a breakaway off the boards, made a deke, a fake and let the puck just slide underneath the goaltender to give the Ice Flyers a 4-3 win against the Macon Mayhem on the night after Christmas to thrill a crowd of 5,403 at the Pensacola Bay Center.
Wilson, a popular player a year ago, who rejoined the Ice Flyers on December 18, after starting the season with the Quad City Storm, was visible the entire game.
Early in Thursday’s game, Wilson just missed scoring on a shorthanded breakaway in the first period, then assisted on Jonathan Bartuccio-Pereira’s go-ahead goal in the second period.
His skate-off, game-winner, was one of the rare times this season the Ice Flyers had a breakaway light up a goal lamp.
Hallelujah, was the reaction from Ice Flyers coach Gary Graham.
“If you know anything about our team, and watch our games, the amount of breakaways we get over the course (this season) and don’t score… and if we score on those our record would look a lot different ,” he said. “It was exciting for me to finally score on a breakaway.”
The overtime win provided the Ice Flyers (6-14, 2 OT losses) their first consecutive wins of the season, following the 3-2 win against Huntsville on Dec. 21. The Ice Flyers have now gained points in their last three games, also a first this season.
They will have a rematch at Macon (7-13, 1 OT loss) on Friday, then will bus back in another all-night trip before facing the Peoria Rivermen on Saturday. All teams in the SPHL are playing three games in three days in a post-Christmas flurry.
“That’s just the way it is,” Graham said. “The (next level) will ramp up (Friday) with ECHL with a lot of teams playing six games in 10 nights. We just can’t get ahead of ourselves.”
Two of the Ice Flyers stars of the Huntsville win, Shane Bull and Sean Gulka, both received short-term ECHL contracts Thursday, forcing the Ice Flyers to again find replacements. They now have eight players signed before the season on ECHL teams.
That was another reason why the Ice Flyers performance and fortitude was noteworthy Thursday.
“It was a good team win,” Graham said. “For us, it’s more about what we have to do to win games. We have to block shots, we have to finish checks, we have to do all these little things right to win games, and it’s good to do that and have success. That’s how you build a culture.”
The Ice Flyers were twice forced to kill a 5-on-3 Macon power play. The toughest occurred with just 3:05 left in regulation play when Sam Dabrowski was whistled for elbowing. Graham vehemently objected to the call and was hit was an unsportsmanlike penalty from the bench.
But the Ice Flyers defense shined in that situation, the same way they limited Macon to just a couple shots in a second period 5-on-3 penalty kill.
Graham obviously was not happy with how the game was officiated, but his players responded to the adversity.
“The guys really bought in to getting the kills,” he said. “We blocked shots, (goaltender) Clayser (Brody Claeys) was great and you need your goalie to be your best penalty killer, but those penalty killers really bailed me out for taking that extra one for yelling at the referee.”
Here’s a quick recap.
FIRST PERIOD
At midpoint of the first period, the teams had combined for four goals on 16 shots in a period that ended tied at 2-2.
Just 48 seconds into the game, the Ice Flyers scored first without actually shooting.
Newcomer Blake Tosto had a shot carom off his leg and skate boot as he was being checked and the puck went under Macon goaltender Bailey Brkin’s pads.
A lengthy replay review occurred in the penalty box area before referee Keith Grooms signaled the goal was official. Graham explained the review was to see if there was goaltender interference when Tosto stick got lifted up as the puck went underneath Brkin.
Macon tied the game just over a minute later, but Tosto then got his second goal immediately after a faceoff in the Mayhem zone. He rushed the net and flick a top-corner shot into the cage.
Macon tied the game on a wrist shot by Nicholas Aromatario with 10:43 left and that’s how it stayed until first intermission.
SECOND PERIOD
The Ice Flyers took a 3-2 lead into second intermission after Bartuccio-Pereira finished a perfect pass from Wilson at 7:22 into the period.
“(Wilson) started the season hurt in Quad City and when he got healthy, they had had a lot of their key guys in and he was a healthy scratch as a 10th forward.. Now, he’s getting an opportunity with a familiar organization,” Graham said.
“He’s got a palpable kind of swagger to him. He’s got that smile from ear to ear. He just brings that relentless energy and most importantly, he understands the fans. He understands what the Ice Flyers fans like, they like hustle, they like tenacity, they like guys that are hard to play against and he brings all that to the table.”
THIRD PERIOD
Less than seven minutes in, the Mayhem got the tying goal on a power play. It was a sequence that pulled Claeys out from the crease and the puck slid to Dan Winslow, who had a wide-open net to finish the play and tie the game.
The drama then ensued in the final three minutes as the Ice Flyers staved off the two-man disadvantage and sent the game to overtime.
GAME NOTABLES: It was Youth Jersey Giveaway Night. The first 1,500 children ages 12-under received a replica jersey of the one worn Friday night by the Ice Flyers. The jerseys were provided by the Ice Flyers Foundation.
WHAT’S NEXT?
WHO: Ice Flyers at Macon Mayhem
WHEN: Friday, 6 p.m. (CST)
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