For immediate release
For more information, contact: Joel Silverberg, Director of Broadcasting (865) 525-7825, joel@knoxvilleicebears.com.
Stephen Mundinger made 32 saves for his third shutout of the season and the Knoxville Ice Bears defeated the Macon Mayhem 3-0 at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum Sunday afternoon.
Chances were limited through the first period and the game remained scoreless at the first intermission as a result. Stephen Mundinger kicked away Macon’s best opportunity when he turned aside Stefan Miklakos’s wrist shot from the slot. Josh Boyko made glove saves on Tyler Williams and Jared Westcott from the high slot and Ryan Kuzmich’s attempt from the right circle hit the post.
Mundinger slid across the crease to stop Miklakos’s cross-ice feed on a two-on-one to keep the game scoreless in the second. Boyko stopped a one-timer from between the circles by Blake Tosto.
The Ice Bears finally opened the scoring detail with Davide Gaeta’s fifth goal of the season with less than two minutes remaining in the second. Jimmy Soper won a wall battle in the Macon zone to push the puck behind the net. After a pass deflected off a stick, the puck rolled off the outside of the net to the right side of the crease, where Gaeta collected it and slid it underneath Boyko at 18:24.
Knoxville provided an insurance goal in the third period when Jared Westcott intercepted a breakout pass in the Macon zone and skated to the crease. As he approached the blue ice, Westcott slipped the puck to his right for Blake Tosto on the backdoor, who tapped it in to make it 2-0 at 7:24.
Brayden Stannard blocked Caleb Huffman’s shot from the slot and Mundinger turned away Conor Witherspoon’s follow-up chance to keep Macon off the scoreboard.
Jarret Kup scored on an empty net to conclude the scoring with less than two minutes remaining. Jimmy Soper had two assists for Knoxville. Boyko made 36 saves for the Mayhem.
Knoxville welcomes Roanoke to the Civic Coliseum Thursday night. The Mayhem return to Georgia to face Pensacola on Thursday.
ABOUT The Knoxville Ice Bears: The Knoxville Ice Bears organization began in 2002 and was an inaugural charter member of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) in 2004. As four-time SPHL Champions and five-time regular season champions, the Ice Bears are an experienced and established organization, offering the city and its visitors a balanced product of highlight-reel hockey, unique and exciting intermission activity and endless fan interaction, presenting the most affordable, family-friendly way to enjoy sports and entertainment. Season, Partial Season and Flex Tickets are now on sale. For more information, visit www.knoxvilleicebears.com or call (865) 525-7825.
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