For immediate release
For more information, contact: Joel Silverberg, Director of Broadcasting (865) 525-7825, joel@knoxvilleicebears.com.
Roman Kraemer scored a hat trick in his Ice Bears debut, Tyler Rollo scored the game-winner with 4:39 remaining and Knoxville overcame a three-goal deficit to stun the Peoria Rivermen 6-5 at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum Wednesday night.
Knoxville has now won three of its last four games. The loss was the first in regulation for Peoria and just the second loss of the season overall.
Rollo scored his first of the season on the power play to give Knoxville its first lead of the game. Cam Hough shot the puck from the left side and Justin Levac redirected it. Nick Latinovich stopped the deflection, but Rollo picked up the rebound and slipped it into the net to put the Ice Bears ahead to stay.
Kraemer started the rally in the second period when he scored with a quick wrist shot from the left circle after a face-off win by Cole McKechney at 10:13 to cut Peoria’s lead to 4-2. Kraemer scored his second of the period when he pushed a rebound past Latinovich from the slot at 17:39 to make it a one-goal game at the break.
Seth Ensor tied the game for the Ice Bears when Jordy Stallard slipped him the puck in the slot and his wrist shot beat Latinovich up high at 7:16 of the third.
Cayden Cahill gave the Rivermen the lead again when he stole the puck from Levac in the right circle, skated up to the crease and roofed the puck into the net over Cody Karpinski at 11:05 to make it 5-4.
Kramer completed the hat trick and tied the game when McKechney intercepted a breakout pass in the zone and fed the puck to Kraemer, who was perched on the crease behind Latinovich at 14:18. McKechney finished with three assists. Latinovich stopped 17 shots for Peoria.
Cale List put Peoria out in front when Cayhill found him from the left circle to the right for an easy goal at 10:32. Cahill carried the puck behind the net to the left circle and made a saucer pass to the right dot to List. Karpinski saw the puck late and List had a yawning net for his first goal of the season.
Alec Hagaman made it 2-0 after Riley Robertson took a poor angle in the Rivermen zone and lost the puck to Hagaman, who turned the miscue into a two-on-one. Hagaman carried the puck into the right circle and fired a snapshot over Karpinski’s glove at 17:06. Hagaman found Joseph Widmar in the slot less than two minutes later for a one-timer that beat Karpinski low to give the Rivermen a three-goal lead at the first intermission.
Stallard got Knoxville on the board at 2:45 of the second. Dawson McKinney slipped the puck across the zone to Clay Keeley, who chipped it back up top to Stallard. Stallard skated through the slot and worked around Latinovich before finishing off on the right side of the crease for his third of the season.
Mike Gelatt scored off a net-front redirect at 8:03 to make it 4-1 Peoria. Dale Deon shot the puck from atop the left circle and Gelatt got his stick on it to lift the puck over Karpinski’s glove. Karpinski finished with 23 saves.
Knoxville welcomes Macon on Friday night for the front end of a home-and-home. Peoria visits Huntsville 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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