PENSACOLA, FL. – The Rail Yard Dawgs put up a strong defensive effort tonight, but were held off the scoreboard in a 3-0 shutout loss to the Pensacola Ice Flyers on Saturday night. Mac Berglove made 20-of-22 saves for Roanoke, while Seth Kuhn had a 35-save shutout for Pensacola.
The first period was controlled by the Dawgs for the first 12 or so minutes, holding an 8-2 shots on goal advantage and earning the game’s first power play. A turnover in the neutral zone sprung a 2-on-1 shorthanded chance for the hosts, and Brennan Blasczak scored on a one-timer to make it 1-0 Pensacola at the 12:40 mark. That score held into the first intermission.
The second period was once again dictated by Roanoke, who outshot the Ice Flyers 14-7 during the middle frame. The Dawgs had two back-to-back power plays after consecutive penalties by Brandon Tucker, but failed to capitalize on the chances. Roanoke still trailed 1-0 entering the third period.
The Dawgs had plenty of chances for an equalizing goal in the final period, once again outpacing Pensacola in shots by a 12-5 margin. A score by Marcus Russell with 5:15 remaining made it 2-0 Ice Flyers, and the Dawgs went to an empty net with 2:27 to go. An empty net score by Blaszczak with 1:20 remaining made it 3-0, and led to a very chippy end to the game. Four Dawgs ended the game in the locker room early for 10-minute misconduct penalties, while two Ice Flyers received that fate. Roanoke went 0-for-3 on the power play, while Pensacola went 0-for-2 in a 3-0 win that completed a two-game sweep over the Dawgs.
The Rail Yard Dawgs will take on the Fayetteville Marksmen on Thursday at 10 a.m. EST at Crown Coliseum. Wisler Plumbing and Air Family Four Packs, group tickets, 2022-2023 season tickets, and single game tickets for home games are on sale now, and you can listen to the games on the Haley Toyota Rail Yard Dawgs Hockey Network via Mixlr or watch it on HockeyTV.