Stingrays Netminder Posted 40-Saves in the Victory
By: Stingrays Media
For the second time this week, the South Carolina Stingrays (20-34-6-0) shutout their opponent as Ryan Bednard posted 40-saves en route to a 2-0 victory over the Maine Mariners (25-26-4-2) on Saturday night at Cross Insurance Arena
Early in the second period, Nick Master thought he gave the Mariners a 1-0 lead on a snipe over Bednard’s right shoulder. After the officials reviewed the play, they determined that the puck banged off the crossbar, keeping the game scoreless.
Instead, Derek Gentile gave the Stingrays the only lead that mattered as he buried a snipe of his own on a similar shot to Master’s. Gentile picked up a loose pass from Karl Boudrias and finessed his way to an open shot for his ninth goal of the season seven minutes into the third period.
The Stingrays closed out the Mariners on an empty net goal from Barret Kirwin with 42 seconds left in regulation. Kirwin forced a turnover from Maine and fired a shot into an open net to secure the South Carolina win.
Bednard’s 40-save shutout was his second of the season and first since November 3rd, where he turned back 24 shots against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits. This performance comes off the back of Hunter Shepard’s 30-save shutout on Wednesday against Greenville.
The Stingrays return to action tomorrow, March 20th, at 3:00 p.m. as the team finishes their northeast trip, completing a two-game series against the Maine Mariners at Cross Insurance Arena.
