The South Carolina Stingrays shut out the Worcester Railers for the second time this week, this time by a 3-0 score. The shutout was the first of the season for goaltender Garin Bjorklund, who made 23 saves in the victory. Erik Middendorf recorded two points in the afternoon game, both of which were assists.
Neither team scored in the first period, but there was no shortage of power play opportunities. The Railers had two, and the Stingrays had three, with one of those calls coming with just two seconds remaining in the period.
The Stingrays led in shots on goal 11-7 after the first 20 minutes of play.
Jamie Engelbert put South Carolina on the board 2:18 into the second period. Engelbert fired a wrist shot from the left circle that beat Worcester goaltender Hugo Ollas on his glove side. Middendorf and Blake Thompson recorded assists on Engelbert's 14th goal of the season.
The Stingrays extended their lead to 2-0 in the third period. Alexander Suzdalev capitalized on a tough angle rebound from the goal line. Stingrays captain Jacob Graves had the initial shot on goal, and Austin Magera collected the secondary assist.
With just over three minutes remaining in the game, Tyler Weiss found himself in the right place at the right time and made it 3-0. Middendorf found Weiss to the right of Ollas with a perfect across-the-crease pass, allowing Weiss to fire the puck at a practically empty net. Micah Miller also assisted on the final goal of the game.
The Stingrays' next game will be on the road against the Florida Everblades on Wednesday at Hertz Arena. Puck drop will be at 7:30 p.m. EST.
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