Game Notes - Week 5: Fayetteville Marksmen at Birmingham/Macon
November 12, 2021 - SPHL (SPHL)
Fayetteville Marksmen News Release
The Fayetteville Marksmen embark on the season's first three-game-in-three-day road trip of the season.
The Marksmen have only one road loss this season, and it came last Friday in Knoxville 3-2. Fayetteville held the lead for the majority of that game, but after a Don Olivieri major penalty for slew-footing, the Marksmen gave up two powerplay goals and fell.
What has followed this week has been a series of unfortunate events. Forward Tanner Froese was placed on the 21-day injured reserve list on Monday and on Wednesday, forward Shane Bednard was ruled out for the weekend by team medical staff. While defenseman Carter Struthers was released by South Carolina (ECHL), Wheeling (ECHL) claimed his rights on waivers keeping him in the ECHL another weekend.
On Saturday, Thomas Clayton signed with the Marksmen for his second stint of the season with the team.
On the ice, the Marksmen are tied with Knoxville for fourth-place in the SPHL.
Fayetteville opened the year by winning their first four, but dropped two of their last three against Knoxville.
Sunday marked the first time this season that the Marksmen defeated a team with a winning record, a 3-1 win over Knoxville.
This season, the Marksmen will face off against Birmingham seven times, five of them coming at the Pelham Civic Center. Macon and Fayetteville will face off 13 times on the season, with the three straight meetings coming on Sunday.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Birmingham is a team that has been very close to putting a solid start together. The Bulls are 1-4-3 with three overtime losses, but they are occupying the last playoff spot in the league (eighth place).
Russell Jordan is leading the charge for the Bulls with eight points this season, but this hard-nosed Birmingham team has three of the league's top-five getters in penalty minutes (David Nippard, Alexander Taulien, Mike Davis).
Macon gave Huntsville a handful last weekend before falling 4-3. The Mayhem are pushing for head coach Zac Desjardins first win of the season, with their only standings point coming against Fayetteville on October 29.
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STOPPING PUCKS
Jason Pawloski has continued to start the year on a tear.
Pawloski is 4-1 on the season with a league-leading 1.20 goals against average.
Pawloski played last season alongside Max Milosek in Huntsville in his first pro season after a lower body injury sidelined him after just two games in Fayetteville in the 19-20 season.
In his first pro start, Stefano Durante scored a shootout win for the Marksmen over Macon. Durante played his collegiate hockey at A.I.C. and is a first-year professional.
TRANSACTIONS THIS WEEK
Player Date Transaction
Thomas Clayton 11/6 Signed
Tanner Froese 11/9 Placed on 21-day I.R.
Carter Struthers 11/10 Called-up (Wheeling)
Shane Bednard 11/10 Placed on 21-day I.R.
SIMPLY THE BEST
Rookie Taylor Best is quickly climbing the ranks as one of the top rookies in the SPHL this season.
Best had at least a point in every game from Oct. 29- Nov, 7 and is tied for the team lead in points this season.
From Whitby, Ont. and a product of Mercyhurst University, Best was heralded by teammate Harrison Harper as "a good rookie," and teammate Taylor McCloy said Best "has incredible vision and makes unbelievable passes."
RELEASE THE CLAYTON
Thomas Clayton is on his second stint with the Marksmen this season.
Signed on Saturday, Clayton is originally from Cincinnati, but is currently an active-duty solider at Ft. Bragg.
Clayton had previously played with the Knoxville Ice Bears and also managed to scrape a few games with the FPHL's Watertown Wolves.
In this past weekend's games, Clayton energized his team with a fight against Carter Cowlthorp not once, but twice in the weekend.
THE INJURY BUG BITES
Forward Tanner Froese was added to the 21-day injured reserve list on Monday after leaving the game on Friday (11/5) in Knoxville early.
Froese had come on recently as a veteran scoring threat that had scored a game-winning and game-tying goal in the season already.
Then on Wednesday, medical staff deemed forward Shane Bednard ineligible to play with an undisclosed concern also stemming from Friday's game in Knoxville.
Both players are not on the trip this weekend.
HOME SWEET HOME
After this weekend, the Marksmen will play six of their next seven games at home.
The home-stretch starts on Friday, Nov. 19 and will end on Sunday, Dec. 5. The only break of the homestand in on Friday, Nov. 26 at Roanoke.
To this point, the Marksmen are 2-1 at home and 3-1 on the road.
BROADCASTER'S QUIZZICAL CORNER
Here you can find a small sampling of nuggets from our play-by-play voice's research. It's a potpourri, so enjoy!
-The first SPHL matchup play-by-play voice Drew Blevins called was Birmingham at Fayetteville on Feb. 7, 2020. The Marksmen won the game 4-1.
-The Alabama Crimson Tide division-I club hockey program calls the Pelham Civic Center home as well.
-While the team plays in Pelham, Ala. and not Birmingham proper, the neighboring town of Hoover, Ala. has been the long-time host of the SEC baseball championship.
-Bulls play-by-play voice Eli Gold is also the long-time voice of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team. Mr. Gold will call Friday's hockey game but will be on the call for Alabama and New Mexico St. on Saturday.
SPHL Stories from November 12, 2021
- Thunderbolts Edged by Ice Bears, 4-1 - Evansville Thunderbolts
- Bellant, Poreda Lift Ice Bears to 4-1 Win - Knoxville Ice Bears
- Dawgs Rout Bobcats 6-3 for First Win - Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs
- Game Notes - Week 5: Fayetteville Marksmen at Birmingham/Macon - Fayetteville Marksmen
- Cowlthorp Called up to ECHL's Stingrays - Knoxville Ice Bears
- Peoria Trades for Marcel Godbout - Peoria Rivermen
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
