PORTLAND, ME – March 8, 2024 – Led by Curtis Hall’s hat trick and 33 saves from Brad Arvanitis, the Maine Mariners routed the Adirondack Thunder 7-0 on Friday night at the Cross Insurance Arena. The Mariners snapped a three-game losing streak with the blowout victory in the opener of a weekend home-and-home with the Thunder.
It was one of the most productive first periods of the entire season for the Mariners, who jumped to a 3-0 lead. Opening the scoring was Owen Pederson at 5:25, capitalizing on a mistake by Thunder netminder Tyler Brennan behind the. It was Pederson’s second goal of the week, and second in three games since coming off injured reserve. Following the goal, fans threw new packages of undergarments onto the ice as a part of the annual “Underwear and Sports Bra Toss.” Donations benefitted Preble Street and The Sports Bra Project. The Mariners struck quickly on their first power play chance at 10:12, when Curtis Hall found a rebound after an Adam Mechura redirect and doubled the Maine lead. Chase Zieky’s deflection of Fedor Gordeev’s long drive at 12:15 stretched the lead to 3-0 and chased Brennan from the Adirondack net.
Hall’s second goal of the game made it a 4-0 game just 1:31 into the second period, as Owen Pederson came up with a steal inside the blue line and fed Hall for a one-timer. Late in the frame, just after a successful penalty kill, Brooklyn Kalmikov finished a 3-on-2 rush for the fifth Maine goal of the night and a 5-0 lead through 40 minutes.
Maine’s second power play goal of the night came from Austin Albrecht at 14:00 of the third period to give the Mariners a 6-0 lead. As the seconds ticked down, Hall skated in on a breakaway, and backhanded the hat trick finisher over a sprawling Vinnie Purpura with just 10 seconds to play. Arvanitis earned his first career shutout, stopping all 33 Adirondack shots.
The Mariners (23-26-6-0) will meet the Thunder again on Saturday night at Cool Insuring Arena in Glens Falls, NY. They begin a six-game homestand next Friday, March 15th with “World Record Night” at 7:15 PM, also against the Thunder. It’s the first game of back-to-back Thee Dollar Deweys “Threekends.” Single game tickets for all regular season home games are on sale at MarinersOfMaine.com or at the Ware-Butler Box Office inside the Cross Insurance Arena. More information on ticket packages and group discounts can be found by calling 833-GO-MAINE or visiting the Mariners front office at 94 Free St. in Portland. The 2023-2024 season is presented by Hannaford to Go.
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