Milner Silences Norfolk For 7th Shutout

After a win in the ECHL’s All-Star Classic earlier in the week, goaltender Parker Milner followed up the performance by stopping all 26 shots he faced on Saturday night. The standout netminder earned his second shutout in his last three games, leading the South Carolina Stingrays (32-6-3-1) to a 3-0 defeat of the Norfolk Admirals (11-27-5-0) at the Norfolk Scope.

BOX SCORE

Milner now has seven shutouts in just 20 appearances this season, more than doubling the next closest goaltender in the league (3).

Despite Milner’s brilliance, Norfolk’s Michael McNiven held the Admirals in the game, stopping the first 29 shots that South Carolina put on net before the Rays broke through in the third period.

Three tallies in the final frame gave the Rays a series sweep of Norfolk and wins in six of their first eight contests against the Admirals.

Forward Dylan Steman finally broke the ice at 11:43 of the third to put SC on top 1-0 when he found a loose rebound in the high slot and backhanded it into the Norfolk net. Steman’s sixth goal of the year came on the power play with assists from forward Max Novak and defender Kristofers Bindulis.

Less than two minutes later, forward Dan DeSalvo entered the offensive zone on the left wing. He then left a drop pass for linemate Mark Cooper, who used a wrist shot to put the puck to the top-right corner of the net and secure a 2-0 lead for the Rays at 13:04 of the third.

DeSalvo capped off the scoring in the final seconds, wristing a puck the length of the ice and into the empty net for his 14th tally of the season to make it 3-0 at 19:58.

South Carolina netted a power play goal for the second straight game and finished 1-for-7 on the man-advantage while Norfolk ended at 0-for-4. The Stingrays outshot Norfolk 39-26 in the contest, with McNiven turning aside 36 attempts in the loss for the Ads.

NEXT GAMEThe Stingrays are back in action on Wednesday evening in Greenville when they face-off with the Swamp Rabbits at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena at 7:05 p.m.

—Tickets for all of South Carolina’s upcoming 2019-20 home contests are on sale now via Ticketmaster.

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