WORCESTER, MA – November 19, 2023 – An early pair of goals and an exceptional performance from goaltender Brad Arvanitis led the Maine Mariners to a 3-2 win over the Worcester Railers on Sunday afternoon at the DCU Center. It was the first of ten meetings between the two teams in the 2023-24 "VIP Rivalry Cup.”
The Mariners opened the scoring for just the fourth time in 11 games, when former Railer Jimmy Lambert finished a backdoor feed from Gabriel Chicoine only 2:27 into the game. It was Lambert’s first goal as a Mariner. A power play goal doubled the lead at 6:20, with Chicoine setting it up again. His blue line drive was tipped by Adam Mechura, who notched his third goal of the weekend to make it a 2-0 game. The Railers put the heat on Mariners netminder Brad Arvanitis for the rest of the period, but he stopped all 14 shots to preserve the two goal lead.
The only goal of the 2nd period came from Maine’s Chase Zieky, as he jumped on a Worcester turnover and ripped home a wrister from the right faceoff dot to stretch the lead to 3-0 at 9:13 of the middle frame.
The Railers made a game of it with a pair of goals in the third. Andrei Bakanov scooped up a rebound at 6:24 and finally beat Arvanitis, making it a 3-1 game. With the goalie pulled, Worcester got one goal closer at 16:40 when Trevor Cosgrove found Anthony Callin in the slot. The Mariners held strong over the final three minutes to preserve the 3-2 win.
Arvanitis turned aside 34 of 36 in the game to earn his first win as a Maine Mariner. Trisan Lennox stopped 19 of 22.
The Mariners (4-7-0) return to home ice after Thanksgiving, hosting the Reading Royals at the Cross Insurance Arena on November 24th and 25th. Friday, night is Jersey Friday, and features a youth replica jersey giveaway to the first 500 fans ages 12 and under, courtesy of Taro Health. The Mariners are also raising funds for the Lewiston community through a special warmup jersey auction. Game time is 7:15 PM. Saturday night is a 6 PM faceoff and is “Monopoly Night,” with a full-team autograph session following the game.
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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