Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

PELHAM – The Birmingham Bulls showed no signs of rust in their return to the ice as they dominated in preseason play.

The Bulls defeated the Pensacola Ice Flyers 5-1 on Saturday, Oct. 12 at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena in an exhibition match which was open to the public.

With less than a week until the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) regular season begins on Friday, Oct. 18, the game served as Birmingham’s final tune-up before starting the 2024-25 season.

The Bulls came out of the gate in dominant fashion thanks to an electrifying start from veteran goalscorer Drake Glover.

Glove scored not once but twice in the first period to give Birmingham a 2-0 lead at the end of 20 minutes of game action.

That set the stage for the Bulls to cruise from there as they extended their lead down the stretch.

Bond added another goal in the second period while Birmingham kept Pensacola scoreless, which made the lead 3-0 at the second intermission.

The Ice Flyers did manage to get one in the back of the Bulls’ net in the third period, but it proved to be too little, too late, especially as Birmingham’s big offensive night continued.

Carson Rose picked up a goal in the final period along with Oleynik to make the final score 5-1, sealing an exhibition win for the Bulls.

Birmingham will take that win into the opening weekend of the regular season as it looks to follow up on last year’s SPHL regular season championship.

The Bulls will open the regular season at home against the Huntsville Havoc on Friday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena. After that, they will hit the road for a matchup with the Macon Mayhem on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 5 p.m.

The home opener will feature Jamey Hicks’ jersey retirement along with a pair of giveaways for the first 1,000 fans ages 15 and older: a Birmingham Bulls beach towel and a magnetic schedule.

Tickets for the game and any other Bulls home games can be purchased at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena box office either in-person or by calling 205-620-6870. Tickets are also available online at Ticketmaster.com.