CORPUS CHRISTI ICERAYS
vs.
LONE STAR BRAHMAS
Saturday, February 7 at 7:05 P.M.
NAHL Game #526 • Home Game #22 • Season Series 2-1-1
American Bank Center • Corpus Christi, Texas
Radio: SportsJuice.com • Mobile: TuneIn Radio • In-Arena: 87.7 FM
Video: FASTHockey.com • Twitter: @goicerays
Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. with Countdown To Faceoff
Tonight’s Game: The Corpus Christi IceRays finish out their two-game set against the Lone Star Brahmas at the American Bank Center. Tonight is the annual Stars & Stripes Night, presented by Whataburger and First Title Company. Game-worn specialty jerseys will be auctioned off in the Eddie Jackson Post-Game Jersey Auction.
Head-To-Head: The IceRays are now 2-1-1 against the Brahmas after last night’s win. Both teams own the same record against one another. In their histories, the IceRays own a 16-27-5 record against the Brahmas/Texas Tornado and 7-3-2 against the Brahmas current name and ownership.
Last Night: The IceRays scored a late goal to force a shootout and win 3-2 (3-2 shootout) against the Lone Star Brahmas from the American Bank Center. While the Brahmas jumped out first thanks to Storm Wahlrab (11:12 1st), the IceRays tied the game on a goal by Nathan Bryer (6:34 2nd). The Brahmas grabbed the lead on a point shot from Hayden Hanson (11:56 2nd). In the dying minute, Tanner Lomsnes (EA, 19:00 3rd) sent the game into overtime. After no result, both sides played in a six-round shootout, and Ryan Cusin scored the final tally to seal the win. Andrew Lindgren saved 16 of 18 shots in the win, and T.J. Black stopped 16 of 18 in the shootout loss.
Unbreakable: The IceRays translated their recent road success back to the comfort of home ice, earning their fifth-straight win. In addition, the IceRays have won 12-straight games from the American Bank Center dating back to November. They trail only the Janesville Jets for the longest active home win streak (14 games) as well as the Brahmas for longest through this season (18 games). The last time the IceRays lost on home ice was on Oct. 31 when the Wichita Falls Wildcats took down the IceRays 3-1 to split the weekend series.
Shut Out/Down: After being shut down on the power play last night, the IceRays ended a six-game power play streak, their longest streak of the season. Over that six-game span, the IceRays scored 11 times on 20 chances (55.00%), their best stretch of the year. This recent success eclipsed the previous season-high of five games set between Sep. 20 and Oct. 10 (6-for-24, 25.00%). Conversely, the IceRays shut out their opponent’s power play unit, stopping 13 chances over their last four games. That streak is second to their longest of the season set over six games between Sep. 18 and Oct. 4 (25-for-25).
Inside The Mask: After hitting a rut through the middle part of the season, netminder Andrew Lindgren has rebounded in the past month. With last night’s win, he has three-straight wins and has claimed victories in five of his last six games. Three of those five wins came in at least overtime with both of the team’s shootout wins occurring under his watch. His only loss in his last six games: Jan. 22 in Wichita Falls (5-4 L).
Out Of State: Yesterday, the IceRays acquired defenseman Matt Olson from the Minnesota Wilderness for future considerations. Olson, 19, played nine games for the Wilderness this season in his first year of NAHL play. Prior to that, he spent the first part of his junior career with the Minnesota Flying Aces of the NA3HL, recording four goals and nine assists for 13 points with 35 penalty minutes and a -18 rating. He will join the team this weekend and wear #5. With that addition, the IceRays are back to a full 23-man roster.
Breaking Brahma: Over their last four games, the Brahmas have fallen to two of the top teams in the South Division three times, going 1-1-2. Over their last eight games, the Brahmas have slid to 3-2-3 and have lost their last two games by virtue of a shootout. Lone Star is two games into their own seven-game road trip, earning two points in two games in a three-day span. It’s only the second time this season the Brahmas have lost three-straight games since Sep. 20 through Oct. 3 when Lone Star dropped three games between Janesville, Corpus Christi, and Wichita Falls.
The Vidmar Hypothesis: The Brahmas have found great success this season in large part to the efforts of forward Sebastian Vidmar. He was left off the scoreline for the second-straight night, and the Brahmas in turn lost their second consecutive shootout. Over the course of this season, the Brahmas are 24-5-1 when Vidmar scores at least one point and 17-2-1 when he scores a goal. In turn, the team is 3-4-3 when Vidmar is held away from the box score.
South Division Standings:
1 – Topeka RoadRunners (30-10-3, 63 PTS)
2 – Lone Star Brahmas (27-10-5, 59 PTS)
3 – Wichita Falls Wildcats (29-12-0, 58 PTS)
4 – Corpus Christi IceRays (24-13-5, 53 PTS)
5 – Wenatchee Wild (19-18-7, 45 PTS)
6 – Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees (17-20-6, 40 PTS)
7 – Amarillo Bulls (17-32-4, 38 PTS)
8 – Odessa Jackalopes (9-29-6, 24 PTS)
Next Game: The IceRays head back on the road on Friday, February 13 to begin a two-game set against the Amarillo Bulls at 7:05 p.m. from the Amarillo Civic Center. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on SportsRadio Corpus Christi (KSIX 1230AM/96.1FM/103.3FM) and FASTHockey.com
