CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS – The Corpus Christi IceRays (20-23-6) recorded four goals in the first period to overpower the Odessa Jackalopes (21-22-4) 6-2 on Friday night at the Ector County Coliseum.
The IceRays dominated the first period and jumped out to a commanding push with a piling of shots and the game’s first goal. Forward Stevie Bryant pushed the puck by Jackalopes netminder Jon Flakne on a two-on-one with forward Andy McGlynn at 1:47 to give the road side the early 1-0 lead. After the IceRays’ first penalty, the Jackalopes found their answer with a back door goal from forward Derek Brown at 7:58 to tie the game, 1-1. The IceRays fired back less than two minutes later at 9:26 with McGlynn grabbing his second point of the night and first goal to take back the lead, 2-1. Just over a minute later, IceRays forward Carter Johnson doubled the lead to 3-1 with an odd angle shot over Flakne short side at 10:31. It didn’t take long for Bryant to find his second of the night with a nudge through the crease to improve the lead to three, 4-1. That spelled the end of the night for Flakne, giving way to Dean Shatzer for the rest of the contest.
The second period was much more even than the opening frame, but the IceRays found the only tally of the frame. At 11:23, forward Brad Power turned from behind the net to the right circle and ripped it by Shatzer to bump the lead to four, 5-1.
With an early power play during the third period, the IceRays continued their power play success to eight-straight games at 3:47. Forward Brendan Miller recorded the man-advantage goal from the left circle to move the lead to 6-1. The Jackalopes found one just a few minutes later to break the five-unanswered string with a tuck-in at 7:18 by forward Matthew Rypien to cut the lead to where it would rest, 6-2.
IceRays goaltender Dryden McKay (10-9-2) earned the win, stopping 24 of 26 shots. Flakne (12-8-2) picked up the loss, turning aside 10 of 14 shots through 12:17 minutes, while Shatzer saved 18 of 20 shots through 47:21 minutes. The IceRays finish up the road portion of the season series against the Odessa Jackalopes on Saturday, Mar. 5 at 7:11 p.m. from the Ector County Coliseum. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on SportsRadio Corpus Christi (KSIX 1230AM) & FASTHockey.com.
The IceRays return to the American Bank Center on Friday, March 11 at 7:11 p.m. to start a weekend set against the Wichita Falls Wildcats. Nominate the American Bank Center to help make Corpus Christi the next Kraft Hockeyville! Submit your essay and tell your story at KraftHockeyville.com. Contact the IceRays Front Office at 361-814-PUCK or go to www.goicerays.com for details on season tickets along with pricing and seating. In addition, stay connected with the IceRays on Facebook (/CorpusChristiIceRays), Twitter (@goicerays), YouTube (IceRays TV), Instagram (CorpusChristiIceRays), Vine (@goicerays), and Periscope (@goicerays).
