WICHITA FALLS, TEXAS – The Corpus Christi IceRays came out stronger against the Wichita Falls Wildcats but were not able to stop the offensive surge, suffering a 8-2 loss Saturday night from Kay Yeager Coliseum. The squad could not come up with a win in their lone road trip of December.
The IceRays and Wildcats were tightly contested through the early stages of the first period, but after the Wildcats took an interference call just shy of the midway mark, the IceRays took a slip in the wrong direction. Wildcats forward Austin Albrecht was outlet for a breakaway against IceRays goaltender Andrew Lindgren, who was not able to stop the first shorthanded goal allowed this season and a 1-0 lead at 10:47. Forward Evan Okeley poked the second Wildcats goal through the right side of Lindgren at 14:27 to double the lead, 2-0. A third was tallied at 19:43 on a redirection by forward Erich Jaeger coming from Okeley on the right wing.
The IceRays came surging back in the second period, but once again the Wildcats were the ones to capitalize. At 3:22, defenseman Cam Knight found a pass from forward Austin Beaulieu and slotted it through to make it 4-0 Wildcats. One more goal crossed in the frame for the Wildcats, with defenseman Shane Kuzmesky notching the second shorthanded goal of the night at 14:56 to send the game into the second intermission, 5-0.
In the third period, chances finally broke free for the IceRays. After a Max Reisinger hooking call early in the frame, IceRays forward Ryan Cusin snuck in an odd angle shot at 1:41 for the team’s first tally, 5-1. The Wildcats answered back at 3:47 with a shot from the slot by forward Kevin Charyszyn to bring the lead back to five, 6-1. The seesaw came back to the IceRays’ side at 6:15 with forward Connor Kelly catching netminder Austin Shaw sleeping and firing into a wide open net to make it a 6-2 game. The contest’s final two goals went to the home side’s favor: forward Tommy Apap on the power play at 9:20 and Reisinger’s second of the night at 19:51 to finish the scoring, 8-2.
The IceRays tied in shots for the second game this season, 24-24. Shaw (11-1-0) picked up the win, stopping 22 of 24 shots, while Lindgren (10-6-2) earned the loss, turning aside 16 of 24 shots against. The IceRays return to the American Bank Center on Thursday, December 11 to begin a two-game set against the Amarillo Bulls. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. with Countdown to Faceoff on SportsJuice.com, FASTHockey.com, and 87.7 FM in-arena.
Call the front office at 361-814-7825 for season and individual ticket details or check out the pricing and seating chart online at www.goicerays.com. Stay current with the latest team news by visiting www.goicerays.com. In addition, stay connected with the IceRays on Facebook (/CorpusChristiIceRays), Twitter (@goicerays), and (IceRays TV).
