Saturday, 10.21.17 / 10:18 pm CT
Photo: Rebekah Bing
A reversal was in store for the IceRays on Saturday night, as they began the game extremely well but struggled as it wore on. They were ultimately defeated by a 5-1 margin and swept on the road for the first time this season.
A stronger start was the primary message from the IceRays coaching staff heading into Saturday night. The team delivered.
Dominating the first handful of minutes, they kept the Brahmas pinned in their own zone for extended surges. Lone Star would respond with a shot off the crossbar, which many of the fans believed to be a goal. The letdown for the Brahmas led to a boost for the IceRays, who drew first blood just moments later.
The Rays had gone four games without scoring the first goal. Knowing they needed to change that trend as quickly as possible, IceRays Captain Brendan Miller motored down the left wing and rifled a shot from the circle over Mitchell Gibson’s glove to give the Rays a 1-0 lead.
Though they got the start they lacked on Friday night, the Rays did not have the finish they had on Friday night. Lone Star took control of the contest and tallied five unanswered goals in the second and third periods.
Two power play goals were fired past Chad Veltri in rapid succession to flip the score and give the Brahmas their first lead of the game at 33:05. At the end of the second period, Kyle Hallbauer was penalized for two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct and the Rays began the closing stanza on a 4-on-3 power play.
The man-advantage struggled all night for Corpus Christi, and it hit its lowest point at 47:24. Julian Biondo rushed down his off-wing on a 3-on-5, and somehow slipped the puck between Veltri’s pads while falling to the ice. Biondo’s goal deflated the IceRays bench and propelled the Brahmas to piling on additional damage.
Justin Addamo scored his second goal of the game just 1:14 seconds later, and Kimball Johnson added another Lone Star power play tally for good measure.
Veltri was charged with a regulation defeat, stopping 18 of 23 shots. Gibson had another strong showing for the Brahmas, denying 22 of 23. The IceRays head to the Amarillo Civic Center to take on the Bulls next Friday at 7:05 pm CT.
