CORPUS CHRISTI ICERAYS
at
LONE STAR BRAHMAS
Friday, October 10 at 7:30 P.M.
NAHL Game #108 • Road Game #5 • Season Series 1-0-0
NYTEX Sports Center • North Richland Hills, Texas
Radio: SportsRadio Corpus Christi • Mobile: TuneIn Radio
Video: FASTHockey.com • Twitter: @goicerays
Coverage begins at 7:15 p.m. with Countdown to Faceoff
Today’s Game: The IceRays close out their two-game set against the Wenatchee Wild tonight at the American Bank Center. This is the second and final game Wenatchee will play in Corpus Christi this season.
Head-To-Head: With their won on Sep. 27, the IceRays have won six of their last nine meetings with the Brahmas last season, making their record 15-26-4 against tonight’s opponent. Last season was the most successful season against the Brahmas in their history, outscoring Lone Star 26-16 while winning six of eight appearances.
Last Game: The IceRays earned the weekend sweep of the Wenatchee Wild with a 2-1 win on Saturday, October 4 at the American Bank Center. IceRays forward Tanner Lomsnes scored first at 17:56 of the second period during a 5-on-3 power play to give the team a 1-0 lead off a one-time shot. The Wild answered at 4:05 of the third period on a Jacob Kaszupski redirection to tie the game, 1-1. At 13:48 of the same period, IceRays forward Connor Kelly was the hero thanks to a backhanded shot off a rebound in the slot to take the game, 2-1. IceRays netminder Luke Pickar earned his first win, stopping 23 of 24 shots, while Wild goaltender Michael Bullion earned his second-straight loss, saving 20 of 22.
Leading The Pack: Defenseman Anthony Cortese continues to put on a clinic from the blue line, scoring three points last weekend on one goal and two assists. He increased his team lead in goals (5) and points (9) through his first nine games. He leads all NAHL defensemen in goals and is tied with Kenai River’s Tyler Andrews for the most points by a defenseman in the league.
Killing Them Softly: The IceRays penalty kill unit has been dominant over their last five games, going a perfect 25-for-25 after last night’s 6-for-6 effort. Since going 7-for-11 against Topeka, the IceRays are 26-for-27 down a player.
I’ve Got The Power: The IceRays have converted at least one power play chance in each of their last four games, going 5-for-17 (29.41%) in that span. Overall, the power play has moved up to fourth in the NAHL coming into this weekend, and the team has converted in six of their first nine games.
A New Dawn: At 5-2-2, this season marks the best start through the first nine games in IceRays franchise history of the NAHL (five seasons). No former team has started with a winning record through their first nine, with the 2013-14 and 2010-11 squads scraping .500 (4-4-1). Only one other team has started with a winning record in their first ten games (2010-11: 5-4-1), and this year’s group will have the best mark no matter the result tonight.
Paint Protectors: Both IceRays goaltenders Andrew Lindgren and Luke Pickar rank in the top-20 of the NAHL amongst netminders in goals against average and save percentage. Lindgren sits eighth in GAA (1.79) and seventh in save percentage (.935), and Pickar ranks 17th in GAA (2.34) and 14th in save percentage (.916).
Lone Star Split: Last weekend, the Lone Star Brahmas split their two-game set with the Wichita Falls Wildcats from Kay Yeager Coliseum. On Friday, the Brahmas fell 3-2 in overtime while being outshot 38-17. Lone Star struck first off the tape of forward Sebastian Vidmar at 17:30 of the first period. After an answer in the second period, the Brahmas took the lead again at 6:22 off a Hayden Hanson power play goal. The Wildcats would tie it up just 29 seconds later and take the win at 2:08 of overtime. On Saturday, the Brahmas had better fortunes, winning 5-1. Forward Pat Egan netted the first goal at 11:40 of the first period on the power play, and Vidmar added a tally at 7:09 of the second period. After the Wildcats answered later in the frame, the Brahmas scored three unanswered goals through the rest of the game: Roman Uchyn (15:07, 2nd), Eric Carreras (13:03, 3rd), and Vidmar (13:47, 3rd, EN).
Tough Meat: The Brahmas have also had great success on the power play, converting in five of their first seven games this season, including two-straight games against Wichita Falls (2-10). The only opponents they were shut down: Corpus Christi (Sep. 27, 3-2 L) & MN Magicians (Sep. 17, 3-2 L).
He’s No Flounder: Forward Sebastian Vidmar leads all Brahmas forwards in goals (5), placing him in a tie for seventh place in the NAHL in goals with 13 other players, including IceRays defenseman Anthony Cortese. He also shares the team lead in points (7) with co-forward Pat Egan. Both forwards recorded four-points last weekend (Vidmar: 2+2=4; Egan: 1+3=4).
South Division Standings:
1 – Topeka RoadRunners (8-2-0, 16 Pts)
2 – Wichita Falls Wildcats (6-3-0, 12 Pts)
2 – Corpus Christi IceRays (5-2-2, 12 Pts)
4 – Odessa Jackalopes (4-5-0, 8 Pts)
4 – Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees (4-4-0, 8 Pts)
6 – Lone Star Brahmas (3-3-1, 7 Pts)
7 – Amarillo Bulls (2-4-2, 6 Pts)
8 – Wenatchee Wild (2-5-1, 5 Pts)
Next Game: The IceRays will finish their weekend against the Lone Star Brahmas on Saturday, October 11 at 7:30 p.m. Coverage begins at 7:15 p.m. on SportsRadio Corpus Christi with Countdown to Faceoff.
