Nehring and Paricka Collect Four Point Nights
CORPUS CHRISTI, TX — The Corpus Christi IceRays (15-15-3) sweep the Amarillo Wranglers (14-17-1) by a final score of 6-3 Saturday night at the Hilliard Center. Chase Nehring and Andrej Paricka collect four-point nights in the victory.
The IceRays picked up where they left off Friday night dominating possession and peppering Wranglers goalie Charles-Antoine Girard making his second consecutive start. Unlike the previous night, Corpus Christi broke through in the opening 10 minutes on a sweet pass from Chase Nehring to Andrej Paricka crashing the net and potting his 12th of the season for a 1-0 lead. The Poprad, Slovakia, native now has goals in four straight games and leads the IceRays with 24 points. Amarillo finished the frame with just six shots but made the most of their best look in the period executing on an odd man rush to tie the game at 1-1 off the stick of Jake Thornton. Both sides traded chances the second half of the period, but the game stayed knotted at one after the first.
A pair of roughing minors put both teams down a man and the IceRays converted for the second consecutive night at 4-on-4 to take a 2-1 lead. Johnny Maruna was denied on a stuff attempt by Girard, but the rebound was left right in front for Nehring trailing the play to bury his 12th of the season to restore the one goal lead. The Wranglers went to their first of six power plays following the go-ahead but failed to convert. A second opportunity arose minutes later but it was Corpus Christi that struck shorthanded on a breakaway from Nick Sinani to make it 3-1. Sinani’s goal snapped a 21-game goalless drought for the Michigan native. Before the end of the frame, Corpus Christi found themselves in more penalty trouble setting up a lengthy Wranglers 5-on-3. IceRays goaltender Xander Miceli sprang into action making multiple keys stops to keep Amarillo off the scoresheet in the period.
Corpus Christi opened the third period on a power play and Johnny Maruna snapped home his fifth power play goal of the season for the IceRays largest lead of the night at 4-1. After dominating most of the night, a few turnovers came back to haunt Corpus Christi as the Wranglers struck twice to cut the lead to 4-3 with under 10 minutes remaining. Caden Hegarty started the comeback attempt with a power play goal followed by Ty Izadi’s fourth of the season against Corpus Christi. The IceRays held on to a 4-3 lead into the late stages of the third forcing Amarillo to pull Girard. Justin Thibault and Paricka added the empty net goals to seal off the sweep on home ice by a final score of 6-3.
NEXT SERIES
The Corpus Christi IceRays wrap up their eight game homestand against the Shreveport Mudbugs on Friday, January 9, and Saturday, January 10, at the Hilliard Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. both nights. Saturday is Faith and Family night! You can also catch the game on NAHLtv or Retro Radio CC.
GRAB YOUR TICKETS NOW
Tickets start at just $5! Student and Active Military Tickets are available at the Hilliard Center Box Office with valid ID.
Grab yours now at www.goicerays.com, on Ticketmaster, or at the Hilliard Center box office
About Corpus Christi IceRays: The Corpus Christi IceRays, a member of the North American Hockey League playing out of the Hilliard Center in downtown Corpus Christi, TX. For more information or for all your ticketing needs, contact the IceRays Front Office at (361)-814-PUCK or visit www.GoIceRays.com . You can also follow the team through their social media platforms: Facebook @goicerays, Instagram @iceraysnahl, and Twitter @iceraysnahl
About North American Hockey League: Celebrating its 50th season in 2024-25, the NAHL, the only USA Hockey sanctioned Tier II Junior league boasting 35 teams in 20 states from North American. For more information, visit the NAHL website at https://nahl.com/
About Hilliard Center: Hilliard Center is an entertainment complex owned by the city of Corpus Christi and managed by Oak View Group with OVG Hospitality. The complex is in downtown Corpus Christi, Texas and consists of an arena, auditorium, and convention center. The facility hosts numerous conventions, trade shows, exhibitions, live performances, and sporting events. Located directly on the beautiful Corpus Christi Bay downtown, Hilliard Center is flexible for any group offering complimentary Wi-Fi and premium food and beverage options.
About Oak View Group (OVG)
Oak View Group (OVG) is the global leader in live experience venue development, management, premium hospitality services, and 360-degree solutions for a collection of world-class owned venues and a client roster of arenas, convention centers, music festivals, performing arts centers, and cultural institutions. Founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff in 2015, OVG is the leading developer of major new venues either open or under development across four continents. Visit OakViewGroup.com, and follow OVG on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X.
