The Corpus Christi IceRays, a proud member of the North American Hockey League, began training camp Monday and are ready to make preparation meet opportunity.
The IceRays took to training for the upcoming 2023-24 season with 10 returning players and some exciting newcomers following a rough 2022-23 campaign which saw the team finish in 8th place in the NAHL South Division at 11-42-6 with 29 points.
General Manager and Head Coach Sylvain Cloutier returns for his second season as head coach with the IceRays, and he likes what he’s seeing so far.
“Camp has been going really well,” Cloutier said. “The competitions have been great. The boys have come ready and well-prepared and they’re in great shape, and that was a good sign.”
While the practices and scrimmages have progressed, the team will get its first taste of action as the IceRays will be in Shreveport to take on the Shreveport Mudbugs beginning Friday night at 7 p.m. CT, and Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.
Shreveport finished in third place in the NAHL South Division at 37-16-2 for 81 points, one point behind the Lone Star Brahmas.
“We’re installing some of the systems we want to play and we’re not looking at wins or losses,” Cloutier said of the trip to Shreveport. “Right now, obviously, we’re wanting to get off to a good start, but we want to go in and make sure we’re all on the same page and see who buys into what we’re trying to implement here.
With the NAHL showcase coming up in Blaine, Minnesota, it’s a sprint and not a marathon during camp and the preseason schedule.
“We’ll have some tough decisions here on Sunday,” Cloutier said. “We’d like to be where we will be for the final exhibition and play one game with the whole team right before we go to Blaine.”
Corpus Christi will close the preseason at Oklahoma Friday, September 8 at 7:10 p.m. before opening the regular season at the NAHL Showcase, Wednesday, September 13 against Aberdeen at 4:30 p.m.
Season tickets for the 2023-24 season are on sale now.
For information, please contact Michelle Evans at 361-814-7825, Ext. 104.
