The IceRays Weekly is a weekly recap and preview of IceRays news, games and more. The IceRays Weekly will be released every Monday during the 2016-17 season.
LAST WEEK…
Thursday, October 6: IceRays 4, Topeka RoadRunners 3
Shots: IceRays 31, RoadRunners 32
PP: IceRays 1-for-2, RoadRunners 0-for-0
The Corpus Christi IceRays (3-3-0-2) held on in the third period to claim a 4-3 win over the Topeka RoadRunners (4-6-0-0) on Thursday night from the Kansas Expocentre.
IceRays forward Andy McGlynn (10:44 1st) opened the scoring with a rebound shot to give the road side a 1-0 lead before RoadRunners forward Andrew Hart (17:22, 1st) tied the game, 1-1, with a snap shot from the left circle. The middle frame opened up scoring with a blocked shot by RoadRunners defenseman Jake Rosenbaum (EN, 8:33 2nd) on a delayed penalty against himself followed by a back door touch by IceRays forward Nathan Bryer (PP, 9:36 2nd) on that power play to tie the game, 2-2. Bryer (12:51 2nd) scored again on a centering pass deflected by a Topeka defenseman to take back the lead, 3-2, before Hart (19:43 2nd) notched his second to tie the game once again. McGlynn (3:04 3rd) earned his second to eventually give the IceRays the 4-3 win.
Tomáš Vomáčka (3-3-1) halted 29 of 31 shots, while Ryan Snowden (2-3-0) turned away 27 of 31 shots.
Friday, October 7: IceRays 4, Topeka RoadRunners 1
Shots: IceRays 36, RoadRunners 21
PP: IceRays 1-for-7, RoadRunners 1-for-9
The Corpus Christi IceRays (4-3-0-2) scored three goals in the third period to push ahead 4-1 over the Topeka RoadRunners (4-7-0-0) on Friday night from the Kansas Expocentre.
IceRays forward Nathan Bryer (0:33 1st) opened the scoring with an odd-angled shot to take a 1-0 lead. Scoring stay quiet until the third period when IceRays forward Andy McGlynn (2:08 3rd) stuffed in a rebound to double the lead, 2-0, followed by a tally by forward Josh Tripp (PP, 4:38) on the back door to triple the lead, 3-0. The RoadRunners answered on their own power play from defenseman Jake Rosenbaum (PP, 10:40 3rd) to cut the lead to 3-1. McGlynn (11:38 3rd) added another off a faceoff draw to regain the three-goal lead, 4-1, which is where the scoreline finished.
Tomáš Vomáčka (4-3-1) stopped 28 of 29 shots in the win, while Mike Rockwell (2-3-0) halted 32 of 36 shots in the loss.
Saturday, October 8: IceRays 6, Topeka RoadRunners 7 (OT)
Shots: IceRays 61, RoadRunners 39
PP: IceRays 5-for-10, RoadRunners 3-for-7
The Corpus Christi IceRays (4-3-1-2) set a franchise-record 61 shots and five power play goals during their 7-6 overtime loss to the Topeka RoadRunners (5-7-0-0) on Saturday night from the Kansas Expocentre.
RoadRunners forward Jeff Makowski (PP, 3:00 1st) notched the game’s first goal before the IceRays answered with three tallies in the opening period from forwards David Thomson (PP, 5:37 1st), Andy McGlynn (10:34 1st) and Brendan Miller (PP, 16:33 1st) to take the lead, 3-1, before a semi-line brawl ended the first period. On the ensuing power play, RoadRunners forward D.J. Busdeker (PP, 2:19 2nd) capitalized to come within one, 3-2, followed by a Marcus Russell (SH, 6:28 2nd) goal to tie the game, 3-3. Thomson (PP, 7:13 2nd) scored his second of the night to take back the lead before RoadRunners forwards Busdeker (8:32 2nd) and Marshall Bowery (9:00 2nd) retook the lead, 5-4. IceRays forward Josh Tripp (PP, 6:38 3rd), RoadRunners forward Alex Frye (PP, 9:24 3rd) and IceRays forward Nathan Bryer (PP, 15:07 3rd) traded power play goals to send the game into overtime, 6-6. With seconds left, RoadRunners defenseman Matthew Barnes (4:46 OT) scored the game-winner to give Topeka the full two points.
Mike Rockwell (3-3-0) stopped 37 of 40 shots in 45:15 minutes in the win with starter Ryan Snowden halting 18 of 21 in 19:31 minutes. Camden Burggrabe (0-0-1) turned away 32 of 39 shots in the overtime loss.
THIS WEEK…
Friday, October 14 vs. Odessa Jackalopes – 7:05 p.m.
Saturday, October 15 vs. Odessa Jackalopes – 7:05 p.m.
The Corpus Christi IceRays open the 2016-17 home schedule this Friday and Saturday against the Odessa Jackalopes at the American Bank Center after a 10-game road trip to open the season. The IceRays and Jackalopes battled for the final playoff spot last season with Odessa taking the edge though splitting the series with a 6-4-2 record. Over the franchises’ histories, the IceRays have owned the matchup, going 35-17-4 over the last five seasons while taking a 19-6-1 with them at the American Bank Center despite going 2-3-1 last year.
PROMOTIONS: The IceRays open the home schedule with Caller-Times Best Of The Best Night on Friday evening. The 1st 1,000 fans will receive free 2016-17 IceRays magnet schedules upon entry, courtesy of Janet’s Cakery. The game is also a Tride Rideshare Frosty Friday with $1 beer and soda throughout the evening. On Saturday, the IceRays host their 3rd Annual Childhood Cancer Awareness Night, benefitting the Brooke’s Blossoming Hope For Childhood Cancer Foundation, with proceeds from the event and the silent auction table in the concourse going right to the foundation. Saturday is also a Corpus Christi Caller-Times Family 4-Pack Night, offering four tickets, four hot dogs, and four sodas for just $46.
The Odessa Jackalopes made their first trip to Louisiana for a split weekend against the Shreveport Mudbugs, winning 4-3 on Friday night and dropping 4-2 on Saturday. Four players picked up multi-point weekends with forward Chase Thudium (2+1=3) leading the way with a pair of goals and defenseman Cooper Zech (1+2=3) sharing the team lead in points on the weekend. Veterans Zach Zech (1+1=2) and Christian Hausinger (0+2=2) rounded the two-game tilt with a pair of points. Goaltender Jonny Hogue earned the win on Friday with 41 saves on 44 chances, while returning netminder Jon Flakne was saddled with the loss after a 13-for-17 effort on Saturday.
South Division Outlook:
The South Division remains tight through one-sixth of the 2016-17 season, and the Amarillo Bulls took back the lead of the seven-team division after playing a split road weekend against the Wichita Falls Wildcats and Lone Star Brahmas, falling 3-2 on Friday night to the Wildcats and winning 4-3 on Saturday night against the Brahmas. The Corpus Christi IceRays earned five of six possible points against the Topeka RoadRunners in their three-in-three road set to vault into a share of third place with the Brahmas. The Odessa Jackalopes and Shreveport Mudbugs split their two-game set down the middle, each earning two points and keeping the same positioning as they did heading into last weekend.
| TEAM | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | PTS | PCT | L10 |
| AMARILLO BULLS | 11 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 13 | .591 | 5-4-1-0 |
| WICHITA FALLS WILDCATS | 11 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 12 | .545 | 5-4-1-0 |
| LONE STAR BRAHMAS | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 11 | .688 | 5-2-1-0 |
| CORPUS CHRISTI ICERAYS | 10 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 | .550 | 4-3-1-2 |
| ODESSA JACKALOPES | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | .556 | 5-4-0-0 |
| TOPEKA ROADRUNNERS | 12 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | .417 | 5-5-0-0 |
| SHREVEPORT MUDBUGS | 8 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | .563 | 4-3-0-1 |
ICERAYS BITS…
Offense was a large part of the IceRays’ success over the last three-game set, outpacing the RoadRunners 14-11 and outshooting the opposition 128-100 while setting a franchise-high 61 shots on Saturday night, which overtakes a mark set in the first junior franchise game on Sep. 16, 2010 against the Chicago Hitmen (5-4 W). The IceRays now have scored three or more goals in each of their last four games and five of six while owning a 3-1-1-1 over that six-game span.
The IceRays finished their season-opening 10-game road trip with a 4-3-1-2 record and 11 points, marking them just over a point-per-game clip heading into their home schedule. During their four-week trip, the IceRays picked up points in seven of their ten games despite being outscored 37-31. They also saw five of those 10 games go into at least overtime though winning two of those contests. This weekend is the latest the IceRays have started their home schedule since the 2009-10 season in the Central Hockey League (CHL) when they began on Oct. 17, 2009 against the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs (4-3 L).
IN THE COMMUNITY…
The IceRays host their annual Season Ticket Holder Kick-off Party tonight at 6:30 p.m. from the Henry Garrett Ballroom inside the American Bank Center. Season ticket holders and businesses are invited to pick up their season tickets while getting to meet the 2016-17 IceRays and enjoy great company. The event lasts until 8:00 p.m. and is only open to season ticket holders and businesses.
