CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS – The Corpus Christi IceRays (28-20-5) fought through trouble in the second period and claimed a 4-3 overtime win against the Lone Star Brahmas (35-11-8) on Wednesday night from the American Bank Center. The IceRays are now tied for the most wins in junior franchise history with the 2012-13 team that finished 28-26-6 under Justin Quenneville.
The IceRays rebounded nicely from their previous loss by jumping on the scoreline first in the opening period. At 6:56, forward Wes Michaud raced into the offensive zone and deked by Brahmas netminder T.J. Black to give the IceRays a 1-0 lead. Later in the frame, IceRays forward Connor Kelly sprung co-forward Maksim Dzhioshvili on a semi-breakaway and pushed by Black to double the lead, 2-0.
The Brahmas pulled Black in favor of Jake Kupsky, and the tide turned for Lone Star. Forward A.J. Vanderbeck single-handedly brought the Brahmas back into the game. He notched his first goal at 4:00 to put the Brahmas on the board, 2-1, and followed that with a back-door tap-in to tie the game, 2-2, at 8:05 of the second period. After the goal, off-ice events led to IceRays head coach John Becanic being ejected from the game. With him off the bench, Vanderbeck completed the hat-trick at 10:25 and pumped the Brahmas ahead, 3-2. The IceRays tied the game, 3-3, late in the period on the power play at 14:59 with Michaud’s second of the night.
With no scoring in the third period, the game was forced into overtime, and with a surge at 3:29 for the IceRays, defenseman Anthony Cortese slapped a shot from the blue line that redirected off Michaud’s stick to complete the hat-trick and push the IceRays ahead 4-3 for the win. IceRays goaltender Andrew Lindgren (21-13-3) earned the win, stopping 27 of 30 shots. Kupsky (19-7-5) picked up the loss in a 10-for-12 save effort in relief, and Black turned away eight of 10 shots. The IceRays remain at home on Friday, March 13 to open a two-game set against the Wichita Falls Wildcats from the American Bank Center. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on SportsJuice.com, FASTHockey.com, and 87.7FM in-arena.
Call the front office at 361-814-7825 for season and individual ticket details or check out the pricing and seating chart online at www.goicerays.com. Stay current with the latest team news by visiting www.goicerays.com. In addition, stay connected with the IceRays on Facebook (/CorpusChristiIceRays), Twitter (@goicerays), YouTube (IceRays TV), Instagram (CorpusChristiIceRays), and Vine (@goicerays).
