CORPUS CHRISTI ICERAYS @ AMARILLO BULLS
Friday, November 4 • 7:05 P.M. • Amarillo Civic Center • Amarillo, TX
NAHL Game #142 • Game #16 • Road Game #9 • Series: 1st Meeting
Radio: KSIX 1230AM • Video: Hockey TV • Twitter: @goicerays
Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. with Countdown To Faceoff
Tonight’s Game: The IceRays begin the month of November on the road with a two-game weekend set against the Amarillo Bulls from the Amarillo Civic Center.
Head-To-Head: The IceRays and Bulls open their season series and one of two weekends against each other in November. Last season, the two teams split the season series with six wins each and 6-5-1 records overall with the Bulls grabbing four of six on home ice. The Bulls have owned the franchise series dating back to 2010-11, keeping the IceRays to a 21-40-3 record all-time and a 9-19-2 record at the Amarillo Civic Center.
Last Game: The IceRays scored three goals in the third period to take down the Shreveport Mudbugs 3-2 on Saturday night at the American Bank Center. Mudbugs forwards Georgui Feduolov (PP, 16:26 1st) opened the scoring and gave the road side the first goal of the game in the season series early on. The IceRays came back in the second period to take the reigns starting with forward Mason Krueger (5:21 2nd) to tie the game and forward David Thomson (7:49 2nd) to take the 2-1 lead on a rebound play. The Mudbugs tied the game, 2-2, after a shot from forward Erik Zohovs (10:51 2nd) before IceRays forward David Baskerville (13:01 2nd) scored this first NAHL goal that proved to be the game-winner in a 3-2 victory. IceRays netminder Camden Burggrabe (2-0-1) earned the victory, halting 19 of 21 shots faced, while Mudbugs goalie John Roberts (4-3-0) stopped 31 of 34 shots in the loss.
25 Percent: Saturday’s game marked the quarter-pole of the 2016-17 season, and the IceRays are tightly nestled in the South Division just outside of a playoff position at 15 points. This year marks just the third time in seven seasons the IceRays have earned more than five wins, joining the 2011-12 (9 wins) and 2014-15 (6 wins) rosters in that designation. They’re also above their average point total for the franchise through 15 games, which now sits at 14.29 points. The IceRays have one off-weekend at Christmas in the second quarter and hit the midway mark of the year on December 28.
#TooSpooky: The IceRays closed October on a positive note, winning their second three-game series of the month and four of six points. In eight games, the IceRays finished with a 4-3-1-0 record with eight points while staying just outside playoff positioning. The team won two of the three weekend sets including getting two wins in each of their two three-game weekends. After two off-weekends in October, the IceRays head into November without a break, playing all four weekends against the cattle teams: Amarillo Bulls and Lone Star Brahmas.
Streak Me: Four different IceRays come out of the three-game weekend with point streaks heading into November, all leading point scorers. Captain Mason Krueger recorded three goals and four points to earn his first three-game streak of the year, forward Josh Tripp‘s two-goal, four-point weekend gives him his second point streak following a five-game streak crossing into October, and center David Thomson has his first streak with three points in three games. Forward Brad Power currently owns a five-game point streak, picking up six points in that span and sharing the team lead for the season. All four players are atop the team in points: Krueger (14), Power (13), Thomson (12) and Tripp (11).
Oh Captain: IceRays captain Mason Krueger is flourishing in his final year of junior eligibility, recording five goals and nine assists for 14 points and leading the team in points and sharing the lead in assists. His tenure with the IceRays now leads him into prestigious categories, recording 26 goals and 32 assists for 58 points through 129 games. He sits fifth in junior franchise history for games played, sixth for career goals, seventh in career points, and 11th in career assists. Earlier this week, he earned a commitment to Army West Point for the 2017-18 season.
Call of Duty: IceRays goaltender Tomáš Vomáķa will not travel this weekend and instead join Team Czech Republic at the 2016 U18 5 Nations Tournament, his first international assignment since the 2016 Hlinka Memorial Cup. He’s has played in international competition since the 2013-14 season, holding a 15-14-0 record in 29 games with a 3.00 goals-against average or less in each of his last two seasons with at least 10 games played as well as one shutout. He’s the first IceRays player to go into international duty mid-season since defenseman Pierre Crinon in the 2014-15 season with Team France.
Just A Bit Outside: The Amarillo Bulls grabbed two points on home ice last weekend in heartbreaking fashion, falling 5-4 in overtime on Friday and Saturday night to the Wichita Falls Wildcats at the Amarillo Civic Center. Veteran forward George Mika helped push the Bulls to two points with four goals on the weekend along with forward Kosta Likourezos, who grabbed five assists in two games. Two more players earned multi-point weekends: forwards Hayden Broomhead (2+1=3) and Charlie Singerhouse (1+1=2). Goaltender Kyle Madore played both games this weekend, halting 72 of 81 shots.
South Division Standings:
Lone Star Brahmas (13-2-1-0, 27 PTS)
Shreveport Mudbugs (9-5-0-1, 19 PTS)
Wichita Falls Wildcats (7-5-2-0, 16 PTS)
Amarillo Bulls (6-6-4-0, 16 PTS)
Corpus Christi IceRays (6-6-1-2, 15 PTS)
Odessa Jackalopes (7-9-0-0, 14 PTS)
Topeka RoadRunners (6-10-0-1, 13 PTS)
Next Game: The IceRays finish up their two-game set with the Amarillo Bulls on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 7:05 p.m. from the Amarillo Civic Center. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on SportsRadio Corpus Christi (KSIX 1230AM) and Hockey TV.
