STRONG OFFENSE HELPS ICERAYS TO WIN OVER BULLS, 5-3

Feb 13, 2015

AMARILLO, TEXAS – The Corpus Christi IceRays (25-14-5) scored four unanswered crossing over two periods to help claim a 5-3 win over the Amarillo Bulls (17-24-4) on Friday night from the Amarillo Civic Center. The IceRays have now won five of their last six games including five-straight away from the American Bank Center, and their 45 shots is the highest mark of the season.

The game did not start well for the IceRays after forward Connor Kelly took a penalty for checking from behind early, allowing the Bulls to create a chance on the power play. Forward Cody Gylling redirected a shot from defenseman Kasper Emanuelsson at 2:28 to help give the Bulls a 1-0 lead. Less than a minute later at 3:15, defenseman Joe Leonidas ripped a shot from the left point that snuck through a number of skaters and doubled the lead, 2-0.

After killing off two penalties to start the second period, the IceRays caught a break with Bulls forward Elijah Barriga being called for a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct. Forward Nic LaBurn capitalized at 6:37 in the power play to draw within one, 2-1. Just before the halfway mark, IceRays defenseman Keenan Spillum launched his first NAHL goal with a wrist shot from the left point to tie the game, 2-2. Less than a minute later at 10:06, LaBurn found his second of the night by drawing netminder Jacob Weatherly out of position and giving the IceRays a 3-2 lead.

While the IceRays were on the penalty kill, play developed for forward Wes Michaud shorthanded at 5:32, and with a beautiful spin around Weatherly, Michaud slotted his first shorthanded goal and forced the IceRays ahead, 4-2. The Bulls answered at 9:15 with a shorthanded goal from Gylling to get back within one, 4-3. Michaud capped off the night for the IceRays with an empty net goal at 11:52 to help earn the 5-3 win.

IceRays netminder Andrew Lindgren (18-8-3) earned the win, turning away 18 of 21 shots, while Weatherly (7-12-3) drops the loss while stopping 40 of 44 shots. The IceRays head back on the road on Friday, Feb. 13 to begin a two-game set against the Amarillo Bulls at 7:05 p.m. from the Amarillo Civic Center. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on SportsRadio Corpus Christi and FASTHockey.com.

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).