Wildcats Close Season with 5-2 Victory on Pack the House Night
April 8, 2016 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Wichita Falls Wildcats News Release
The Wildcats eliminated the Corpus Christi IceRays from postseason contention to close out their 2015-2016 season with a 5-2 victory on Friday night.
In front of the one of the largest crowds the Wildcats had all season, they wasted no time firing up the onlookers. Austin Albrecht tapped the puck into a gaping net after Jake Dalton caromed a shot off the end boards just 4:23 into the game, sending the packed house into a frenzy. Just 43 seconds later, lightning struck again. Matt Hines backhanded a shot towards the crease, where André Pison muddled up IceRays' goaltender Graham Hunt's vision. The puck snuck through Hunt's five-hole and into the back of the net, giving Hines his first goal in 16 games and his third of the season.
In the last minute of the period, affiliate player Nick Bowman skated into the slot and wristed a heavy shot past Hunt to give the Wildcats a three-goal edge. Bowman's goal was his first as a Wildcat, which he will undoubtedly carry with him as he returns to Brother Rice high school in Michigan to complete his senior year before returning to Wichita Falls next season.
The Rays knew they needed to turn things around and take the adversarial crowd out of the game. They were unable to do so, only conjuring five shots in the second period. Four minutes into the second frame, Trent Dillinger stole the puck on a penalty kill, chipped it past an IceRay at the blue line, and beat everyone to possession through center, finding himself on a shorthanded breakaway. He made no mistake, scoring his sixth goal as a Wildcat and first shorthanded one of the season, making the score 4-0.
With their season on the line, the Rays threw everything they could to claw their way back into the hockey game. They caused all sorts of havoc in front of Justin Kapelmaster, Regen Cavanagh found the puck on his stick right in the slot with Kapelmaster down. He deked to his backhand and just couldn't bury the shot with an open side of the net. Jimmy O'Brien picked it up with the Wildcats' goaltender scrambling, and he fired it off of Kapelmaster's back and into the net.
Minutes later, Cody Lichtenvoort unloaded from the left circle in what could be the last hockey game of his career. The 5-on-3 power play bullet would cut the Wildcats' lead to two. With a fresh aura of concern in the building for the only time in the game, the Cats buckled down and protected their lead. In one last desperation effort to salvage their season, the Rays pulled their goalie with two minutes to go. Kapelmaster and the Cats staved off the fury off shots thrown on net, and Albrecht found Jonny Lazarus behind everybody with a gaping 4 x 6 net to shoot at, ending the IceRays' season.
Kapelmaster made 24 saves on 26 shots for his 33rd win of the season, while Hunt stopped 31 of 35 for his 15th regulation defeat. The Wildcats open the first round of the Robertson Cup Playoffs on Friday, April 15th, at the KYC against the Odessa Jackalopes. All tickets to games throughout the playoffs are $10 and can be purchased at the KYC Box Office.
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