Back In the Saddle Again

Published on February 3, 2003 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Corpus Christi IceRays News Release


RAYZ REWIND: Rayz goalie Brent Belecki (Calgary, ALB) offered a little sunshine at the end of what was a gloomy week turning aside all 35 Fort Worth shots on Saturday steering the Rayz to a 6-0 victory and back into the playoff race. The victory snapped a 4-game winless streak and cured any and all ill-will floating around in Rayz nation.

The Rayz embarked on another busy week beginning Wednesday night with their final trip of the season to the Laredo Entertainment Center to battle the Bucks. Looking to snap a 7-game losing streak to Laredo, the Rayz got off to a poor start as the Bucks scored the first goal and never looked back on their way to a 7-1 win, the most lopsided victory for either team in the season series. Chris Grenville opened the scoring at 3:17 of the 1st period on the power play when he picked up Morten Ask's rebound in the slot and slipped it by Belecki for a 1-0 lead. Laredo would extend their lead in the 2nd period when Grenville used a burst of speed coming into the zone shorthanded and fired a slap shot that beat Belecki at 4:12 to make it 2-0. Laredo tallied five goals in the final period, including Grenville's third of the game for the hat-trick, and cruised to a 7-1 win. Cosmo Dupaul (Pointe-Claire, PQ) scored the only goal for the Rayz on a shorthanded tally at 12:22 of the 3rd period for his 13th goal of the season and his 5th shorthanded.

Friday the Rayz looked to get back on track as they put their 8-1-1 record at home over the last 10 games on the line against the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs. The Mudbugs meanwhile were looking for just their 2nd win in 9 games at Memorial Coliseum. Bossier-Shreveport started strong as they out-shot the Rayz 15-3 in the opening frame and built a 2-0 lead on goals from David Oliver and Dan Wildfong. The Rayz quickly struck back in the opening five minutes of the 2nd period with 2 goals from Cosmo Dupaul 1:20 seconds apart to tie the game at 2-2. The Mudbugs would reclaim the lead at 16:51 on the power play when Chris Brassard slipped the puck through Brent Belecki's pads from the right circle for a 3-2 advantage. But it only took :32 seconds for the Rayz to counter as Mike Tilson's (Pickering, ONT drive from the right point trickled by Mudbugs goalie Jonathan Forest and into the net at 17:23 to tie the game again at 3-3. In the 3rd period the Mudbugs regained the lead for good when Tony Bergin's one-timer on the power play beat Belecki to the far side at 5:49 to give Bossier-Shreveport a 4-3 lead. The Rayz would pull Belecki for the extra attacker late in the game but could not put one in the net as Bergin's goal would prove to be the difference in a 4-3 victory.

With two Lubbock losses during the week, the Rayz still had an opportunity to climb into 4th place with a victory over Fort Worth on Saturday. The Rayz came out with a vengeance in the 1st period and showed no sympathy for the Brahmas racking up four goals (three on the power play) to jump out to a 4-0 lead at the end of 20 minutes. Jason Carriere opened the scoring at 3:46 when his slap shot beat Erasmo Saltarelli short side for a 1-0 lead. Goals from Mike Tilson, Cosmo Dupaul, and David Bourque all on the power play gave the Rayz a 4-0 advantage. The Brahmas tried to fight back in the 2nd period out-shooting the Rayz 16-8, but it was the Rayz who put the puck into the net as Jaroslav Jabrocky (Poprad, Slovakia) on a wraparound behind the cage slipped the puck just inside the nearside post at 13:51 for a 5-0 lead. John Sicinski (Mississauga, ONT) put on the finishing touches late in the game driving home Mike Tilson's rebound on the power play at 18:00 of the 3rd period as the Rayz cruised to a 6-0 win, their first shutout of the season. Belecki turned aside all 35 Fort Worth shots for his first shutout in a Rayz uniform.

BACK IN THE RACE: The Rayz victory on Saturday over Fort Worth coupled with Lubbock's losses against Laredo and El Paso this weekend put the Rayz 1 point ahead of the Cotton Kings for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Southern Conference. Lubbock has struggled mightily as of late losing 7 out of their last 9 games. Meanwhile the New Mexico Scorpions are still very much in the race just 2 point behind the Rayz even though they've lost 3 out of their last 4 games. Lubbock battles Bossier-Shreveport and Amarillo at home Thursday and Saturday and plays at Austin Friday. New Mexico will play 4 games in 6 nights this week hosting Amarillo on Tuesday before traveling east to battle Memphis, Bossier-Shreveport, and Fort Worth on the road Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

PASS ALONG THE DONUTS: Brent Belecki's shutout victory Saturday snapped a 64 game streak for the Rayz without recording a shutout. The Rayz last shutout an opponent on 1/23/02 at New Mexico when they trounced the Scorpions 5-0. The Rayz also become the 13th team in the Central Hockey League to register a shutout this season. Fort Worth, Wichita, and Laredo are the only teams not to record a shutout in 2002-03.

BLACKJACK: Belecki meanwhile has already broken the Rayz record for consecutive starts by a goaltender. After further research, Belecki's start on 1/24/03 vs. Laredo at Memorial Coliseum, his 17th consecutive, snapped Jason Genik's old record of 16 consecutive starts back in 1999 from February 14 – March 21. Belecki has started 21 consecutive games going 11-9-1 in that span with a 2.76 goals against average and 92.8% save percentage. And speaking of Genik, Belecki is now just 2 wins shy of tying the record that Genik shares with Eddy Skazyk for single season wins by a Rayz goaltender of 21. New goalie Aren Miller acquired from Oklahoma City on Thursday is expected to spell Belecki

GIVE ME FOUR: The Rayz set a season high for goals in a period with 4 in the opening frame Saturday vs. Fort Worth. The Rayz also snapped a long power play drought in the same game going 4-10 with the man advantage, matching a season high for power play goals in a game. The Rayz also went 4-10 on the power play in a 6-5 overtime win over Austin on 11/16/02. Prior to Saturday's game, the Rayz had gone just 3-29 (10.3%) on the power play in their last 6 contests and 13-102 (12.2%) over their last 22.

TRADE DEADLINE APPROACHING: The deadline for trades to be made in the CHL is 3PM CST this afternoon. The Rayz are still looking for a forward to replace the scoring lost with the injury to Layne Roland back in January.

COSMIC BURST: Cosmo Dupaul had 4 goals and 2 assists this past week putting him in contention for CHL Player of the Week. Dupaul is currently riding a 5-game scoring streak and has scored in 15 out of the last 21 games and 27 out of 42 played this season. He also recorded his first 2-goal game of the season on Friday vs. Bossier-Shreveport.

BUMPS AND BRUISES: Forward Shaun Fairweather was eligible to come off the 14-day injured reserve on Saturday but was scratched when he did not receive his knee brace in time for the game. Fairweather should be in the lineup Friday vs. Odessa. Meanwhile, it's a big week for defenseman Brett Colborne who will visit the doctor this Wednesday for another examination. If he is given a clean bill of health, look for Colborne to return to the lineup within the next two weeks. Forward Russell Hogue and defenseman Chad Nelson are still out indefinitely after suffering concussions in separate games.

MARTINIS ON MONDAY: "Rayz Monday" continues tonight from 5PM-6PM at the Martini Bar located at the corners of Everhart and Saratoga in Corpus Christi. The Voice of the Rayz Dan Weiss hosts the show every Monday on ESPN Radio 1230 KSIX and is joined by Head Coach Al Sims and several Rayz players.

UP NEXT: The Rayz commence another busy week on Friday as they host the first place Odessa Jackalopes at Memorial Coliseum at 7:05PM. Saturday the Rayz will travel to play first place Austin at the Bat Cave at 7:30PM. Sunday marks the first matinee home game of the season as the Rayz host the Laredo Bucks at 3:05PM. All games can be heard on 1045 The Octopus with Dan Weiss and Rick Dames, or on the Internet at www.sportsjuice.com. Broadcast time begins 30 minutes before face-off with the "American Tire and Wheel Pre-Game Show.

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Central Hockey League Stories from February 3, 2003


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