BRAHMAS WEEKLY
Published on March 13, 2002 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Fort Worth Brahmas News Release
BRAHMAS CLOSING IN ON PLAYOFF SPOT
Ft. Worth needs just one win over final weekend to clinch postseason berth
Where they stand?: The Brahmas are on the verge of clinching the franchise's first playoff berth in three years as they head into the final weekend of the regular season. With 67 points this season, the Brahmas are currently holding down the third playoff spot in the Northern Conference. Ft. Worth is one point in front of fourth place Bossier-Shreveport and five points ahead of fifth place Tulsa. Should the Brahmas maintain their third place standing, they would open the CHL President's Cup playoffs next week with a best of five series against the Oklahoma City Blazers. If Ft. Worth slips to the fourth spot, the Brahmas would then take on the Memphis RiverKings in the first round of the playoffs. Regardless, Ft. Worth needs just one win or one Tulsa loss over the final weekend of the regular season in order to be assured of a spot in the postseason party.
What's next?:
FRIDAY, MARCH 15TH VS. CORPUS CHRISTI, 7:05 P.M., FWCC, Ft. Worth, TX.
SATURDAY, MARCH 16th VS. AUSTIN, 7:05 P.M., FWCC, Ft. Worth, TX.
SUNDAY, MARCH 17TH @ CORPUS CHRISTI, 3:05 P.M., Memorial Coliseum, Corpus Christi, TX.
Last week's results:
Wednesday, 3/6 @ Indianapolis, 8-3 W
Friday, 3/8 vs. Bossier-Shreveport; 0-3 L
Saturday, 3/9 vs. Austin; 0-4 L
This week's result:
Tuesday, 3/12 vs. Memphis, 3-2 W
Nota-bulls:
Playoff potential: Assuming the Brahmas qualify for the postseason, they should have a better than average chance of advancing. Ft. Worth won their season series against the second seeded Oklahoma City Blazers 3-2-1. They also won their season series against top seeded Memphis by a 3-1-2 margin. Ft. Worth's regular season success against each of their possible first round opponents in the playoffs bodes well for the Brahmas in the postseason.
Trophy time: Brahmas goaltender Kory Cooper is one of five finalists for the Scott Brower Memorial Trophy given to the CHL's most outstanding goaltender for the 2001-2002 season. Mike Gorman from Odessa, Rod Branch from Tulsa, Bryan McMullen from Austin and Scott Myers from New Mexico are the other finalists. Cooper's case for the trophy is bolstered by the fact that he leads the league in saves with 3,364, is second in the league in minutes with 3364 and is tied for second with 28 wins. If Cooper was to win the award, it would be his second CHL trophy of the season. The standout netminder was named as the MVP of the 2002 CHL All Star game that was held February 1st in Corpus Christi.
Salt Lake City shuttle: Rookie center Jeff Bateman continues to pile up the frequent flyer miles between Salt Lake City and Ft. Worth. Bateman was reassigned to the Brahmas on Tuesday, March 12 and dressed for the Brahmas 3-2 win over Memphis. On Wednesday, March 13, Bateman was recalled to Utah to take the roster spot of Grizzlies forward Jim Montgomery, who was recalled by the Dallas Stars. It is uncertain at this time if Bateman will be back in Ft. Worth for the Brahmas final trio of regular season games.
Brahmas standouts:
Chad Woollard: The gifted winger continued his breakout season last week with a dominant two goal, two assist performance to help Ft. Worth hammer Indianapolis 8-3. He then scored a power play goal in Ft. Worth's 3-2 win over Memphis on Tuesday night. Woollard now has 8 goals and 5 assists in his last ten games and 21 goals and 25 assists for the season.
Peter Campbell: The second year centerman from Gloucester, Ontario recorded his first hat trick in a Brahmas uniform last week in the Brahmas 8-3 win over Indianapolis. Campbell scored the go ahead goal for Ft. Worth late in the second period and then completed his hat trick with two goals seven seconds apart in the final two minutes of the game. The three goal performance raised Campbell's team leading goal total to 27 on the season.
Joe Van Volsen: The underrated Van Volsen was the number one star in the Brahmas critical 3-2 win over Memphis on Tuesday night. Van Volsen scored the game winning shorthanded goal midway through the second period and also assisted on a power play goal. Despite his two game suspension last week, Van Volsen continues to be the Brahmas leading scorer with 64 points (22G/42A). He has also climbed to 14th overall in the CHL in scoring.
Kory Cooper: Cooper showed why many consider him the best goaltender in the CHL with three strong performances last week and an even better effort on Tuesday night against Memphis. He stopped 25 of 28 shots in the Brahmas 8-3 win over Indy. Last Friday night against Bossier, Cooper allowed just one even strength goal against in two periods of hockey. In the loss to Austin this past Saturday, he again allowed just one even strength goal against. He earned a well deserved win against Memphis on Tuesday by turning away 32 of the 34 RiverKings shots fired his way and playing an instrumental part in helping the Brahmas kill off seven Memphis power plays.
Know thy competition:
Ft. Worth will close out their first regular season in the CHL against two familiar foes from the old WPHL. On Friday night the Corpus Christi IceRays will come to the FWCC. Saturday night the Austin Ice Bats will make their final trip of the season to Ft. Worth for the Brahmas home regular season finale. Sunday afternoon will see the Brahmas travel to Corpus Christi to wrap up their regular season.
Long ago eliminated from playoff contention, the Corpus Christi IceRays will try to salvage a disappointing year by upsetting the Brahmas this weekend. The IceRays have a record of 13-35-12 and 38 points on the season. Corpus is winless in their last nine games headed into this week (0-8-1) and they have fallen well behind their Southeast Division foes. Forwards Kurt Wickenheiser and Layne Roland have been two bright spots this season for Corpus, as the ageless Wickenheiser leads the team in points with 61 (22G/39A) and Roland is tops amongst all IceRays skaters with 30 goals. The IceRays begin their week on Wednesday by hosting the Austin Ice Bats, travel to Ft. Worth on Friday, then host San Antonio on Saturday and Ft. Worth on Sunday.
The Austin Ice Bats will fly north to Ft. Worth on Saturday night to renew their I-35 rivalry with the Brahmas. With a record of 40-15-5 and 85 points, the Ice Bats are leading the Southeastern Division and they have the second best record in the Southern Conference. Three Ice Bats-Brett Seguin, Dan Price, and Gerald Tallaire-are in the top five in the CHL in scoring. Seguin is tied for the league lead in points with 89 and he leads the CHL in assists with 65. Price is third in the league in goals (41) and second in points (87), and Tallaire, the reigning CHL Player of the Week, is third in the CHL in points (80). All Star goaltender Bryan McMullen has been the beneficiary of all this offense as he has posted a sterling 28-7-3 record and a 2.53 GAA. Austin has had Ft. Worth's number this year, defeating the Brahmas in seven of eight meetings this season. The 'Bats visit Corpus on Wednesday, travel to San Antonio on Friday, stop in Ft. Worth on Saturday, and play in San Angelo on Sunday.
Central Hockey League Stories from March 13, 2002
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- BRAHMAS WEEKLY - Fort Worth Brahmas
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