Cotton Kings Game Update

Published on December 30, 2005 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Lubbock Cotton Kings News Release


12/30/05 - CORPUS CHRISTI RAYZ (11-14-1) @ LUBBOCK COTTON KINGS (13-13-1) - 7:05 PM LUBBOCK MUNICIPAL COLISEUM

KINGS LOOK TO STREAK AT HOME

The Lubbock Cotton Kings return back to the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum tonight to host the Corpus Christi Rayz to begin a three-game homestand. Lubbock, the only team in the CHL that has not played in three consecutive home games and/or consecutive home games in consecutive nights, seeks to end a two-game home winless streak and extend an overall winning streak to two games. The Cotton Kings enter the game in second place in the Southwest Division, eight standing-points behind Odessa. Meanwhile, Corpus Christi comes in trying to end a three-game winless streak. The Rayz are sitting in third place in the Southeast Division and are 16 standing-points behind Laredo.

THE SERIES

The meeting is the second of four meetings on the season, with each team hosting a pair of games. Lubbock has dominated the all-time series against Corpus Christi with a 12-1-1 record. The Kings are 5-0-0 all-time at home against Corpus Christi. The all-time leading scorer in the series is Jan Melichercik, who has 13 points off 4 goals and 9 assists all-time against Corpus Christi. The Rayz all-time leader in the series is former Corpus member Geoff Bumstead, who has 6 assists. Lubbock is 1-0-0 so far this season against the Rayz. The Kings won 3-2 in OT with a goal and two-point performance by Josh Anderson on December 11th.

THE LAST TIME

12/11/05 - Lubbock Cotton Kings rookie forward Josh Anderson chronicled his first overtime game winning goal by backhanding a rebound past Corpus Christi Rayz goaltender Scott Reid with 2:14 remaining in overtime to lead the Cotton Kings to a 3-2 overtime victory, ending a three game road winless streak.

Corpus Christi was 0-8-0 entering the game when trailing after two periods of play, and they were trailing 2-0 heading into the final frame Sunday night at the AmericanBank Center, until Ryan Carter broke into the attack zone and blasted a shot over the left shoulder of Kings netminder Lance Leslie 6:36 into the period. Derrick McIver tied the game 2-2 for the Rayz 5:41 later converting on an odd man rush with a shot that beat Leslie's glove-hand.

The first period was scoreless and the Cotton Kings opened the scoring with 7:33 remaining in the second period with a goal by Barry Horman. The play was created by Anderson, who kept the puck in the interior of the attack zone and kept skating the puck around the left side of the net until he could find an opening to shoot. Once he finally fired the puck, the shot was blocked and the rebound went right to the stick of Horman, who flipped the puck past a sprawling Reid. The goal ended a Kings scoreless sequence of 92:27. Nolan Graham, who missed Saturday night's game due to an illness, registered a power play goal with 1:54 remaining in the period by firing a wrist shot from the left slot past Reid after receiving a pair of tape-to-tape passes from Jan Melichercik and Matt Macdonald to give the Kings a 2-0 lead through two periods of play.

This was the Cotton Kings first overtime win of the season when scoring in the four-on-four five-minute portion. For Anderson, the goal was his first professional game-winning and overtime goal. Lance Leslie earned the win in net for Lubbock by stopping 30 of 32 shots on goal to improve his record to 8-6-1. Lubbock out-shot the Rayz 37-32 in the contest.

ROSTER CHANGES

Lubbock does not list any players on the IR, but Bobby Brown has missed the past four games due to injury. Corpus Christi is without the services of Blair Stayzer (45-Day IR), Doug Watkins (14-Day IR) and Shawn Legault (league suspension).

STANDINGS

Kings - 27 points, 2nd place, 8 points back, Southwest Division. Rayz - 23 points, 3rd place, 16 points back, Southeast Division.

TEAM LEADERS

Kings - Nolan Graham 25 points; Nolan Graham 14 goals; Jan Melichercik 17 assists; Matt Macdonald 67 penalty minutes. Rayz - Randy Murphy 30 points; Ryan Carter 15 goals; Randy Murphy 22 assists; Shawn Legault 161 penalty minutes.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kings - Power play: 14.6% 12th, Penalty killing: 85.7% 4th. Rayz - 13.5% 13th, Penalty killing: 84.2% 11th.

GOALTENDERS

Kings - Lance Leslie (9-7-1, 1 SO, 2.97), Brett Koscielny (4-6-0, 1 SO, 2.32). Rayz - Scott Reid (7-9-1, 0 SO, 2.96), Brent Zelenewich (4-5-0, 0 SO, 2.96)

WHAT'S NEXT

Lubbock - Saturday, December 31st 5:05 PM vs. Bossier-Shreveport Mudbigs Lubbock Municipal Coliseum

Corpus Christi - Saturday, December 31st 8:05 PM vs. Odessa Jackalopes AmericanBank Center

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Central Hockey League Stories from December 30, 2005


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