Dan-Druff In Their Hare
March 22, 2006 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Amarillo Gorillas News Release
ODESSA, TX - Last Saturday afternoon, following a crushing 3-2 loss at Odessa the night before, Gorillas Head Coach Joe Ferras wrote a message to his players on the whiteboard in the locker-room, breaking down the strategy the team should follow over the course of the regular season's final six games in order to qualify for the postseason. In large capital letters, Coach Ferras wrote, "WIN THE NEXT THREE GAMES," leading up to what is sure to be another intense battle with the playoff-hopeful Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees. Three games later, mission accomplished.
Amarillo surged into Odessa Tuesday night to take on the Southwest Division-clinching Jackalopes following back-to-back extra-session wins over another division-rival, Lubbock, 5-4 in a home shootout win Saturday and a 3-2 overtime victory Sunday at the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum. Tuesday, despite a minor roster move to the line-up, the Gorillas' play proved consistent to their previous two contests, doubling up the Jackalopes 4-2 in front of 2,359 fans at the Ector County Coliseum behind a pair of Dan Donnette goals while extending their road winning-streak to a season-high four games.
The game certainly did not begin in easy fashion, with the Jacks pulling a rabbit out of their collective hats for the first goal of the game just 2:39 into the opening period. Defenseman Pascal Bedard stole the puck out of the neutral zone, passed ahead to Rookie of the Year candidate Dominic Leveille, who drew the defense near him in the low circle and found a centering Sebastien Thinel, beating Gorillas goaltender Shawn Degagne for his team-best 38th goal and 87th point of the season.
The Gorillas, as they have become accustomed to doing as of late, powered right back down the ice less than two-and-a-half minutes later when rookie Jason Chafe sent a nifty pass high of the crease to Donnette, open just a few feet in front of Jackalopes All-Star tender Mike Gorman. Donnette converted for his seventh goal to knot the game at 1-1 while Chafe picked up his first of two assists on the night, bringing him to an eventual 10 and 14 points on the year.
Central Hockey League Stories from March 22, 2006
- Steelheads stop Brahmas 5-2 - Fort Worth Brahmas
- Kings drop 3-0 decision to Thunder - Lubbock Cotton Kings
- Kings come out shorthanded in 3-0 loss to Wichita - Lubbock Cotton Kings
- SteelHounds end home winless streak - Youngstown SteelHounds
- Ruskowski Named CHL Coach of the Year - Laredo Bucks
- Enlow top CHL Equipment manager - Tulsa Oilers
- Playoffs Hinge on Final Week - Austin Ice Bats
- Coyotes Prospect Assigned to Cotton Kings - Lubbock Cotton Kings
- Pack the House for charity Saturday night - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Laredo's Terry Ruskowski Named CHL Coach of the Year - CHL
- Dan-Druff In Their Hare - Amarillo Gorillas
- Moore Voted CHL's Best Certified Athletic Trainer - Laredo Bucks
- Awards Continue to Pile Up for Hahn - Amarillo Gorillas
- Tulsa's Enlow, Laredo's Moore Earn CHL Awards - CHL
- Hounds Hope "Ladies Night" Can Get Team On Right Track At Home - Youngstown SteelHounds
- Paul Fioroni Claims CHL Man of the Year Award - Lubbock Cotton Kings
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