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Gorillas enter busy week in first

January 23, 2007 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Amarillo Gorillas News Release


The Central Hockey League's Southwest Division can best be compared to your standard carnival Ferris wheel. Each occupant starts in relatively the same position but when things are set in motion, they are quickly wheeled, spun and tossed around. Furthermore, everyone gets their chance at the top. Well this week it's the Amarillo Gorillas turn at the apex position as they enter CHL play this week with a 17-14-3 overall record and 37 standings points. Odessa is 2nd with 36 points, Arizona and New Mexico are tied with 35 and Lubbock trails the rest of the pack with just 31. The Gorillas are coming off a split of their recent 2-game home stand in which they fell 7-3 to the New Mexico Scorpions Friday night only to rebound with an encouraging 4-2 victory over the Tulsa Oilers on Saturday. The Gorillas improved to 10-5-2 on their home ice this past weekend. The Apes are now only one of three teams in the Southern Conference with a winning percentage above .500. The other two teams, Laredo and Corpus Christi, both play in the Southeast Division. The trick now for the Gorillas is to ensure they stay at the top, because the thing about Ferris wheels is that as quickly as you get to the top, just as quickly you can find yourself at the bottom.

WEEKEND RUNDOWN -

THURSDAY January 25th @ New Mexico Scorpions, 10:35 A.M. (Santa Ana Star Center)

FRIDAY January 26th @ Arizona Sundogs, 7:00 P.M. (Prescott Valley Events Center)

SUNDAY January 28th vs. Odessa Jackalopes, 5:05 P.M. (The Jungle)

HOME GAME VS. AUSTIN TO BE MADE UP FEB. 6TH - The Amarillo Gorillas of the Central Hockey League (CHL) are pleased to announce their home game against the Austin Ice Bats, originally scheduled for New Year's Eve, has been rescheduled to Tuesday February 6th. The game was originally postponed due to inclement weather and unsafe traveling conditions as the Ice Bats were traveling from Colorado. The start time for the game will be 7:05 PM. All walk-up tickets for that game will be just $10!! Additionally, group tickets for that night will be lowered to $8 if you bring a group of 10 or more out to the game. All group ticket packages must be purchased through the Gorillas office. February has quickly become the Gorillas busiest month of the season as they are now slated to play 14 games in the shortest month of the calendar year.

IN A CLASS ALL THEIR OWN - The Amarillo Gorillas can claim something that not another single team in the Central Hockey League can boast. Not Laredo. Not Memphis. Not even Colorado. With another offensive explosion this past weekend from their top line, the Gorillas saw forwards Chris Lipsett, Bill Vandermeer and Rich Hansen all eclipse the 40-point mark just past the midway point of the season. The Gorillas are the only team in the CHL to presently showcase three 40+ point scorers. Chris Lipsett has assumed the team lead in scoring thanks to an 11-game point streak in which he garnered 12 goals and 9 assists from December 16th to January 14th. Lipsett's streak ended with a scoreless outing against New Mexico this past Friday. The Ottawa, Ontario native leads the team with 44 points. Bill Vandermeer was the first Gorilla to reach the 20-goal mark this season when he buried a pair of tallies including the game-winner Saturday night versus Tulsa. Vandermeer is 2nd on the team with 42 points. And then of course, there's the Gorillas' All-Star representative in Rich Hansen who has tallied points in three consecutive games and is now 3rd on the squad with 41 points overall.

THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD - When the Gorillas resume CHL play this Thursday morning in New Mexico, it will open up a stretch for the Apes in which they will play 30 games in 60 days taking them right up to the end of the regular season. Four games still remain in January and then comes February in which Amarillo suits up 14 times in the shortest month of the calendar year. The regular season ends in March when the Gorillas play 12 games in 25 days to close out the year. Of the final 30 games, exactly half will come on the road while the other half will take place in the friendly confines of the Cal Farley Coliseum. One key to the Gorillas continued success down the stretch run of the season will be staying healthy, which is something the Apes have not done all that well this season. During the first half of the 2006/07 season, the Amarillo Gorillas suffered 77 man-games lost due to injury.

Individual game tickets as well as great group ticket rates can be purchased at the Gorillas Hockey Office, located at 1934 Civic Circle off of I-40 and Georgia, the Civic Center Box Office and all Panhandle Ticket Outlets. These include Randy's Music Mart, the West Texas Event Center in Canyon and United Supermarkets. Tickets can also be charged by phone at (806) 378-3096 or (806) 242-PUCK (7825). Also be sure to call the Gorillas front office today to learn about all the great incentives you can gather by bringing a group out to a Gorillas game!

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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