Gorillas Take Two of Three against Division Rivals
December 30, 2002 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Amarillo Gorillas News Release
AMARILLO, TX â Two wins in three games helped the Amarillo Gorillas keep pace with Northern Conference rivals battling for four Central Hockey League playoff spots.
The Gorillas currently have a record of 16-10-0 for 32 points and are seven points back of the fourth place Oklahoma City Blazers and Memphis RiverKings in the playoff chase.
It's a busy week for the Gorillas as they will play four games, including three against Southern Conference Rivals (two vs. El Paso, one vs. New Mexico as well as one vs. Tulsa).
The Gorillas will host the El Paso Buzzards in the Seventh Annual Amarillo New Years Eve game on Tuesday at 7 p.m. After a break for the holiday, the Gorillas host the New Mexico Scorpions on Friday, Jan. 3 at 7 p.m. followed by CHL leading Tulsa Oilers at 7 p.m. on Saturday night. The Gorillas close out the busy week with a trip to El Paso to face the Buzzards on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. (MST)
The strong play by the Amarillo Gorillas has been noticed by the pollsters from Inthecrease.com where they have placed Joe Ferras' charges into 20th place overall bumping the defending CHL champion Memphis RiverKings from the rankings.
"It's great to see the team improving and playing solid hockey," said Gorillas Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Joe Ferras. "At this time of the year with every point being so crucial, it is important the team focuses on each game and get themselves prepared mentally and physically as if they are playoff games." Week in Review
Amarillo Gorillas 4 â Wichita Thunder 3
On Thursday night, after falling behind in the first minute 1-0, the Gorillas scored back-to-back goals off the sticks of Darren Curry and Scott Wray.
In the second period, the Gorillas made it 3-1 when John Dean scored on a great rush up the ice. Wichita made it 3-2 on a power play goal before the Gorillas extended the lead to 4-2 when Ben Gustavson wired a shot to the top corner to beat the Wichita goaltender.
It was a frantic third period as the Thunder managed just a shorthanded goal to cut the lead to 4-3 and that would be as close as they would get.
Goaltender Shawn Degagne posted his seventh win of the season and is 5-0 in the month of December.
Oklahoma City Blazers 4 â Amarillo Gorillas 1
In Oklahoma City on Friday night, the Gorillas couldn't make their first appearance at the Fabulous Ford Center a memorable one as they were beaten 4-1 by the Blazers.
The Gorillas demonstrated a lot of heart and character in this one and nearly made a great come-from-behind attempt in the third period after Oklahoma City had built a 3-0 lead. Scott Wray scored to make it 3-1 on a nifty set up from Brandon Carper and Ben Gustavson. The Gorillas thought they had made it a one-goal game late in the period, but the referee had waived off a goal because the net came off the pegs prior to the puck crossing the line.
Amarillo Gorillas 7 â Wichita Thunder 5
The Amarillo Gorillas rallied from two two-goal deficits to beat the Wichita Thunder 7-5 in a wild game at Kansas Coliseum on Saturday night.
A bench-clearing brawl nearly took place at the end of the first period as both benches emptied on to the ice. The Gorillas were prevented from leaving the ice surface by the Thunder as their players were strung out across center and were not motioned to leave by the referee.
Scott Wray began the Gorillas biggest rally in the third period when he scored to make it 4-4. After the Thunder had regained the lead, Dorian Anneck began his heroics scoring first the tying goal and then the game winner to help the Gorillas win 7-5. Ryan Shannon (empty net), Brian Pellerin, Ben Maidment and Mark DeSantis had the other Amarillo Gorillas goals.
Goaltender Steve DeBus, who came on in relief of injured starting goaltender Shawn Degagne, posted his ninth win of the season.
On the Air:
There are some scheduling conflicts for this weekend's game with the Amarillo Gorillas. Tuesday and Saturday's games can be heard live on the flag- ship station of the Gorillas 1440 Am The Score, beginning with the Pizza Hut Warm Up Show at 6:40 p.m. However, Friday's and Sunday afternoon's contests have been moved to 1550 Am The Zone due to prior College Football and National Football League playoff commitments.
· Tuesday, Dec. 31 â El Paso Buzzards @ Amarillo Gorillas
6:40 p.m. â 1440 Am The Score.
· Friday, Jan. 3 â New Mexico Scorpions @ Amarillo Gorillas
6:40 p.m. â 1550 Am The Zone due to the Fiesta Bowl Game.
· Saturday, Jan. 4 â Tulsa Oilers @ Amarillo Gorillas
6:40 p.m. â 1440 Am The Score
· Sunday, Jan . 5 â Amarillo Gorillas @ El Paso Buzzards
3:40 p.m. (local time) â 1550 Am The Zone due to NFL playoffs.
Central Hockey League Stories from December 30, 2002
- Buzzards slip against New Mexico, lose 3-2 - El Paso Buzzards
- No Holiday Cheer for Rayz - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Sewell Named CHL Player of the Week - Laredo Bucks
- CHL Names Players of Week - CHL
- Ice, Memphis Riding First Place Seesaw - Indianapolis Ice
- Gorillas Take Two of Three against Division Rivals - Amarillo Gorillas
- Inglis makes first roster moves - Fort Worth Brahmas
- Buzzards Fight Back - El Paso Buzzards
- Scorpions Take Three out of Four Points - New Mexico Scorpions
- Sewell, Bucks Rock on - Laredo Bucks
- Buzzards Look to Rumble in the Jungle - El Paso Buzzards
- Saints Week in Review - San Angelo Saints
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