Mudbugs Weekly

Published on December 28, 2009 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs News Release


LAST WEEK

Saturday, December 26 vs. Mississippi CenturyTel Center L 3-1

GAME NOTES : The Mudbugs couldn't shake off the rust from five days off in time to get a win Saturday night, falling 3-1 to the RiverKings. Joe Ori scored the lone goal for Bossier-Shreveport, who tied the game in the second period before Derek Landmesser's goal late in the second put the 'Kings on top to stay as Mississippi snapped the 'Bugs six-game win streak.

Sunday, December 27 at Allen Allen Events Center L 4-3 (SO)

GAME NOTES : Two powerplay goals in the second period put the Mudbugs on top 3-1 heading into the third Sunday in Allen, but the Americans rallied with two goals of their own to tie it up and send the game into OT. Allen then outscored the Mudbugs 2-1 in the shootout to earn the 4-3 victory. Dave Pszenyczny, Travis Clayton and Joe Blaznek scored for the Mudbugs, who lost in the extra session for the first time this year.

THIS WEEK

Wednesday, December 30 at Texas NyTex Sports Centre 7:05 pm

GAME NOTES : For their final game of 2009, the Mudbugs will travel back to the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex to take on the Texas Brahmas on Wednesday night. The 'Bugs are 1-2 against the Brahmas this season, falling 6-4 at the CenturyTel Center in late October and 4-2 at Texas in early December with a 2-1 victory on Brahmas' ice in between on November 8. Texas has gone 8-1-1 in its last ten games.

Friday, January 1 at Corpus Christi American Bank Center 5:05 pm

GAME NOTES : The Mudbugs and IceRays will meet for the second time this season on New Year's Day at the American Bank Center. Bossier-Shreveport topped Corpus Christi 4-3 back on opening weekend to earn their first win of the year in the teams' first meeting of the season. The 'Bugs are 2-0-0 on New Year's Day and 25-17-3 all-time against Corpus Christi. The IceRays are just 2-6-2 in their last ten games.

Saturday, January 2 vs. Missouri CenturyTel Center 7:05 pm

GAME NOTES : After facing the IceRays on Friday, the 'Bugs will make the 460-mile trek back to Bossier City to take on Missouri in their first home game of 2010 on Saturday. The Mudbugs won their first-ever meeting against the Mavericks back on November 28, coming from behind to win 3-2 on a pair of third period goals from Travis Clayton. The Mavs have won their last two games coming into this week, but will play Tuesday, Thursday and Friday before facing the 'Bugs.

WEEKLY NOTES

Holiday Curbs Momentum

The Mudbugs carried a six game winning streak into a stretch of five days off during Christmas week, but dropped both of their games coming off the holiday. After Saturday's 3-1 loss to Mississippi and Sunday's 4-3 shootout defeat against Allen, the 'Bugs carry a 15-11-1 record into this week. Bossier-Shreveport leads the RiverKings by a single point and the Tulsa Oilers by two points for third place in the Northern Conference standings behind Colorado and Rapid City.

Clayton Closing on 800 Games

Mudbugs center Travis Clayton played in his 799th pro game Sunday against Allen, with all but 12 of those games coming in the CHL with Wichita and Bossier-Shreveport. Clayton broke the all-time league record for career games played last season and has continued adding to the mark this year, entering this week with 787 career CHL games. The 12th-year pro also ranks second in league history in goals (356), assists (552) and points (908).

Scoring Slowed

For the first time during the month of December, the Mudbugs were held below four goals in two consecutive games last weekend, scoring once on Saturday and three times on Sunday. In 11 games during the month of December, the 'Bugs have raised their scoring average with 3.7 goals per game compared to 2.44 GPG during October and November. Bossier-Shreveport currently ranks 11th in the CHL with a season average of 2.96 goals per game.

Perfect PK Streak Ends

Saturday's loss against Mississippi marked the first time this season the Mudbugs lost a game in which they did not surrender a powerplay goal. Before the RiverKings topped the 'Bugs 3-1 despite missing on all three of their powerplays, Bossier-Shreveport had gone a perfect 9-0 this year when holding an opponent scoreless on the man-advantage. The Mudbugs are now 9-1-0 when they do not allow a powerplay goal, 5-3-1 when they give up a single powerplay tally and 1-7-0 when surrendering multiple powerplay goals.

Milestone Watch

Numerous Mudbugs are closing in on career statistical milestones. Here is a rundown of the players and the achievements they are nearing:

F Joe Blaznek: 1 goal away from 300

G Ken Carroll: 4 wins away from 200

F Travis Clayton: 1 game away from 800

D Dave Pszenyczny: 3 games away from 200

Loose Pucks

F Joe Ori has three goals and two assists in his past five games... D Dave Pszenyczny has scored goals in three of the past five games... D Clay Plume got his first point as a Mudbug with an assist on Saturday night... The Mudbugs are now 10-2-1 in one-goal games after Sunday's shootout loss... Scott Muscutt is only four wins away from passing Chris Stewart for second on the CHL's all-time coaching wins list...

TICKET INFORMATION:

Mini-plans and group ticket packages for the 2009-10 season of Mudbugs hockey are available at the team office: 2000 CenturyTel Center Drive, Bossier City, LA 71112. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. Individual game tickets can be purchased at the CenturyTel Center box office between 9:30 am and 4:30 pm Monday - Friday, by calling Ticketmaster at (318) 741-9700, or online at Ticketmaster.com. For more information, visit www.mudbugshockey.com or call the team office at (318) 752-2847.

MUDBUGS RADIO:

Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs games, both home and away, are broadcast live on "The Home of the Legends" AM 1130 KWKH and News Radio 710 AM KEEL in Shreveport. Both stations provide free online streaming online at www.kwkhonline.com and www.710keel.com.

CHL TV:

New for 2009-10 is the latest version of CHL-TV, powered by Insinc Netcasting. Fans will have the chance to watch all 480 games on the CHL's regular season schedule for a small pay-per-view price. Packages are available as well that give fans the chance to order a month at a time or the entire season. All game archives are offered to catch up on the games you missed for just $3.95. Visit http://chltv.insinc.com for more information.

Season and group tickets are on sale by calling 318-752-BUGS (2847) or by visiting our website at www.mudbugshockey.com.

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Central Hockey League Stories from December 28, 2009


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