Mudbugs Weekly

Published on February 22, 2010 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs News Release


LAST WEEK

Friday, February 19 vs. Tulsa CenturyTel Center W 5-4 (OT)

GAME NOTES: Joe Blaznek's second goal of the game at 2:24 of overtime lifted the Mudbugs to a 5-4 victory over Tulsa during the first night of "Pink in the Rink" weekend Friday at the CTC. After the 'Bugs had built a 4-1 lead in the game, the Oilers rallied with a three-goal third period to force overtime and get a point. In addition to the two-goal effort from Blaznek, the 'Bugs got a goal and an assist from Scott Kalinchuk and two assists each from Justin Aikins, Travis Clayton and David Rutherford. Ken Carroll also made 27 saves to win his second straight game.

Saturday, February 20 vs. Wichita CenturyTel Center W 5-1

GAME NOTES: Five different players found the back of the net as the Mudbugs defeated Wichita 5-1 in the finale of "Pink in the Rink" weekend Saturday at the CenturyTel Center. The 'Bugs led 3-0 after one period and built the advantage to 5-0 before Wichita broke up Ken Carroll's shutout bid with less than 11 minutes remaining. Jeff Kyrzakos finished with a goal and an assist in the game and Carroll made 22 saves to earn his 12th victory of the season as Bossier-Shreveport won its season series 4-1 against the Thunder this year.

Sunday, February 21 at Tulsa BOK Center W 6-0

GAME NOTES: DeCaro made 29 saves for his first shutout of the year and the Mudbugs scored four first-period goals on their way to a 6-0 win over the Oilers Sunday afternoon at the BOK Center. The victory completed a sweep of the weekend's three-in-three for the Mudbugs, who outscored opponents 16-5 in those games. Six different players scored goals for the 'Bugs, who got a goal and an assist each from Jeff Kyrzakos, Shawn Limpright and David Rutherford. The win improves Bossier-Shreveport to 3-0 against Tulsa this year.

THIS WEEK

Tuesday, February 23 vs. Texas CenturyTel Center 7:05 pm

GAME NOTES: The Mudbugs and Brahmas are set to meet for the seventh time this year Tuesday night in Bossier City. The teams have traded blows all season to split the first six games of the series 3-3 entering this bout. In the last two meetings, the Mudbugs scored three second period goals and went on to beat Texas 4-2 on January 26 before the Brahmas battled back to win 3-2 on February 6 behind Jordan Cameron's game-winning goal with just 14 seconds left in regulation.

Friday, February 26 at Allen Allen Events Center 7:30 pm

GAME NOTES: The 'Bugs will make their third visit to the brand new Allen Events Center on Friday night to try and find their elusive first win against the expansion Americans. Allen has beaten the Mudbugs three times in three different ways this year: taking a tight 2-1 decision back in October, rallying from two goals down to get a 4-3 shootout win in late December and then rolling over the Mudbugs 5-1 in January. The Americans are in second place in the Southern Conference.

Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 27 and 28 at Tulsa BOK Center

GAME NOTES: The Mudbugs will close out a series of four games against the Oilers in a ten-day span with a back-to-back set at the BOK Center on Saturday and Sunday. The 'Bugs lead the season series 3-0 and have beaten Tulsa 11 times in a row dating back to last season. The Oilers trail the Mudbugs by nine points in the Northern Conference entering this week.

WEEKLY NOTES

'Bugs Sweep Three-in-Three

The Mudbugs outscored opponents 16-5 on their way to a sweep of this weekend's set of three games in three days. Bossier-Shreveport scored at least five times in all three contests, winning 5-4 on Friday, 5-1 on Saturday and 6-0 on Sunday. The 'Bugs have now won four consecutive games and six of their last seven while averaging nearly 4.5 goals-per-game during that span (4.43).

Drilling for Oil

After facing off just once during the first four months of the CHL season, the Mudbugs and Oilers are in the midst of a stretch of four head-to-head matchups in ten days, three of which are taking place in Tulsa. Bossier-Shreveport has won 11 consecutive games against Tulsa after improving to 3-0 against them this year with Friday's 5-4 overtime win and Sunday's 6-0 shutout. The two clubs will see one another twice more this week when they play a back-to-back set at the BOK Center on Saturday and Sunday. The Mudbugs' recent hot streak has solidified their hold on third place in the Northern Conference and gotten them within eight points of second-place Colorado.

"Pink in the Rink" a Big Success

The Mudbugs hosted their "Pink in the Rink" weekend last Friday and Saturday at the CenturyTel Center to help raise awareness and funds for the fight against breast cancer. The team wore pink specialty jerseys that were auctioned off to the fans along with pink sticks, helmets, and even Scott Muscutt's pink tie from the two games. Most of the money raised from those auctions, along with one dollar from every individual and group ticket sold, was donated to benefit the Northwest Louisiana affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Not only did the Mudbugs help out the cause, but they also earned two wins and four big points in the Northern Conference playoff race while skating on pink ice during the weekend.

A Whole Lot of Hockey to Be Played

Last weekend's three-in-three started an intense stretch over the next few weeks for the Mudbugs, who are in the midst of seven games in ten days and a longer stretch of 11 matches over an 18-day span ending March 7. The 'Bugs will then have four days off before finishing with six games over the final eight days of the regular season. Including their three games last weekend, the Mudbugs will play their last 17 regular season games in a 30 day-span.

Blaznek Finding the Twine

Joe Blaznek lit the lamp four times in three games last weekend to retake sole possession of the team lead in goal scoring with 19 this year. Blaznek scored twice Friday vs. Tulsa (including the overtime game-winner) and then notched another GWG Saturday against Wichita. He then capped off the weekend with a pretty goal in Sunday's blowout of the Oilers. The 12th year pro, who played his 700th career game last week, is tied with Travis Clayton for the team lead in scoring with 40 points this year and needs just one more tally to reach 20 goals for the ninth time in his career.

Rutherford Keeps Rolling

Forward David Rutherford had a goal and an assist on Sunday to once again extend his CHL-leading point streak to 16 games. Rutherford has now come within one game of tying the longest point streak in the league this year (17 games by Allen's Nino Musitelli). The second-year pro has racked up 24 points (12g, 12a) during the 16-game stretch and had scored six goals in four games prior to Friday. Rutherford has eight multi-point games, a +18 rating and two game-winning goals during the scoring streak, which began on January 16. He has nearly a point-per-game this year with 28 points in 31 games.

Lucas Doesn't Miss a Beat

Forward Tyrel Lucas continued his own impressive point streak on Sunday, setting up a Rutherford's third period goal to give him ten points (3g, 7a) during an nine-game stretch. Since returning from a three-game injury absence on Feb. 5, Lucas has picked up right where he left off, increasing his point total to 31 (14g, 17a) in 35 games this year. Lucas had turned in three straight multi-point games prior to being injured in the first period at Allen on January 23. Not counting his few shifts in that game, Lucas has 17 points (7g, 10a) over his last 12 full games played.

Carroll Moves in on Martino

After posting his 200th professional victory last week, goaltender Ken Carroll is now moving toward his next career milestone. Carroll beat Tulsa and Wichita last weekend to give him 185 victories in his Mudbugs career. That leaves him just two wins shy of tying Tony Martino as the second-winningest goaltender in CHL/WPHL history. The 9th year Mudbug, who already owns the league record for career shutouts, trails only Martino (187) and Rod Branch (194) on the CHL's all-time wins list. Carroll (11-6-3) currently leads in the league saves percentage and is tied for third in goals-against average.

Loose Pucks

The 'Bugs are a perfect 15-0 this year when they do not allow a powerplay goal.... Mudbugs players have combined for a total of 16 two-goal games this year without a single hat trick... D Scott Kalinchuk (1g, 1a) had his first career multi-point game Friday night... F Brett Smith snapped a seven game pointless streak with an assist Friday... F Mark Johnson played his 200th career game Friday... Mudbugs skaters were a combined +50 in their victories from Saturday and Sunday...

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.

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Central Hockey League Stories from February 22, 2010


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