Shutout Friday, Split Earned Saturday
Published on November 12, 2012 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Wichita Falls Wildcats News Release
Offense was tough to come by on Friday for both the Wildcats and Jackalopes as the Jacks won 1-0 with the lone goal coming 12 seconds into the contest. Josh Racek took advantage of some poor defensive coverage, getting the puck and beating Evan Cowley top shelf for a 1-0 game. Cowley kept the Wildcats in if the rest of the way, stopping the next 22 shots he faced, but the offense was stymied by goalie Blake Wojtala, stopping 31 shots in his first NAHL shutout.
The Wildcats were already down to only five defensemen to start the game due to injuries, and only 1:30 in were forced down to four with a scary moment as a hit on Marshall Tema caused him to go headfirst into the boards, leaving him motionless on the ice. I was taken off the ice on a stretcher after fifteen minutes and taken to a local hospital. Fortunately, the diagnosis was only a concussion; according to trainers, he was responsive and had feeling and motion in all extremities even before leaving the arena. Eliot Grauer, normally a forward, was used for a few shifts on the blueline to help give a breather to the remaining four.
The Wildcats came back strong on Saturday, coming away with a 4-2 victory where they had a stretch of three straight goals in the second and third periods. For the second night in a row, the Jackalopes took an early lead from Racek getting the puck and scoring during a defensive breakdown. But this time, the Wildcats were able to fight back and in the second period, Conor O'Neil tied the game up from Grauer and Tyler Ledford for a 1-1 game. With under a minute left in the period, Kyle Bauman gave the Wildcats the lead with his team-best ninth goal of the season. Grauer and new defenseman Spencer Roth picked up the assists.
Midway through the third period, Eliot Grauer picked up a goal to go with his two assists, blasting a one-timer from the high slot off a pass from Erik Ouellette for a 3-1 score. The Jackalopes proved they were far from dead though: 25 seconds later defenseman Tyler Minx ripped off a quick wrister from the top of the circles for a 3-2 game. But Cowley and the Wildcats' defense held strong through to the final minute as Grauer picked up his fourth point of the night, scoring an empty-net goal with 1:04 left to seal the deal at 4-2. He nearly added a second empty-netter for a hat trick with about 20 seconds left, but hit the post from the red line. Cowley stopped 27 of 29 Odessa shots in the victory.
NOTES: The Wildcats had a total of four players out of the lineup with concussions on Saturday. The struggling penalty killing units had a big weekend, stopping all 8 Odessa powerplays it faced. Tema was held in the hospital in Odessa for two nights for observation; there is currently no timetable set for his return to hockey-related activities. Saturday's win was the first Wildcats' win in regulation over Odessa, and first win of any sort over them since December 2, 2011. Two veterans were out of the lineup over the weekend for the Jackalopes: Taylor Portner was serving two games of a five-game suspension for leaving the bench to enter an altercation two weeks ago against Topeka, while Jalen Krogman was out with an injury siffered last week against texas.
Preview: Wildcats vs. Kenai River, November 16-17
The Wildcats finally return home after seven straight on the road, facing the Kenai River Brown Bears for a two game series this weekend. The Wildcats are 0-2 against the Bears this season, dropping a pair of games during the previous seven-game road swing.
The Brown Bears are led by Matt Seidel and Lucas Kohls. Seidel leads the team in points (22) and assists (13), while each have a team-leading nine goals. Gustaf Johansson has spent most of the time in goal, going 8-4-2 with a 2.52 GAA and .912 save percentage. The team's enforcer is Chris Nuth with 51 PIM on the season. Kenai River is currently third in the NAHL's West Division with a 9-8-3 record for 21 points. They trail second-place Fairbanks by seven points and division-leading Wenatchee by eight.
Upcoming Wildcats' Events
FRIDAY FRIDAY FRIDAY!!! Our annual Military Appreciation Night is here! All military members (active or retired) and their families get free tickets to the game. The puck drops at 7:15 against Kenai River. Plus, the Wildcats will be wearing special military-themed jerseys which will be raffled off. Plus, new for this year, if you are out of town or can't make the game, you can still get raffle tickets! Call the Wildcats' office at 940-716-5587 and talk to Jennifer to get entered into your favorite player's jersey raffle. Tickets are $1 each, six for $5, 12 for $10, or 25 for $20.
We're on the air! Join us for the Wildcats' Coaches' Radio Show at our new show host, El Mejicano on Wednesdays at 7 pm. The Voice of the Wildcats, Drew Pelto, will interview the Wildcats' coaches and your favorite Wildcats' players. If you can't get to the show, tune in on the radio at 7:30 pm on 94.9, KOLI, The Outlaw. All in attendance wearing a Wildcats' jersey will get 20% off!
Get out on the ice! We have open skating every Sunday in October and November from 3-5 pm. It's $8 including skate rental, or $6 if you bring your own skates. We also offer birthday party packages at a Wildcats game or an open skating session. Any questions about our ice programs? Contact Sarah Scrivner in the Wildcats office.
Become a fan on Facebook! Get all our updates at http://www.facebook.com/WFWildcats
And don't forget to follow us on Twitter @WFWildcats!
Alumni Report
Cal Heeter picked up the victory on Friday as Adirondack beat Rochester 2-1 in AHL action. Heeter stopped 25 of 26 shots.
Chad Costello's name is pretty much set in stone in the weekly alumni report. This week, he had two assists on Wednesday, a goal and an assist on Friday, and a hat trick on Friday, taking over the ECHL's lead in scoring. The Colorado Eagles beat the Utah Grizzlies in all three games (10-1, 6-3, and 6-2, respectively).
Continuing in the ECHL, Kyle Kraemer had a goal and an assist as the Ontario Reign beat the San Francisco Bulls 7-0 on Saturday.
Former Wildcats' enforcer Andrew Conboy currently leads the ECHL in penalty minutes with 72 in 11 games played.
Brett Kaneshiro picked up a pair of assists in Curry's 5-3 win over Becker on Saturday.
Zach Josepher scored a goal and had an assist in SUNY-Oswego's 5-4 OT win over Morrisville on Friday.
Peter Emery allowed only one goal, stopping 16 of 17 shots as Lawrence trounced Northland 10-1 on Friday.
Brandon Stroud scored two goals and added an assist in a pair of wins for Western New England on Tuesday and Thursday.
North American Hockey League Stories from November 12, 2012
- Minotauros at Spicy Pie Wednesday - Minot Minotauros
- Knochenmus Stuffs Stat Sheet, Nets Weekly Award - Bismarck Bobcats
- IceRays Ink Texas Native Stovall as First Tender - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Rays' Report #9: Weekend Split with Texas - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Aberdeen Wings Weekly - Aberdeen Wings
- Shutout Friday, Split Earned Saturday - Wichita Falls Wildcats
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