Wildcats Roll Through 'Rays to Complete Sweep
December 6, 2014 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Wichita Falls Wildcats News Release
WICHITA FALLS, Texas - Behind four points from Shane Kuzmeski and goals from eight different skaters, the Wichita Falls Wildcats skated to an 8-2 win over the Corpus Christi IceRays to complete the weekend sweep at the Kay Yeager Coliseum on Saturday night.
Kuzmeski tallied a goal and three assists in the win, and Max Reisinger notched his second three-point game of the weekend (one goal, two assists). Kevin Charyszyn, Evan Okeley and Cam Knight all had a goal and an assist in the win, while Matt Koch and Austin Beaulieu notched a pair of helpers. Austin Albrecht and Erich Jaeger also found twine for the Wildcats in the win, while Johnathan Lazarus, Jake Townsend and Paul Soubry each had an assist as well. In net, Austin Shaw made 22 saves on 24 shots to earn his 11th win of the season in the triumph.
Just as in Friday's contest, Wichita Falls carried the play from the opening puck drop, and raced out to a three-goal advantage before the end of the first.
Albrecht opened the scoring just over halfway into the frame in somewhat unexpected fashion. With Corpus Christi on the power play, the 'Cats forced a turnover right off a faceoff. Charyszyn fought through a check to free his stick, and chipped the disc forward for Albrecht to race onto. Albrecht skated in uncontested on Andrew Lindgren, before beating him through the wickets for his fifth goal of the year.
Minutes later, Wichita Falls capitalized on a power play opportunity of their own. Townsend held the zone at the left point, and slung the puck to the right-wing corner for Reisinger to retrieve. Before the 'Rays penalty kill could reset, Reisinger centered for Okeley to direct home. The goal, coming at 14:27 of the frame, was Okeley's seventh of the year and extended the Wildcats' streak of consecutive games with a power-play goal to 12.
As the first wound to a close, the 'Cats tacked on another to make it 3-0. This time Okeley turned provider, skating into the zone on the right-wing wall and centering for Jaeger, who tucked it into the net for his third tally of the season.
In the second, the red-and-black used a pair of goals from the blue line to push their lead to 5-0. Just after killing off an IceRays power play, the Wildcats raced up the ice in transition. An outlet pass hit Beaulieu fresh out of the penalty box, and he skated into the zone along the left side. From the half-wall, Beaulieu played a feed to Knight racing over the blue line, and Knight whistled a wrist shot into the net to make it 4-0.
Next it was Kuzmeski's turn to get in the goal column as Wichita Falls grabbed its second shorthanded tally of the night. After forcing a turnover, Reisinger quarterbacked a two-on-one rush with Kuzmeski to his right. Reisinger's shot was saved by Lindgren, but the rebound was left at the top of the crease for Kuzmeski to tuck home for his fourth goal of the season.
Corpus Christi tallied a pair of power play goals in the third to break up Shaw's shutout bid, but the 'Cats posted three in the frame as well to put the result to bed. Charyszyn scored his team-leading 14th goal of the year in the stanza, and Apap notched a man-advantage marker for his third this season, before Reisinger capped off the 8-2 win with his third of the weekend as time expired.
The Wildcats are next in action when they travel to Hidalgo to take on the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees on Dec. 12 and 13. Puck drop is slated for 7:30 p.m., with video coverage available on FASTHockey.com, and an audio-only broadcast available via YouTube.
Single-game tickets for the 2014-15 Wildcats season are on sale now at the Kay Yeager Coliseum box office. Stay updated on the latest team news and notes by connecting with the Wildcats on Facebook (WFWildcats), Twitter (@WFWildcats), Instagram (WFWildcats) and on YouTube (Wichita Falls Wildcats).
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North American Hockey League Stories from December 6, 2014
- Kielly Shines Bright in Shootout Win - Austin Bruins
- Kielly Shines Bright in Shootout Win - Austin Bruins
- IceRays Taken out by Wildcats, 8-2 - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Wildcats Roll Through 'Rays to Complete Sweep - Wichita Falls Wildcats
- Wild Take Rivalry-Fueled Game 2 with 3-2 Final - Wenatchee Wild
- Wings Drop 4th Straight, 3-2 SO Loss - Aberdeen Wings
- Bulls Beat Jacks 4-3 - Amarillo Bulls
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