Wray Leads Way Over Odessa

Published on March 6, 2006 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Amarillo Gorillas News Release


AMARILLO, TX - Scott Wray delivered the much-desired punch to knockout the Odessa Jackalopes on Sunday at The Jungle as the winger scored his ninth game-winning goal of the year with just 6.9 seconds left as the Gorillas defeated their division-rivals 3-2 in front of a crowd of 2,613. Joe Guenther and Rich Hansen each scored power-play goals and net-minder Jamie Vandespyker stopped 29 of 31 shots for his second straight win.

This heated rivalry began fast and physical, but yielded no goals for either team. The Gorillas did show a magnificent penalty kill in the opening frame, swiftly killing off a double minor from Jason Chafe in the closing minutes and stopping all three penalties-faced. The Jackalopes out-shot the Gorillas 14-7 in the period.

The second period produced a much different result. Just over five minutes in and with Amarillo on the power-play, a perimeter pass from captain Mark DeSantis found Trevor Read just inside the blue-line. The defenseman wound up and fired towards Odessa goaltender Mike Gorman and had his attempt deflected in by Guenther. The opening goal came at 5:16 of the second period and gave the Gorillas the lead 1-0. For Guenther, the goal was his 24th and 42nd point.

Odessa would waste little time, though, in tying up the game. Just 2:42 later, Odessa's Sebastian Thinel faked out Vandespyker and passed off to Mike Rutter for an open-net goal. The score equalized the game at 1-1.

Amarillo would not be denied the lead as time in the frame wound down. Again on the power-play and on the offensive attack, passes from Keith Rowe and Kevin Wilson set-up Hansen beautifully. The rookie put in his 12th goal of the season and gave the lead back to the Gorillas 2-1 with just under six minutes remaining in the second.

The Gorillas were able to turn the tables on Odessa in the shots battle, winning the period 21-10.

A strange series of passes from Odessa's Dominic Leveille and Paul Davies set-up acting-captain Matt Cressman for a shot right in front of Vandespyker. The goalie was able to deflect the shot, but couldn't prevent it from entering the net. The second Odessa goal tied the game at 2-2 with 12:38 left in regulation.

It seemed that the game was destined for overtime with the contest still tied with under a minute to play. With just seconds remaining, DeSantis passed off to Central Hockey League points-and-assist-leader Derek Hahn behind Vandespyker's net. The center weaved through the neutral zone into his offensive end before passing off to Wray on the right post. The winger saw his opening, fired and scored with just 6.9 seconds remaining, giving the Gorillas the lead 3-2 The goal gave Wray his 32nd of the season in just 41 games. The helpers were Hahn's 66th and 97th point while DeSantis earned his 30th assist, his second of the night, and 41st point.

Amarillo was able to finish off the final ticks to earn its third consecutive division win.

Gorillas goaltender Jamie Vandespyker was brilliant in the victory, stopping 29 of 31 shots-faced and improved his record to 11-9-1. Odessa's all-star goalie Mike Gorman was also stellar facing 40 shots and letting in three goals for the loss.

Penalty minutes were low for both teams as the Gorillas were assessed 14 minutes while the Jackalopes were given 12. The penalty kill was perfect for Amarillo, preventing goals in all six disadvantages. The power-play was just as good for Amarillo, scoring twice on five opportunities.

With the win, the Gorillas improve to 27-23-3 for 57 points, remaining in second place in the Southwest division, nine points ahead of Lubbock who was idle and 11 behind the Jackalopes. In the playoff race, Amarillo moves into fourth place in the Southern Conference, tied with the also idle Rio Grande Valley who the Gorillas currently own a tie-breaker against. Austin remains six points ahead after its 4-2 win at Fort Worth. The Gorillas have a game-in-hand on Odessa and four on Austin.

Notes...Odessa came into the game tied for the best penalty kill in the league with Laredo but Amarillo scored on the power-play twice in five chances. The penalty kill has not allowed a goal against Odessa in the past eleven disadvantages spanning three games ... Wray's game-winner is the winger's ninth of the year and second in as many games, tying him for the CHL lead with Youngstown's Jeff Christian. The winger is riding a five-game points-streak, totaling six points on four goals and two assists ... Hahn has seven assists over his last four games ... Hansen's goal was his first in regulation since the forward scored against Wichita on January 27th ... The top five point-scorers for the Gorillas all had points: Hahn (97), Wray (64), Guenther (42) DeSantis (40, 41) and Hansen (37) ... Vandespyker's win over Odessa was just his first of the year in six opportunities ... The Jackalopes were without veteran defenseman Scott Hillman, who missed his third straight game due to injury ... Second-year Jacks forward Paul Davies arrived in Amarillo just prior to the game after flying in from Ottawa, where he was taking his medical entrance exam ... The win marks the third consecutive within the division and sixth home victory in their last seven tries ... The Gorillas are now 5-6-0 on the year against the Jackalopes, 5-1-0 at The Jungle ... Playoff-foe Austin has played the two teams with the least amount of points (Fort Worth and Memphis) 12 times. The Ice Bats are 2-1 against Memphis and 7-1 when playing Fort Worth. They face the River Kings once more but do not see the Brahmas again. Amarillo does not play Memphis this season and has met Fort Worth only once - a 5-3 win on December 4, 2005. Both the Brahmas and the River Kings are in the Northern Conference.

Amarillo Gorillas Hockey Presented by NewsChannel 10 will be broadcast on 1440 AM The Score Friday night from the Kansas Coliseum with Gorillas Pre-Game set to begin at 6:45 pm. The game will also be available at www.amarillogorillas.com and on CHLTV (www.chltv.com).

The Gorillas travel to Wichita Thursday to take on the fellow playoff-hunting Thunder at 7:05 pm on Friday and then travel to Tulsa Saturday to battle the Oilers at 7:35 pm. Amarillo returns to the Cal Farley Coliseum on Sunday to play host to playoff-hopeful Rio Grande Valley at 6 pm.

Great seats are still available to all upcoming home games! Tickets for Gorillas games can be purchased at the Gorillas Hockey Office, located at 1934 Civic Circle off of I-40 and Georgia, the Civic Center Box Office and all Panhandle Ticket Outlets. These include Randy's Music Mart, the West Texas Event Center in Canyon and United Supermarkets. Tickets can also be charged by phone at (806) 378-3096 or (806) 242-PUCK (7825).

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Central Hockey League Stories from March 6, 2006


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