Saturday Scores: Amarillo Battles at Home to Secure Tight 5-4 Victory

New Mexico 5 @ Odessa 2 - As the Ice Wolves continue their road trip in Texas, the Jackalopes are hungry to respond to a Friday night loss. New Mexico immediately took the lead with Nayan Pai scoring 30 seconds into the frame. The Ice Wolves would double their lead less than a minute later, this time with Tyler Hess finding twine. The contest moved into the second period, and the Jackalopes would cut the Ice Wolves' lead in half with Nicholas Puricelli scoring at the 6:31 minute mark. With the contest tight, it was shaping out to be an exciting third period. The scoring would pick back up in the final six minutes of the game. New Mexico’s alternate captain Sean Gibbons would light the lamp for the Ice Wolves, giving them a 3-1 lead. Following behind him two minutes later was Cayden Joramo, scoring. He added insurance to New Mexico’s lead. However, Odessa would strike back with Puricelli scoring his second of the night. However, it would not be enough. New Mexico’s Pai lit the lamp once again for the Ice Wolves, helping to lift his team to a decisive 5-2 victory. Despite the Jackalopes outshooting New Mexico 44 to 26, it would be New Mexico’s netminder Conner Roff standing tall between the pipes with a 42-save performance. 

Lone Star 6 @ Corpus Christi 3 - The Lone Star Brahmas headed South to take on the Corpus Christi IceRays for a Saturday night showdown. The contest kicked off with the young newcomer for the Brahmas, Loic Nasreddine, scoring his first junior goal at the 16:35 minute mark to give his team the lead. However, the IceRays would strike back with an unassisted goal by assistant captain Johnny Maruna. Following that equalizer, Lone Star would score again a little over a minute later. Leo Isaksson would score his ninth of the season. The eventful first period would continue with a back-and-forth battle. This time, Easton Swift would tally a goal for the IceRays at the 5:24 minute mark. However, it would be Lone Star to light the lamp for the last time in the frame with Army commit Vincenzo Capano scoring and giving the Brahmas the 3-2 lead. As the contest moved into the middle frame, it would not be as offensively crazy as the first frame. Less than two minutes into the period, Lone Star’s Jackson Vaites would show up on the scoresheet, extending his team’s lead to 4-2. The matchup would continue into the final period and would feature a sliver of what the first period saw. Lone Star’s Nasreddine would score his second of the night, this time less than two minutes into the period. Following him less than six minutes later was Corpus Christi’s Andrej Paricka, scoring, looking to change the momentum for his team. However, the Brahmas would tally one more with Dylan McFadden scoring midway through the final frame. Lone Star would skate away with a 6-3 victory. This contest was a penalty affair between both teams; however, neither was able to convert on the power play. 

Oklahoma 4 @ Shreveport 2 - After falling in a shutout fashion the night before, Oklahoma was looking to respond to the Mudbugs. The matchup featured a goal-scoring affair in the first frame. Shreveport would light the lamp first, thanks to former Louisiana Driller, Jonathon Berndt, finding twine. Following that early goal, the Warriors got to work and showed why they have been road warriors in December. The scoring frenzy started with Oklahoma’s John Kelley scoring short-handed at the 15:54 minute mark. A little over five minutes later, Jackson Hone would double the lead for the Warriors. In the final minutes of the opening period, Oklahoma’s leading scorer, Kyle Sorensen, scored on the man advantage to give his team a 3-1 lead. Finally, with two minutes of the clock, Hone would produce his first two-goal game with a tally. Following that first period, Shreveport’s netminder, Tyler Hodges, was pulled, and Ethan Phillips finished playing between the pipes. The matchup moved into the second period, and Shreveport was able to cut the Warriors’ lead in half. Chase Secriskey would light the lamp at the 5:10 minute mark to tighten up the score for the Mudbugs. Finally, the game moved into the final 20 minutes and regulation, and it was the complete opposite of what was featured in the first period. Both teams traded chances; however, neither was able to score. While the Mudbugs outshot the Warriors 38-27, it would be Oklahoma’s netminder Billy Stuski skating away with a 36-save victory for his team.

El Paso 4 @ Amarillo 5 - Skating into this contest, the Rhinos have had Amarillo’s number, winning three out of four games played against each other this season. The matchup featured a back-and-forth battle between the teams during this affair. The contest kicked off with Amarillo finding twine first, with Jake Boulanger lighting the lamp at the 16:41 minute mark in the opening frame. A little over 10 minutes later, El Paso would even the score with Brendan Murray showing up on the scoresheet. Two minutes following that, Amarillo’s Caden Hegarty would give the Wranglers the lead with an unassisted tally at the 3:09 minute mark. The scoring would not stop there. El Paso’s Tommy Shore would score a power-play goal in buzzer-beater fashion to even the score 2-2 heading into the second period. The middle frame featured Amarillo’s Boulanger tallying his second of the night midway through the frame. Following that, a little over 45 seconds later, Hegarty would score his second of the night for the Wranglers. Amarillo featured a 4-2 lead as they moved into the final 20 minutes of regulation. The Rhinos would get to work and even the score. El Paso’s captain, Kamden Kaiser, would score two on the power play within two minutes of each other midway through the period. Despite this third-period push, the Wranglers would come out victorious when Kirill Evstigneev scored the game-winning goal at the 6:23 minute mark of the third period.