NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, TEXAS – The Corpus Christi IceRays (4-0-1) rebounded from last night’s loss with a 3-0 blanking of the Lone Star Brahmas (4-1-0) on Saturday night at the NYTEX Sports Centre in Game 2 of the South Division Finals to even the series 1-1 and force Game 4.
The first period had a very different feel compared to the first night, and the IceRays came out firing and found two early tallies. IceRays defenseman Cody Fleckenstein buried a one-time shot in the high slot coming from forward Griffin Loughran at 3:02 to hop out to a 1-0 lead. The IceRays kept the pressure going, and at 13:38 of the frame IceRays forward Nathan Bryer snapped a shot from the left circle that snuck under the crossbar to double the lead, 2-0.
Five penalties against the IceRays nearly handcuffed them in the second period including a 5-on-3 penalty kill, however the IceRays were able to hold them off and add another tally to their total. At 8:21, Baskerville found a loose puck in the left circle and somehow snuck a shot through traffic to triple the lead, 3-0. The Brahmas pulled netminder Max Prawdzik after that goal, giving way to Alec Calvaruso for his 2017 postseason debut.
The Brahmas threw numbers to the net as often as they could in the final period, which included pulling Calvaruso for an extra skater before reaching midway through the frame. However, the IceRays held firm defensively to keep them off the scoreboard and force the first shutout against the Brahmas this season in a 3-0 win.
IceRays netminder Tomáš Vomáčka (4-0-1) earned his second shutout win of the playoffs with a 36-save effort. Prawdzik (4-1-0) recorded the loss, stopping 16 of 19 shots in 28:21 minutes, and Calvaruso halted all 10 shots in relief. The IceRays head to their neutral site home venue at the Dr. Pepper StarCenter in McKinney, Texas on Tuesday, May 2 at 7:15 p.m. for Game 3 of the 2017 South Division Final against the Brahmas. Tickets are available on-site the day of the game or by emailing tickets@goicerays.com for your request. Coverage begins at 7:00 p.m. on SportsRadio Corpus Christi and Hockey TV.
Rise with the IceRays as their quest for the Robertson Cup continues in the South Division Finals, and get ready for next season with a 2017-18 IceRays Season Membership. Call the IceRays at 361-814-PUCK to reserve your seat for next season. In addition, stay connected with the IceRays on Facebook (/CorpusChristiIceRays), Twitter (@goicerays), YouTube (IceRays TV), Instagram (CorpusChristiIceRays), Snapchat (@goicerays), and Periscope (@goicerays).