CORPUS CHRISTI, TX – In a game which featured 119 penalty minutes, the Topeka RoadRunners came away with a 6-3 victory over the Corpus Christi IceRays on Friday night at the American Bank Center. With the win, the ‘Runners move their record to 22-8-2 (46 points) while the IceRays drop to 13-19-2 (28 points). Corpus Christi is now on a four-game losing streak.
Michael Benedict, Colton Saucerman, and Josh Obregon each had two-point nights for the IceRays in the loss. Anton Olsson made his first start in net for the IceRays.
Both teams scored power-play goals early in the first period. Topeka tallied their first goal, 1:30 into the opening period, as Trevor Campbell (1) poked a loose puck past Anton Olsson. The IceRays tied the game on a power play of their own as Josh Obregon (4) stuffed a Michael Benedict pass through Rasmus Tirronen at the 3:41 mark. The ‘Runners responded with two goals to take a 3-1 lead. Ryan White (10) made it 2-1 for Topeka at the 12:51 mark when his slap shot from the right point beat Olsson who was screened and knocked down prior to the shot’s arrival. The RoadRunners increased their lead to 3-1, 17:41 into the period, as Justin Hussar (18) completed a two-on-one breakout with a backdoor wrist-shot tally past Olsson. Corpus Christi outshot Topeka 15-12.
Corpus Christi cut the deficit in half, 3-2, with their second power-play goal when Benedict (18) snuck a tough angle shot past Tirronen, 4:44 into the second period. Obregon collected his second point of the night with an assist. The RoadRunners regained their two-goal lead, 18:44 into the period, as Bryan Christie’s centering pass was redirected past Olsson by Nate Milam (11). Tempers flared at the 19:00 mark which resulted in the ejection of Cody Milligan for instigating a fight and a combined 53 minutes of penalties. The IceRays held the shot advantage, 16-8.
Topeka extended their lead to three, 5-2, in the third period on the ensuing five-minute power play when Zach Schrotenboer (4) tallied his second of the week at the 2:55 mark. The IceRays scored their third power-play goal of the night at the 6:02 mark when Colton Saucerman’s blast from the blue line snuck through the glove of Tirronen to make the score 5-3. Corpus Christi appeared to have scored their fourth goal on the power play minutes later, but it was ruled that Joey Parizek had put the puck in as a result of a high stick. Andrew O’Leary (6) added an empty-net goal to finish the scoring at 6-3 for Topeka. Final shots were 41-30 for the IceRays. Corpus Christi went 3-12 on the power play while Topeka was 3-3 with the man advantage.
THREE STARS OF THE GAME:
- Justin Hussar (1-2-3)
- Nate Milam (1-1-2, GWG)
- Colton Saucerman (1-1-2)
Saturday night is Boy Scouts Night at the American Bank Center with a special start time at 7:45 PM. It is the final time the IceRays will face the RoadRunners at the American Bank Center. Fans can catch the pre-game show on the flagship home of the IceRays, News/Talk 1440 KEYS, www.1440KEYS.com, with the voice of the IceRays, Ryan Holt, beginning at 7:30 PM. The game will be available online through the league’s pay-per-view website, www.fasthockey.com. For more information call the Rays’ front office at 361.814.PUCK (7825) or crash the net at www.goicerays.com.
“THE NEW ICERAYS…TOMORROW’S STARS”