The Wranglers did pick up a point falling to Lone Star 4-3 in a shootout on Friday. Amarillo then fell to Odessa 3-1 on Saturday and took a disappointing 6-3 defeat on New Year’s Eve on Tuesday night.

Amarillo closes out the 2024 portion of the schedule at 13-16-0-3 overall with 29 points sitting in seventh place of the North American Hockey League South Division.

The top six teams of the South Division will make the playoffs for the NAHL Robertson Cup national championship.

Amarillo is back on the road this weekend at Corpus Christi.

Friday’s game 

The Lone Star Brahmas struck first almost immediately after the game opening puck drop when forward Sexton Test smoked one past Amarillo goalie Charlie Zolin, giving them an early 1-0 lead.

With one of the most potent offenses in all of the NAHL, it appeared Lone Star made quick work of the Wranglers taking a 3-0 lead in the first period.

The Wranglers were able to battle back. Going into the second period, Amarillo forward Andrew Morton took matters into his own hands and scored two magnificent goals, tying up this game at 3-3.

However, at the 11:54 mark of the second period the Brahmas recaptured the lead when Camden Prier sniped one, giving the Brahmas a 4-3 lead going into the second intermission.

Under the eyes of a large and enthusiastic Amarillo hockey crowd and smelling another barn burner between these two great organizations, the energy was high as Arboga, Ontario native Alexander Aleslov scored his fifth goal of the season, forcing this game into overtime.

With both goalies standing on their heads throughout the five minute overtime, this game remained tied and moved into a shootout. In the shootout, Lonestar succeeded twice and closed this “barn burner” out with a 5-4 victory over the Amarillo Wranglers.

Saturday’s game 

In an awkward scheduling glitch, the much-improved Odessa Jackalopes made their way to the Budweiser Bullpen this Saturday night.

The Amarillo crowd still buzzing after the previous night’s barn burner, they eagerly anticipating another one. This would not be the case.

Midway through the first period, Jackalopes forward Hunter Toms gave Odessa the 1-0 lead going into the first intermission. Amarillo’s Morley Phillips scored his sixth goal of the season, tying this game up in the second frame. T

The Jackalopes scored two unanswered goals in the third period, giving Odessa a 3-1 victory.

Tuesday night’s game 

Amarillo has a rich and vibrant history on New Year’s Eve games spanning decades.

The hockey rabid fans were in full force this New Year’s Eve night at the Budweiser Bullpen.

With a disproportionate share of pomp and circumstances, Amarillo hit the ice looking to avenge the previous night’s loss.

In what can only be described as a triumphant homecoming for Amarillo native Austin Richards, Odessa Jackalopes’ first year Defenseman, the first Amarillo native to ever play in the NAHL started the scoring off at the 16:20 mark of the first period to give Odessa a 1-0 lead.

Amarillo‘s Trace Day was able to find the back of the net, tying this game up going into the first intermission. The New Year’s Eve revelers saw Amarillo take a brief lead as the stick man Trace Day scored his second goal of the evening, giving Amarillo a brief 2-1 lead.

There is no love lost between these two organizations as the intensity level was as high as the crowd.

Odessa went on in the second period to score 2 unanswered goals, giving them a 3-2 lead going into the last break. With the momentum shifting, Amarillo native Austin Richards put on a clinic for the Jackalopes.

With one of the best weekends in this young skater’s hockey history, Richards put up some magnificent numbers. Richards scored two more goals in the third period to give him his first Hat Trick in the North American Hockey League, scoring 5 points against Amarillo, and achieving the extremely rare defenseman Hat Trick. Austin Richards homecoming was a site to behold.

Homecoming 

Two Amarillo natives and products of the Amarillo ice sports organization made their way home this New Year’s Eve.

In a long-standing tradition of hockey, Amarillo has become a destination spot for hockey players throughout the world. With the advent of the Ice Ranch thus giving our community a second sheet of ice, Amarillo now is becoming a developmental point for hockey players.

Austin Richards, defenseman for the Odessa Jackalopes made a statement this past weekend by scoring five points and achieving one of the rarest feats for a defenseman in all of hockey by getting a hattrick.

This young man’s career started here in Amarillo as a Mite. Richards was featured on ESPN‘s Top 10 Plays of the Game when he scored a magnificent goal as a Pee-Wee playing for our local hockey program.

This was the first time that an Amarillo native was put on the national map, as Richards scored one of the most magnificent goals at any level at the Amarillo Civic Center.

Richards moved on to play in the AAA Car Shield series and had an amazing career. He was drafted by the Jackalopes and as they say “the rest is history.” Congratulations to Austin on his incredible accomplishment.

Marcello Tortoreo is an 11-year hockey veteran of Amarillo Ice Sports and was a teammate of Austin Richards throughout his youth hockey career.

Tortoreo opened up the New Year’s Eve festivities by skating out on the ice with his saxophone and for the first time in Amarillo history performed the National Anthem on skates playing saxophone. Tortoreo’s career with the Amarillo Ice Sports was a contributing factor in his gaining acceptance into a top 10 college in the country via Vanderbilt University.

Tortoreo is currently majoring in music performance and music education in the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt, while concurrently working on his master’s degree in music education.

Editor’s Note

Please listen for a special edition of Tommy Tee‘s weekly recap of the Amarillo Wranglers hockey on the “Drive at Five” with Lance Lahnert every Thursday afternoon at 5 p.m.  exclusively on 102.9 FM the Panhandle Sports Star.

We will have live in studio with Austin Richards, as well as other players who have moved on and made a national impact as a result of their participation in Amarillo Ice Sports.