The Wranglers opened the series on Friday getting a 4-1 win, however, were blanked 3-0 on Saturday. Amarillo is still in good shape as far as the playoffs go sitting in fourth place in the South Division standings at 24-14-5-2 (55 points).
The Wranglers now return home to continue their games with El Paso on Friday and Saturday at the Budweiser Bullpen with the puck dropping at 7:15 p.m. each night.
Friday Night
Under the tutelage of first-year head coach Ryan Anderson, one might assume the team was well aware and focused on ending its two-game losing streak.
This game had the feel of an old-school heavyweight fight. The energy level inside the arena was measurable as the Wranglers and Rhinos traded barbs in a scoreless first period. Coming out of the first intermission and at the 17:10 mark of the second period, fan favorite and youth hockey coach volunteer Luke Morris scored his sixth goal of the season.
The second period was textbook Amarillo Wrangler hockey – physical, aggressive, and transitional – when at the 9:20 mark of the second period Roman Zap found the back of the net, unassisted for his 14th goal on the year.
Zap’s growth this season has been exciting to watch. His organic growth into leadership is evident on the ice. His numbers compared to last year are a true gauge of his growth. Thus far in the season, Zap has earned a total of 40 points, eclipsing his total of 23 points last season.
Luke Morris found the back of the net yet again at the 4:53 mark of the second period to score his seventh goal of the season, giving the Amarillo Wranglers a 3-1 lead going into the second intermission. Defense was the name of the game until the 4:31 mark of the third period when Rhino forward Camden Bajzer sniped one past Amarillo goalie Connor McDonough to make things interesting.
With just a little over two minutes left in the game, Rhino head coach Joe Coombs pulled his goalie an attempt to give the Rhinos the extra fire power, to no avail. McDonough saved 14-of-15 shots to register his 20th victory of the season.
Saturday night
The El Paso Rhinos were able to score in each period while the Wranglers struggled to find the back of the net. The Rhinos skated to a 3-0 victory to widen their lead over the Amarillo Wranglers to five points.
NAHL Top Prospects Tournament
The Amarillo Wranglers participants at this year’s Top Prospects Tournament at the Lemieux Center in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania represented our community with grace and results.
The Top Prospect Tournament is a gathering of college and NHL scouts to get an up-close and personal view of these student athletes. The Amarillo brigade of players contributed mightily to this tournament. Wranglers associate captain and defenseman Kyle DeMarco played masterfully. Finland, native and Wrangler forward Topi Puikkonen was able to score a goal in the second game of the tournament. German-Ukrainian native Roman Zap also scored a goal that was awarded the No. 1 Play of the Tournament. Congratulations to Roman Zap on this amazing goal.
What’s to come for the 2024 NAHL Robertson Cup chase
The NAHL recently announced its playoff format for this year’s National Championship Tournament.
The South Division will have six participants in the tournament. The No. 3-seed will play the No. 6-seed and the No. 4-seed will take on No. 5-seed in a best-of-three series with the higher seed hosting.
The No. 1 and No. 2-seeds will receive a bye. The semifinals and finals will be a best-of-five protocol with the NAHL Robinson Cup Championship games being held in Minnesota in late May.
Editor’s Note
Please listen for 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.