NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, TX – The Lone Star Brahmas had a rough finish to their pre-season, losing 7-2 to Corpus Christi at home. The IceRays scored five second period goals and netminder Camden Burggrabe was stellar in net making 36 saves.
Defenseman Andrew Froese led the way with two goals for the IceRays. The Brahmas ended the first 20 minutes with the majority of chances, but the team’s defense could not keep the game close. Austin Smith allowed four goals on 16 shots in the first 30 minutes of game time. When Erik Gordon relieved Smith, he allowed two goals on two shots, and the IceRays rode that strong second period to a five-goal victory. Gordon stopped seven of ten shots in just over 22 minutes of game time.
The Brahmas veterans were noticeable again as John Zimmerman and Troy York each scored in the game. Out of the team’s eight pre-season goals, six of them came from returning skaters. After the game, the Brahmas and IceRays practiced 3-on-3 simulated overtime and York scored his second goal of the game 56 seconds into the overtime period thanks to a textbook 2-on-1 pass by Carson Kelley. After the overtime period, each team practiced the best-of-three shootout and Troy York scored the only goal of the shootout period in the sixth round to complete his three goal night. Austin Smith stopped all five shootout attempts he faced and Erik Gordon denied the first IceRay shooter.
The season opener is next Saturday, September 17th in Amarillo at 7:05 p.m. Be sure to follow the Brahmas on social media to stay up-to-date on all things Brahmaland. Single game tickets for the regular season will be going on sale in about a week. Lone Star’s home opener is set for October 8 at 7:30 p.m. against the Amarillo Bulls at the NYTEX Sports Centre.