NORTH RICHAND HILLS, TX – The Brahmas completed a road sweep of the Wichita Falls Wildcats over the weekend, posting a 5-1 victory on Friday night and a 5-3 victory on Saturday. With the sweep, Lone Star pushed their win streak to a NAHL season-high ten games and extended their already sizable lead in the South Division.
Austin Kamer continued to impress, scoring another three goals in the series to push his goal total to five this week.
Newcomer Anton Rubtsov was also a standout in his Brahmas debut, tallying three assists in two games played and showcasing very good vision and hands. His presence undoubtedly contributed to the biggest story of the weekend – the Brahmas power play.
After starting 2017 on a 3-for-25 cold spell, the power play exploded for eight goals in sixteen chances this weekend. Both power play units were clicking on all cylinders, with Austin Kamer (two goals), Troy York (two goals), Jakub Melisko (one goal), Hunter Stanley (one goal), Carson Kelley (one goal), and Justin Addamo (one goal) all cashing in on the man advantage in the two-game series.
Granted, the Wichita Falls penalty kill is among the worst in the NAHL, but batting .500 on the power play is no small feat, especially considering that the Brahmas were without top scorer Peter Kessel for both games.
Friday night was one of the best showings of the season for the Brahmas. The team showed no signs of bus legs, as they came flying out of the gate to outshoot the Wildcats 15-5 in the first period and never looked back.
Alec Calvaruso turned in another quality start for Lone Star, making 21 saves in the 5-1 victory to extend his personal winning streak to seven games, his longest of the season.
Saturday night was a little more harrowing, with the Wildcats taking an early lead.
That lead wasn’t too long-lived, however, as the Brahmas scored their first two power play goals of the game before the first period was over.
Unlike on Friday night, Wichita Falls was never fully out of the game, but the Brahmas capitalized on five of their nine power play chances and got plenty of offensive zone time on the other four. That stalled the Wildcats’ momentum and effectively smothered their chances of a comeback.
Max Prawdzik held down the fort in the Brahmas’ end, making 29 of 32 saves for the win and improving to 3-0-0 on the season.
Bolstered by the return of Kessel and a renewed confidence in their power play, the Brahmas will head to Topeka this weekend and look to further extend their ten-game win streak.