Lone Star Brahmas (20-10-5-2, 47pts) vs. Odessa Jackalopes (21-14-1-2, 45pts)
at Ector County Coliseum in Odessa, TX
Time: 7:15 p.m. CDT
Broadcast: (Home) HockeyTV | Listen Live Here
What You Need to Know:
Season Series: 1-2-0-2
Leading Scorers:
LOS: 43pts, Niemo (22g-21a)
ODA: 27pts, Goode (11g-16a)
Three Straight:
Tomorrow begins game one of a 3-in-3 series for both Odessa and Lone Star. However, they will only play one another tomorrow. The Jacks will host Corpus Christi on Friday and Saturday. The Brahmas will travel to El Paso to play the Rhinos for the rest of the weekend. Lone Star is in second place and two points ahead of Odessa in the South Division standings. The IceRays are tied with Amarillo for fifth at 40 points. Both of those teams are one point behind Wichita Falls, which holds the last playoff spot. After this 3-in-3 series, the Jacks will travel to Corpus Christi, TX to play the IceRays for three straight days. This weekend marks the third 3-in-3 series this season for the Jacks. They are 2-3-0-1 when playing three-straight games and have only won the final game of each 3-in-3 series. This is also the first time this season the Jacks are playing two different teams during a weekend series.
Nail-biter:
The Brahmas have the lowest goal differential (7) out of the four South Division teams currently in a playoff spot. They are tied with Shreveport for the second-fewest goals allowed in the division (98). Their 105 goals are the fifth-most among South teams. Lone Star has had 19 of their 37 games this season be decided by one goal (11-1-5-2). The Jacks have had 17 of their 38 games end with a difference of one goal (9-5-1-2). All five games between Odessa and Lone Star this season have been decided by one goal. Odessa is third in their division in goals scored (124) and goals allowed (114).
Defense:
Lone Star allows the second-fewest goals in the NAHL with 2.65. They also allow the fewest shots at 22.46. The Brahmas have only had a total of 844 shots against all season which is the lowest in the league. For comparison, Shreveport has the second-fewest with 993. Odessa is tied for 12th in goals against (3.00) and allows an average of 34.32 shots per game which is the sixth most in the NAHL. The most goals the Jacks have scored against Lone Star in a single game this season are four, and they have done that twice.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
Brahmas (F: #25 – Artur Turansky)
The Bratislava, SVK native is in his second season in the NAHL. His rookie season was in 2019-20 and he played for Corpus Christi IceRays and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights. He played 15 games (3g, 3a) for the IceRays and 30 games (12g, 13a) for the Knights. Last season Turansky played for KOOVEE U20 (SM-sarja) in Finland (6gp, 3g, 4a). The 20-year-old is in his final year of junior eligibility and is second on the team in points. Not only is the Miami University commit averaging a point-per-game, but he leads the team in assists (22) and is second in goals (15). The 5’11”/175lb. left-handed forward is tied with Kyle Furey at three for the most game-winning goals on the team. Turansky has played in all five games against the Jacks (2a). He has one goal and four assists in his last five games. He earned South Division Star of the Week for November 8-14, 2021, after scoring a hat trick and picking up an assist in a weekend series against Shreveport.
Jackalopes (F: #26 – Chris Duclair)
The native of Dollard-des-Ormeaux, QC is in his rookie season in the NAHL. The 19-year-old is committed to the Rochester Institute of Technology. The 5’7”/170lb. left-handed forward currently leads the team in goals (14) and is second in points (26). Duclair is tied with Trevor Taulien for the most short-handed goals on the team (3). He is also tied with two other teammates for the most game-winning goals at three. His shooting percentage of 17.9% is the second-best on the team. Prior to reaching the NAHL, Duclair played for the Hampton Roads Whalers (USPHL). He played 15 games for them and recorded 18 points (6g). From 2018-20, Duclair played for Lac St-Louis Lions (QMAAA) and ended with 33 points (19g) in 81 games. In his previous five games, Dulcair has scored once and assisted on two. Duclair has one goal in the five games against Lone Star this season.
