SHREVEPORT, TX — For the Odessa Jackalopes, Saturday night was a little too much deja vu in the land of voodoo. The Jackalopes (4-5-2-0) fell to the Shreveport Mudbugs (8-1-1-0) 3-2 in overtime for the second straight night in a row at George’s Pond at Hirsch Coliseum.
Just like Friday night the Jacks started off strong and dominated the first period of play. They picked up the first goal of the game off the stick from forward Joey Musa off of a shot just off the half-wall. Musa’s second of the weekend put Odessa up 1-0 early in the period. The Jackalopes added on to their lead thanks to Ben Doherty’s hard shot in the slot that beat Shreveport goalie Cole Hudson high over the glove later in the period.
Odessa goaltender Connor Hasley made several good saves to keep the Mudbugs off the board, including one that robbed Shreveport forward Lukas Sedlacheck from a sure goal right on the doorstep.
The Jacks took their best lead of the weekend into the second period and saw good chances in the middle frame but a freak power-play goal that deflected in off of two Jackalopes in front trimmed their lead to 2-1.
In the third period Odessa saw numerous chances to extend their lead. At points they effectively laid siege to Hudson and the Mudbugs, but despite plenty of excellent chances, they could not find a way past Hudson.
Shreveport was able to tie the game on a point shot in the late stages of the third period and, despite some good chances from the Jackalopes, they were unable to re-take the lead before regulation time expired and overtime was upon the Jackalopes for the second time in as many nights.
In overtime, much like Friday night, the Jackalopes handled the puck well and had several opportunities the score. The best chance came as Musa streaked in on a breakaway but was hauled down from behind which resulted in a penalty shot for the Jacks. Despite a quick deke and shot by Musa, he could not find the back of the net.
A few minutes later, the Mudbugs capitalized as the Jackalopes defense became turned around in their own zone and Shreveport forward Dawson Sciarrino made a great individual effort low in the slot to lift the puck over Hasley and score the game winner.
The loss marks the second straight in overtime for the Jackalopes in games in which they not only out-shot their opponent (39-34 on Saturday) but also played well enough to win the game. The Jackalopes power play was held off the scoreboard and went zero-for-two while the Jackalopes penalty kill skated off two-of-three Shreveport power plays. Though the Jackalopes got two points on the road this weekend, it was a tough way to get them.
Odessa will close out the 2020 calendar year at home against the division-leading Lone Star Brahmas starting on Thursday, December 17 for the first of a three-game series at the Ector County Coliseum.
