Odessa Jackalopes (14-14-0-1, 29pts) vs. Amarillo Wranglers (15-12-2-1, 33pts)
at Budweiser Bull Pen in Amarillo, TX
Time: Friday 7:15 p.m. CDT | Saturday 7:15 p.m. CDT
Broadcast: (Away) HockeyTV | Listen Live Here
What You Need to Know:
All-Time Record: 8-4
Season Series: 3-1
Leading Scorers:
ODA: 28pts, Mansfield (14G, 14A)
AMW: 27pts, Davis (10G, 17A)
Halfway Point:
This weekend’s first game will mark the halfway point of the season for the Jackalopes. As for Amarillo, they have already played 30 games and are sitting four points ahead of Odessa. The Wranglers are 4-4-2 in their previous ten contests whereas the Jacks are 7-3. Odessa is coming off a sweep against Corpus Christi while Amarillo was recently swept by Oklahoma. The Jackalopes will not face an opponent lower than them in the standings until the IceRays on Feb. 17-18. Amarillo has registered the fifth-most goals in the South at 86 and Odessa has the sixth-most with 84. The final two games between these two teams will be in Odessa (Apr. 14-15) and it will conclude the regular season for both squads.
Scoreboard:
Odessa has allowed at least three goals in each of their previous four games. Amarillo has not scored more than three goals in any of its last five contests. The Wranglers most goals in a game this season came against the Jackalopes on Oct. 21 (8-6). As for Odessa, their most goals in a game came last weekend against the IceRays (7-3). They won the following night, 6-3, marking their most goals in a weekend series this season (13). The Wranglers season high for a weekend series is nine and they have done that twice thus far. Odessa has been held scoreless three times this season but has also recorded a shutout of their own. Amarillo has been shutout only once this season and has yet to record a shutout. Odessa averages 2.90 goals-per-game putting them 17th in the league. Amarillo scores an average of 2.87 goals a game which is T-19 in the NAHL.
Home Ice:
The weekend will cap off the longest homestand of the season for Amarillo (10 games). They are currently 4-3-1 dating back to the start of the homestand on Dec. 9 against Shreveport. The Wranglers perform way better in front of their fans than they do on the road. Their record at the Budweiser Bull Pen this season is 8-6-1-1. They are 3-6-1 while on the road against South Division opponents. Amarillo ranks 16th (18.6%) in the NAHL on the powerplay. However, as the home team, they are sixth with a success rate of 22.8%. Even their penalty kill improves from sixth (85.9%) to second (90.6%) as the home team.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
Jackalopes (F: #17 – Brendan Finn)
The 20-year-old is in his final year of junior eligibility. The Oxford, MI native started his NAHL career last season with Odessa. Finn played in 35 games for the Jacks registering three goals and seven assists. The 6’1”/174lb. left-handed forward is currently tied for seventh on the team in points with nine (5G, 4A). Finn is coming off his most productive NAHL weekend after recording two goals and an assist against the IceRays. He has played in two games against Amarillo this season and is still looking for his first point. Before reaching the NAHL, Finn spent two years playing for Lake Orion High (USHS-MI). Putting up 61 points (31G, 30A) in 40 games. Putting him top-two in scoring each season.
Wranglers (F: #22 – Chase Davis)
The Alpharetta, GA native is in his final season of junior hockey. The 20-year-old started his NAHL career last season playing 36 games with the Aberdeen Wings (4G, 10A). The 6’5”/195lb. right-handed forward finished out his rookie campaign by playing 20 games for Amarillo (2G, 2A). The Bentley University commit currently leads his team in points (27), goals (10), and plus/minus (11). Davis has played in all four games against Odessa this season and has tallied six points (2G, 4A). Also, Davis recently was on a career-high six-game point streak where he picked up three goals and six assists during that span. Before reaching the NAHL, Davis played the 2020-21 season with the Rocky Mountain Roughriders 18U AAA and produced 25 points (10G, 15A) in 31 games.
Photo credit: Danne Braden
